Cyton intermittent data stream / packet loss ?
Hello!
I'm sorry that I'd like to talk about the unstable performance of the Cyton board.
We prepared the electrodes well and connected it to the skin according to the operation procedures, but there was no data flow on the openbci GUI interface all the time. I'm not sure why it was extremely unstable and often failed to collect signals.
The unstable performance really brought much trouble for our research. Could you offer me some suggestions? Thank you for your help very much.
Very looking forward to hearing from you.
Comments
Hi Zfmeng,
I see from your past comments here on the Forum, that you have been using your Cyton for about 5 years with no 'unstable' issues. If you are having recent issues with the reliability of the radio connection (between Cyton and dongle), it could be related to the fidelity of the radio signal being received by the dongle. Have you tried putting the dongle on a usb extension cord and getting it AWAY from your computer cabinet / desktop table / metal furniture? This usually improves signal quality of the radio packets.
Another cause of packet loss can be interference in your room(s) with wireless / EMF generating equipment such as AC extension cords, power supplies, LED lighting, wireless equipment, conduits in walls floors ceilings, etc. Try changing the location of your setup.
William
Hi~
Thank you for your suggestions very much. We would try.
Hi~William, we tried our best to avoid the interference as you suggested, when we use Cyton board. However, it still doesn't work well. The signal is always unstable, as well. What should we do further? Could you offer me some suggestions? Thank you for your help very much.
Very looking forward to hearing from you.
I think there must have been a change in your environment, given the history of this device working for so many years.
Have you looked over this Troubleshooting page? Changing the channel may help.
https://docs.openbci.com/Troubleshooting/GUI_Troubleshooting/
The GUI has a Packet Loss widget you can select, here is an example image:
https://openbci.com/forum/index.php?p=/discussion/3216/packet-loss-with-cyton-mounted-on-head-resolved
One thing you can try is changing the location of your experiment or the other equipment in the room, to see if that has any effect. For example turning off various equipment to see if that may be creating noise.
Perhaps report back if you see patterns in the Packet Loss figures. What was your experience with the usb extension cord? Did you drape the dongle over a nearby 'higher' object, such as the top of a computer monitor? Get it away from metallic surfaces.
@retiutut, @wjcroft
Thank you for your replies very much. We would try again.