Please excuse me if my problem(s) are not unique, but I can’t find answers anywhere.
As a caveat I’ve been flying with APM 2.6 and have had no problems. Here’s what’s going on:
Unboxed unit, mounted it on my quad, and connected GPS/Compass module and power module
Safety switch, buzzer, and GPS/Compass.
Connected to PC USB port after invoking Mission Planner and updated Mission Planner 1.2.95 Build 1.1.5150.11972.
Followed normal setup instructions with no problems until I got to the point that I had to
calibrate the unit to my radio. Ran into problems with no communication to radio (Jeti DS-16)
and exited the setup to research the problem. Other than this, everything seemed to be going
fine (Leds blinking, Led in safety switch on, buzzer, music, GPS OK, etc).
Following re-connect to computer I note that not all the LEDs are lighting (only the two PWR)
and when going through the setup once again, Mission planner states that the board already
has the firmware loaded. I cannot get past this step and it’s not possible to connect to mission planner.
In examining the SD card I find the following file only: APM and sub files LOGS (empty) and BOOT.LOG
that has in it “No PX4IO board found”.
Searching around I found some info about adding a file px4io.bin that seemed like it should help the problem
and I copied it onto the SD card and followed the instructions to load it, which it appeared to do. No change in symptoms.
Right now, when I connect the unit to my computer (Win 7) USB port, the two POWER Leds (FMU and I/O) illuminate, the
orange FMU B/E Led flashes for ~ 4 seconds, and the music plays once. If I try to install ArduCopter V3.1.1 Quad,Mission Planner
tells me it’s already on the board and when I try to connect it always times out. This is as far as I can get. If I let this run trying to connect long enough I receive a message that no heartbeat packages are detected.
I’m wondering if the OS for the PixHawk has been corrupted but this is just a guess. In any case, I have no
idea how to deal with this.
Any help or guidance you can provide will be very much appreciated!!!
Searching around I found some info about adding a file px4io.bin that seemed like it should help the problem and I copied it onto the SD card and followed the instructions to load it, which it appeared to do. No change in symptoms.
Where did you find instructions? They are out of date
Please load one of the flight codes and remove power from the Pixhawk. Now power up with the Safety switch pressed and it will load the IO code correctly
Thanks for getting back to me so soon. When you refer to “Flight codes” what do you mean?
As far as those instructions I came across them searching the 'net for help. I don’t recall the site.
The problem is that whenever I go to load it (which originally was no problem) it comes back with the statement that it’s already loaded. At this point I go into wizard to complete the setup and the unit will never connect…times out every time and then returns a statement that No Heartbeat is detected, or something to that effect.
I tried it again as Craig suggested and nothing has changed. The unit goes through the load process (I tried a different vehicle) and when all is said and done it’s sitting there with only the two power LEDs illuminated, times out trying to connect and gives me the Heartbeat Package popup. No joy.
When you try to write the firmware and mission planner detects that you already have installed the same firmware version it won’t let you install it again, what you can do in this case is to install different firmware for example ArduPlane and then return to install ArduCopter, then you can follow Craig’s instructions to make sure you have the right IO firmware.
This is exactly what I did. I was able to write the firmware for Airplane, however I still couldn’t get further than this. I went back to Copter and was able to write it again, but can only get that far. I’ve checked the comm port for the proper speed, connection, etc. and all seems fine. I’m exactly where I was with my first posting regarding this problem.
At this time the only connections to the PixHawk other than the USB cable (I’ve already swapped it out just-in-case) is the GPS/Compass, Safety switch, Power input from the Power Unit (unconnected to battery) and buzzer. I’ve double checked all connections and can’t find any physical or connection problem.
When I first powered up the PixHawk out of the box I had all kinds of LEDs illuminated and went through the process just fine until I ran into an issue with my TX communication to the PixHawk. Now I only have the two power LEDs and the one that flashes when I upload the firmware, and the buzzer that plays the musical tone after about 4 seconds after connecting to the USB port. Other than that Nothing, Nada. This is very frustrating.
Try to format the microSD card or try with another formated card if you have an additional one available, don’t write any file to it, then remove the power from the Pixhawk, insert the card, power up with the safety switch pressed.
If this doesn’t allow you to connect to mission planner, then send an email to help@3drobotics.com to get further assistance.
Try to format the microSD card or try with another formated card if you have an additional one available, don’t write any file to it, then remove the power from the Pixhawk, insert the card, power up with the safety switch pressed.
If this doesn’t allow you to connect to mission planner, then send an email to help@3drobotics.com to get further assistance.[/quote]
RogelioN,
Thanks for your time and trouble, but this hasn’t helped either. I’ll contact 3dRobotics help as you suggest. I’m coming to believe that there’s some real problem with the unit.
The tones indicate that the Ardupilot firmware is trying to start but a device driver fails which means most likely the IO firmware is not working correctly.
Earlier I gave you instructions to:
Please load one of the flight codes and remove power from the Pixhawk. Now power up with the Safety switch pressed and it will load the IO code correctly
You have working main firmware. Now we just need to get the correct IO firmware loaded.
Power up with the Safety switch pressed and Pixhawk will load the IO code correctly and you should be good to go
I am experiencing the same issues as described here. When I attempted a firmware install over mission planner or apm 2 it would flash but on reboot would not get a musical tone (would get single beep) or seem to boot in anyway. I would also get “firmware has already been loaded” when reattempting. I was a little more successful uploading the firmware through qgroundstation.
Through qgroundstation it would flash, reboot and would get musical tone/ center rgb led fading in/out (blue) and would communicate with QGroundStation but would never display any data even though it says its connected. Mission planner or APM planner still fail to communicate with no heartbeat error even though it is detected in the port list . A couple times when I would attempt to install the same firmware I had previously loaded successfully I would get a “wrong board ID” and it would abort. I would simply restart it and would run through the flash without error. There is definitely something funky with the firmware going on.
After a bit of digging around there was someone that had mentioned that most desktop/laptop usb bus cant supply the power needed for the Pixhawk to run completely. I tried a powered usb hub with a 3A supply as well as a battery pack with no success.
There are a few other things you can try.
First, can you connect using the connection icon shown in the above post?
If you can connect that way, go to Initial Configuration tab, then install FW. Make sure you check the Pixhawk in the pull down box. This will force a reboot of the PH. Now try the installing the FW. What you did before has helped me unscrew some stuff before too. That is, install one platform and then another.
You can also try going into the CLI screen and connect there. Erase and reset, try again…
You can try one of the other Ground SW to load the FW.
Lastly, try reinstalling the drivers or remove MP and delete the MP folder, then re-install.
I know this is a shot gun approach but the Pixhawk seems to be less stable with regard to FW loads than the APM. Surely, I will get scolded by a moderator for saying this but that is MY opinion.
Good luck!
Let us know how it works out for you.
Steven
If the current firmware is already loaded you will get that message. If you want to re install the firmware what you can do is to install different firmware for example if you plan to install copter, then install plane and return to copter.
I would recommend you to use the powered hub when you are loading firmware (or better any time you are using Pixhawk with the computer).
If there is another error displayed when loading the firmware, please let us know.