Troubleshooting: General Issues

Wiki
1

Motors don't move

  1. Run Actions->Test Motors
  2. If both motors fail, check that the power is connected (look for the steady green light) and that the power is plugged into the Maslow shield (as in the picture below), not the arduino controller.
    image
  3. If one motor fails test, swap ports on the Maslow shield to motors to see if the problem moves with the motor.
  4. If the same motor fails, check connection at the motors to make sure the cables are plugged in correctly.
  5. If the green light is not steady, you have an intermittent power issue. Check for a blue light on your power supply.
2

Wrong motor moves

  1. Make sure the cables are plugged into the correct port. For v1.1 and v1.2, the left motor (when facing the Maslow from the front) plugs into port P3 and the right motor plugs into port P1.
    image
3

"Unable to Resolve Position" Error Message

Causes/Solutions:

  1. Motor lost position of chains, perhaps due to USB disconnect during movement: Reset your chains by running Actions->Calibrate Chain Lengths
4

Timeout Errors Trying to Upload Firmware

Causes/Solutions:

  1. USB port conflict
    • Make sure the USB cable is firmly seated into the computer and the arduino controller.
    • Make sure that GroundControl is closed. It will seize the USB port and interfere with Arduino IDE
  2. Missing/Corrupted Driver
    • (Re)install driver for arduino
5

GroundControl Connection Time Out Error or Intermittent USB Disconnects

Causes/Solutions:

  1. USB port conflict
    • Make sure the USB cable is firmly seated into the computer and the arduino controller.
    • Make sure that the Arduino IDE is closed. It will seize the USB port and interfere with Ground Control
  2. Missing/Corrupted Driver
    • (Re)install driver for arduino
6

GroundControl Crashes

Causes/Solutions:

  1. GroundControl installed in a directory for which you do not have write permission
  2. Running GroundControl from a username that contains non-alphanumeric characters
  3. Missing Python library
  4. Syntax error in groundcontrol.ini
  5. Missing propweightz = 1 in groundcontrol.ini

Other potential solutions here: https://www.disciplesofcnc.com/wiki/pmwiki.php?n=Site.KivyProblems