Calibrations - When? How Often?

[mwkelly109]

DJI recommends calibrating GPS / Compass only when the GO4 app says to. I've seen some guys swear they do it pre-flight every time.

MY P4P gets a little squirley now and then (drifts, lags taking commons, etc.) Upgraded to a newer iPad mini which seemed to help but still don't always have rock solid control 100% of the time. I frequently fly near a NAVSEA installation and another military station so having accurate control is maybe a little more critical than normal.

What is the general consensus?

 

[Fifoza]

As I know the calibration is good to be made before each flight. But many drone pilots are saying they perform it only after a big no-fly time period.
I have read this article about Calibrate Drone Compass and agree with each time calibration. In fact, this can save your drone in some cases.

 

[dirkclod]

Unless the App ask for it and mine are flying well I don’t do one.
If I have a firmware update I recalibrate everything then do a compass
cal. I’ve seen many that do one every time out but if you happen to be in a bad location you could mess up a perfectly good compass.
And have seen that happen in PhantomPilots and MavicPilots.
That’s just been my habit for 6 years flying and it’s worked for me.
Now when I was flying my Phantoms I was always modding them
by adding stuff to the skids so when I did or moved something to a differant skid I would do one.
Is what I do.

 

[R Martin]

DJI recommends calibrating GPS / Compass only when the GO4 app says to. I've seen some guys swear they do it pre-flight every time.

MY P4P gets a little squirley now and then (drifts, lags taking commons, etc.) Upgraded to a newer iPad mini which seemed to help but still don't always have rock solid control 100% of the time. I frequently fly near a NAVSEA installation and another military station so having accurate control is maybe a little more critical than normal.

What is the general consensus?

It depends upon what you are flying. My P4P gets a calibration when it calls for it. My larger aircraft gets a calibration when I move long distances between flying sites. Both are calibrated when the GCS software indicate a problem exists. Other than that, they do their thing.

 

[Meta4]

DJI recommends calibrating GPS / Compass only when the GO4 app says to.

Compass calibrations are probably the most misunderstood aspect to drone flying.
DJI haven't helped the situation, having given misleading and contradictory information in their manuals.
If you think your drone is asking for compass calibration, it probably isn't.
Most of the time, there will be nothing wrong with the compass.
It will be warning you of a problem nearby and all that is needed is to move the drone away from the problem.

The common idea that recalibration might be required after traveling some distance from your last flight is completely wrong.
My main Phantom 4 pro has flown over 4000 miles in 4 years over large distances and multiple countries.
I still haven't calibrated anything on it.

What is the general consensus?

Never mind the consensus, whenever it's discussed in forums, half of what comes up is the myths and misinformation.
The people who suggest recalibrating before each flight do it because they don't understand what compass calibration actually does.
To learn the basics, the first post in this thread explains it fairly well:

A short explanation of compass function, calibration and errors.

BACKGROUND The aircraft compass is often misunderstood, both in terms of function and purpose, but it is important to understand what the compass measures, why, and what happens to that information. At the most basic level the purpose of the compass is to measure the earth’s magnetic field in...

mavicpilots.com

MY P4P gets a little squirley now and then (drifts, lags taking commons, etc.) Upgraded to a newer iPad mini which seemed to help but still don't always have rock solid control 100% of the time. I frequently fly near a NAVSEA installation and another military station so having accurate control is maybe a little more critical than normal.

Swapping your tablet can't do anything to affect your drone's stability.
Recalibrating your compass won't improve your drone's control if you are flying near military installations
If your drone is flying straight, the compass is working properly and recalibrating won't do anything to make things any better.

 

[R Martin]

The common idea that recalibration might be required after traveling some distance from your last flight is completely wrong.

Actually the manufacturer (BirdsEyeView) recommends it specifically. Of course what could they possibly know about their own product?
Bottom line: RT*M. That is why the manufacturer includes it. I'll trust the manufacturer over an armchair pilot any day when it comes to procedures and flight safety.

.

 

[Meta4]

Actually the manufacturer (BirdsEyeView) recommends it specifically. Of course what could they possibly know about their own product?
Bottom line: RT*M. That is why the manufacturer includes it. I'll trust the manufacturer over an armchair pilot any day when it comes to procedures and flight safety.

What I wrote above was applicable to DJI aircraft and is accurate.
Having never even heard of your larger drone, I can't comment on it.

But even DJI continues to spread misinformation regarding compass calibration and some of the myths about it have come from them.