Xwhatsit Controller not working after plugging solenoid board in

hypkx
Chasing the Dream

04 Feb 2018, 22:53

I have a problem, maybe someone can help me.

Currently I build SSK with a xwhatsit inside, to use a solenoid with it.
I soldered the xwhatsit to the SSK membran and everything worked perfect.
The problem is now, when I plug the solenoid board in (with or without connected Solenoid) the controller can't be recognized on the PC anymore trought the configurator software (of course the keyboard don't work neither).
I followed the instructions in the manual and my other keyboards work perfect.

I tested the following:
Solenoid and Solenoid board, booth working on another keyboard
The usb cable, I used multiple ones (which work also with my other keyboards)
The grounding (I tested without and with grounding)

User avatar
DMA

05 Feb 2018, 04:23

check if you're plugging the solenoid board correctly. it is possible to connect it upside down and this will be bad (+ and - will be swapped).

hypkx
Chasing the Dream

05 Feb 2018, 07:29

Red cable to square pad, I know :) , but thanks for the hint. I double checked always it was right, because I don't want to damage anything.

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DMA

05 Feb 2018, 07:40

then the board is dead. "doesn't work" usually means short circuit. USB ports have a resettable fuse which allows them to survive a short.

hypkx
Chasing the Dream

05 Feb 2018, 07:56

The Xwhatsit works perfectly without the solenoid board plugged in. It just stops working after I add the solenoid board and connect it in this setup to the pc.

User avatar
DMA

06 Feb 2018, 04:11

hypkx wrote: The Xwhatsit works perfectly without the solenoid board plugged in. It just stops working after I add the solenoid board and connect it in this setup to the pc.
the solenoid board is dead, I mean.

hypkx
Chasing the Dream

06 Feb 2018, 07:05

But I tested it as I stated in the first post with a other Xwhatsit and it's fine.

User avatar
DMA

07 Feb 2018, 06:54

hypkx wrote: But I tested it as I stated in the first post with a other Xwhatsit and it's fine.
I'm out of hypotheses.

The solenoid board is direcly connected to 4 GPIO pins on the controller. So GPIOs are fried somehow ..or the controller that doesn't work is configured to use exp header as LEDs - but that largely means that GPIOs are fried.
Actually.
Try setting exp header to "disabled", saving config and then connecting the solenoid board. Also, if you _really_ want to know what's happening - measure current of GPIO circuits. But even if you find that current's too high.. what will you do with that knowledge?

Oh, another thing can be that solenoid board consumes just enough current to sag the VBUS just below the voltage one of your controllers is comfortable with - but not enough so that another controller also hangs. There's variations in every component, y'know. That's easiest to check - you just need a voltmeter. You don't need to break the connection (you'll need to do that to measure current). Just measure the voltage on the daughterboard side. Controller side will be a bit higher.

Anyway. If, as you say, you have 2 controllers and 2 solenoid boards, and can arrange them in a way that you have 2 working controller-daughterboard systems - just do that :)

hypkx
Chasing the Dream

07 Feb 2018, 07:42

I have a voltmeter and will check. I have multiple xwhatsits, all with solenoid.

hypkx
Chasing the Dream

07 Feb 2018, 10:09

Btw I tested with multiple header settings, but non of them worked.

User avatar
Weezer

16 Jul 2020, 09:21

Bumping a dead thread here, but did you ever figure out the issue? I'm experiencing the same thing. It's only one xwhatsit + solenoid board combo that's giving me issues. Could it be the cable? Firmware?

kmnov2017

16 Jul 2020, 09:27

Does the xwhatsit work after you unplug the solenoid driver?

User avatar
Weezer

17 Jul 2020, 03:15

kmnov2017 wrote:
16 Jul 2020, 09:27
Does the xwhatsit work after you unplug the solenoid driver?
Yes it does.
I decided to move my solenoid from my model F to my beamspring and it still works when I hook it back up to the model
F but it causes the beamspring driver to crash when I initialize the solenoid board while it's attached. I was able to verify the pinout was correct as well using Orihalcon's ebay pic.

Thanks for the reply btw :)

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