USB Device Not Recognized

[lthomps]

I am trying to get my new control box up and running but keep getting a "USB device not recognized" error. 

So here's the play-by-play.......

I am using a Dell Laptop running Windows 7 64 bit.  I have a PMDX-422 BOB connected to USB.  I am interfacing to a PMDX-134 . 

I installed Mach 4 hobby 4.2.0.2803 

I then installed SmartBOB-USB Mach4 Plug-in as per instructions.  The version is 0.36.171

When I plug the PMDX-422 into my computer as per the instructions, that's when I get the error.

[Bob at PMDX]

I've just added an entry in our FAQ forum post on the initial steps to take when you see this error.  Go to the "FAQ - PMDX-SmartBOB Troubleshooting Tips" topic (here is a direct link: http://www.pmdx.com/PMDX-Forums/index.php?topic=75.msg225#msg225).  Then look for item (5) "How to troubleshoot a "did not find a valid PMDX-SmartBOB device" error?".

If you need to generate a debug log and end us the profile package, you can either post the profile package here on the forums, or you can email it directly to me at bob at this domain.

Bob

[lthomps]

Thanks in advance Bob.  I will give it a try. 

[lthomps]

Bob:

So it turns out I have several issues.  But I am farther ahead today than I was yesterday.  So here's what I learned......

1. The PMDX-422 board I have does not work.  I actually have two, so I tried the second and now my USB not recognized issues are fixed. 

2. The internal USB connector I purchased, PMDX-USB-HDRtoB-Panel, does not work.  When I plug my computer directly into the PMDX-422 no issues.  USB is recognized. 

3. Trying to go into a USB hub on my laptop doesnot work. I have to go directly into the laptop. 

So here's my remaining issues.  I re-installed the COM driver as per your instructions and I can now see it under PORTS and COMS.  I started Mach 4 and it gave me the "Update Firmware" option.  I clicked "update" and it said "call PMDX for support".  I rebooted to see if anything would change, and now under device manager the STM Virtual Port has the yellow exclamation.  I am sending you a log file now. 

[Bob at PMDX]

1. The PMDX-422 board I have does not work.  I actually have two, so I tried the second and now my USB not recognized issues are fixed. 

The log file you sent confirms this (not that this really needed confirming)- Windows was not seeing the device at all.  You can send that PMDX-422 to us for repair, along with the USB-HDRtoB-Panel (well, we'll replace that, but I would be curious to have it to check out here).  Ship the board & cable to the address on our contact page (http://www.pmdx.com/ContactUs).  Put somewhere on the outside of the box "RMA 01301601".

3. Trying to go into a USB hub on my laptop doesnot work. I have to go directly into the laptop. 

Interesting.  Is the USB hub "self powered" (i.e. has its own power supply) or is it "USB Powered" (draws power from the USB connection to the laptop).

So here's my remaining issues.  I re-installed the COM driver as per your instructions and I can now see it under PORTS and COMS.  I started Mach 4 and it gave me the "Update Firmware" option.  I clicked "update" and it said "call PMDX for support".  I rebooted to see if anything would change, and now under device manager the STM Virtual Port has the yellow exclamation.  I am sending you a log file now.

My first guess is that the plug-in timed out waiting for the PDMX-422 to reboot either before or after the firmware update.  If so, you should be able to recover from this.  Try this:

(1) Plug the PMDX-422 into the USB

(2) Start Mach4.

(3) If you see a message that says something about "boot loader" running and corrupt firmware, click on the OK button.  When the main Mach4 screen appears, go to the "Configure" menu and select "Plugins...".  Then click on the "Configure" button for the PMDX-SmartBOB.  The main tab has a button for "Update Device Firmware".  Click on that.  When the firmware download dialog appears, click on "Download".  If you get any errors here, please copy the text from the download window (right-click the mouse in the window and select "select all", then right-click again and select "copy").

(4) If you start Mach4 and DON'T see the above message, please create another debug log as before.  Exit Mach4 after enabling the debug log, start Mach4, then disable the debug log and create the profile.  OR, if you are computer-saavy enough, you can send just the log file.  See item (8) here http://www.pmdx.com/PMDX-Forums/index.php?topic=97.0 to see where the log file is.

Bob

[lthomps]

As per your latest instructions when I started Mach4 I get the error......   ERROR:Port auto-scan did not find a valid PMDX-SmartBOB-USB device.

After I hit ok, the following error pops up.  ERROR: Could not connect to the SmartBOBUSB device.  Please plug in or check the USB cable and re-start Mach4


I also tried to download firmware as per the instructions and get the error. Could not start firmware download
Error 7 Communication error

Another log file sent. 

[Bob at PMDX]

Well, that is not what I was expecting.  Question: what are the serial numbers on the two PMDX-422 boards that you have?

Try this: go to our plug-in download page (http://www.pmdx.com/PMDX-SmartBOB-USB-Plug-In) and download version 0.31.147.  Install that and see if you get the same (or different) error message.  Please generate another debug log and send that to me.

I suspect that you will need to send both PMDX-422 boards back for servicing.

Bob

[lthomps]

I will send that info later.  I am not in the shop right now.  Do you think I might get any of these errors if the PMDX-134 is bad.  Should I try to switch that out?  I have an extra. 

[Bob at PMDX]

I will send that info later.  I am not in the shop right now.

Thanks.  Also, can you tell me if the USB hub you tried using earlier was self-powered or USB powered?

Do you think I might get any of these errors if the PMDX-134 is bad.  Should I try to switch that out?  I have an extra.

I don't think that will make a difference, but it is worth a try.  But instead of using the other PMDX-134 I would first try with the ribbon cable between the PMDX-422 and the PMDX-134 unplugged from the PMDX-422.  If the PMDX-422 works (i.e. our plug-in can talk to it), re-connect the original PMDX-134 and confirm that it is indeed causing the problem.  If so, *then* try your other PMDX-134.

In fact, try with everything unplugged from the PMDX-422 (motor drivers, limit switches, etc.).  While I don't think this will make a difference here, it should be fairly easy to try since the PMDX-422 has pluggable terminal strips for everything.

Bob

[lthomps]

OK I will try these recommendations when I get to the shop. 
The USB hub was unpowered.  So it was getting it's power from the laptop. 

[lthomps]

Bob:  Last suggestion did not work either.  Serial #'s for the 2 PMDX-422 are 32604 Rev B1  and 32542 Rev B1

I'm going to Fedex these out to you.  Thanks

[Bob at PMDX]

OK.  Don't forget the USB Panel cable and the RMA # on the outside of the box.

[lthomps]

This is just a follow-up if anyone was following this thread or may experience the same problem I had in the future.  This error was all my fault.  I plugged the usb header in backwards and the USB protection diodes kicked into action.  I also want say that Bob was outstanding with customer service and got me all fixed up.  Boards are up and running and now it's time to go cut some wood. I do have another silly question that I will post later.