I sure jumped the gun on the last blog entry I posted this morning. I don't think I've ever posted twice in the same day but today was one of those days I considered finding some Jawas to see what I could trade R2 for. It was crazy.
As I was debugging the computer code to turn lights on and play sounds, the electronics panel hinge completely failed and the whole assembly needed to be replaced. After that, I prepare to drive R2 closer to the work bench and the right motor doesn't work. I tested the wiring to the right motor - ok, the switch that controls the motor - ok, Hook the motor up to 12v directly - ok (sigh of relief) and then diagnose the Vantec RDFR23 speed controller the best I can and it appears the right channel isn't sending a signal. Plus when I power it up and shut down the left motor, that infamous hum didn't happen. Just silence. Found the problem.
Fortunately, I happened to have a spare VANTEC controller on the shelf and was able to configure and replace the other controller. So R2 is back on his (2) feet again. After that, the thumb drive that contains all the scripts and sounds got corrupted ! I had to dust off my DOS skills to CHKDSK the drive and cleanup the corrupted files. Geez !
R2 has been running just about flawlessly the last couple years and has been to many events. So the mechanical challenges of the last week have been unusual to say the least. I'm glad they happened at home because trying to fix these problems next week at Celebration would have been awkward.
Thank the maker !
2 comments:
Aw mine's having issues she takes off on her own. We've narrowed it down to the speed controller.
Jessica, Are you sure it's not just an excited droid that can't wait to go to Celebration V ? Here's a few tips you can use to calm an overly excited droid:
Give it some new tasks to keep it occupied. But something simple like cleaning lint from your clothes dryer.
A hot oil bath will do wonders in calming an excited little droid
Explain to your droid that Celebration is only a few more days away and C3PO will be there. Just the mention of C3PO can have a calming effect on a droid.
And finally, the last resort that none of us like using ... use the restraining bolt !!!
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