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GPS Lost Soon After Take Off

IM35461

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My eighth Karma flight and my first bad experience.

Some of my friends were heading out on a RIB so I planned to position Karma mid channel and video them leaving the Harbour.

However, soon after takeoff the controller said something like "Karma GPS lost use joysticks" while Karma kept heading across the river towards the tower and over some fishermen.


Anyway, after gaining altitude it seemed okay again but I missed my shot :(

Looking at the csv log (attached) from dashware (created from the video file) I see no glitches in the GPS data or any of the other data fields from Karma (why so many).

So is it Karma that lost GPS or is it the controller that lost GPS?
 

Attachments

  • GH010027.zip
    8.8 MB · Views: 2
This is the same video but with TeleMetric Data including GPS (note not all extra fields work, mapping them to Karma data seems tricky).


You will note that the GPS values never freeze or go blank so is the message the Karma Controller gives you the real cause of the loss of flight control?
 
My guess is you received the error about the compass being lost (although I am guessing). When this happened to me, I called GoPro support, uploaded my flight logs, and was told there was a manufacturing defect with the drone and they replaced it.
 
My one again lost GPS at 275' with a near perfect blue sky over a golf course (flight #13).

It was less than 100' away but the golf course is surrounded by trees so I thought I may hit them bringing it down. Anyway, in less than 30 seconds it said it had GPS again and was back under my control.

Still only getting a range of about 400' before the signal indicator goes into the yellow.

My Karma confidence level is low :(
 
When GPS is lost, are you able to control the Drone with the Joysticks, and how does it feel?
 
When GPS is lost, are you able to control the Drone with the Joysticks, and how does it feel?

Unlike the first time this happened it had a lot of free air space around it and the event did not last long.

Panic does seem to set in, "what do I do"? Try and look at in the sky or look at the video on the Controller. Gaining attitude seems to be a safe manoeuvre to start with.

In the video of the flight it is difficult to spot where control was lost as a few feet in any direction at 275 foot high hardly changes the field of view.

 
Unlike the first time this happened it had a lot of free air space around it and the event did not last long.

Panic does seem to set in, "what do I do"? Try and look at in the sky or look at the video on the Controller. Gaining attitude seems to be a safe manoeuvre to start with.

In the video of the flight it is difficult to spot where control was lost as a few feet in any direction at 275 foot high hardly changes the field of view.




Bet that radio antenna had something to do with!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 
Bet that radio antenna had something to do with!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

There really should be no GPS interference from nearby radio towers with few exceptions. Very high power in close proximity, or something like a Loran station nearby. I have had one wipe out my Vector controller on my homebuilt which has superior GPS. Looks like on coast.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
At the location of my last GPS loss was over our local golf course, no transmitter towers for over two miles and I was flying over 200' when it happened.

On the ground is just our covered drinking water resovouirs.

Granted, where it happened at the port entrance there would have been quite strong VHF marine radio plus radar.
 
My eighth Karma flight and my first bad experience.

Some of my friends were heading out on a RIB so I planned to position Karma mid channel and video them leaving the Harbour.

However, soon after takeoff the controller said something like "Karma GPS lost use joysticks" while Karma kept heading across the river towards the tower and over some fishermen.


Anyway, after gaining altitude it seemed okay again but I missed my shot :(

Looking at the csv log (attached) from dashware (created from the video file) I see no glitches in the GPS data or any of the other data fields from Karma (why so many).

So is it Karma that lost GPS or is it the controller that lost GPS?

I hear you, we had the same experience! I DON'T RECOMMEND ANYONE BUYS THIS PRODUCT!

I’ve never been more infuriated and disappointed in a brand. Poor quality product and worst customer service team I have ever encountered!!! We purchased this drone bundle prior to our honeymoon in hopes to use it many more times as we began our family. After only having it for less than 6 months, that was cut short. We took every precaution in configuring it correctly before our last flight, got the green light to go and after only minutes of flying it, the device said it was losing wi-fi connection, which triggered its autopilot mode. During its auto-flight back to us it, it lost control and crashed into a pond below it (that it had autopiloted over). I didn't realize until after, but in reading and researching further, this is actually a common problem. Because it relies on wi-fi it's extremely unreliable and can fall from the sky or hit objects in its path during the autoflight back pretty regularly. And when it does, GoPro refuses to take any accountability so you will not get your money back, even if you have a warranty on it.

We spent hours trying to retrieve it, but could not and deemed it too dangerous to attempt again and near impossible to find any ways. We contacted customer service to see what our options were since we had a two year warranty on it and were only met with robotic responses, a refusal to take any accountability and blame towards us as their consumers, with no real reasonable logic. There was absolutely nothing we could have done differently given the resources that GoPro had provided to have avoided that outcome. When prying to ask to see the flight logs they said they were confidential and would not share them with me, yet used that as an excuse to say that they decided it was not their fault. The main thing they used to blame it on user error was by saying we didn’t properly avoid the possible “wi-fi interference objects” and then they provided a list of objectives you should avoid when flying. The ONLY applicable object in this case was water! Yes, water! So all those advertisements you see on this page and throughout their website and other marketing materials with water on it, turns out you can’t actually do what they are falsely advertising and we should have known that as consumers!!!! For goodness sake, their main video has a man literally launch the karma drone off of his kayak in the middle of the ocean!!! But I should have known to not fly nearby a cranberry bog reservoir!? After months of arguing and being pushed from one terrible customer service representative to another, they offered to replace the least expensive parts, still requiring us to invest $700 for those parts to even work, and spend more money with a brand we no longer could trust. After even more arguing they offered a jokeable 20% discount. And finally, I spoke with an extremely rude and condescending customer service “supervisor”, who by no means should be in this business, that basically sternly told me to give up, take the discount and that they wouldn’t do anything else even if we found it. For a brand that thrives off of human experiences and leverages happy life milestones, they certainly ruined our honeymoon (all our footage was lost) and our babymoon, which we had hoped to use this on as well and were still arguing with them about, and did not deliver the least bit enjoyable customer service experience. I would NOT RECOMMEND buying products from this company unless you are okay wasting your money when they prematurely break and do not anticipate any understanding from the manufacturer. I hope this saves someone months of frustration in dealing with this company and some money.
 

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