Help diagnosing engine problem

I have jrdrones ArduCopter Quad with ArduMega1280, 20A ESC, 880kv motors, sonar. Using the 2.1.0 Alpha software.

I have just got it flying for the last month or so, and have flown it a few times with increasing success, total time about 30 minutes.

A few days ago, was flying in STABALIZE mode and was able to move around pretty good for 5 minutes or so.

I then switched to ALTITUDE_HOLD, and it worked well (+/- 1 meter) for a minute. Then the left engine (in plus configuration), dipped a few times, and as I was trying to land, quit completely and flipped it over. I am trying to diagnose it, and would like some direction. The battery was still full when I checked it. I don't have logs because it is a 1280.

Does this sound like :

  1. Engine malfunction
  2. ESC malfunction
  3. PDB
  4. Software
  5. Something else?

I haven't tried the engine yet on the bench, but wanted to see what the most likely cause was

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Replies

  • Get rid of the connectors and hard solder the motor to ESC connections together.

    This has fixed both my AC and a brushless buggy the kids got for xmas.

    It will take you 30-45 mins for an AC, but it was serious peace of mind for me.

    JC

  • I personally would just take out the motor and try it by itself... With that, you will know the answer pretty much... Meaning, if the motor doesn't work by itself then that is the problem... If the motor does work, then you have more to troubleshoot but more than likely if that were the case, it wouldn't be the PCB... or the Power supply or battery... more than likely most common errors, are due to the wires, or clips on the wires (some do this like with car radios),  the solder not fully connecting the components (cold solder joint) or the ESC...

    This isn't a vibration thing, all vibrations can do is loosen connections or break them... Vibrations can affect the sin-waves but only with noise, and noise won't make your motor stop working...

  • Developer

    This is usually caused by vibration affecting the bullet connectors. 

    Jason

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