[Jake M]

Hey, guys. Just another team to report the same problem with losing radio connection. We've had it for as long as we've been running, but until Saturday, we haven't been actually driving and operating for an extended period of time. Also, I originally thought it might have to do with how we mounted our RC board. The opposite end of the power distribution rail is mounted close to the RC ports, and you have to apply a decent amount of pulling pressure upwards to plug into them. Originally, I thought this was the problem, but today, I opened up the RC, to check for problems, which I could not find. I also remounted the RC to avoid the pulling, as well as tested the radio cable and tried several different ones. We also tried moving the radio away from the motors and electronics, and positioning it many different ways. Nothing helped, and we still have the problem.

Logically, it seems like it has to be a hardware problem, in either the RC or the radio itself, not a signal interference problem. When the connection loss occurs, I notice several things. Firstly, the radio light on the RC turns red, which normally indicates a lack of any radio at all. And yet, the radio itself still has power. Also, the OI always shows that there is a connection present, despite what the RC light shows. And yes, we also have the continuation of the last command, for a short time.

In addition, I know that we have the master code v13, because I went through each of our RC processors and ensured that the newest version is installed. And yes, we are using all new equipment both on the robot and on the control console.

Does anyone know how many teams have actually reported this problem? I plan to contact IFI tomorrow as well and add our name to the list.