Cyton dongle used to connect to board but now times out
This morning everything was working fine, I was a able to get the data stream up and running.
I then added the daisy and extra 8 channels and now the dongle won't connect to the board in either the 8 or 16 channel configuration.
The dongle shows up as com15 in device manager and the TXD and RXD lights flash when autoscan is pressed. The blue lights appear on both the dongle and board when powered up, however I am unable to make a connection using the OpenBCI GUI. I have tried on multiple PCs and have the same problem.
I don't understand why it stopped working.
The log file is attached. I tried manually connecting on every channel with no luck.
Comments
Dean, hi. Have you tried things like: removing the Daisy, power machine down and back, remove / replace dongle, trying dongle on another machine, replacing / checking battery pack, etc. ?
William
Not sure why you tried AUTOSCAN. Does AUTOSCAN synchronize dongle with Cyton?
It's possible that some kind of circuit board glitch happened as you were plugging in the Daisy. Electrostatic, conductive traces or board connectors, etc. But with the 8 channel mainboard alone, should AUTOSYNC.
Hi William,
Thanks for the quick response. I have tried removing the daisy, power cycling and removing and replacing the dongle. As well as the AA battery pack with 2 different sets of batteries (brand new) as well as i single cell LiPo battery. None of those seemed to make any difference. I have also tried it on 2 different PCs with the same results.
I only tried Autoscan after it stopped working as this is what the error message suggest when I try to start session.
I worked out of the box without the daisy, after connecting the daisy I can't get it to connect in either the 8 or 16 channel configurations. The device still powers on as normal.
When did you purchase the Cyton? How long did it work before this failure?
Wait, your log file shows that the mainboard has firmware level 1.0. This is incompatible with all recent GUIs. When did you purchase this?
Oops, I think that printout in the log, "Cyton firmware v1.0.0", is actually NOT reading the firmware level from the board. It's the GUI / Hub assuming that if a valid firmware number is not found, it assumes v1.
Does AUTOSCAN work? That only exercises the two RFduinos (dongle and mainboard).
I purchased the DIY Neurotechnologist's Starter Kit mid November. It was received mid December and I started testing Yesterday. The device worked well for a few hours, I then installed the daisy and extra 8 electrodes and haven't been able to connect since. I do have some logs on another PC from when it was working. I will post those as soon as I get to the other PC.
I have read in other posts that when there is no connection the log will indicate 1.0 firmware.
Sorry, it's late here, I meant what happens when you do the AUTOSCAN, that only involves the two RFduinos, dongle and mainboard. If AUTOSCAN works, or the channel setting options, that indicates the RFduinos are ok, and the main PIC32 / chipKIT processor is not working for some reason.
OK, since your kit was received in mid December, it sounds like you are still within the 30 day warranty period. I would immediately email the office, address: contact at openbci.com. And ask them how to proceed. It looks like you might have a type of infant mortality.
If the RFduino's are indeed talking to each other, you could try reloading the PIC32 firmware with these instructions,
https://docs.openbci.com/docs/02Cyton/CytonProgram
No problem, appreciate the help.
Just did the AUTOSCAN now with only the cyton (no daisy, and no electrodes attached). I get the same error message as before: "Cyton dongle could not connect to the board. Perhaps they are on different channels? Try pressing AUTOSCAN."
I just find it strange that it did work and now it doesn't.
I don't understand, are you saying AUTOSCAN worked in the past? If so, then the RFduino's are alive and well, and you could try reflashing the PIC processor.
I think this warning is somewhere in the packaging material. But you need to be aware that touching the traces on the mainboard, can sometimes cause electrostatic discharges. Especially in dry / winter times / low humidity. These discharges can damage electronic components. The electrodes themselves have static protection, but not the exposed components on the board surfaces. It is remotely possible that when you installed the Daisy, some type of static damage occurred.
Or... this was just bad luck and you got a system with early failure. Yet things were working fine before the Daisy install.
I was definitely able to connect and stream data initially I will upload the log files form the successful streams when I get to the office. When I first installed the Daisy the Cyton was inside the 3D printed housing so it is impossible that I touched anything on the board at that point.
Is there anything else I can try to determine if this is a firmware or hardware issue?
Please try the mainboard alone to see if you can get the AUTOSCAN to align the radio channels on dongle and mainboard. Once you have that, re-flash the PIC32 firmware. Try powering everything down including the dongle. Then come back and see if AUTOSCAN or channel setting works. These functions operate inside the RFduino's (dongle and back of mainboard).
I have tried that again with only the mainboard (no electrodes or Daisy) and the dongle. Same result from AUTOSCAN: "Cyton dongle could not connect to the board. Perhaps they are on different channels? Try pressing AUTOSCAN."
I have just tried reloading the PIC32 firmware with the instructions you gave. I get the following error while uploading the sketch: "An error occurred while uploading the sketch
No target found."
Is there any value in re-flashing the dongle?
I have attached the log file from when the connection was working and data was being logged.
The board firmware is v3.1.2
Please email contact at openbci.com
I have done so, thank you for trying to help.