XBee Adapter not working properly

XBee projects like the adapter, xBee tutorials, tweetawatt/wattcher, etc. from Adafruit

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tzikis
 
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XBee Adapter not working properly

Post by tzikis »

Hello, I purchased two XBee adapters, and I'm using the SparkFun FTDI Basic Breakout and a Boarduino with them. One of them is working correctly, while the other one starts operating fine for some time (10-20 sec), during which time i can even send/receive data, but after that time, the green LED stops blinking, and the adapter looks dead.

If i try to disconnect and reconnect it it still stays dead. If i leave it alone for a few minutes, and try it again, it works fine again for 10-20 seconds, and then drops dead again. I have measured the voltage at Vcc and Gnd and it's perfect, 3.3V

I can post pictures if needed, i simply don't have any decent camera at the moment

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: XBee Adapter not working properly

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Pictures would be good, as well as a description of how these are hooked up, powered and configured.

Have you tried swapping the two XBees (leaving the adapters connected as they are)? Does the problem follow the xbee, or the adapter?

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tzikis
 
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Re: XBee Adapter not working properly

Post by tzikis »

I did. I already identified that the adapter is the problem. I tried to check whether i connected something wrong on that adapter, but I can see no differences between them.

After i identified the adapter to be faulty, i have tried connecting it to the boarduino only on 5v and Gnd, and I have also been connecting it on a desktop PC and a MacBook Pro using this:

http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/produc ... ts_id=9115

In both cases, one adapter works great, and the other one starts blinking and then drops dead after a while. Any ideas?

I will post pictures tomorrow (it's 1am here in greece)

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adafruit_support_bill
 
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Re: XBee Adapter not working properly

Post by adafruit_support_bill »

Try to get good clear photographs of the back & front of the adapter board. We'll have a closer look tomorrow.

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tzikis
 
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Re: XBee Adapter not working properly

Post by tzikis »

I have taken some photos of the adapter. I hope it helps
IMG_0436_.jpg
IMG_0436_.jpg (324.29 KiB) Viewed 2222 times
IMG_0437_.jpg
IMG_0437_.jpg (484.23 KiB) Viewed 2222 times
IMG_0439_.jpg
IMG_0439_.jpg (410.95 KiB) Viewed 2222 times

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Franklin97355
 
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Re: XBee Adapter not working properly

Post by Franklin97355 »

Cabn't see well but check the solder on the regulator. Make sure there are no shorts and clean the board with alcohol.

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tzikis
 
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Re: XBee Adapter not working properly

Post by tzikis »

I cleaned it a bit. I just noticed another thing as well. When the green light stops blinking, the red light faintly glows, which means that there's a leak from the green to the red light, right?

Any ideas on why that might be?

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jim8881
 
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Re: XBee Adapter not working properly

Post by jim8881 »

I have two Xbee S1's mounted on Xbee USB adapters.
I started having weird problems with one of them, had to re-install the firmware several times.
I am using Arduino Nanos to talk between the two, everything was working fine .
Double checked the obvious, wiring, connections, battery....
Then I noticed the 3V regulator on the Xbee USB adapter getting very hot, meter check of 3V confirms 0V output.
5V is present on the Xbee USB adapter.

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