Vision App radar gives wrong heading

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I use a Nexus 7 with DJI Vision app ver. 1.0.36 and suddenly the app's radar function is showing my P2V's heading more than 90 degrees incorrect in the CW direction. I say 'suddenly' because two weeks ago the heading was correct with the P2V. This is important to me because I lose P2V orientation when it gets about 400 feet away from the home point.

I have a second Nexus 7-2 with app ver. 1.0.38 and it is showing the same incorrect heading. (Neither Nexus has an internal compass.) My search of the forum turned up one other user that had this same issue and it was suggested it was his phone causing the problem. Unfortunately, that was the end of that thread.

I received my P2V on 1 Dec. 2013 and I have all of the firmware updates installed. In spite of my having crashed my P2V four times, everything on the P2V is still functioning OK (The biggest issue was chipped/broken props which were replaced with new ones). During my troubleshooting on this problem, I have re-calibrated the compass many times, tested with two different versions of the Vision app on two different Nexus 7's, changed batteries in my RC, made sure my 5.3 amp LiPo batteries and the Range Extender battery were freshly charged for each flight, I have taken the P2V shell off and inspected all of the connections inside the chassis, and made sure the camera is functioning correct in gimbal movement, taking pictures and taking videos and I have no problem with WiFi connections.

:roll: At this point, I am about out of 'guesses' and would appreciate any suggestions pertaining to a solution to this problem!

Thanks,

ChesterT
 
In addition to the above information, my P2V does fly normally. Once I have done the compass dance, anytime I let go of the RC sticks, the P2V hovers very stable within +/- 4 or 5 feet. If I shut the RC off, the automatic 'go home and land' function works correct. I normally and still get about 20 to 24 minutes flight time on a fully charged LiPo.
 
ChesterT said:
I use a Nexus 7 with DJI Vision app ver. 1.0.36 and suddenly the app's radar function is showing my P2V's heading more than 90 degrees incorrect in the CW direction. I say 'suddenly' because two weeks ago the heading was correct with the P2V. This is important to me because I lose P2V orientation when it gets about 400 feet away from the home point.

I have a second Nexus 7-2 with app ver. 1.0.38 and it is showing the same incorrect heading. (Neither Nexus has an internal compass.) My search of the forum turned up one other user that had this same issue and it was suggested it was his phone causing the problem. Unfortunately, that was the end of that thread.

I received my P2V on 1 Dec. 2013 and I have all of the firmware updates installed. In spite of my having crashed my P2V four times, everything on the P2V is still functioning OK (The biggest issue was chipped/broken props which were replaced with new ones). During my troubleshooting on this problem, I have re-calibrated the compass many times, tested with two different versions of the Vision app on two different Nexus 7's, changed batteries in my RC, made sure my 5.3 amp LiPo batteries and the Range Extender battery were freshly charged for each flight, I have taken the P2V shell off and inspected all of the connections inside the chassis, and made sure the camera is functioning correct in gimbal movement, taking pictures and taking videos and I have no problem with WiFi connections.

:roll: At this point, I am about out of 'guesses' and would appreciate any suggestions pertaining to a solution to this problem!

Thanks,

ChesterT

I also use the nexus 7 and have not had any issues regarding orientation of the PV icon.. one thing I was curious about was if you pushed past the range would it even stay on the screen ? yes it does and even points in the correct orientation but just remains on the outer limit.. why yours if off is a puzzle...
 

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I have the later Nexus 7 and app and the orientation works fine, although from time to time it when flying at distance it was showing on th wrong side of the radar screen having it to the left of my home point rather than straight ahead / slightly to right. I knew it was wrong because I still had VLOS as well as seeing the video preview. Strange that should happen, it usually provides the correct info.
 
In my situation, my phone (Galaxy Note 3) does not maintain good compass calibration. I use an app called "GPS Status" to calibrate the phone compass and all works well (of course until it doesn't, then I calibrate again.) The DJI application uses the phones internal compass to know direction you are looking, your device must have an internal compass for this to work.

Cheers
 
The attitude display in the lower left corner shows which way the P2V is pointing.
In the picturs above, it seems to agree with the P2V's indicated heading on
the radar display, just a bit East of North.

Do your two displays show different headings for the P2V, or does your radar display
just show the wrong bearing from your location to the P2V?

