How to view internal flight history/data

Hey everybody, I’m hoping that I can get some help.
I have a Phantom 4 Pro drone that I sold on eBay about a month ago. I say HAVE because after the buyer had the drone in his possession for 3 weeks, all of a sudden he filed a claim with paypal that this drone came defective. He stated that he had been on vacation and that he just finally had the chance to test it out and that’s why it took so long, which is BS. I sent that drone in excellent working condition and it was in it’s case and protected. Well I just got the drone back and of course the drone’s lights are flashing orange, there’s an error message saying it needs repair, and the camera is limp. Funny thing, he did NOT return the microSD card that I sent with it and I had sent 2 sets of used but like new blades. Well I received one set of used blades, and another set of blades that still had plastic around the part where they connect. Brand new blades! I searched and figured out that these drones have internal flight data recorded, and I can see from the data files that he flew it many times, including when he first received it. Clearly, he crashed the drone while it was in his possession and then figured he could just scam me out of the money. I have escalated the case with paypal but need to show them the proof. My question is HOW do I actually view these internal flight recordings? I can see the list of them, there’s one for every day and time it was used, but I don’t know how to see the data that is contained within. I’m hoping it shows that it was in normal status each time, including the last time I used it, and then find the file where it shows the first occurrence of damage (when he crashed/broke it). I saved the entire flight history locally, which compiled it into one big data file… I just don’t know what to use to view it and present my case. Please help.

You can view the data in the DAT flight logs with DatCon.

Okay, I installed DatCon, which converts the dat logs into CSV or other logs depending on the settings… where should I be looking to see when it logs a mechanical issue (gimbal)? Sorry, I’m a complete newbie to this

I don’t know of any way to diagnose a mechanical issue with the gimbal using the logs. If DJI GO is showing a gimbal related message when powering on the Phantom now, then you should be able to find that message in the DAT flight logs.

The best you’re going to be able to do is prove the Phantom has been flown X number of times and/or show it has been crashed. The logs wouldn’t show something like a Phantom that was dropped while powered off (which could have damaged the gimbal).

If you need help reviewing the logs, please upload them to a file sharing site (like Dropbox) and post a download link here.

Yes, when I turn the drone on, DJI GO shows the following under Overall Status:
Gimbal gyroscope error
Hardware Malfunction. Contact DJI Support for repairs

I’m assuming that a message like that would be logged so I can find out when that began. Thanks, I will upload the logs and post in a second

Okay, apparently these dat files are huge, so i’ll have the link up in about 30 minutes. How much internal memory do these drones have??

Paypal is requesting I bring it to a professional so that I can get an official report, so I’m bringing it tomorrow to have the data extracted and viewed. I won’t be able to upload the data for a few hours, if you still want to have a look at it for me.

Thanks

Not exactly certain, but the .dat files are stored on an internal SD card inside the AC. Once this card is full, the oldest files will be overwritten with new flight data. At times finding the correct .dat for any particular flight is tricky. Flight files will be anywhere over 100mb. Anything less than that are usually just power ups with no motor starts. If you upload more than one of these, it will take quite some time to go through these one by one, if you do not know the correct time frame in which you are looking for. And even then, you may not find what you are looking for.

Which professional are you going to?

a local drone company. They sell and repair drones and also do training.
http://www.cincydronesllc.com

https://drive.google.com/file/d/14vPvExtrR02gASF5ITirABqYe-67dRmR/view?usp=sharing
Here’s a link to the entire internal flight history. To narrow it down, the buyer had possession of the drone from August 13th until September 6th.

I would imagine that every log would report the overall status of the drone when first powering up. If that’s the case, it should be easy (for someone that knows what they’re doing) to find the first occurrence of a mechanical failure in the overall status.

If you can help, I would appreciate it. If you can provide an analysis on company letterhead (PhantomHelp?), that would be even more amazing.

Yes, the log may show an issue with the gimbal, “possibly” but there is not enough data to show anything other than that. There are many of us around here who do know “What they are doing” as you put it, and have reviewed enough data over the years to be confident in any responses that are made. Please pursue your very expensive outside , independent “Professional” for further assistance. Good luck in your endevour…and that is not a sarcastic remark to be clear. Good Luck.

Not sure if you misunderstood me because you seem offended. When I referred to those who “know what they are doing”, I meant anybody that has a lot of experience with this stuff - which is not me. I’m not at all suggesting that any of you don’t. Paypal insisted on a professional evaluation on company letter head rather than the information presented by myself, which is why I contacted a local company. I’m sure you guys know just as much, or more, but the word of someone that works with drones for a living will provide a stronger case. Anyways, I meant no disrespect.

The claim was based on the gimbal being broken when he received it (which it wasn’t), so showing otherwise and even showing that he flew the drone many times will help my case since he claimed he had just flown it the one day before the claim and it took 3 weeks for him to test because he was on “vacation”. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Get in touch with the guy and tell him what you know. The drone records flight data and it shows he flew it, so his scam won’t work. He can pay to have it shipped back to him.

Thanks! I’ll check it out and see if it contains any data that might help you with your PayPal dispute.

Thank you so much. You have no idea how much this is appreciated.

Can you post a screenshot that shows the date/time each of those DAT files was created?

ahhh I would but I don’t have the drone on me at the moment unfortunately… it’s in the hands of the guy that’s checking the logs for me. I forgot that you lose the dates created when extracting that DJI Assistant file. If it helps, the last 30 data files within it are the ones of significance.

No problem. Please post a screenshot if you still need help when you get it back.

Will do, thanks.