So after 2 years of flying the Typhoon H today the copter would not land. It hovered at about 20 feet above the ground and everything I did, would not bring it down to land. I tried ascending and then descending, I tried Angle Mode and Smart mode, to no avail. So eventually I opted for my son to press the red start/stop button: the motors stopped and it fell down. I tried to catch it but couldn't. Broke one arm, the camera dislodged breaking the connecting edges that slide into the body of the copter, broke two propellers - that is all I know. What a shame after 2+ years of wonderful flying. As the copter was hanging up in the air, I called Yuneec to realize they no longer provide support on Saturdays. Did not know what to do, other than bring it down as I was afraid it would fly away. Any ideas out there.
Typhoon H would not land; had to cut off the motors; crashed broke arm, propellers, camera housing...
- Thread starter Icarus-50
- Start date
Dang. There are two thing that would have worked.
Home mode should have made an auto land. If not, turning off the GPS would have given you full control.
Home mode should have made an auto land. If not, turning off the GPS would have given you full control.
Ouch. Very sorry to hear this happened, and that you didn't know what to do to rescue it. There are 3 things in fact that work almost every time to save that situation - the 2 methods SC mentioned, and Red Button short presses would have done it as well, each one dropping it 1 ft until it is in hand-catch range... the 4th method (holding throttle to minimum for at least 20 seconds while the craft inches its way downwards) also works sometimes, but not every time. There is a 5th method too, which I mention last because it has only worked for me once, which is to rise to 100 ft, leave it there for 10 seconds, and try the descent again.
Yuneec UK told me that my report of this behaviour was the first they had ever heard of it - I'll be interested to hear what they say to you.
I have my own theory about why this happens occasionally, if you are interested, which you could help corroborate or disprove by looking at your flight logs. I think it has to do with massively inaccurate barometer readings and the effect that has on the TH's normal staged descent.
If my theory is correct, your barometer-driven altitude reading should be way off your actual height, and more importantly, at the time of descent, way off the height offset that was established when you took off , which are the circumstances I have noticed every time this has happened to me. If you'd like to see this in action I made the video below which demonstrates it. Watch my hilariously inaccurate altimeter readings, which begin correctly pre-motors, but rapidly go weird immediately after motor start and then throughout the launch, only stabilizing (at a wildly wrong value) about 30 seconds later...
In this case we have the first refusal to descend at 08:41 (throttle continues to be held low, but vertical speed reduces to 0) which lasts until 09:15, when method 4 above works for me and I can get her back down just by relentlessly holding throttle at minimum...
Yuneec UK told me that my report of this behaviour was the first they had ever heard of it - I'll be interested to hear what they say to you.
I have my own theory about why this happens occasionally, if you are interested, which you could help corroborate or disprove by looking at your flight logs. I think it has to do with massively inaccurate barometer readings and the effect that has on the TH's normal staged descent.
If my theory is correct, your barometer-driven altitude reading should be way off your actual height, and more importantly, at the time of descent, way off the height offset that was established when you took off , which are the circumstances I have noticed every time this has happened to me. If you'd like to see this in action I made the video below which demonstrates it. Watch my hilariously inaccurate altimeter readings, which begin correctly pre-motors, but rapidly go weird immediately after motor start and then throughout the launch, only stabilizing (at a wildly wrong value) about 30 seconds later...
In this case we have the first refusal to descend at 08:41 (throttle continues to be held low, but vertical speed reduces to 0) which lasts until 09:15, when method 4 above works for me and I can get her back down just by relentlessly holding throttle at minimum...
Last edited:
FlushVision
Premium Pilot
There is also a sixth method. Simply turn off the controller so that the aircraft isn't receiving any control signal. The aircraft will then return to near the position of the ST16 and then hover. Once the battery has reached a certain low level the aircraft will auto land. (Ensure that you have not set your rth height too high for this to work)
This will also work if the GPS has been switched off if you've tried Steve Carr's second option and that has failed to work. The aircraft will still return to the last known position of the controller so long as the GPS was on at the beginning of the flight.
This will also work if the GPS has been switched off if you've tried Steve Carr's second option and that has failed to work. The aircraft will still return to the last known position of the controller so long as the GPS was on at the beginning of the flight.
Thank you Steve. I panicked & have learned the hard way. I need to regain my confidence in the bird once I fly it again - repeatedly - after the repairs. Thank you for your quick response.