On my 7" Samsung Galaxy Tab 2, the radar display is so small that it is very
difficult to use. Adding the feature of tapping on the radar, the attitude instrument,
or the upper right corner icons to blow them up to near full screen size would be
very helpful. A second tap, on the larger display, could shrink it back down.
 
Pull_Up said:
What happens if you touch the radar screen and change it from Home centred to Phone (or in your case tablet) centred view. Still offset?

When I touch the center of the radar screen the 'H' remains and does not change to a 'phone' icon?

ChesterT
 
garygid said:
The attitude display in the lower left corner shows which way the P2V is pointing.
In the picturs above, it seems to agree with the P2V's indicated heading on
the radar display, just a bit East of North.

Yes, and the red icon is showing that his Phantom is nose toward the home point.

Do your two displays show different headings for the P2V, or does your radar display
just show the wrong bearing from your location to the P2V?

No, both tablets show approximately the same heading but the icon is just a little different between the two tablets. Yes, the radar display shows the wrong heading from my home point.

On my 7" Samsung Galaxy Tab 2, the radar display is so small that it is very
difficult to use. Adding the feature of tapping on the radar, the attitude instrument,
or the upper right corner icons to blow them up to near full screen size would be
very helpful. A second tap, on the larger display, could shrink it back down.

The 7 inch display with the Nexus 7-2 is very nice, giving a good readable display, even in the sun. I do have a sun hood around my display, which helps a lot.

ChesterT
 
ChesterT said:
Pull_Up said:
What happens if you touch the radar screen and change it from Home centred to Phone (or in your case tablet) centred view. Still offset?

When I touch the center of the radar screen the 'H' remains and does not change to a 'phone' icon?

ChesterT

Hmmm, per page 38 of the manual it should change:

(1) By default, the center of the radar indicates the home point that has been recorded by the
PHANTOM 2 VISION. Tap the center of the radar to switch the center to your mobile device's
current location.
(2) If your mobile device contains a compass, the top portion of the Radar is the direction you are
pointing. If not, the radar will be oriented due north
 
"Hmmm, per page 38 of the manual it should change: "

Yes, I am aware of that as I have most of that section of the users manual almost memorized! ;) I am beginning to wonder if I am not interpreting something correct as this really shouldn't be that hard to fix? The puzzling thing is this had been working up until about two weeks ago and I can't recall any problems/crashes since it had been working.

If you think of anything else I would appreciate your letting me know.

Thanks,

ChesterT
 
:eek: I think I have finally found the solution to my Vision App radar function not pointing the heading of my P2V correctly!!

In the Help Forum titled 'Radar in Android app.', Amrflyingdude posted this information:

"The reason why the Icon on the radar does not show the right direction on your phone is because "most" android phones have a multidirectional sensor that feeds X & Y position to the phone differently than other phones (The module is in fact completely different from iPhone for example), do this test. Next time you fly your phantom go to the radar (Tap on the attitude indicator on the lower left) and start moving the phone while on the holder on TX is as flat as possible, you will see the icon slowly getting to the right place. This will not affect anything at all and is not a bug either, is simply a design thing that all. When you tilt your phone the sensor thinks you are rotating it as well."

Since I had my Nexus 7 attached to my DJI RC, I immediately removed it and attached it to one of my camera tripods. While keeping my RC several feet away from the Nexus 7, the Vision App's radar function now points in the correct direction for two 22 minute flights and I am pretty much convinced that separating the RC from the Nexus cured the problem. My prior research showed the Nexus 7 does not have a compass but it does have a magnetometer, which uses a different method of determining direction. At this point I have to assume that somehow the Android operating system uses the magnetometer data to determine P2V heading information and since Apple devices (most) all do have an internal compass, Apple devices do not have this issue?

At least now I can feel more comfortable flying my P2V beyond distances where I lose P2V orientation!

ChesterT
 
ChesterT said:
:eek: I think I have finally found the solution to my Vision App radar function not pointing the heading of my P2V correctly!!

In the Help Forum titled 'Radar in Android app.', Amrflyingdude posted this information:

"The reason why the Icon on the radar does not show the right direction on your phone is because "most" android phones have a multidirectional sensor that feeds X & Y position to the phone differently than other phones (The module is in fact completely different from iPhone for example), do this test. Next time you fly your phantom go to the radar (Tap on the attitude indicator on the lower left) and start moving the phone while on the holder on TX is as flat as possible, you will see the icon slowly getting to the right place. This will not affect anything at all and is not a bug either, is simply a design thing that all. When you tilt your phone the sensor thinks you are rotating it as well."

