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Byonics GPS - Failures

 

I have a number of Byonics GPSs and 3 that have failed.??

The failed units are Byonics GPS (1 Original), Byonics GPS2 and Byonics GPS5.??

They have all failed in a similar way and when connected to a TT3:??

?- The LED comes on; but??

?- No data is received by the TT3 (IE Green LED does not flash).??

My questions are:??

?- Is it likely that the failure could be temperature related?? Unit is inside car where temperature could exceed 60C.??

?- Is repair possible/economical???
 

It is possible that the GPS pucks have changed their configuration. Have you tested that?
If you have a windows or linux PC you can use a terminal emulator to try to communicate with the GPS. You will need to make temporary cable to supply 5 VDC and a ground to the puck. I would do this without any connection to the TT3. So you would need a 5 VDC power supply too.

Next you need to cable the puck to the RS232 of the PC. If you dont have a RS232 connector on the PC then you can use a USB to RS232 adapter.

Depending on the puck there are also windows programs specifically designed for the GPS chip in the puck. These can be the best tool since one can both test and configure these pucks.

Using a terminal emulator you can experiment what the baud rate the puck is operating at. that is if the puck is not broken! I have many pucks and never seen one failed. I have had them change config though. This could be your problem.

I recall Byon telling me that at least some of his GPS pucks are SiRFStar 4. There is a windows program for these... just search the web for it.

I don't recall if Byon's pucks are RS-232 or serial TTL.... I think they are RS-232. You can check with them. If they are serial TTL then you will need a serial TTL converter.... There are many inexpensive ones that convert serial TTL to USB to easily connect to a PC. These converters usually have 5 VDC available to use to power the GPS as well.

good luck!
rich


On Tue, Mar 7, 2023 at 10:48?PM <dennis@...> wrote:

I have a number of Byonics GPSs and 3 that have failed.??

The failed units are Byonics GPS (1 Original), Byonics GPS2 and Byonics GPS5.??

They have all failed in a similar way and when connected to a TT3:??

?- The LED comes on; but??

?- No data is received by the TT3 (IE Green LED does not flash).??

My questions are:??

?- Is it likely that the failure could be temperature related?? Unit is inside car where temperature could exceed 60C.??

?- Is repair possible/economical???



--
Richard A. Painter, P.E. Retired
 

I suspect it was failure due to high heat exposure.? Repair would be difficult.? A vacuum desoldering device might be able to suck up enough of the solder on each contact to get the old GPS receiver off the board
but you would have to invest $$$$$$ in such a device for a one time job.? Not worth it in my book and no guarantees it would work.? I always took my devices out of my car when I was done traveling and took them indoors where hot/cold is better controlled.? Electronics last longer then.? Kurt

On Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at 11:48:43 PM CST, dennis@... <dennis@...> wrote:


I have a number of Byonics GPSs and 3 that have failed.??

The failed units are Byonics GPS (1 Original), Byonics GPS2 and Byonics GPS5.??

They have all failed in a similar way and when connected to a TT3:??

?- The LED comes on; but??

?- No data is received by the TT3 (IE Green LED does not flash).??

My questions are:??

?- Is it likely that the failure could be temperature related?? Unit is inside car where temperature could exceed 60C.??

?- Is repair possible/economical???
 

I think it is very unlikely that your units died from heat exposure, at least exclusively. The reason most of the older GPS die is that their memory batteries discharge completely and the GPS loses its memory. In some rare cases, they will come back to life if you leave them plugged in for a long time in view of the sky. If a unit comes back to life, it will probably have a really awful reacquisition time, but if you use them in an application where they stay on all the time, they might still be of some use. There is no way to repair a unit that has gone completely brain dead. For general knowledge, the GPS receiver modules have a "True" serial output on the DB-9 connector. Internally, there is also an output pin for TTL. I suggest cutting the cords and using them for refrigerator magnets if they don't recover after being powered on for a few days.

While there are a lot of GPS receivers out there, both in the hockey puck and OEM ( PCB level device) configurations, most of the newer ones are tough to adapt for APRS. These often use two or more types of GPS formats, and your TT3/TT4's will be hopelessly confused by them unless you have configuration software for them and can select only sentences that an NMEA GPS produces.?

73,

Allen AF6OF

-----Original Message-----
From: dennis@...
To: [email protected]
Sent: Tue, Mar 7, 2023 6:39 pm
Subject: [TinyTrak] Byonics GPS - Failures

I have a number of Byonics GPSs and 3 that have failed.??
The failed units are Byonics GPS (1 Original), Byonics GPS2 and Byonics GPS5.??
They have all failed in a similar way and when connected to a TT3:??
?- The LED comes on; but??
?- No data is received by the TT3 (IE Green LED does not flash).??
My questions are:??
?- Is it likely that the failure could be temperature related?? Unit is inside car where temperature could exceed 60C.??
?- Is repair possible/economical???
 

I have worked with many different GPS modules (Byonics, Argent Data, and many chip modules) in a very wide variety of environments.
I have yet to have one fail due to heat or cold - not saying it wasn't the cause, just that I haven't experienced it.

The only one I that has failed for me was when the 5V regulator failed and it received 12V (not a jumper mistake, the regulator failed).
Fried one of my TT4 units with it.

I agree with other posts on 2 points:
1.? Not worth trying to fix a GPS module.? Replacement is cheaper than repair.
2.? There is a good possibility you can connect to it through serial interface and see if it is totally failed, or some other issue.
? ? ?I can't speak to the Byonics unit, but I have experienced an unexplained configuration change.?
? ? ?One big one was baud rate.? Of course it changed to some factory default.? I think the Byonics units were at the factor default.

-------
Rob KB8RCO
 

Rob,

The GPS 5 is operating at its base level: 4800 Baud NMEA. and I have never seen one change its config...of course, it could have happened and I just assumed that it was some other kind of failure. The operating temp range is called out as -40 to 85C. There is no published temperature for complete destruction as far as I know. I have seen working units with melted cases.?

Its also important to remember that the chipset in the Byonics modules have changed with the versions. I believe that the current GPS 5 receiver is based on the SiRFstarV chipset. I am not sure what was in the original Byonics GPS ( Before my time!)?

One of the most common problems I have seen in all of the "hockey puck" style GPS receivers is fatal cable injuries caused by pinching in doors and trunk lids, and if that is the case, a repair might be feasible. replacing the dead memory batteries does not seem to fix receivers. The best way to prevent failures is to power your GPS up occasionally to charge the internal memory battery.?

73,

Allen AF6OF




-----Original Message-----
From: Rob Giuliano via groups.io <kb8rco@...>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Wed, Mar 8, 2023 6:50 am
Subject: Re: [TinyTrak] Byonics GPS - Failures

I have worked with many different GPS modules (Byonics, Argent Data, and many chip modules) in a very wide variety of environments.
I have yet to have one fail due to heat or cold - not saying it wasn't the cause, just that I haven't experienced it.

The only one I that has failed for me was when the 5V regulator failed and it received 12V (not a jumper mistake, the regulator failed).
Fried one of my TT4 units with it.

I agree with other posts on 2 points:
1.? Not worth trying to fix a GPS module.? Replacement is cheaper than repair.
2.? There is a good possibility you can connect to it through serial interface and see if it is totally failed, or some other issue.
? ? ?I can't speak to the Byonics unit, but I have experienced an unexplained configuration change.?
? ? ?One big one was baud rate.? Of course it changed to some factory default.? I think the Byonics units were at the factor default.

-------
Rob KB8RCO

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