Help needed with FSbus FSad board.

[Guest Robid]

This is my first post on this forum, but I have just about read every post and response regarding FSbus. I have now built FSCom, FSKey and FSad. All of which flashed ok after a little trouble shooting thanks to the different pieces of help from people on this forum.Now, my problem is that with the FSad, as I said, it flashed ok, but I don't have the yellow led lit, the red led shows data movement when I turn a pot but the router is not autosensing the pot. Also the red led flickers when no pot is connected. When I was researching the building of same, I came across some conflicting information.On FSBus.de website, the downloaded component view showed 13 capacitors,the schematic for Fsad on fsbus.de it shows only 12 capacitors. In the component view on Jari Mikkila's website(http://mikkila.wabbits.org/fsbus/index_e.php it also shows13. There are 2 x 33p, 8 x 10n and the schematic says 2 x 47u electrolytic, also the parts list on Jari's site says 2 x 47u. Also the pictures show what appears to be 3 x 47u caps. I have also found pictures with this odd 47u cap placed around the otherway(reversed polarity). I have guessed it by the pictures I have seen as a 47u cap.Another conflict is that on the component view it lists a resistor that's attached to this yellow led as just 180, the parts list says it's a 18k resistor, the schematics say 18k but on this site http://home.hccnet.nl/r.vries/fsbusparts.htm the schematic shows a 180? resistor and the parts list shows the same.Also, voltage wise, on the part of the board that you plug the pots into,I have only 0.69 volts between the earth rail and the middle rail (hope you understand which ones I mean)these are the two rails connected to the yellow led. I feel it should be a lot higher than that.Could any of these issues be my problem?I know this is long winded, but any help would be greatly appreciated.DavidGold CoastAustralia

[Guest JMA]

Hello David, The resistor is 18K. Also you must conect the pin 2 and 3 of the PIC in the board. ( there is a bug in the layout ) . I think that this is the mean problem. Marcelo.

[Guest Robid]

Hi Marcelo,Thank you for replying.Pin 2 & 3 are already connected. Do you know what voltage should be between the earth and the middle rail on the pot connectors. I only have .69 volts. Also, I already have an 18k resistor connected. I have 5.04 volts coming into the board so there is no voltage supply problem. Do I have the right capacitor between these two rails. It's a 47u cap (that makes a total of 3 x 47u caps on the board. Is that right?Why do all the parts lists I have found only mention 2 47u caps?Also why does the component view show 180 (no k after it) for the resistor next to the 10 PIN connector block?Any other suggestions would be greatly appreciated.David

[Guest Robid]

Just another point. A yellow led requires around 2v to light (from what I understand) and I only have .69. On the other side on this 18k resistor, I have 5.04 so it appears that 18k is reducing the voltage too low for the led and I'm assuming too low to autosense the analogue pot in fsbus router.A 180 ohm resistor would take this voltage up to over 2 volts.Am I on the right track. I don't know a lot about electronics, but I'm learning fast.David

[Guest yoss]

Just another maybeCheck against shematics if you connected the pots correctI did such mistake until i found that the center pin on pcb for pot connection does not go to the the slider of the pot Somehow confusing

[Guest Erups]

If the 18k resistor is only used to power up the LED, as to say that power goes to the resistor, then to led then to ground; then the resistor is wrong.To light up a standard led with 12v you need a 470ohm resistor.I do not have an AD board so i can't be more specific.

[Guest Robid]

Thanks for responding guys.First of all, yes I did check the schematics and I'm pretty sure I have the pot attached correctly (thanks Yos). But this wouldn't explain the low voltage to the led.Claudio, the 18k resistor supplies power between the earth rail and the middle rail for the 3 pin pot connectors. The Led is wired between these two traces on the board. If someone could tell me what voltage should be between these two rails I could probably figure this one out. I'm sure it should be higher than .69 volts as this won't light up the led.Does anyone have one that is working and can give me this measurement? Just for clarity, when looking at the component side of the board, it's the two pins on the 3 pin connector for the pot that are the furtherest away from the pic.Thanks all.David

[Guest Erups]

>Claudio, the 18k resistor supplies power between the earth>rail and the middle rail for the 3 pin pot connectors. The Led>is wired between these two traces on the board. If someone>could tell me what voltage should be between these two rails I>could probably figure this one out. I'm sure it should be>higher than .69 volts as this won't light up the led.Just gessing but my idea is that this resistor is wrong.The comparator (ADC) on the board compares the voltage going trough the pots with the power voltage.This comparison is rounded to 8 bits, and this is the value the board provides.Now in order for this system to work, the maximum power arriving at the pots should be equal to the power voltage, so that when the pots are at 0, the ADC reads full voltage.If your max voltage is 0.69 the ADC won't ever read any useful value, as the resolution (8 bits) is too small.At max it will read a few units of deviation.So i think you should check this resistor as it appears wrong.

[Guest Robid]

Claudio, Thank you again for your help.I bit the bullet and changed the resistor to 180ohm. Led is now lit and I now have autosensing on the Router and readings from the pot.Only problem now is that even though the router is connected to fsuip, and switches and 12position rotary are working with fskey, there is no recognition of the pot moving the rudder either in fsuip or on the actual plane.I am using version 2.975 of fsuip.I have unloaded the driver for the joystick I was using.What am I missing, is this older version not capable of reading the anologue pots from fsbus router.David

[tigert 0]

>What am I missing, is this older version not capable of>reading the anologue pots from fsbus router.Is Autorudder turned off for sure? Also check your FS Control assigmnents -> joystick axis, if your joystick axis for rudded is still defined there. Does the movement show in FSBUS router?//Tuomas

[Guest Erups]

>I bit the bullet and changed the resistor to 180ohm. Led is>now lit and I now have autosensing on the Router and readings>from the pot.:D>Only problem now is that even though the router is connected>to fsuipc, and switches and 12position rotary are working with>fskey, there is no recognition of the pot moving the rudder>either in fsuip or on the actual plane.Try assigning the pot to any variable, even a blank one, and observe the variable with FSInterrogate (a program found in the FSUIPC SDK available at www.schiratti.com/dowson.html), this way you'll be sure if it works or not.>I have unloaded the driver for the joystick I was using.If you'r joystick is USB, unloading the driver may have not inhibited it from working and being recognized by FS.>What am I missing, is this older version not capable of>reading the anologue pots from fsbus router.The pots from FSBUS are not recognized by windows or fs or any other DirectInput program, as they are not directinput objects.They act on FlightSimulator by means of FSUIPC, acting directly on the area of memory you assign them.FSUIPC cannot read them as a joystick as they are not a joystick.

[Guest Robid]

Thanks for your replies everyone.I have had to hook up my old hacked joystick setup in order to get some stalling practice in for some flying lessons this weekend so I will try your suggestions next week and let you know how I went.David