Anyone Have Issues Flying Elev-8 On Hot/Humid Days?
GlassKNees
Posts: 181
in Robotics
Out here in Texas, the temps have gotten up around mid 90's with humidity in the 50 - 60% range. I have on occasion flown under these conditions and have had a sudden pitch over and crash with no apparent cause that I could determine. I have noticed that after flying around 8 - 10 minutes the motors are hot to the touch. The last time I crashed, I had swapped out a battery for a fresh one.
I have since let my aircraft cool down after a flight - will fly another aircraft. And then change batteries and fly. So far, I've had no mishaps. I know that with heat/humidity, density altitude increases and the aircraft has to work harder to stay in the air. But I'm wondering if anyone else has had problems with heat and humidity.
BTW, my Tarot 4002 motors also feel hot after a flight. But if I fly under cooler conditions, the motors (both types) feel fine after landing.
I have since let my aircraft cool down after a flight - will fly another aircraft. And then change batteries and fly. So far, I've had no mishaps. I know that with heat/humidity, density altitude increases and the aircraft has to work harder to stay in the air. But I'm wondering if anyone else has had problems with heat and humidity.
BTW, my Tarot 4002 motors also feel hot after a flight. But if I fly under cooler conditions, the motors (both types) feel fine after landing.
Comments
I gather this is your impression as well.
I personally don't go outside when it's hot (transplanted hearts don't deal with temperature extremes well) so I haven't flown my Elev-8 when it's been hot.
The other Elev-8, with the Tarot motors, gimbal, GoPro Hero4, telemetry, video transmitter & 4S lipo weighs in at 5.6 lbs.
The Tarot hexcopter is the heavyweight at 6.8 lbs. It too, has a gimbal, GoPro Hero4, video transmitter and 4S lipo.
Motors on all three feel hot to the touch when I fly in 90+ degree weather, but all seem to fly okay. On cooler days (70+), the motors feel fine after a flight.
I only mentioned the density altitude thing in that I know that the props get less bite in the air ans therefore I have to fly at higher throttle settings than otherwise.
Like I've said, lately, all three have been flying okay, but I've been careful not to hover in place for very long and after a flight, I given the motors time to cool down before attempting a 2nd flight.
On a side note, I have to say, flying the Elev-8 is a pleasure!
You're spot on that the motors will have to spin faster to create equivalent thrust due to the lower density, so It doesn't surprise me much that the motors might get warm in those conditions, which is fine. But if they get above 150 F or so (hot enough to quickly cause a burn), then the are being overworked.
The pitch over could be cause by a motor failing in flight, but if the motors weren't overheating, I think it is more likely an issue with an ESC going bad or the flight controller. I won't be much help with the flight controller, but as far as the ESC is concerned, most failures are catastrophic and irreversible, so if it's working once everything cools off, it probably wasn't the cause of failure during the flight.
I don't think the motors got that hot, but they were indeed hot to touch.
I don't know if the APM, or any other F.C. for that matter is subject to heat sensitivity in the 90 degree range. I've decided to just fly sparingly on hot days, if at all. Also, I do occasional static tests of the motors to satisfy myself that they are all running okay. When it comes time to replace the stock motors on my Elev-8, I may move up to the Tarot motors and strap on a 4S lipo - it should really fly! It will also make my logistics easier by dealing with the same motor on all three copters...
Kyle and Ken have both flown in sub-zero (even snowing) as well as +80 degrees with no resulting issues that I know of.
One cause of intermittent problems I have come across in the past has been the feedthru. Very difficult to localize but if that is the cause of your problem soldering a wire to both sides of the board should take care of it.
http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/t_lkr_blue/overview/Loctite-Threadlocker-Blue-242.htm
Good luck on the test flight!
I uploaded the same mission on both Elev-8 quads - flew the one without the camera first as a sort of dry run to make sure I had it lined up for the video shoot. I broke two props when it got hung up in the tree but there appears to be no other damage. I will have to check it out today.
I did go back home, altered the altitude,made a couple of other minor adjustments and uploaded the revised mission to the aircraft and flew it. I was monitoring the live video feed so I could take evasive action in case I got too close to a tree, but it wasn't necessary - the flight went well.