Matrice 4T: thermal sensor sensitivity...

[JohnB]

Good evening/morning...


I purchased a Matrice 4 T at the beginning of summer. Although I haven't used it as much as I would have liked, it seems to be a remarkably capable UAV...

With that said, I have a question regarding the sensitivity of the thermal sensor. I understand I shouldn't point the thermal sensor in the direction of the sun, but at this time of year, it may be rather hard to avoid -- especially if my flight line/time puts me in line with the sun. How sensitive/easy can the sensor be damaged with early morning/evening flights with the sun low, above the horizon? It is not my intention to fly facing into the sun, but I have been asked to do some videography of our smoke stack, with the sun either behind it (backlight) or off to one side.

Short of directly facing the sun, how easily can it be damaged if the drone is facing in the general direction or off to one side? There is no cover or protection over the sensor. Can something be rigged to cover the sensor as necessary to avoid damage?

Thank you
John

 

[jaja6009]

You can turn on the Sun Burn Protection. It is located in the Camera Options, accessed from the far right side.
With this on, the thermal sensor will keep the shutter closed when it senses a strong infrared source such as the sun. On our Matrice 300 RTK, it closes on propane fires at times with this setting enabled.

 

[Ro3go]

In my case, the thermal sensor turns off automatically when it accidentally points at the sun. I'm not sure if the Sunburn Protection option is enabled; I need to check it.