Newbie question: jumper issue?! possibly burned?

Lynxmotion Rovers, Sumo, and Tracked
1

hi there,
so I hadn’t read the document carefully (lesson learned the hard way) and had not removed the jumber (1) and I was using 4xAA batteries! I smelled something burning, the board is still properly programmed and responds but the now that I remove the jumper it doesn’t turn on! :S can I do anything to fix my mistake!

2

Hi Cbenson , thanks, no unfortunately, I couldn’t tell what was burning. All I can say is that when I connect it to usb I can program it, and my basic program to send something back/forth using serial port works, and the leds turn up.

3

Thanks again Coleman,

Does the board send the serial data correctly?
yes it does, I transmit a specific char, then receive a char back.

I checked the board but unfortunately still didn’t notice anything.

connect the motors and see if the lights next to the motor controller light up.
I connected the motors but no leds(LED1-4) lit up! only led 7-8 did.

point to mention is that when I connect the AA pack (of course with L1_SEL jumper removed) I see no light on the board at all.

4

Thanks Coleman, that’s most likely the case, since the batteries are fully charged, and seem properly installed. Please let me know what is the cost of V1.0/V1.5 board.

5

Hi jino,

Welcome to the RobotShop Forum. Did you happen to see what was burning / melting? If yes, can you take a photo of the board and clearly indicate the burned component?

Sincerely,

6

That sounds good so far. Does the board send the serial data correctly? If yes, it may be the charging circuit which burned. Check the board thoroughly to see if any of the chips look burnt. If you don’t find anything, connect the motors and see if the lights next to the motor controller light up. If yes, then try connecting the AA pack, set the On switch and of course remove the L1_SEL jumper.

Sincerely,

7

The microcontroller and FTDI chip are working. LEDs 7 and 8 are just aesthetic, and if they are lit, so too should LEDs 5, 6, 9 and 10 (six blue LEDs around the board). Did you load the sample Rover Code? If not, then there would be no reason for LEDs 1 to 4 to light up - you also need to keep the USB cable connected and use hyperterminal to send W,A,S,D commands.

  • Assuming the AA batteries are fully charged
  • Assuming the on/off switch is set to ON
  • Assuming the batteries are properly installed within the case

then if the board does not light up, it’s likely that the voltage regulator is fried. Check the chips directly behind the barrel connector for a bubble. If this is the case, you essentially have a regular Arduino board. The chip is surface mount and is not easy to replace. If this is the case, we may be able to offer to sell you either the V1.0 or V1.5 board only (not offered on the website).

Hope this helps,

8

Hi Jino,

Please contact us via the RobotShop Support Center, indicate your invoice or order number (so we can pull up your contact information) and RFQ 1x RB-Dfr-57 (V1.5 which is the version you have) or 1x RB-Dfr-129 (V1.0 without the onboard charger).

Hope this helps,