CLUE not powering up with battery

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mvn
 
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CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by mvn »

CLUE powers up fine with USB power and everything seems to work fine. It will not power up on battery. This is using the 3xAAA holder. Measured voltage on the backside of the connector on the CLUE board and the proper voltage is present. Nothings happens when reset button is pressed.

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adafruit_support_carter
 
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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by adafruit_support_carter »

What is the program currently loaded to run on the CLUE?

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mvn
 
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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by mvn »

CircuitPython. It is my own code now, but the problem exhibited with the default code (non-CircuitPython) as shipped and with the default CircuitPython code.py.

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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by adafruit_support_carter »

For the sake of troubleshooting, lets revert to some test code. Save a copy of your .py file(s) locally just to make sure you have a backup.

Then, go into bootloader mode and drag this UF2 file over:
https://learn.adafruit.com/adafruit-clue/arduino-test
(it's say Arduino, but you don't actually need any Arduino software)

Do you get the same behavior? Runs with USB power but not battery?

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mvn
 
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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by mvn »

Same behavior. Runs on USB, not on battery. Are there any test points to check beyond the back of the battery connector?

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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by adafruit_support_carter »

Hmm. OK - even though you measured voltage, are you sure the batteries are fresh?

Is this the battery holder?
https://www.adafruit.com/product/727

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mvn
 
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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by mvn »

That is the one. I have tried both fresh lithium batteries and freshly charged Eneloops. Neither works.

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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by adafruit_support_carter »

Weird. The battery case switch is on? Seems like it must have been to get the voltage measurement.

Can you post a photo of the back of the CLUE so we can look for anything obvious with the hardware.

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mvn
 
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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by mvn »

IMG_1199 (1).jpeg
IMG_1199 (1).jpeg (300.78 KiB) Viewed 239 times
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mvn
 
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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by mvn »

In case it helps, there's -0.069V on the 3V pad (measured against the GND pad) when battery power is connected. It's 3.322V when USB powered.

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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by adafruit_support_carter »

Thanks for the excellent photos. Really weird issue. Not sure what it could be, but something just seems off. Let's just replace it.

Send an email to [email protected] with a link to this thread and your order number and they can send you a replacement CLUE.

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mvn
 
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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by mvn »

Will do.

Thank you

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l8throp
 
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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by l8throp »

@mvn

Might be a silly question, but is it possible that you have the batteries in backwards?
On my Clue, the negative is on the left (with Clue positioned as in your probe picture).
Provided that your red probe is connected to the positive input on your meter, shouldn't it be reading a negative value given how you are touching the terminals? It looks like it's showing +5V in the image.

Just a thought.

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mvn
 
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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by mvn »

The batteries are in properly, but comparing the battery holder I have with the photo on Adafruit's web site makes it looks like maybe the JST connector on the holder is fitted backwards. The batteries will not make contact if put in backwards, so I'll try to shim it in the morning and try reversing them.

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Re: CLUE not powering up with battery

Post by adafruit_support_carter »

Might be a silly question, but is it possible that you have the batteries in backwards?
Hey! Good eye. Taking another look at the photo of the meter reading, the polarity appears to be reversed for your leads.

The test lead hides the actual battery connector though. Can you post a photo of your battery holder - including the JST connector.

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