Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Joel on December 4, 2010 at 9:12pm

I read a post before which showed USB blowing something on a board because battery was not plugged in and was running too many servos with just USB power. I have been plugging battery through ESC to board first and then connecting USB.(to make sure enough power was provided) I haven't had any problems yet.

Can anyone suggest what the best way to do this is? Just USB? or battery plus USB?

• ▶ Reply

3D RoboticsPermalink Reply by Chris Anderson on December 4, 2010 at 10:05pm

Again, I think those earlier comments were mistaken. We know of no case of anyone blowing a board because they ran too many servos/ESCs or USB power.

For a couple servos, you can use USB power. For 4 ESCs (as in the case of a quad) or more than a couple servos, you should plug in a LiPo, too.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jeroen Akershoek on January 15, 2012 at 2:56pm

Sorry for the newbie to barge in an old thread like this, but it seems like I actually managed to blow something by hooking up both at the same time.

I wasn't aware that it was potentially a big problem and having just installed the resistors for the voltage measuring I was curious if I could read those from the missionplanner software.

So now, all I get when I plug in the USB is a few leds flash up, then everything dies again and the little blue led on the corner of the IMU dimly flashes 3 times and then all is dead. The computer also says the USB device doesn't work properly.

Does the 3 flashes give any more information about what exactly is blown? Some hardware-guys at work might be able to replace faulty parts on the board, but I'd need to know what to replace of course. This is my first attempt at UAV/multicopter stuff and I'd hate to have to buy an entire new IMU board after just two days :)

• ▶ Reply

JDronesPermalink Reply by Jani Hirvinen on January 15, 2012 at 7:21pm

Jeroen, it is really difficult to say but it might be that you've blew your main cpu. Do you have FTDI cable? As you could connect that directly to CPU board and test CPUs without IMU board.

Blue led in corner is main power led and it has no any real intelligent behind it. 

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jeroen Akershoek on January 16, 2012 at 8:45am

I now actually suspect the board got the full 11.1V load from my battery-pack.

If the CPU is indeed fried, then anything could be blown I guess. I don't have an FTDI cable, but maybe there's some relative easy way to trace what parts would need replacement? I know people that can replace the chips, but if it's going to take days to figure out which are blown it might be easier to cry in a corner for a bit and order a new set of electronics I'm afraid

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Jeroen Akershoek on January 16, 2012 at 3:31pm

Update: I went through the schematics tonight and I'm not still not entirely sure what happened. Something got blown when I (partially) hooked up the battery, but from what I could tell it shouldn't have, since the resistors would've brought down the 11.1V to a more than acceptable level for the CPU to handle.

Anyway, it seems indeed that the CPU still got fried somehow. Detaching the IMU and hooking that up to a USB cable still seems to give some life, so I'm actually hoping that it's just the CPU that's blown and that it didn't take too much stuff with it. Ordered a new APM board and we'll try again when that comes in.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mark Curry on December 5, 2010 at 12:09am

How does one know if the MUX if blown?

I am having a problem where the motors wont start up unless I have the USB cable plugged into the PC.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Sebastian Gralla on December 5, 2010 at 4:36am

your mux is blown when nothing is working
your's is working

did you connect power to APM?

• ▶ Reply

3D RoboticsPermalink Reply by Chris Anderson on December 5, 2010 at 8:45am

That suggests your power distribution board is wired wrong.

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Mark Curry on December 5, 2010 at 4:44am

Yes... it is really strange. I always connect Lipo first, even if I want to program. I connect USB port second.

Funny thing is I can go into configurator and send a motor command then everything works great.

I have a full backup APM/OP, I just programmed it and connected it up and it does the same thing...?

Thanks


Mark

• ▶ Reply

Permalink Reply by Sebastian Gralla on December 5, 2010 at 5:32am

does the apm turn on when you connect the lipo?

sounds like the apm isn't connected to a power source when USB is disconnected

• ▶ Reply

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• Next ›
• Page