Just received my first Pixhawk. First thing I tried was to load firmware (Copter) - exactly following the install manual. I made quite a few attempts trying to catch the moment where the boatloader should be ready (yellow LED FMU B/E blinking ?). Did not work - always upload failed.
Then all of a sudden all of the LEDs started blinking rapidly in unison whenever I plugged in USB. Of course I unplugged and replugged USB. Now all LEDS start blinking rapidly in unison whenever I plug in USB. Com-Port is not opened - as if nothing was plugged into the computer.
On a side note I opened the casing and careful inspection of the PCB showed that the buzzer connector
is not properly fixed, one of the two legs is not making contact with the board. However I doubt that is the problem, as I did get the USB to connect properly a few times until hell broke loose
Anyone with an idea what went wrong / where the problem is ?
Dead ? bricked ? paperweight now ?
In the meantime I found out that USB is connecting sometimes - sometimes not. Tried on two different PCs and with Missionplanner 1.9x and 2.0 (in all cases my other APM boards work just fine…). Re-installed drivers, changed COM port (originally COM32 , now COM11)
Using MP 2.0 the Pixhawk is found on COM11, identified as “PX4 FMU 3D Robotics”
I’m definitely not an expert so this may not be good advice, but I had similar intermittent connections issues (on two different PCs). It turned out I was using the 5 wire GPS cable instead of the 6 wire cable between the pixhawk GPS uBlox module. Have you tried disconnecting all the cables except from the pixhawk except the buzzer? Just a thought.
Thanks for your idea. However I have absolutely nothing connected to the Pixhawk, only using USB to try and load firmware. Can’t connect the buzzer anyway because the connector is not properly fixed to the PCB.
I experienced the same. None of my Thinkpads (T42,X60s,T60 all XP which did the complete job with my former APM 2.5) has been able to upload PIXHAWK FW and proper log download . I used an active Hub,disconnected anything, but it did not help. MP Config worked well though.
My solution was : An older HP Compaq NX7400 worked right away.
Finally some progress.
Using a powered USB hub (able to deliver 400mA) I was finally able to load the firmware onto it. In the past I have flashed dozens of different FCs/processors with my various PCs without any hickups - this ARM Cortex seems to be a power-hungry beast. Might be worth mentioning in the WIKI, I seem to be not the only one with this problem …
Not so sure what I should do with my loose buzzer connector. I guess trying to micro-solder it properly to the PCB would void warranty ? On the other hand I’d hate to wait again for a replacement
Pixhawk and PX4 are right at the limits of what some USB ports can deliver. We recommend using a powered port.
If the buzzer connector is damaged, and the buzzer does not work then contact help@3DRobotics and request an RMA.