Drone drifting or refusing to take off: IMU, compass, and when calibration isn't enough
The app asks for a calibration, you do it, and the error is back on the next flight. That is no longer a setting: it is a diagnosis.
A drone stays in the air thanks to its sensors: the inertial unit (IMU) measures movement, the compass gives heading, the barometer altitude, GPS position, and the vision sensors the ground. An error on one of them shows as drift, an unstable hover, or a refusal to take off.
What calibration fixes
After transport, a change of region, a flight near metal structures: a compass or IMU calibration, done in the right place (away from cars, reinforced concrete, the phone in your pocket), sets everything right. We do it at the workshop, and show you how to redo it.
What it doesn't fix
- IMU failing calibration repeatedly: sensor damaged by a knock, or cracked solder joints on the board. Component-level repair or sensor board replacement.
- Compass with permanent interference away from any source: damaged sensor or flex (often inside an arm).
- Vision sensors misaligned after a crash: realignment or replacement, then calibration with the target chart.
- GPS that no longer locks: antenna or module.
At the workshop
Reading the drone's flight logs, testing each sensor, then repair and full bench calibration. Calibration alone is at a fixed price on the prices page; an electronic repair is “from”, confirmed after diagnosis.
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