Hot plugging STC-7

Discussion in 'STC Series CMOS' started by Paul Burgardt, Jan 25, 2021.

  1. Paul Burgardt

    Paul Burgardt Cyanogen Customer

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    The manual claims that "hot plugging" the STC-7 is a bad idea.
    Getting set up for an initial test of the camera, I hooked the USB and pulled it out while the camera was powered up. Now I cannot get MaximDL-Pro to recognize the camera.
    Did I destroy it?
     
  2. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

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    Hot Plugging refers to plugging in or unplugging an accessory into the AUX connection, when the power is on.
    It's always best to power things off (unplug the power pack from the AC wall socket) and counting to 15 before connecting / disconnecting the AUX connection or power plug that goes into the side of the camera.
    No. Take a deep breath.
    USB is designed for insertion and removal if things are powered up.


    Was MaxIm already talking to the camera? If so, then there's something else going on.
    If this is the first time, then likely there's a bit of software and driver work you have to do first.

    Initial setup:
    I'm assuming you're on Windows 10, since you didn't specify.
    The usual steps are like this:
    Install the DL Imaging drivers.

    Check the orientation of the DC power cord pins vs the camera.
    Plug DC power cord into the camera. Retract the latching head (outer cover) of the connector, push the connector in, and let go of the outer cover. This will activate the retaining mechanism and keep the power plug from falling out of the camera.
    Put the DC cord to the power pack.
    Plug the USB cord into the camera.
    Plug the power pack into the AC wall socket.
    Plug the USB into the computer.
    Windows will go "buh-beep" and start installing the device driver for the camera.

    Did Windows install the device driver?
    You can then run Windows Device Manager, and look down the list.
    You should see two halves of your camera - SBIG USB Camera A and SBIG USB Camera B.
    There should NOT be a little yellow warning icon to the left of their names.

    If there is a problem yellow warning icon or Unknown Device, then you need to get Windows to install the device drivers.
    Windows update will do this for you.
    Or, right click on the item in the device manager, and select Update Driver.
    Then follow the steps. Windows Update is the other way to do this.

    If it's in the Device Manager:
    If it looks okay, and you see Camera A and B listed, then next, run the DL Imaging DL Config Utility program.
    It will show a list on the left side, including any USB cameras, such as the STC-7.
    That's good. Move on to the next step.

    Set it up in MaxIm:
    Launch MaxIm.
    Camera Control Window
    Camera 1
    Select DL Imaging
    Filter wheel
    Select DL Imaging+FW
    and do the other steps in MaxIm.

    Let us know if you need some extra help.
     
  3. Doug

    Doug Staff Member

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    USB is safe to "hot plug", though we don't make an exception for it in the user manual because we're concerned that will just confuse people.

    Plugging in the I2C power with the power on is actually dangerous - it could possibly cause damage. We have self-resetting fuses in the interface to protect it, but it is very unwise to plug it in with the power on.

    Plugging in the DC power jack with power on the cable is also not advisable. There is a small possibility of shorting power to the camera's shell, which could damage the power supply, camera, or even the computer's USB port.
     
  4. Paul Burgardt

    Paul Burgardt Cyanogen Customer

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    In Device Manager I only see an item called SBIG Camera under USB controllers.
    In MaximDl, the software seems to see an item called STC-7M . Seems reasonable.
    When I try to connect, MaximDL simply shuts down.
     
  5. Adam Robichaud

    Adam Robichaud Lead Developer Staff Member

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    Hi Paul, would you be willing to demo the issue for me over TeamViewer? I should be free in about an hour if that works for you.
     
  6. Colin Haig

    Colin Haig Staff Member

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    Hi Paul, it might be easiest for one my colleagues @Adam Robichaud to remotely log into your PC to have a look what is going on.

    Is your PC internet accessible?
    If so, we'd want you to install TeamViewer, which allows remote access to the PC.
    You can get it here:
    https://www.teamviewer.com/

    Download for free.
    When we're done diagnosing and have it resolved, you can un-install the Teamview app.

    Once you download and install it, you can start it up. It will show you an ID and a code word (usually about 6 numbers and letters).
    Send a private message to Adam with these details.
    Then you guys can coordinate.
     
  7. Paul Burgardt

    Paul Burgardt Cyanogen Customer

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    It's kind of a pain to get an internet connection to my observatory computer. For now I'm too tired of this to continue. Maybe later.
     
  8. Paul Burgardt

    Paul Burgardt Cyanogen Customer

    Joined:
    Jan 25, 2021
    Messages:
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    I sort of know the answer
    My version of MaximDLPro is about a year old. I brought the computer home from my observatory site and connected my LANL cable and updated the Maxim software. I then managed to actually load the updated drivers.
    Lo and behold, I can now connect to the camera.
    I guess the several months old MaximDL version just couldn't handle the new camera. I guess more frequent software updates might be important after all.
     

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