BRB 900 Software Crash

[RedMaxFlyer]

Hello all,

First, I apologize for dumping this question here, but I'm in a bit of a time crunch and I think I may get responses more quickly here than if I e-mail the manufacturer (which would be my normal course of action).

I am preparing to fly a BRB 900 for tracking at a launch this weekend (I'm actually posting this the night before the launch). I realized that I had forgotten to set the G-switch on my BRB 900, so I hooked it up to my laptop and tried to connect it to the programming software (as I have done successfully before). Unfortunately, every time I click "read", the program crashes.


For the record, I am plugging the 5-pin female connector on the USB adapter into the 3-pin male connection on the transmitter, aligning both pin-1s as per the instructions. I ordered the transmitter with the data package and the receiver with the LCD screen.

The transmitter will still function perfectly for tracking purposes, but it would be nice to be able to capture the right 20-minute snippet of GPS data, since the tracker will be riding along for my L2 flight tomorrow.

Thanks for any responses.

 

[dixontj93060]

May be too late now, but I would email Greg at BRB. He has always been fast on responses for me.

 

[dcbertelsen]

I have the same issue if I try to read when the tracker hasn't connected. Make sure you plug in everything in order. For the BRB GPS it is the following:

1. Start with everything off and unplugged.
2. Plug the Reader/Charger into the USB cable.
3. Plug the USB into the computer.
4. Start the program.
5. Turn on the GPS for 5-10 seconds.
6. Plug the Reader/Charger into the tracker.
7. Select your com port and click 'Read'

Connections can be finicky to get started but are usually good once you get connected. This may not be applicable in your case, but I run my rocket software in a virtual machine because I don't have a dedicated Windows box; rebooting AKA "Did you try turning it off and back on again?" may be a good place to start.

Doug

 

[Salvage-1]

yup.. follow that order ^ I have had problem like you describe if I leave the BRB900 connected to the computer whilst I power it on.

Another hint. You may want to get in the habit of clearing your memory before each flight, seems to work better like that.

 

[RedMaxFlyer]

Did you try changing the com port #?

Only one com port shows up when I plug in the programming adapter (the same number regardless of which USB port I try).

I have the same issue if I try to read when the tracker hasn't connected. Make sure you plug in everything in order. For the BRB GPS it is the following:

1. Start with everything off and unplugged.
2. Plug the Reader/Charger into the USB cable.
3. Plug the USB into the computer.
4. Start the program.
5. Turn on the GPS for 5-10 seconds.
6. Plug the Reader/Charger into the tracker.
7. Select your com port and click 'Read'

Connections can be finicky to get started but are usually good once you get connected. This may not be applicable in your case, but I run my rocket software in a virtual machine because I don't have a dedicated Windows box; rebooting AKA "Did you try turning it off and back on again?" may be a good place to start.

I do remember having to go through the operations in a certain order to get it to work. Unfortunately, this order still leads to a crash a few seconds after I click "read".

The weather at the launch site today is what NOAA calls "blowing dust", so my L2 has been postponed with hopes that tomorrow will be better. I'll be sending an e-mail to BigRedBee.

Thanks for the help so far.

 

[RedMaxFlyer]

I received a helpful reply from BigRedBee within an hour of sending my message (We have the best customer service of any hobby!). While trying one of the proposed solutions, I figured out that my problem was simply me being an idiot and using the 3-pin "GPS programming" plug on the transmitter instead of the 5-pin "programming" plug :blush: .

Thanks for the help everyone.