A Problem With Tricks C Communications

[JimWright]

I have completed my 2 panel wide LEDs with LEDTricks and TricksC controllers. I am using V.02 of the firmware. Everything works fine, with one exception. After about 30 or so minutes of sending frames from the LTC program, the sign stops responding (normally with parts of 2 different frames showing). The LTC program is still running as though nothing is wrong. Sometimes all I have to do is restart the LTC program to get things going again. Other times I have to pull the serial interface and reset it and rebuild the ltc.dat file. Sometimes I have to do all of the above after I turn off the sign. Anyone have any ideas?
Jim W

[dirknerkle]

That could be a voltage problem. When I was developing the Ren-W wireless adapter for Renard boards, I encountered similar kinds of lockups when the input signal was too high. I added a resistor/zener diode to limit the input current and the problem went away.

I have no idea whether that's it or not -- just suggesting that you might check the voltage coming out the port you're feeding the Trix with...

Also, please know I don't use a Trix board -- might build one next year, but I've been following the threads with great interest. So what I've written may be just "talking through my hat." :wink:

[JEEPGUY]

Jim,

I was live testing my show last night and had issues with running LTC when I set up my Vixen "Program". When I ran my program LTC was looking for the TriksC.dat file. I had LTC and Triksc.dat files in my sequences folder. I figured out that I needed LTC and trikC.dat file in the Programs folder in addition to the sequences folder. (Sequences so I can run the sequences for testing and Programs to run the show on the timer.)

I don't know if this will help you or not, given that you're getting activity for 30 minutes.

Just to confrim, your'e not getting any errors in LTC on your PC when the display stops responding? Are you using #CLS at the end of each script for each song?

[holtm]

Also try a different serial port on the PC. I've had issues with one of mine during heavy use.

[JEEPGUY]

Jim,

Like I said earlier, I tested my show last night and didn't notice any problems with the LEDTricks, however, tonight mine turned off after around a half hour. I just restarted my show 10 minutes ago and I am clocking it to see if it shuts down again.

[LabRat]

Jim,

Like I said earlier, I tested my show last night and didn't notice any problems with the LEDTricks, however, tonight mine turned off after around a half hour. I just restarted my show 10 minutes ago and I am clocking it to see if it shuts down again.

Hmmm. .maybe it's cross talk from your screen saver.. try moving the mouse.



(for the humour impaired --> ;) )

[JEEPGUY]

Well it didn't shut down, but I noticed that my scripts were overlapping so I'm in the process of shortening them. Hopefully that will do the trick.

[JimWright]

Hi All:
I just wrote a nice long response to all of your responses and somehow fat fingered it - and lost it. I will try again.

First, some additional information that might help. I am using a USB to serial (DB9) converter by QVS and then using the DB9 connector into the Triks-C. To get the distance I need (120 feet), I am using a Manhattan USB line Extender.

JEEPGUY suggested that I might need to move the ltc.exe and other files. I have placed all of these files in a separate directory. I am only using Vixen to develop the picture frames. I am using LOR to control the light display and LTC by itself on a different computer to control the sign. I am not getting any errors from the LTC Program. It continues to run as if nothing is wrong - the sign just stops responding. Also, I am not using #cls at the end of the script because I want the last frame to stay on the sign. What I actually would like to use is the loop command so it would continue to run. I would do this if I could figure out the cause of my problem.

holtm suggested using a different serial port. I have actually tried 3 different computers and still have the same problem.

dirknerkle suggested that it might be a high voltage problem. I am not an expert in these matters. Can you suggest some exact parts and how to connect them to see if that is the answer?

I have another question to go along with the above. Does anyone have another idea how to make the connection from the PC to the sign - other than what I am doing now? I would love to find a simple inexpensive wireless solution if possible.

Thanks for all of your discussion on this.
Jim

[dirknerkle]

dirknerkle suggested that it might be a high voltage problem. I am not an expert in these matters. Can you suggest some exact parts and how to connect them to see if that is the answer?


Hi, Jim.
Again, I don't use a Trix board, but in terms of measuring voltage of a serial output, all you really need is a standard VOM and check the output voltage of the port between the TX and GND pins. RS232 can range pretty wildly in voltage and if it's more juice than the receiving component can handle, it's not uncommon for the chip to go into neverneverland... and only a power-off will reset it. Or sometimes it can get fried and it won't come back at all...

