Brought my CGO3+ back from the dead!

JulesTEO · Oct 21, 2016

Well, I thought the camera was dead; I even purchased a new CGO3+, but even the new camera wouldn't power on.

I checked the connections for any damaged pins under the H, I replaced the connecton board but there was just nothing going on.

So, technically the damaged CGO3+ could be fine, but the H wouldn't power it.

I assumed it had to be some internal damage on the H. I did some research and I concluded it was the main power distribution board, so I ordered a new board, took a deep breath and decided to replace it myself.

But Why?? Just in case you are wondering: I did communicate with Yuneec, but since I'm not in the US it would be very complicated and costly to send it to Yuneec US, not the mention the time it would take and if it would be under warranty as it was damaged on a crash that was my error and so on.

The good news: everything went fine and now it works perfectly!

I purchased the board from Vertigo Drones ($129.99) and it arrived just 2 days after the purchase and the same day I received it (yesterday) the H was back in business.

I did try to find some dissassembly guides as I usually do before I do this kind of stuff, but I only found a couple of pictures but nothing too in detail, it seems there's not a lot of information out there yet. It took me a couple of hours to get the job done.

I have to say I was very happy to be able to repair the H, maybe it's not that big of a deal but it was definitely a personal achievement and I wanted to share it with you guys

So, what happened? I'm not sure, but I believe that when 2 cables from the gimbal where pulled out they somehow, in a fraction of a second touched another of the neighbor soldering points, short circuiting and damaging the main power board.

Since I didn't find much information on the web I decided to document the whole procedure, so in case anyone is interested I might upload the video later.

Greetings!

Brandon Lowe · Oct 21, 2016

JulesTEO said:
Well, I thought the camera was dead; I even purchased a new CGO3+, but even the new camera wouldn't power on.

I checked the connections for any damaged pins under the H, I replaced the connecton board but there was just nothing going on.

So, technically the damaged CGO3+ could be fine, but the H wouldn't power it.

I assumed it had to be some internal damage on the H. I did some research and I concluded it was the main power distribution board, so I ordered a new board, took a deep breath and decided to replace it myself.

But Why?? Just in case you are wondering: I did communicate with Yuneec, but since I'm not in the US it would be very complicated and costly to send it to Yuneec US, not the mention the time it would take and if it would be under warranty as it was damaged on a crash that was my error and so on.

The good news: everything went fine and now it works perfectly!

I purchased the board from Vertigo Drones ($129.99) and it arrived just 2 days after the purchase and the same day I received it (yesterday) the H was back in business.

I did try to find some dissassembly guides as I usually do before I do this kind of stuff, but I only found a couple of pictures but nothing too in detail, it seems there's not a lot of information out there yet. It took me a couple of hours to get the job done.

I have to say I was very happy to be able to repair the H, maybe it's not that big of a deal but it was definitely a personal achievement and I wanted to share it with you guys

So, what happened? I'm not sure, but I believe that when 2 cables from the gimbal where pulled out they somehow, in a fraction of a second touched another of the neighbor soldering points, short circuiting and damaging the main power board.

Since I didn't find much information on the web I decided to document the whole procedure, so in case anyone is interested I might upload the video later.

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Greetings!

Sorry you had to do it yourself but great job. I hope parts support continues after they stop making the H.

PatR · Oct 21, 2016

Well done and thanks for the show and tell!

Something I would like to add for the DIY group is the need to provide ESD protection when working with components on electrical boards. The human body can pass upwards of thousands of volts of electricity via static discharge when first touching an electrical component, shorting out sensitive components before they are used the first time. We've all experienced this on cold, dry days after walking barefoot across carpet and touching another object, receiving a sharp, brief electrical shock. If you don't have ESD equipment, never touch an electrical component inside your multirotor. Touch only the edges of the boards as seen in the OP's second picture.. It's best to read up on preventing ESD before embarking on electrical assembly activities.

RiverRunner · Oct 21, 2016

Good news!

Rayray · Oct 21, 2016

Jules,
This is not only super good news for you, but good and timely information for all of us. Thanks, and when you have the video, please do make it available.

