How do I turn the 2004 Robot Controller On?
The robot must have the 12V battery connected. The 7.2V backup battery will not allow the unit to turn On. The backup battery is only to make sure it stays On.
How do I turn the Robot Controller Off?
**The 2004 Robot Controller will not turn of immediately once 12V power is remove when the backup battery is connected. Press RESET on the 2004 RC to complete the turn-off. The unit will automatically shut down completely after about 4 minutes if it was linked with an OI. If it was never linked with an OI, the RC will continue to run until the Backup Battery power has been exhausted.
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Can I power my Full-size Robot Controller from either the 7.2V or the 12V connector?
**No, you must connect 12V to the 12V connector. The Robot Controller will power up and run just fine with only the 12V power applied, but you will not be able to use servos.
The 7.2V connector is meant only as “backup” battery and servo power. A backup battery will ensure that the Robot Controller does not power down or reset when the main 12V power supply drops out or droops. This typically occurs when stalled motors draw a large current from the main battery.
The unit will not power on if only a 7.2V backup battery is connected.**
What are the specs on the 7.2V back up battery? What is the mAH rating and how long are we suppose to charge it? Will the datasheet for this battery be available?
**The back-up battery is a 6 cell 7.2V NiCad and rated at 700mAh. The battery should be charged until the LED indicator on the Battery Charger turns Green. The time required will vary depending on the charge left in the battery.
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The RC reference document says that if the the Main power cuts out after link is established with OI, the RC will continue to run on the 7.2Vdc battery backup for 3 1/2 minutes. When we disconnect the breaker between the battery and the breaker/distribution panel, our RC powers shuts down a few seconds later. Our backup battery is properly connected, reads 7.8v on the dashboard viewer, and successfully powers the servo. What is the likely cause of the RC shutting down so quickly.
This is normal operation. The 2005 RC Reference Document has been updated to show this change in operation. http://www.ifirobotics.com/docs/rc-ref-guide-01-31-2005.pdf
After attaching the 12V lead-acid battery and the 7.2V battery, the lights to the controller came on, and 7.2V appeared on the center PWM output pins!
For bench testing of the camera, the instructions said only to use the 7.2V battery. That had worked for us at one time.
Here’s my question: With the 12V battery attached, if you remove the 7.2V backup battery, then power disappears from the PWM output port. So it appears that the 7.2V battery powers this port without the help of the 12V battery. Is this something that we should be concerned about? This could cause us problems during competition if the drain on our 7.2V battery is too great.
Your observations are correct, but the backup battery does need the help of the +12V battery to get started. The +12V must be applied to a RC unit that is OFF even if the backup battery is connected before the backup battery circuit will work. If the RC unit has +12V and backup battery, the backup battery provides voltage to the PWM +7.2V center pin. If the +12V is removed from a RC unit that is ON and has a backup battery connected, the backup battery circuit will keep the RC unit powered up and provide voltage to the PWM +7.2V center pin. For more info, read all post in this section.