Since I had my Nexus 7 attached to my DJI RC, I immediately removed it and attached it to one of my camera tripods. While keeping my RC several feet away from the Nexus 7, the Vision App's radar function now points in the correct direction for two 22 minute flights and I am pretty much convinced that separating the RC from the Nexus cured the problem. My prior research showed the Nexus 7 does not have a compass but it does have a magnetometer, which uses a different method of determining direction. At this point I have to assume that somehow the Android operating system uses the magnetometer data to determine P2V heading information and since Apple devices (most) all do have an internal compass, Apple devices do not have this issue?

At least now I can feel more comfortable flying my P2V beyond distances where I lose P2V orientation!

ChesterT


Have a galaxy S4 and the p2V radar icon shows pointing about 15-20 degrees out of actual ... will definitiely try all these pointers to see if makes difference, will also test with wifes 10.1tablet to check as well if any change.
 
"Have a galaxy S4 and the p2V radar icon shows pointing about 15-20 degrees out of actual ... will definitiely try all these pointers to see if makes difference, will also test with wifes 10.1tablet to check as well if any change."

If by "10" you mean a Nexus 10, that may work just fine because the Nexus 10 does have it's own compass! Good luck with your test and please post your results.

ChesterT
 
Hi ChesterT and thanks a lot for the post.
I was really wondering about my compass heading in the Vision app.
I have a Nexus 10 (standing apart from the RC, quite vertically, on a camera tripod) and everything happens the same way :
- the radar is heading 90° CW (aiming to west instead of north for instance)
- When I touch the center of the radar screen, most of the time the 'H' remains and does not change to a phone icon ... but sometimes it works ... but no improvement on the radar picture.
- as well, no behavior issue at all when flying the P2V+, just the radar.

Boring but not a major issue. Of course, I'd prefer to see it work as it should be useful when flying FPV.
Further to your inputs, I'm gonna to make additional tests, rotating the tab in horizontal position.
Shall you have more information since last replies, please advise.
Thank you
Greetings from France
Phil
 
Boring but not a major issue. Of course said:
Thanks Phil and I sure would be interested in what you find out with your 10 inch Nexus!
BTW my daughter has been living in Paris for a little over 16 years and I try to get over there as often as I can afford it!

Greetings from south Georgia!

ChesterT
 
phantomguy said:
Had same issue with my nexus 7. Calibrated the nexus compass and issue has remained resolved

Good idea Phantomguy, thanks. But why didn't I think about it !? :D
Was your heading difference significant ?
90° is quite huge.
Anyway, I've calibrated the Nexus indoor this morning. Correction is about 10° (which is not so bad). I look forward to seing the result on the DJI app. If not enough, I'll recalibrate outdoor (but I'm not expecting much better).

ChesterT said:
BTW my daughter has been living in Paris for a little over 16 years and I try to get over there as often as I can afford it!
Great ! I hope she (and you) enjoy Paris. Downtown is gorgeous, Paris is an open museum ! The only drawback are the parisian people :( too much rude and aggressive.
My daughter too spent 4 years there. She and her friend got quickly fed up with this crazy life and she signed a contract with a company in Perth. They just left to Australia ... for an undefined period !
We know now where to spend our next holydays :lol:
I've never been there however she already spent 6 months in Adelaide and she enjoyed a lot the country, australian people and their hospitality.
The only problem is the distance (like for you) !
That's life and it's good also to see our children move and exchange with worldwide people.
 
phil:
Initially my compass reading on the DJI app for my Phantom on my Nexus 7 tablet was almost perfect. Then for some reason it went to about 90 degrees off to the right at all times. If the Phantom was pointing to '12 oclock" the actual radar icon showed it pointing to 3' oclock". I forget the (free) app that I downloaded and used but it was simple to use. corrected the issue.

However, from the beginning I had subpar FPV experience on the nexus tablet than I did on my Iphone 5s. On the tablet running latest 4.4 Android software, latest DJI app, I often get pixelation and greenish screen effects. I rarely get this on the Iphone 5s. So now Im back to using the Iphone for FPV
 
Thanks Phantomguy, I'm rather pleased to see that troubles look the same in both our cases. Makes me confident in solving the situation.
Too much wind and/or too much work since I calibrated my Nexus10 so I never found time again for a new trial. Maybe this long week end !? I cross fingers.
I don't have the iPhone alternative :cool:
 

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