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Spark now crash lands

Roger S

Well-Known Member
Join
Apr 6, 2018
Messages
145
Age
40
Instead of slowing on the last few feet of descent it now lands hard. Last land I tried the grab from behind then tilt spark. However after tilting on its side the props kept spinning. It then fell on its back and started flinging gravel a few seconds before finally shutting down. WTF?
 
I'm pretty sure you have to turn it over completely to shut it off, not on it's side. I've never tried it though.

Did it start acting up before or after the crash? Sounds like you may need to re-calibrate, and replace props as needed
 
Before the crashs we flew into fog over ocean and got infrared sensor failure warning
 
What is the function of the IR sensor? This seems to fail in fog. Vision from controller was clear when landing though. I would expect accelerometer failure to cause props to keep spinning after tilting 90 degrees.
 
Last edited:
The IR sensors on the spark, front and bottom has two main fuctions. The first is obsticle aviodance, sens if there is object infront of spark so you dont fly straight into a wall for example, and one below so you dont fly into the ground. The second fuction of IR sensors below the spark is measure distance and provide telemetry to dji go 4 app. The sensor below measure you distance when take off from ground level. If you had IR malfunction due fog/moisture it can mean the spark no longer accuratly k ows how high it is, so when RTM and try land it might not be able do a proper precision landing as it does know how how high it is and "hard lands" as you call the last little bit. As per the prevoius post you check all sensors if they are scatched or appear damage, the issue may also be temporary if it is just due to the fog/moisture. Perhaps once it dries properly it will be fine. It advisable to check weather condition before hand, there lots apps that check weather conditions for droning. Flying in fog seems like a bad idea all around, for visibility and gps, and footage.
 
When flying in fog the lower sensor will mist over and this will result in a hard landing.. Bad idea flying in fog,,,:oops:
 
Had a similar incident this morning in which fog covered the bottom sensor and it proceeded to land on its own
 
The IR sensors on the spark, front and bottom has two main fuctions. The first is obsticle aviodance, sens if there is object infront of spark so you dont fly straight into a wall for example, and one below so you dont fly into the ground. The second fuction of IR sensors below the spark is measure distance and provide telemetry to dji go 4 app. The sensor below measure you distance when take off from ground level. If you had IR malfunction due fog/moisture it can mean the spark no longer accuratly k ows how high it is, so when RTM and try land it might not be able do a proper precision landing as it does know how how high it is and "hard lands" as you call the last little bit. As per the prevoius post you check all sensors if they are scatched or appear damage, the issue may also be temporary if it is just due to the fog/moisture. Perhaps once it dries properly it will be fine. It advisable to check weather condition before hand, there lots apps that check weather conditions for droning. Flying in fog seems like a bad idea all around, for visibility and gps, and footage.
I think condensation may have the reason or hard landing. Thanks for the info. After a couple of days to dry out it seems to land fine when flying in a hot dry area away from the ocean.
 
I'm pretty sure you have to turn it over completely to shut it off, not on it's side. I've never tried it though.

It used to work as demonstrated in several videos on YT,

However according dji tech support (very hard to communicate with unless you're fluent in Chinese) it doesn't stop unless spark is turned completly upside down. I wonder if a recent firmware update changed the turnoff tilt from 90 to 180 degrees? if so I wish they'd warned us before we risked losing fingers. I thought for sure I'd lost a couple of props after I dropped it in the gravel. It kicked a few stones around while squirming on it's back before finally shutting down.
 
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I think condensation may have the reason or hard landing. Thanks for the info. After a couple of days to dry out it seems to land fine when flying in a hot dry area away from the ocean.
Thats great roger, i am glad it's back to normal. I have say as far as drones goes the spark a little tank, it pretty robust i havent had much issues with it. But drones can be such a expensive hobby if you factor in all the cost with all the accessories, there no worst feeling if you think your drone might be damaged. :)
 
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