strange things about LEDs and DIN

[Jymm]

Hi Everyone,

I'm finishing my mb64e, and I have a problem: I have 3 DIN and 2 DOUT. Everything is well soldered, I checked everything and all is ok.

The problem is that when I plug 2DIN, all the LED are working fine. When I plug the 3rd DIN, either if no entry is connected, All the LEDs go off, and when I push some butons on other DINs, the LEDS seamed to be "shortened", some of them are on at the same time, 2 or 3 LEDs at time. Do you have ideas ?

Thanks

[DavidBanner]

sounds like you've got a short....

you need to swap the DINs one at a time to see which one is faulty.

test each DIN on it's own, then try swapping them around to see if it's the DIN boards, or possibly the cable connecting them

also you might want to upload one of the testing applications to help you debug

[Jymm]

I already switched the DINs, that's why I know they all work fine. Each DIN separatly works fine, and any combination of 2 of them work fine, but when I add the 3rd, problem with the LEDs, but, the encoders on the 3rd DIN work fine !

[DavidBanner]

mmm, that's odd!

have you checked the cables too?

What test application(s) have you tried?

and i'm pretty sure this isn't it, but how big is your power supply?

[Jymm]

I didn't launch any test application. My power supply is a 9v 1000mA. I tried a few cables, and I know it's not the cables too.

[moxi]

maybe a short with the case or panel?

[DavidBanner]

mmm, so there more than enough power for sure...

try dout_enc_v1_3.zip - Utility which allows to select one of 128 DOUTs with an encoder

to see which LEDs are affected

and also ain64_din128_dout128_v1_3.zip

to see if any DINs are jamming on....

Also have you set the amount of shift registers on the DIN correctly?

[Jymm]

Hi all, thanks for your help.

I don't think this is a shortcut. I'm going to be more precise for the problem. I did other checks today and these are the results.

But first, my config: 1core, 1Ain, 3Din, 2Dout, 1LTC

1st DIN: 30 buttons and 1 enc (for menu navigation)

2nd DIN: 32 buttons

3rd DIN 16 encoders

All encoders are well defined in mios table.

For the LED,

I configured the Mk syx to have this, corresponding to what I want

LED_SR1 = 2   

LED_SR2 = 3   

LED_SR3 = 4   

LED_SR4 = 5   

LED_SR5 = 6   

LED_SR6 = 7   

LED_SR7 = 8   

LED_SR8 = 10

These are the tests:

- All the DIN plugged and full:  all is working fine (buttons and encoders)

- Each DIN individually and swapped with another one works fine

- All the DIN + 1 DOUT full: All is OK, in the good order

- All the DIN + 2 DOUT (full or empty): problem with the second DOUT card (whatever card I use)

- 2DIN + 2DOUT (all fully plugged): everything is ok.

So I think that the cards are OK, otherwise I would have some problems when I swap them.

But, I'm a beginner with C programmation, and It's possible that I have not configured a thing.

Thanks for the help.

[Jymm]

Just a post to add that I launched the 2 test applications mentioned by DavidBanner. The results are the same:

When I don't plug the last DIN, everything is ok. If I plug the last DIN card, there are some problems in the LED order from the 5th DOUT shift register.

[DavidBanner]

So I think that the cards are OK, otherwise I would have some problems when I swap them.

But, I'm a beginner with C programmation, and It's possible that I have not configured a thing.

if you're using ain64_din128_dout128_v1_3.zip and still getting problems then it's not likely to be s/w related.

what you are describing doesn't make sense unless it's a cable issue, but you've checked those.....

mmmm (scratches head) - anyone else got any suggestions??

[stryd_one]

Check the wiring ... again ;)

[Jymm]

Let's say you're right Stryd, but which wiring do you I have to check ? DIN ? DOUT? Cables to the LEDS ?

All of these are ok when I plug them separatly and when I swap them. It's not my LED cables because when I plug my 2nd group of leds on the 1st DOUT, they are all right ! I know it's not the DOUT cards for the same reasons: all the led light well when I plug them. I've just finished new cables between the cards, and the problem is still there.

I did another test:

I have a group of LED telling me the active bank. The first LED is lit, and I got 2DIN plugged.

