Vibration in Cold Weather?

melbourneTHIRD · Mar 2, 2016

I read some threads about keeping batteries warm (in a pocket) while flying in the cold.

Curious if the battery is too cold to create the power needed for lift would there possibly be any vibration if its too cold? I've had lots of flights with my P3P and flew it last night in 14 degree temps and as I got to the end of the first battery I noticed some vibration, visible to the eye, in the camera/gimble. I'm wondering if that could have to do with the battery strength of not. I switched to a fresh battery from my pocket and the vibration was noticeably reduced but still kinda there.

I did some long exposure shots and most were out of focus. Wondering if that was just as steady as it could be or if that extra vibration could have played a part.

The Phantom has been in two crashes, but have had multiple flights since and have never experienced any vibration before.

dirtybum · Mar 2, 2016

Yes, in some cases when really cold out i've seen a vibration. Shut off / reboot it disappeared. However the battery gets warmer during flight so its the flight controller not the bat. When the battery is too cold the app will warn you upon startup and prevent motors to spin

Air Ontario · Mar 2, 2016

May be icing, depending on altitude/ humidity or a prop/ motor balance or bearing.
14 C is pretty mild, here it's -11C with no battery issues and no bad vibs.

alokbhargava · Mar 2, 2016

14C is not that low temp to cause alerts and vibrations or are you talking about 14F? 14F is low and for that you should start with a warm battery else the currents will be limited and you might see undesired performance.

Air Ontario · Mar 2, 2016

14F is about -11C, actually -10C. I do the IMU warming up in the house, then immediately go outside for GPS acquisition and launch.

I'd be cautious too about a really cold battery at installation and launch as mentioned above.

I also periodically run my bird without props briefly, looking/listening for issues.