Please help! My APM 2 board won't turn on. :(

I have APM 2.  Everything worked great, flying great.  Then, I had a crash.  My fault, not the board.  I crashed into a tree.  Now, the board lights up fine when I plug it in via USB to my computer.  All the LED lights show normal function.  I get GPS lock, I can access Mission Planner, erase eeprom, load new codes (2.5.5), etc.

With the USB still in, if I plug in the lipo and arm the motors, I can throttle up and the motors spin normally.  But as soon as I unplug the USB (lipo is still plugged in) the board goes dark and I get no response from the motors other then the dreaded continual beeps.  Somehow, it seems that I'm not able to power the board via the output pins (jumper is in on the JP1 pin), but can power the board via USB.

I've checked all the soldering on all my wires going in and out of the PDB.  I've visually checked the board itself.  All the soldering looks good.  I guess there are many things that could have damaged the board during the crash, but why does it work normally as described above?  Any ideas or suggestions would be much appreciated. I miss my robot friend. :(

Thanks,

James

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Permalink Reply by Sandesh Dhagle on June 18, 2012 at 12:09pm

Hi, I am also having the same problem. Where you able to fix this? Please share your troubleshooting.

Permalink Reply by James Dinh on June 18, 2012 at 6:14pm

Sandesh,

It may be that your board has a blown diode that allows power to travel from the output rails to the input rail and into the board to turn it on.  If so, contact 3DR via email at help@3drobotics.com.  Let them know that you are unable to power your board via the output rail with jumper on JP1.  They may have you send the board back for repairs :)

When you remove jumper, are you able to power the board via input rails?  

regards,

James.

Permalink Reply by Sandesh Dhagle on June 18, 2012 at 9:25pm

Yes, If I remove the jumper I can power the board via Input Rails. I was wondering Will it be a good idea, if breaking out another BEC Power output from the PDB and connecting it to the Input rails?

Permalink Reply by James Dinh on June 18, 2012 at 9:56pm

Yes, using a BEC from the PDB to input rail would be better than directly running an ESC.  Make sure the voltage output on the BEC is not more than 5V and the BEC is rated for as many amps as you require, especially if you are using extra servos (for camera gimbals, etc.)  I've heard that the system can shut down if the servos peak for some reason and the BEC is not big enough for the surge of power. Also, make sure you are running a ground wire from the BEC.  I'm not sure if the ground into the input rail is the same as the ground into the output rail or there may be a problem with ground "loops".  To be safe, it is better to fix the board so that it can receive power via output rails.  Have you tried email to 3DR?

Permalink Reply by Sandesh Dhagle on June 18, 2012 at 10:06pm

Ya I mailed 3DR waiting for there reply. But I am not sure if they will support since I bought my board from www.buildyourowndrone.co.uk.

Fixing the board will take time so I am exploring other options.

Permalink Reply by James Dinh on June 19, 2012 at 11:21am

I'm pretty sure that if you are using a BEC, remove jumper, and you can connect to input rail.  Just make sure the specs on the BEC is right for the board (not over 5 V) and enough amps to power the board, RX, and any servos.  I have this BEC from castle.  It's a beast, and default voltage is 5.12V.  It's programmable to higher voltages and it is low noise output.

Permalink Reply by Don Fiedler on July 1, 2012 at 5:41am
I had the same problem, they are sending me a new diode, it is labeled D1 on the board layout....In the meantime I have removed the jumper next to D1 and jumpered the input to output and it works fine, as long as I have a supply voltage.....Don

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