Robot Controller Problems (need help ASAP)

So our 2008 robot controller got its radio port ripped off (I won’t go into detail as to how) and we had to send it in for repairs immediately. Our only robot controller that has no damage is the 2005 one. We talked to the people that do the repairs and they said it would work fine on our robot, there are only 2 incredibly minor hardware changes that don’t really do anything different input/output-wise.

Anyways, we spent several hours uploading different versions of our code, and kept getting ‘code errors’ (the OI we’re using right now is 2007’s btw, so we don’t break 2008’s too), so eventually we uploaded the default code, which also didn’t work. We tried every combination we could think of of robot controller ‘versions’ (15, 13, and whatever it came with) combined with different years’ code and nothing we did got it to work.

What’s worse is that somehow we can’t even upload code or a new firmware version anymore. When we turn our robot on, only 2 lights on the RC turn green (the rest are completely blank, not blinking, not red, nothing). And when we hold prog, nothing happens.

Has anyone ever had this problem and knows how to fix it? Also, if any team in the Los Angeles area (preferably valley, but we’re not going to be picky in this situation) has an extra 2008(unlikely) or 2007(likely) Robot Controller and would be willing to let us borrow it for the next two days so we can actually test our robot, team 1661 would be willing to be your slaves for years to come.

Any help in any regard is appreciated, we’re desperate. I’m going to sleep, it’s 3:31 AM here.

The only help i could thing of would be use the 2005 OI with the 2005 RC. Sometimes they are not compatiable if they are not the same year.

Oh boy! What a predicament!

The 2005 controller has a different processor. You must select the correct processor (PIC 18F8520 I think) when compiling and linking the code. That also changes some of the IFI-supplied *.h files too along with the linker file. If you cannot find them on IFI’s website, Try Kevin Watson’s depository.

You may want to use the 2005 OI along with the 2005 radio links. You may be able to use the 2007 OI but the radio modems will need to be from 2007 too.

Good Luck

just wanted to bump this thread cause we’re desperate. also, Jim, your solution might work once we’re able to upload new code to the RC, but right now we can’t do that.

Once again, there are two green lights on the RC when we turn the robot on. they stay green. no other lights come on. Nothing changes when I press prog for a few seconds (nothing happens when i hold it for 20 seconds either). When I press Reset, two lights (one of them one of the formerly green ones) turn red, but that’s it.

make sure your using the right settings when loading a program…

then, try holding down the program button WHILE you power up the board…

it should go into a default loading sequence during which one orange light turns on…then try programming it