Dragonflyerthom · Oct 21, 2016

Ray he did post a video

Mickeyboo · Oct 21, 2016

Well done and thanks very much for documenting the procedure there may come a time when I'm in the middle of nowhere and I will be able to do a repair thanks to your thoughtfully documenting the process. Thanks for be so considerate and congrats on a successful operation without much documentation.

JulesTEO · Oct 21, 2016

Dragonflyerthom said:
Ray he did post a video

I believe Ray meant the video of the whole procedure.

Rayray said:
Jules,
This is not only super good news for you, but good and timely information for all of us. Thanks, and when you have the video, please do make it available.

Well, here's the video!

Note, I wanted to show you the entire process so you can hopefully find something useful other than just exactly what I did. I just sped up some repetitive tasks (such as removing screws) but I edited as little as possible.
Therefore this is a LOOONG video

Also, I believe I should add a small disclaimer just in case

: This video is merely a documentation of what I did and how I figured out to do it at that moment. I have zero experience on drone reparation. I am not responsible if you decide to follow these exact steps and damage your Typhoon H. Do it at your own risk, you are on your own as I was.

I hope you find this useful and that you all can forgive my rusty English

Babarosa · Oct 21, 2016

Would this be a good time for some die electric grease and or corrosion x during reassembly ? Excellent video thanks for the footage.

MarioH · Oct 22, 2016

JulesTEO said:
I believe Ray meant the video of the whole procedure.

Well, here's the video!

Note, I wanted to show you the entire process so you can hopefully find something useful other than just exactly what I did. I just sped up some repetitive tasks (such as removing screws) but I edited as little as possible.
Therefore this is a LOOONG video

Also, I believe I should add a small disclaimer just in case : This video is merely a documentation of what I did and how I figured out to do it at that moment. I have zero experience on drone reparation. I am not responsible if you decide to follow these exact steps and damage your Typhoon H. Do it at your own risk, you are on your own as I was.

I hope you find this useful and that you all can forgive my rusty English

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is it me or you just missed a screw at the end? btw great job.

JulesTEO · Oct 22, 2016

MarioH said:
is it me or you just missed a screw at the end? btw great job.

Not a single screw missed

Thanks!

JCFlippen · Oct 22, 2016

Thanks for showing us the process. It is very useful to see the inside construction for future first line repair examination if there is trouble.

JulesTEO · Oct 22, 2016

JCFlippen said:
Thanks for showing us the process. It is very useful to see the inside construction for future first line repair examination if there is trouble.

You're welcome. I'm sure it will be a nice reference in case someone needs to get inside the H

BobW55 · Oct 22, 2016

Jules,
My hat is off to you. Excellent job with a great video.
I downloaded it so I can reference it later, I want to try something with the motor arm LEDs.

1000 Typhoon points for you.

Rayray · Oct 22, 2016

JulesTEO said:
Well, here's the video!

Thank you, what a great job, both for yourself and for the forum members.

Pilot60 · Oct 22, 2016

Near the connector of cgo on the mainboard, there is a little white smd fuse with 6A. If cgo don't works, the fuse is broken. IT is easy and cheap to replace. If you remove the connectorboard of the cgo, there is pinout printed on the backside. You can easy check the VCC.

RiverRunner · Oct 22, 2016

Pilot60 said:
Near the connector of cgo on the mainboard, there is a little white smd fuse with 6A. If cgo don't works, the fuse is broken. IT is easy and cheap to replace. If you remove the connectorboard of the cgo, there is pinout printed on the backside. You can easy check the VCC.

Great to know. Thanks.

JulesTEO · Oct 22, 2016

Pilot60 said:
Near the connector of cgo on the mainboard, there is a little white smd fuse with 6A. If cgo don't works, the fuse is broken. IT is easy and cheap to replace. If you remove the connectorboard of the cgo, there is pinout printed on the backside. You can easy check the VCC.

Good to know, but which SMD would be the fuse you're talking about? I just took some pictures of my damaged board:

This is the top of the mainboard and the connection itself

Bottom of the board

JulesTEO · Oct 23, 2016

BobW55 said:
Jules,
My hat is off to you. Excellent job with a great video.
I downloaded it so I can reference it later, I want to try something with the motor arm LEDs.

1000 Typhoon points for you.

Thank you so much, I will make sure to spend this Typhoon points wisely