This article outlines some best practices to perform occasionally on your DJI Flip. To ensure optimal performance and accurate flight with a drone, proper calibration is essential
I will show you how to calibrate the IMU, compass, gimbal, and remote controller, as well as when and why to do it
Other related articles you may find interesting:
IMU Calibration
When To Do It
IMU stands for Inertial Measurement Unit. It is a device capable of estimating and reporting specific dynamic states such as angular velocity and accelerations
From these measurements, other dynamic states can be inferred, such as attitude angles (roll and pitch), as well as velocity and position increments of the platform
It utilizes several components of the aircraft, like the gyroscope, barometer, and accelerometer, to maintain a smooth, stable, and balanced flight. The IMU affects the behavior of the aircraft in flight; therefore, it impacts the safety of your unit
I perform a calibration of the IMU whenever I notice an unexpected flight behavior. If the aircraft cannot fly in a straight line, doesn’t maintain the altitude, drifts while hovering, or doesn’t respond appropriately to the sticks of the remote control, the first thing to do is to calibrate the IMU
Another occasion for calibration is when DJI Fly app prompts to do so with an on-screen message. The calibration is also suggested after traveling more than 50 miles, after big elevation changes, for example, during a trip to the mountains, or when the temperature is drastically different from usual
How To Do It
The calibrations can be performed with the Flip connected to a remote controller or a remote device like a smartphone or tablet. I will show first how to do it with a remote controller, in this case, the RC 2
Choose an area far from metal and free from interference. Place the Flip on a horizontal, level, and perfectly flat surface. Turn it on, making sure to have at least 50% battery time for both the drone and the remote controller
In the Safety tab of Settings, scroll down until you find IMU Normal, and hit Calibrate. A screen guides to the steps needed for the calibration
We are asked to position the drone in five different positions, but from the on-screen instructions, it is not always evident what to do with the propeller guards, so I will explain and show footage of the drone to simplify the process
We start by positioning it laterally with open wings and the camera facing to the left. We can then hit the Start button at the bottom of the screen. To the right of the screen, a ring shows the progress of the process
The second position is sitting on the left side of the aircraft, with the DJI logo facing us and the camera to the left. As you can see from the footage, the left wings are folded
Position three is with the drone on its back, all wings open, and the camera to the right
Position four with the aircraft on its right side, the right wings folded, and the camera facing the right
In position five, the drone stands on its back, showing us the right side, with the back wings folded. It is a bit like doing yoga
After the last position, the aircraft will restart. If the calibration fails, move the drone to a different location far from metal and magnetic interference, on a perfectly flat surface, and try again
If you are using a smartphone or tablet, after connecting it to the Flip, tap the Settings icon on the lower right. Scroll down and tap More Settings. Scroll down again and tap IMU normal calibrate. The calibration window is displayed, and you can follow the same procedure described above
Compass Calibration
The compass keeps track of the drone’s position and the home point. If it is not calibrated properly, the drone might fly erratically or crash. It also plays an important role in the case of a Return to Home
We calibrate it only when prompted by the app or when we have not used the drone for a long time
The procedure is simple. In the Safety tab of the Settings, we find the option for Compass calibration, located just above the one for the IMU. Like before, we choose an area free from metal and strong magnetic fields; notice that the calibration might fail in low light
The aircraft must be held at a height of about 1.5 meters, or 5 feet, from the ground, which for most people is at shoulder height
After hitting the Start button, simply follow the instructions on the screen: first, rotate the drone 360 degrees horizontally, then turn it to a vertical position and do the same
The maneuver can be accomplished by simply rotating the hand holding the aircraft; no need to perform complex circular dances or other dangerous acrobatics. A prompt on the screen will show the result. In case of failure, try again further away from interferences
Gimbal Calibration
Unlike the IMU and the compass, the gimbal calibration doesn’t impact the flight behavior but acts upon the alignment of the camera. When switched on, the Flip operates a sort of basic gimbal calibration
A gimbal calibration is generally performed when the horizon is uneven, when the gimbal is skewed, often after a small crash or a hard landing, or when prompted by the app
In Settings, we open the Control tab and scroll down until we find Gimbal Calibration. There is a choice between Auto and Manual
For Auto calibration, the drone must be placed on a level surface with open wings. The calibration starts immediately after hitting the Auto button. The camera moves horizontally and then vertically for a few seconds, and the trick is done
A Manual calibration is generally performed while flying. If we notice that the horizon is uneven, we hit the button below Auto, and we are presented with two values that we can modify:
- The rotation of the camera
- The horizontal alignment
Controller Calibration
The remote controller contains a compass to detect its position. It works like the compass of the aircraft. On rare occasions, we may be prompted to calibrate the controller itself by a message on the upper left part of the screen of the RC controller
The procedure is explained on screen. It is similar to the one for the compass, by simply rotating the controller horizontally and then vertically
With the RC 2 controller with the built-in screen, it is possible to summon the controller calibration. To do that, we scroll down twice on the screen to reach the menu window. We hit the gear icon at the top right, and then we choose Compass Calibration