Eggfinder GPS LCD with Bluetooth RX in BLKAero case and Eggfinder TX/Mini TX. Have questions.

[mjstech]

Hey All,

So I have my Eggfinder LCD GPS w/ bluetooth RX its a Rev B2.
The build pictures on the website are not exact to my rev.
What are the two SW open holes and the two RST open holes for?
Since I was going to be putting this in the BLKAero case. I figured SW meant switch, so I had it wired to the spade connectors from BLKAero to the included rocker switch. Asking a fellow rocket person who has one local, they have the rocker switch inline with battery. They do not have version as I do.
Right now, I have have them taped up connecting to nothing as I guess it is not Switch and can snip them board level or wick/remove as needed. It has the 5dB gain antenna and connector from Eggfinder

End of day testing with this component; Working good as far as I can tell. I had it on a new Duracell 9V for bench testing, and man it sucks the volts down. I have a 2s 1.5Ah LiPo for this once my JST plugs come in. GPS module LED blinks orange, BT module has its blinking red LED and Green LED does its thing on RX board. Testing was done indoors so it took a while. LCD works after adjusting contrast and was able to pickup/track both my TX and Mini TX.

On to the Eggfinder TX rev C1 and Mini TX rev A7.
...As I said above, my RX was able to pick them both up while bench testing one at a time, again with a 9V indoors. Now what I have an issue with is BOTH of the TXs. They do NOT blink the Amber LED.

AhHaaaa...this dummy has the polarity incorrect on them I bet you are saying...

Nope. I checked polarity. It is correct. I checked when I built them. I checked Anode/Cathode against the one on the GPS module on the RX that blinks normal today.
AND I checked LEDs for polarity and operation with a 3V button cell battery. I also checked my solder joints, and they look good. When testing with the 3V, I just had some wire leads touching the back where the leads were trimmed, so I am sure its not a soldering issue.

End of day testing with compenents; So for these guys they seem to be transmitting. The red LEDs on the transmit modules blink just fine. Waiting on JST plugs for them. They will have 2s LiPo batteries for flying (1Ah and 850mAh). I brought the TX outside in the Condo parking lot and LCD GPS RX which was indoors was getting new data. The Mini TX has the OEM antenna and the TX has the 5dB gain antenna and connector from Eggfinder, both are secure.
Any idea why the Amber LEDs don't blink?
From troubleshooting section.... AMBER LED doesn’t flash, but RED LED on RF module is flashing
• Very weak GPS signal, try it outdoors ... could be, but was able to get data to LCD GPS RX.
• Few satellites in view, let it run for about 30 minutes ... could be also, I didn't spend a whole lot of time with them, and the 9V battery is getting low
• Bad solder joint and/or bridge on GPS module (in particular, the 5th & 6th ones from the bottom on the left, and the 5th & 7th ones from the bottom on the right) ... checked, looks good
• Bad solder joint and/or bridge on the 10K resistor ... checked and tested with multimeter
• Bad solder joint and/or bridge on the 2.2K resistors ... checked and tested with multimeter
• Amber LED is backwards ... checked is good and working
• Bad solder joint and/or bridge on Amber LED ... checked is good and working
• Bad solder joint and/or bridge on 330 ohm resistor ... checked and tested with multimeter
Thanks for reading and helping if you can.
Mark

 

[cerving]

Amber blinking means that there is enough GPS signal to get a timebase fix in the GPS, 3+ satellites. Try it outdoors... GPS doesn't always work well indoors, especially in a residential area with buildings and things blocking a good portion of the horizon. If it worked "before", don't mess with it...

Also, forget about the 9V batteries. They just won't cut it, even for testing. Wait until you can get some 2S LiPo's for both of them, particularly the transmitters.

 

[mjstech]

Hey Cris, thanks for the quick reply. What is the SW and RST on the GPS LCD Rx board for?
The Amber LEDs never flashed, these are all new builds. The Rx was able get info from both of the TXS. The LiPos are here, just waiting for the JSTs to come in....hopefully less than a week or so. I hope to test more soon. On a good note my new build quark and quantum started up normally...will need to test those as well.

 

[cerving]

The SW pads are for an external push button switch (parallel to the little tactile one on the board), the RST pads are used to reset the processor when you do a software update. They should probably be mentioned in the manual up front (along with the two BL pads for the backlight), currently they're discussed in the sections pertaining to those features.

 

[mjstech]

So, if its going into the black aero case, how would you build it? I didnt use the small tactile one. Is it needed? Currently the momentary button from black aero is in the button spot with wires to it.

 

[cerving]

You don't need the button on the board if you have one externally, but it's on the board since you want to test it before you lock it up in a case. I have one of the Black Aero cases, they're very nice but you don't want to have to take it apart if you can avoid it.

 

[David Schwantz]

Cris, what mah lipo's do you recommend for the TX. Thanks.

 

[cerving]

I generally use 500 mAH or so, sometimes larger if I have the room (i.e. 4" dia.). Hobby King had some 600's on sale a few months back for like $3 each, I bought a bunch of them.

 

[David Schwantz]

Hi Cris, I am putting The TX and a Quark in a Wildman 38mm NC. A 300mah 2s fits no problem and that is sharing the battery. I could fit 2 of these, but would you mind measuring the 600's that you got. Maybe I can fit one of each. Thanks.