Hi, I’m having this same problem, and I saw a similar message thread at:
What was the result of that trouble ticket anyway?
I really don’t want to replace my DFI sensors, because I already replaced them 13 months ago. Do these DFI sensors need to be constantly replaced or something?
What else could my problem be? And if it is the sensors, can I please have a new free set under warranty?
If you have an issue with the yellow blinking light, it isn’t due to the DFI. It’s either the motor, the anti-pinch or the bonnet connections, depending on the flashing speed.
If the yellow light is blinking twice per second:
The Anti-Pinch safety feature is two pin connected to the motherboard that must touched each other continuously.
If they are separated, you will have an alarm(yellow blinking light). The Anti-Pinch safety is located in the top back left of the Litter-Robot base. You will need to unplug the unit, remove the bonnet, the globe and the drawer.
It is ‘‘Two Metal’’ pin. With a flashlight, you should be able to see if they are touching each other or not. If they are not touching each other, try to reposition it with a flat screw driver by pushing them upwards.
Hi, thank you for the response. Many other things I read talked about the anti-pinch feature, and I did have a problem with that around a year ago which was resolved by removing them and cleaning them up and replacing them. But it doesn’t seem to be working any more. I even tried taking them out, and then just connecting the two lead wires together to see if this was the problem, but I still had the light flashing. The light is only flashing once per second however.
I’ve tried cleaning the bonnet connections thoroughly, but it’s still flashing 1/second, and the nightlight isn’t coming on, so it sounds like the bonnet circuit board may be the culprit this time.
(Didn’t notice I can’t reply to your email until now; this email was written last night. A follow-up email will follow)
Hi, thanks for the response. I found the problem; in one of my prior debugging efforts with the pinch sensor, I had opened up the motor/circuit board panel, and apparently one of the connectors had popped off when I reassembled it. I was checking the bonnet connection and couldn’t find a problem, but then checking it with a voltmeter showed no apparent connection at all (it should show 4.5V normally, to feed the LEDs in the bonnet), and checking the wire harness connection to the bonnet connectors showed no trouble, so I opened up the main circuit board panel again and found the connector wasn’t on. Replacing this solved the problem, and now it all works fine.
To answer your question, though, no, I bought this unit used on Craigslist, but I did buy the DFI sensor replacement kit from your company a little over a year ago, as the original DFI sensors had failed somehow. The new ones seem to be working fine now.
Thanks again,
Dan
(this is the email I tried sending this morning)
Whoops, looks like I spoke too soon. Reconnecting that harness connector fixed the slow-flashing yellow light, and the box worked OK overnight, but now this morning it’s back to its original behavior, which is the fast-flashing yellow light indicating the pinch sensor is bad. But it isn’t: I disconnected the pinch sensor terminals, and then connected them together with one of the pinch sensor pieces, so they’re always electrically connected no matter what. Yet the problem remains: it insists the pinch sensor is being tripped. What’s the problem now? Is the DFI sensor assembly bad again? Remember, this is the replacement DFI sensor kit I bought from you not very long ago.
Honestly, I’m really disappointed in the reliability of this product: I’ve had to replace the DFI sensors once, the cat sensor once, I’ve had to clean up the pinch sensor contacts once (last year), and now the pinch sensor circuit seems to be completely failed. I’m an engineer, and I shouldn’t have to be doing all this to keep this going; anyone else would have thrown it in the trash.
Thanks,
Dan
Hi, have been having this issue too. The unit overshoots the hole, stops and the yellow light flashes very fast continuously. This is intermittently. It may work find for several ‘empties’ and then lock up.
Have followed all the advice within the forums here: reseating bonnet, cleaning pinchers, etc…
Have had the unit 3 years so well out of warranty. Please advice the next trouble shooting steps and then how to repair/replace parts if not?
Thank you.
Stuart.
Hi @StuNew,
Please have a look at this troubleshooting: The three lights on the control panel are blinking
Generally, the root cause for this issue can be:
Hi,
Am not getting three lights blinking. But followed the troubleshoot and checked pins.
When I put the unit back together and switch on. It’s fine. However after several cycles, again, the unit gets stuck (upside down/open) when emptying (the hole overshoots) and the yellow light flashes quickly.
Hi,
I spent all day trying to capture the unit cycling into the fault. But everytime I filmed it worked fine. However when I left it, I would come back after a couple of hours and find it like the video enclosed. Please note ‘hole overshoot’ inside. When I try to film it, it’s without a cat having been in it since reset, but when it faults, it would have been after a cat was in it - in case that is a clue.
Thanks.
Hi @StuNew,
This looks like a problem with Hall-effect sensor which is responsible for globe position detection. If the position not detected properly, globe will rotate too much and activate anti-pinch safety (yellow light blinking quickly).
You can buy new sensor here: https://www.robotshop.com/en/litter-robot-3-open-air-wiring-harness.html
You can use this instruction to help you replace it: https://community.robotshop.com/blog/show/litter-robot-iii-the-hall-effect-sensor
Feel free to ask anything else.
Hello,
I seem to have the same problem as above. The litter box will have a quick flashing light and hasn’t moved in two days. I cleened it fully including the recently replaced sensors, took it apart to see if everything was connected, but nothing helps. I bought it via the robotshop with extended guarantee, what can i do? Thanks in advance!
Hello @Marloes,
Thank you for reaching out to us.
We are sorry to hear that you are having trouble with your Litter-Robot.
If the yellow light is blinking twice per second:
The Anti-Pinch safety feature is two pins connected to the motherboard that must touch each other continuously.
If they are separated, you will have an alarm(yellow blinking light). The Anti-Pinch safety is located in the top back left of the Litter-Robot base. You will need to unplug the unit, remove the bonnet, the globe and the drawer.
This video will help you locate them: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FJkQTXxkXXA
It is ‘‘Two Metal’’ pin. With a flashlight, you should be able to see if they are touching each other or not. If they are not touching each other, try to re-position it with a flat screwdriver by pushing them upwards.
Note: If the pins were dirty or rusty, you can take them out and clean them with WD-40 and Sandpaper.
We hope this information will help you resolve the problem. Take care.
Sincerely,
Hello,
Thanks for this advice. I did that once you told me and it worked, happy cats and us. But yesterday the problem was again there. Today again I had to sand it down and now it is working again, but I wasn’t planning on doing this every two or three weeks, there won’t be but metal left then. Can you help me? Thank is advance!
Hello @Marloes,
Thank you for your reply.
Please provide us with a picture of the pins, maybe it’s time to replace them.
Please send us your order number to check your warranty status as well.
Sincerely,
Hello,
The order numer is 661931.
I attached a photo before and after sanding
Thank you in advance! Hopefully it can be replaced quickly as it again is blinking just now
Hello @Marloes,
Thank you for your reply.
The pins need to be replaced.
You are still covered by the extended warranty so we can certainly send you replacement pins.
We will forward you to our internal support system to carry on with the process.
In a couple of minutes, we will contact you again with further details.
Sincerely,
This topic was transferred to internal RobotShop Support.
