DLPLIGHTCRAFTER: Does not display default image, only show noisy black and white strips

Huayi Wei

Part Number: DLPLIGHTCRAFTER

Dear community,

My DLPlightcrafter EVM was working well before the power plug accidentally got pulled out. After replugging, the lightcrafter could reboot and connect to the GUI. However, the default image at the start of reboot won't show up, instead, it shows noisy black and white strips. These strips remain when I try to display other patterns. What could be wrong?

I tried installing the DLPC300 firmware. But nothing changed the situation. Did it break it somehow (I hope not)? How should I fix it?

Thanks,

Huayi

over 6 years ago

0 Paul Goedeke over 6 years ago

TI__Mastermind 30600 points

Hi Huayi,

Can you attach a picture of what you are seeing? What type of power supply are you using (current/voltage)?

-Paul

0 Huayi Wei over 6 years ago in reply to Paul Goedeke

Prodigy 170 points

Hi Paul,

Sometimes I see strips, sometimes I see noisy dots.

The power supply I used is:

Thanks for helping me

Huayi

0 Huayi Wei over 6 years ago in reply to Paul Goedeke

Prodigy 170 points

Hi Paul,

I see strips sometimes, and dots sometimes. The power plug I used is on the right.

Thanks

Huayi

0 Paul Goedeke over 6 years ago in reply to Huayi Wei

TI__Mastermind 30600 points

Hi Huayi,

It looks like you have shown me a picture of the DMD itself. Have you disassembled your Lightcrafter optics? Any chance the flex cable got bumped or disconnected? My suggestion would be to carefully check all connection points.

Usually quickly removing power wouldn't cause a problem, but it is possible that an ESD event happened to damage the device. If you have any more details about what happened between when the unit worked and when it stopped working, let me know.

-Paul

0 Huayi Wei over 6 years ago in reply to Paul Goedeke

Prodigy 170 points

Hi Paul,

I haven't disassembled the DLP myself. What you said made sense. Do you know where is the flex cable & how may I check for the connection points? i.e. is there a map/diagram I can refer to?

I'm really not sure what happened. I tripped over the power cable, and it was unplugged. Not sure what could have happened during that event.

Thanks
Huayi

0 Paul Goedeke over 6 years ago in reply to Huayi Wei

TI__Mastermind 30600 points

We have an optics teardown here which shows the flex cables and where they come out from the optics engine.
e2e.ti.com/.../159950

Look for those and then check the connections on the PCB. I would carefully push all the boards and make sure everything is seated properly. If the board didn't fall or drop to the ground when the power was unplugged, then I would be surprised if anything disconnected.

-Paul

0 Huayi Wei over 6 years ago in reply to Paul Goedeke

Prodigy 170 points

Hi Paul,

I opened it up, can't see anything disconnected. I reconnected the flexcable anyway to make sure it's secure. It didn't solve the problem.

Do you think it's possible some connections may have been burnt? Is there somewhere I can send it for repair?

best
huayi

0 Paul Goedeke over 6 years ago in reply to Huayi Wei

TI__Mastermind 30600 points

Hi Huayi,

If all connections seem good then likely the DMD was damaged by ESD. Unfortunately, there is no repair option, you'll have to buy a new Lightcrafter.

-Paul

0 Huayi Wei over 6 years ago in reply to Paul Goedeke

Prodigy 170 points

Hi Paul,

How do I confirm it's the DMD? It works well with the GUI and respond to LED color changes. Could it also be the cable or something?

best
Huayi

0 Paul Goedeke over 6 years ago in reply to Huayi Wei

TI__Mastermind 30600 points

If the LEDs are changing colors and the GUI is responding, then the only thing it could be is the DMD because the mirrors aren't moving.

Unless you dropped the EVM or have some other reason to believe that the cables might be damaged, it seems unlikely that there is another broken part.

-Paul

0 Huayi Wei over 6 years ago in reply to Paul Goedeke

Prodigy 170 points

That's sad to know. I wonder why this happened. I didn't drop the EVM. I suppose it's not common. Bad luck!

h

0 Kyle Rakos over 6 years ago in reply to Huayi Wei

TI__Mastermind 20045 points

Hello Huayi,

Instead of buying a new EVM you could consider buying a DMD and manually replacing it (www.ti.com/.../samplebuy). Obviously there are other concerns with this approach (such as accidentally breaking something else or figuring out it wasn't just a DMD issue). However, it would be a bit cheaper than a whole new EVM if it works!

0 Huayi Wei over 6 years ago in reply to Kyle Rakos

Prodigy 170 points

Thanks Kyle. Do you know how complicated it would be? Is there a guid somewhere tell you what to do?
huayi

0 Kyle Rakos over 6 years ago in reply to Huayi Wei

TI__Mastermind 20045 points

Hello Huayi,

We don't have a guide so you would have to look at the disassembly process Paul linked to earlier. I have not personally replaced it before so I can't speak to the exact difficulty. In theory it should be pretty simple but there's no guarantee it will work unfortunately.

Thanks,
Kyle

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DLPLIGHTCRAFTER: Does not display default image, only show noisy black and white strips