we are trying to use spark max. We are able to connect to them, update firmware to 1.52 and set can id’s. However, we’re not able to get the motor controllers to respond. we added dashboard displays for the motor’s power and it says that it should be on but the motor controller lights are magenta.
We’ve since isolated motor by disconnecting the CAN wires and connected to it with the Rev hardware client over USB. on the run tab, we set it to .5 and clicked run with no change in status.
We’ve tried this same thing with multiple controllers including a brand new one.
The Spark Max’s have a built in safety feature where they won’t run if they are wired to the Rio. You could try rewiring the CAN bus but disconnecting the Rio. I think the CAN bus has to be connected for the motors to run, but I’m not sure.
We were able to get them working, after reinstalling the latest update once or twice and then flashing. Pretty sure dark magic is involved. Problem solved for now.
I’ve also had some experience with Spark Max’s just being weird. I’m not sure really what causes them to freak out or how they somehow just work again after power cycling the robot.
And, for future reference, you can run a SparkMax with nothing but power and one of CAN, USB, or PWM input. I built a spark-in-a-box that feeds of one of our power tool batteries; highly useful! I’ve got a battery eliminator powering a servo tester that makes it go. USB takes priority over the PWM input.
We’re having a similar problem. One of our SPARK MAX’s won’t start the motor about 2/3 of the time. This seems to be dependent on the position of the motor when starting it, and the motor will start running if you spin in manually. I’ve narrowed it down to one of our controllers by swapping motors and controllers. I’ve tried PWM, CAN and USB, with the same results: When the controller is commanded to run the motor, the light blinks green or red, but the motor isn’t turning. I’ve tried reflashing the latest firmware (1.5.2), factory reset, etc.
I’ve contacted REV - waiting to hear back. Has anyone else seen this problem?
That makes sense, although the motor appears to run fine once it’s spinning, which suggests all 3 phases are connected. I’ll double check again when I’m back in the shop.
Sounds like you have one iffy connection. We, um, might have had that before… Look for an Anderson pin not all the way into the housing. You get intermittent weirdness.
Thanks Joe and Rod - you hit the nail on the head. We found that one contact in one of the PP45 connectors wasn’t seated properly. We reseated the contact, and it appears the problem is solved.
This has been my experience with the Spark Max controller as well. When they work, they’re great. When they don’t it’s a ceremony of resetting defaults, cycling power, disconnect/reconnect CAN until it magically starts working again.
I understand there is a lockout feature, but an LED status or message in the REV Client would go a long way to making them usable!