I try only plugging a connector on the J2 port of the 2nd DIN, and the led goes out, all the others then have the problem, they light two by two, or they don't light. Of course, I tried this with the three of my DIN cards and the results are the same.

[DavidBanner]

sounds like the problem could be in the cable/connection going from J2 of the 1st DIN to J1 of the "child" DIN

are you using smashTV kits?

[Jymm]

No, I use Mike's kit. But Don't you think there coulb be a problem with the buttons or the encoders if ther was a problem between J1 and J2 ?

[stryd_one]

"I try only plugging a connector on the J2 port of the 2nd DIN, and the led goes out"

You are powering off the whole thing when you plug and unplug cables right? :-\

[DavidBanner]

what's happening to the LCD when you plug the connection on J2?

[Jymm]

Sometimes, I power off the midibox, and some other times, I let it powered, but results are the same, Stryd.

David, when I plug J2, nothing happens on the LCD, it continues working properly.

[DavidBanner]

sorry dude, what I meant to ask is, when you watch the LCD and connect to J2 does the core power off or reset?

[Jymm]

Nothing's happening, the midibox continues working, without rebooting or powering off.

[DavidBanner]

it doesn't make sense, but then you know that already :)

stryd - you got any more ideas?

[stryd_one]

Ideas... well I'm guessing either a dead com.pnent, a short, software misconfiguration or a power issue (too much current through LEDs), in no order of likelihood ;)

Sorry Jymm but I have to ask lots of questions and make lots of suggestions. Because this is obviously not an easy one to fix i will get straight to the point with matters. Don't take it personally, remember I just want to get your Midibox working :) Here goes:

I already switched the DINs, that's why I know they all work fine.

Well it's a fairly safe assumption, but you do not "Know" that at all. You "know" that switching them does not cause the thing to catch fire. But I'm yet to see where you've tested it properly to confirm that they do in fact work as designed. Maybe you have :) but I haven't seen it... I can only advise as I know ;)

Using this one as an example, you can switch the PCB's, or the IC's, or the cables, or any combination... Then you've got each button connected to them as well, and maybe more cables or a CS PCB. I am not suggesting that you should test all that, but at least be aware that you have not tested them and so you are assuming it's OK, and you don't really know for sure. It's an educated guess ;)

It's important, not to confuse assumptions for facts, or you may end up putting lots of effort in for no reason, and that sucks! Your troubleshooting process seems pretty darn good IMO, with the one exception being that you are very quick to kind-of-test something and state that you "know" it's good.

And for goodness' sake stop bloody plugging things in and out when it's powered on! It's not an enterprise server with hotplug PCI-x ;)  You may need to reconfigure the software if you want it to work the same way with different hardware. You can find out how, in the main files of the app in comments. (open main.c in notepad)

Each DIN separatly works fine, and any combination of 2 of them work fine, but when I add the 3rd, problem with the LEDs, but, the encoders on the 3rd DIN work fine !

What happens when you try this without the LCD? Don't forget to turn it off before reconfiguring the hardware!

How did you test it to make sure it "works fine"?

Just a sidenote, it may pay to be precise with the terminology to avoid confusion. a DIN is one single pin, which you would connect to a switch. A DINx4 is a module with 4 Shift registers on it, each one having 8 DIN's.

I didn't launch any test application.

That might be a good starting point for testing :D At this point you can forget the MB64 app. We'll get to that later. Right now, the test apps are the ones you want. One app you should try which wasn't mentioned here is the SRIO test app.

My power supply is a 9v 1000mA.

What is the max current draw of your design? (include LEDs and LCD) Are you using standard parts? (vreg/rectifier/caps/etc) does the vreg get hot? Have you tested the 9v to make sure it really is 9V? When it's plugged into the midibox and when it's not? Have you tested the voltages on the circuit at run time? Have you checked for noise (Set to AC voltage) Have you tried another PSU?

So I think that the cards are OK, otherwise I would have some problems when I swap them.

What about the cables between them?

Are you connecting everything as per the schematics?

No, I use Mike's kit.

Mike's kit's are good, but sometimes we make mistakes when soldering ;)

This one's a strange one. I'm inclined to think that you've done a pretty good job of testing it and your assumptions are accurate and at the moment I'm suspicious of the LED's drawing too much... Dunno..... Test it out using the tips above and see if you find  something suss.... Good luck man!!