DJI Mavic Air2 disassembly: How to create an "all-round" drone in the imaging industry

In the era of short videos, in addition to handheld devices for video shooting, aerial photography has also entered the public eye through the consumer drone market and has been sought after by many consumers. DJI is naturally one of the representatives. In order to meet the needs of different users, DJI's drone series covers everything from professional film-level to entry-level entertainment-level.

Recently, DJI launched the second generation of Mavic Air, which has a major update compared to the first generation two years ago. The biggest update highlights of Mavic Air2 are the 48-megapixel upgrade and 34-minute flight time, which is 13 minutes longer than the first generation Mavic Air.

Mavic Air 2 has DJI's advanced panoramic shooting mode, with a higher dynamic range of images and more vivid and accurate colors. It is also equipped with Sony IMX586 image sensor and supports Quad Bayer technology, bringing higher dynamic range and color sensitivity. The enhanced three-axis gimbal can stabilize every frame, even in windy weather or complex environments, it can also take extremely reliable photos and videos.

Mavic Air 2 supports 8K mobile time-lapse photography and is equipped with OcuSync2.0 image transmission technology, supporting 1080P/30fps with a maximum transmission distance of 10 kilometers. The official website price for a single machine is 4,999 yuan.

This issue of Jiwei Disassembly Review brings you the disassembly of Mavic Air2.

Configuration Overview

PTZ: 48 megapixel camera

Battery: 3500mAh lithium-ion polymer battery (rated capacity)

Features: Small and light | 50m high precision hovering | 6 obstacle avoidance sensors | 3-axis gimbal

Disassembly steps

The Mavic Air2 drone uses a removable battery, which is fixed to the back of the drone by a metal shrapnel. The start switch is also integrated into the battery box.

11.55V, 3500mAh lithium battery module model: PB2-3500mAh-1155V. The label on the back shows that the battery is produced by Dongguan Xinneng'an Technology Co., Ltd.

Label information inside the drone battery compartment

The propellers are grouped in pairs. During assembly, the propellers and motors are color-coded to prevent assembly errors, and each pair of propellers has a spare pair of blades.

The drone has flight signal lights on all four ends.

The cover plate under the drone is fixed with 6 hexagon socket screws. There are 3 hexagon socket screws on both sides of the bottom obstacle avoidance sensor bracket, and the obstacle avoidance sensor is fixed to the mainboard through the BTB interface.

Two SmartSens sensors are fixed on the module for obstacle avoidance function, and the sensor module is fixed on the metal bracket by glue filling.

The bottom shell of the drone is made of metal, with an LED fill light in the center, and the fill light board is fixed by two cross screws. There is foam material inside the obstacle avoidance sensor window, and two infrared distance sensor protective covers at one end.

Remove the six hexagonal screws that secure the gimbal, disconnect the BTB interface from the mainboard, and remove the three-axis gimbal. Disconnect all BTB connectors and RF coaxial cables on the mainboard and remove the mainboard. The mainboard is fixed in the body with a buckle.

The two infrared distance sensors are fixed to the back of the motherboard with two cross screws, and the front of the motherboard is the cooling fan and heat sink.

A large amount of blue thermal grease is applied between the heat sink and the motherboard.

The main function of the two infrared distance sensors is to allow the Mavic Air2 to hover accurately within a height range of 50 meters.

Unscrew the six hexagonal screws from the battery compartment, pry open the buckles between the drone cover and the fuselage, and remove the drone cover. There is a layer of conductive tape and a grounding soft board on the inside of the cover.

The GNSS satellite positioning board is fixed to the front of the fuselage. The main board is connected to the two obstacle avoidance sensors and the power board through the BTB interface. The interfaces are fixed with metal plates and screws.

The electronic gyroscope module is fixed to the back of the GNSS satellite positioning board with screws, and there is buffer rubber between the module and the fuselage.

In addition to the screws, the electronic gyroscope module is also connected to the satellite positioning board through the BTB interface. After removing the module and disassembling it, it is found that there is a soft-hard combination board in the middle, which integrates multiple 9-axis accelerometers and electronic gyroscope chips. It is also coated with a large amount of blue heat dissipation silicone grease.

The front and rear obstacle avoidance sensor modules are fixed with screws. The two obstacle avoidance sensor modules are also fixed to the metal bracket by glue filling. The four sensors are also SmartSens products.

Due to layout reasons, the last two modules are connected to the mainboard through the same FPC board, and the interface is fixed by a metal plate.

The connecting wires of the quadcopter motor and the flying light are soldered to the power board. When disassembling the power board, in addition to the screws, you also need to use a soldering iron to disconnect the connection between each wire and the power board.

To remove the four support arms, you need to first unscrew the fixing screws and take out the bearings before you can remove them.

After disassembling the front support arm, the PCB antenna board can be seen on the support part below.

The flight LED light panel of the front arm is fixed to the connection with the support, and the rear arm is fixed to the bottom cover.

Gimbal Disassembly

The three-axis gimbal of the Mavic Air2 has a 48-megapixel camera. The camera and gimbal drive motor are each connected to the main board via a flexible board.

Disassembling the gimbal is relatively simple. Pry open the four covers around the gimbal. The two screws on the back cover of the module are located on both sides of the camera module, and the camera module is fixed in the module by three screws.

Collection diagram

Motherboard IC information

Main IC on the front of the main control motherboard 

1.Ambarella-H6-Image Processor Solution Chip

2.SK Hynix-H9HCNNN8KUML-LPDDR4 memory chip

3. Samsung-KLMAG1JETD-Flash memory chip

4. DJI-S1- Information synchronization transmission chip

5.TI-OPT3101-Obstacle Avoidance Sensor Front-end Module

Main IC on the back of the motherboard

1.Active-Semi-ACT8846-Power Management Chip

2.Imagination Technologies-IMG IE1000-Dual-band WIFI solution chip

GPS module main board front IC

1. STMicroelectronics - Six-axis accelerometer and gyroscope chip

GPS module main board back IC

1.ublox- M8030-KT-GNSS satellite positioning solution chip

2.iSentek- IST8310- electronic compass chip

IC on the back of the power supply motherboard

1. Active-Semi- PAC5223- Flight propeller motor driver chip (4 pieces)

2. ALPHA & OMEGA- AON7934- Asymmetric n-channel AlphaMOS chip (12 pieces in total)

Summary Information

The Mavic Air2 is easy to disassemble, but not easy to restore. A large number of hexagonal screws and buckles are used to fix the body of the machine. Various internal boards are connected with FPC soft boards. The four propeller motors of the whole machine are connected to the power board by welding. No waterproof measures were found inside the whole machine, only a small amount of foam material.

The Mavic Air 2's excellent imaging and flight performance are sufficient to meet the needs of most consumers. It is a relatively versatile drone tailored for content creators and an ideal upgrade model for the Mavic Air or Mavic Mini.