Kind of like plugging your toaster into the same circuit as your electric oven and ***POOF*** something has to give...

-dave

[TimW]

Hi Jim

This is a tricky problem because there are several links in the chain - so there are several points at which the problem could be occuring.

It is always possible that the problem is from LTC or the TriksC itself. But if you describe the triks C as stopping 'frozen mid frame' that is usually a symptom of a comms problem - because the Triks C is still doing a fair bit of work to display the frozen frame! Also.. because you have found that resetting the link usually fixes it I wouldn't go straight to the TriksC as the problem yet.

My first focus would be on the USB extender/converter. There's no reason on the face of it why the configuration wouldn't work - but I haven't seen these used before with a TriksC.

Conventionally the Triks-C is able to use RS232 or RS422 (RS422 would give you the distance you need). So usually people get the rs422 signal converted from USB at the pc and then run that RS422 signal directly to the Triks C. One usb-rs422 adaptor or serial-rs422 adaptor - powered close to the PC

This might be important in your case because in the way you have set it up there is a USB-RS232 conversion that occurs at the end of your 120 foot extender cable.

The QVS usb to RS232 convertor will have its own processor and circuitry in it....and if I understand correctly it is relying on power supplied by the usb extender..over120feet? Every so often this may cause the circuit to lock up if there's enough noise/voltage drop. What you would see in this case is that LTC still works... the extender still works... but the converter locks up and doesnt convert to rs232 any more....intermittently.



Not sure how accessible the connectors are. Next time it locks up.. try breaking and restoring the connection between the extender and the QVS (resetting the usb-serial convertor. If that restarts things it supports this argument...)

There have been successful attempts to send data to Triks C wirelessly... see this thread (http://www.doityourselfchristmas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=6951)for example.

Tim



Hi All:
I just wrote a nice long response to all of your responses and somehow fat fingered it - and lost it. I will try again.

First, some additional information that might help. I am using a USB to serial (DB9) converter by QVS and then using the DB9 connector into the Triks-C. To get the distance I need (120 feet), I am using a Manhattan USB line Extender.

JEEPGUY suggested that I might need to move the ltc.exe and other files. I have placed all of these files in a separate directory. I am only using Vixen to develop the picture frames. I am using LOR to control the light display and LTC by itself on a different computer to control the sign. I am not getting any errors from the LTC Program. It continues to run as if nothing is wrong - the sign just stops responding. Also, I am not using #cls at the end of the script because I want the last frame to stay on the sign. What I actually would like to use is the loop command so it would continue to run. I would do this if I could figure out the cause of my problem.

holtm suggested using a different serial port. I have actually tried 3 different computers and still have the same problem.

dirknerkle suggested that it might be a high voltage problem. I am not an expert in these matters. Can you suggest some exact parts and how to connect them to see if that is the answer?

I have another question to go along with the above. Does anyone have another idea how to make the connection from the PC to the sign - other than what I am doing now? I would love to find a simple inexpensive wireless solution if possible.

Thanks for all of your discussion on this.
Jim

[ranger_391xt]

I am using wireless communication to the LEDTriks. In addition to the thread Tim mentions, alse see this one (http://www.doityourselfchristmas.com/forums/showthread.php?t=7290) regarding the connection from the SparkFun XBee Serial adapter to the Triks-C.

I am also an LOR user, and driving mine on the same PC running LOR. I posted information about this on the LOR S2 Support Forum yesterday. If you'd like more info, let me know.

One other thing I would mention, while testing driving the LEDTriks/Triks-C during my LOR show I had everthing setup in my living room, which is also where our Wii is (which the kids were playing at the time). I noticed that once in a while the text scrolling across the LEDTricks would get jerky. About the same time, one of the Wii controllers would lose connection. I'm not sure if the XBee units and Wii Remotes (Blue Tooth) are communicating on relatively close frequencies, but it would seem to be that there was some interference between the two. Since I moved the LEDTriks/Triks-C/XBee setup outside, I haven't seen any of this "jerkiness".

Chris

[budude]

Indeed they are - Bluetooth, WiFi (802.11) and XBee (aka Zigbee 802.15.4), Microwave ovens and some cordless phones all use around the 2.4GHz frequency range and will definitely interfere with each other...