What Can Cause Your Drone to Fly Out of Range? mydronehq.com/what-cause-drone-fly-out-range February 16, 2021
There are many commercial and recreational applications of drones, such as military, delivery, emergency rescue, wildlife conservation, photography, etc. Purchasing a drone is a significant investment, and you want to ensure getting the most out of it. However, many people undergo problems like drone flyways and crashes. In this article, we’ll examine some common reasons that cause your drone to fly out of range and ways to prevent flyaways. Read on!
Automatic Flight Modes Today, most high-end drones come with autonomous flight and camera modes, allowing you to efficiently capture high-quality images and videos. However, automatic flight modes can cause your drone to run into obstacles and crash. Although obstacle avoidance and flyaway prevention systems can avoid accidents, these features are not available in most drones. With the automatic flight mode activated, your drone flies around in various directions and intricate patterns, leading to flyaways.
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Bad Weather Some drone models, such as quadcopters, require a steady flow of air to fly accurately. Likewise, a fixed-wing drone relies on the airflow generated below its wings. Weather conditions, such as rain and strong winds can disrupt the airflow and cause your drone to fly in a completely different direction. Strong winds, in particular, are hazardous for a fixed-wing drone. You might be unable to control your drone, causing it to drift away from the transmission range of the controller. As a result, your drone will run into obstacles and crash.
Random Electromagnetic Interference Power lines, industrial equipment, cell towers, and other electrified objects create a strong magnetic field, which interacts with electrical devices, including drones. Research shows that random electromagnetic interference can disrupt a drone’s signal flow and cause it to fly away in different directions. Besides, a magnetic field interferes with your drone’s control functions and make it unresponsive. Consequently, you will lose control, and your drone will fly out of range, fall on the ground or activate the Return-to-Home (RTH) function.
Malfunctioned or Dead Batteries Experts recommend charging the batteries before flying a drone commercially or recreationally. If you push the boundaries and try to fly your drone for a long time, you will lose control, and your drone will fly out of range. Even if your drone has an automatic RTH feature, it will take more time to return if flying far away. Likewise, flying a drone with weak or malfunctioned batteries is challenging, especially if you want to fly it against the wind. For example, if you fly a drone on the beach with strong winds, the device will consume more power, leading to quick battery drainage and causing the drone to fly out of range.
Hardware Failure Your drone hardware issue can lead to various problems, including flyaways and crashes. That’s why experts recommend always checking your drone in good working order before flying it. Besides, flight controller misconfiguration can cause your drone to fly out of range. The problem is common for users who assemble their drones using a DIY kit.
Ways to Prevent Drone Flyaways
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A drone flying out of range is a terrifying moment for many UAV pilots. However, the good news is that there are ways to prevent drone flyaways. While some flyaways are due to hardware function during the flight, others are associated with a lack of maintenance and pilot errors. Here are a few ways to prevent your drone from flying out of range.
Pre-Flight Check Double-check your drone before flying it to prevent flyaways, which can cause property damage or injuries to people. Check if the weather is suitable for the flight, and make sure you don’t fly it in a restricted zone or near electrified cell towers/magnetic fields. Likewise, check the wings, batteries, and controller.
Compass Calibration Just like you calibrate the thermostat before running your HVAC system, compass calibration is an important step to prevent drone flyaways. The compass plays a crucial role in determining the drone’s orientation, so it must not face any interference. Although each drone comes with a unique app, you can find the calibration feature in the app’s advanced setting.
Pre-set return to home (RTH) setting Return to home or RTH is a safety feature with most drones. If your drone has this feature, make sure you pre-set it according to the battery condition or duration. That way, your drone will fly back home autonomously before the battery gets low.
Always maintain a line of vision with drone As mentioned above, pilot errors are the most common causes of drone flyaways and crashes. If you want to protect your drone from getting lost or crash, then maintain a good line of vision with your device. So, don’t rely entirely on the live video feed. Keep your eyes on your drone to prevent flyaways.
Final Words Drones are cutting-edge technology devices to capture high-quality images and videos. However, if you fail to maintain your drone, it will undergo problems like flyaways and crashes. In this post, we’ve addressed some common causes of drone flyaways and ways to prevent them. Ensure that you follow these tips and tricks to avoid running into issues.
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