Hi all,
So Yuneec decided to send me a new copter based on the following conclusions.
They claim that I inadvertently switched the copter to manual mode at some point. I remember that I found the double software switch (one for GPS and one for manual) very confusing and it is possible that by playing with it while the drone was disconnected I changed this setting without realizing it.
Now here is the thing: apparently, this setting is communicated to the drone via the 5.8GHz link, not the 2.4 GHz one. When you power on the copter the initial setting is therefore always that of the hardware switch (sport/angle /RTH). When the video link is established the setting recorded in the software is transmitted to the drone and overrides the hardware switch.
At least in principle. Because by Yuneec's own admission it can happen that it fails to be transmitted. Therefore you would still be able to take off in angle mode even if manual mode had been activated in the software. But then the drone can revert to manual mid-flight, for example when you change the value of the hardware switch, e.g. to sport mode (presumably because it would resync with the remote software but I am speculating here as the explanations I got were not that precise).
My understanding is also that if the video link is lost (as happened to me many times), the drone might go back to the setting of the hardware switch, although this is unfortunately not what happened in this case. But looking at flight 8 of my log, that would be an explanation for why the drone switched back to fMode 5 after flying some time in 4 (I recall I lost the video link during that flight).
This is, in my opinion, a very ill-conceived system.
Yuneec said they will update the user manual (where the manual mode is still undocumented!) and also make changes to the software.
@Ty Pilot Could it be that what you experienced with the IPS mode is of similar nature? Just an idea...
Last but not least, their idea is that the radio link was severed when the copter crashed against the mountain. I would have to check again the altitudes on a map.
Happy to read your comments!
So Yuneec decided to send me a new copter based on the following conclusions.
They claim that I inadvertently switched the copter to manual mode at some point. I remember that I found the double software switch (one for GPS and one for manual) very confusing and it is possible that by playing with it while the drone was disconnected I changed this setting without realizing it.
Now here is the thing: apparently, this setting is communicated to the drone via the 5.8GHz link, not the 2.4 GHz one. When you power on the copter the initial setting is therefore always that of the hardware switch (sport/angle /RTH). When the video link is established the setting recorded in the software is transmitted to the drone and overrides the hardware switch.
At least in principle. Because by Yuneec's own admission it can happen that it fails to be transmitted. Therefore you would still be able to take off in angle mode even if manual mode had been activated in the software. But then the drone can revert to manual mid-flight, for example when you change the value of the hardware switch, e.g. to sport mode (presumably because it would resync with the remote software but I am speculating here as the explanations I got were not that precise).
My understanding is also that if the video link is lost (as happened to me many times), the drone might go back to the setting of the hardware switch, although this is unfortunately not what happened in this case. But looking at flight 8 of my log, that would be an explanation for why the drone switched back to fMode 5 after flying some time in 4 (I recall I lost the video link during that flight).
This is, in my opinion, a very ill-conceived system.
Yuneec said they will update the user manual (where the manual mode is still undocumented!) and also make changes to the software.
@Ty Pilot Could it be that what you experienced with the IPS mode is of similar nature? Just an idea...
Last but not least, their idea is that the radio link was severed when the copter crashed against the mountain. I would have to check again the altitudes on a map.
Happy to read your comments!
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