Aero, thank you for your points. I am learning the expensive way. I had read about tapping the red button, but not in this context, so it didn't occur to me. I am going to watch ch yr video. Thank you.
Thank you FlushVision. I had not heard of this; completely new to me. Feel down because of the crash right now.
Thank you for your input. I am sending the drone for repairs first thing on Monday. Let's hope I get it back soon to enjoy it again.
- Joined
- Oct 24, 2017
- Messages
- 65
- Reaction score
- 11
- Age
- 68
Thanks for your post, Icarus-50. Same problem here - not able to land intermittently. Both scary and risky. RTH has been the most successful solution, albeit, slow. I've not yet tested the low battery effects on the RTH mode :/.
SC, Thanks for your input on this matter of failure to land. Your suggestion to turn off GPS I will try today and get back with you all. Coupled with a no descent issue, GPS usually has trouble acquiring GPS lock even aftyer several minutes showing in excess of 19 satellites for base unit and 19 for aircraft. Maybe this is more than a coincidence. I can say that pairing my offending aircraft with my H Pro ST-16 base unit, turning off Real Sense, shows no improvement. The ST-16 for my Pro has no issues with the Pro H eliminating the non-real sense ST-16 as the culprit.
C
UPDATE: BTW, aircraft and controller each have latest most current firmware and software applied. Controller has been calibrated numerous times, I always calibrate compass before each flight. I also have an H 480 Pro which does not have these described issues which perhaps could tend to support ruling out pilot error. As promised, since posting my reply to Steve Carr above, I retested my H 480 on several occasions. In all sessions I experienced GPS acquiring problems (this has been an historical problem and most annoying). Skip forward. Two out of three recent flight sessions the H 480 flew exceptionally well for 12-14 minutes each (I recorded the flights - countless take offs, landings, climbing, descending, all of it - no problems aside from trouble acquiring aircraft GPS experienced during the first battery; just like nothing was wrong - then problems after switching out battery - weird. The controller and aircraft each maintained around 19 satellites which seems consistent in my experience whether acquiring problems occur or not. The third flight session was very problematic: forever acquiring GPS, and would not start for an extended 5-10 minutes, unable to land properly). I was able to connect GPS, or launch. After a bunch of waiting, restarting aircraft, restarting controller, the aircraft finally acquired GPS. Once airborne, I tried to land....no go. With full down stick, the descent was slow, stalled, even lifted if I let the left stick go to neutral. As suggested, Steve, I TURNED OFF GPS on the controller and was able to promptly bring in the aircraft to land safely. Don't try that for the first time on a windy day! Drift is a real concern then without GPS. I wanted to add my confirmation to your GPS disconnect comment. I seriuosly question the health of the GPS system. Your thoughts?
Craig
Last edited:
FlushVision
Premium Pilot
I dunno. My experience is that the TH has no difficulty with flying at altitudes below the height that it took off from...into valleys from a hill, for example... I do it often. My TH slows it's decent when it goes down towards what it 'thinks' is the ground level then quickens up again when below that point.
- Joined
- Mar 18, 2017
- Messages
- 894
- Reaction score
- 387
Comparing the 480 and the 520- there's a big difference in altitude hold and stability.
The OS is different and the landing and RTH is significantly better on the 520.
FlushVision
Premium Pilot
I can only speak for the H480. I have no experience with the H520. (I was gonna buy one but I put it off
)
We don't have a good way to determine the exact cause. However, turning off the GPS eliminates the problem. That is the best clue we have.
Hi, when you say "just tap the red button" to land , do you then mean just a SHORT tap or a ½ to 1 second or so? Nice to know if I have to do it...
Red Button Landing Method
Just a click of the button... like your mouse control... clicking performs one function... holding an entirely different function.
Maybe you mean Steve Carr?
This is one of the few threads where I do not see (or I may have have overlooked) PatR's wise words.
- Joined
- Oct 10, 2016
- Messages
- 103
- Reaction score
- 27
- Age
- 62
I was having a problem similar, I would try to decend and it would lurch up about 3 feet then very slowly decend.It was only happening occasionally, at first then more frequently, Also I was having the toilet bowel effect on occasion. I eventually replaced the gps board and have not had a problems since.
Similar threads
- Locked
