Vex IQ Brain is not recognizing the Controller

#1

Hello there,

I am having an issue with my brain being able to recognize the controller. I have tried below options and the controller is still not being recognized. I am using a mac by the way.

Before trying out these options I made sure to verify that the smart radios were plugged in all the way and the cables were plugged in snug.

Option 1 - Connect all devices to the brain and turn on vex os utility software. All the motors are recognized and the controller is not.

Option 2 - Unplug all devices and just have the controller connected to the brain. The controller was not recognized at this point.

Option 3 - Firmware update was performed to all devices with the exception of the controller since it is not being recognized. How do I roll back to a different version of the firmware on a mac?

I really appreciate any pointers anyone can give me in this regard. I will be calling vex support tomorrow to see if there is anything else that I can try.

Thanks in advance.

#2

You could try a different network cable between the brain and the controller.

#3

Wow, I’d had posted another thread on the same issue earlier today. https://www.vexforum.com/t/having-problems-pairing-controller-with-brain/67424

Are you using the RJ45 tether cable that comes with the robot kit? So, the controller doesn’t work when it’s plugged in via the tether cable? The problem I had was that the controller wasn’t working/pairing in radio mode. It worked fine when tethered. I think mine is due to a bad radio on the controller.

#4

Are you seeing the tether icon (like a little plug) in the top right of the brain screen when the controller is tethered?

#5

Unfortunately I do not have a spare cable to try this option. I have a tournament coming up and our robot is not functional without the controller.

I will try to find a new cable to see if that fixes the issue. Thanks for taking time to respond to my post.

#6

Yes I am using the same RJ45 tether cable that comes with the kit. The brain is not recognizing the controller even with the cable plugged in.

I will check out the details of your post next to see if I missed anything. Thanks for responding to my post.

#7

No I do not see the tether icon when the controller is tethered.

#8

It is a normal Ethernet network cable, if you have one around you can try that also.

#9

Got it, should have one of those around. I will try it out.

#10

Its possible that during this process my brain is updated to 2.1.3 and the controller firmware is on a previous version. I am using a mac and have the VexOS utility installed. I noticed on one of the pages on the web that the windows version provides a different interface and allows for each component to be updated separately.

Is this possible with the mac version of the VexOS utility?

#11

I think you’d see the tether icon either way. So, bad brain connector, bad ethernet cable or bad controller connector seem like possibilities.
Do you have other brains/controllers/cables so you can find out which by process of elimination?

#12

Thank you all for your replies.

I was able to get this issue resolved and the problem was isolated to a bad controller. I was under warranty (less than 1 year) and the vex support team replaced the controller. I called in Vex support on Tuesday and the new controller reached me on Saturday.

The new controller is working well so far.

#13

the little radio receiver may not be good u may have 2 take it out and put it back in