60c powers down by itself?
H.W. Stockman
On the last three hikes, my 60c seems to have powered off by itself. I first
suspected that in my fiddling with the mount, I turned the GPS off accidentally;
but the mount is on my packstrap by my ear, and I haven't heard the distinctive
tone sequence that signals a power-off. The power-downs have come when the
batteries were near full charge, and up to two hours into a hike.
Also, today I noticed that I had to open the battery case and fiddle with the
batteries to get the unit to power up. These are 2000 mAh Gold Peak NiMH that I
have used in my other GPS with no problems. I've had some odd experiences with
the GPS power -- the map-screen meter will initially read only 25% for fully
charged batteries, then will read full charge by the end of the hike. Opening
up the case and just touching the batteries once had the effect of sending the
reading from 25% to 75%.
I guess I suspect poor contacts with the rechargeable batteries. The metal
clips in the battery case don't seem to hold the batteries very snugly.
Seagull
>
> I guess I suspect poor contacts with the rechargeable batteries. The metal
> clips in the battery case don't seem to hold the batteries very snugly.
I'd agree with that assessment. I have a set of four NiMH batteries that
came with an electronic device, and they seem to be just a hair shorter
than other AA batteries. The result is they don't make good contact in
some devices with weak battery clips.
Cheers,
-+JLS
--
\ carpe cavy!
seagull @ aracnet.com \
http://www.aracnet.com/~seagull/ \ (seize the guinea pig!)
Jack Yeazel
Seagull wrote:
> > I guess I suspect poor contacts with the rechargeable batteries. The metal
> > clips in the battery case don't seem to hold the batteries very snugly.
>
> I'd agree with that assessment. I have a set of four NiMH batteries that
> came with an electronic device, and they seem to be just a hair shorter
> than other AA batteries. The result is they don't make good contact in
> some devices with weak battery clips.
I'm just now running into the same problem... It's definitely the weak battery
springs... Flexing them out helps a "little"...
--
Jack
Get general GPS information at: http://www.gpsinformation.net/
Pete Beall
at the batteries. Garmin’s solution was to supply a secondary set of springs
that dropped into the battery compartment to increase the contact pressure;
a great idea, but it required that each polarity set of batteries be changed
as a unit or the springs would end up sideways.
"H.W. Stockman" <stockman3@earth-REMOVE_THIS-link.net> wrote in message
news:D%s3c.30388$aT1....@newsread1.news.pas.earthlink.net...
Peter
> The old GPS III would cut off without warning from lack of contact
> at the batteries. Garmin’s solution was to supply a secondary set of springs
> that dropped into the battery compartment to increase the contact pressure;
> a great idea, but it required that each polarity set of batteries be changed
> as a unit or the springs would end up sideways.
Yes, it's surprising how many different models have had this problem of
loose battery contacts causing unintended shut-downs. The
45/38/12/II/III/V series all shared a similar battery compartment
with two tubes each with a pair of cells and Garmin's solution was the
extra set of springs upon request. The eMap also had weak contacts in
a different 2-cell design and many users added foam or pen-refill springs
to fix their units. Etrex models have had slight changes made to the
battery contacts over the production cycle with some having a spring at the
positive terminal end that led to a few melt-downs from shorted NiMH cells
and others again suffering from cells that were too loose. Now the 60c/s
models also appear to have poor battery contact.
Odd that this should be such a recurring problem across a wide range of
battery compartment designs.
Heinrich Pfeifer
"H.W. Stockman" <stockman3@earth-REMOVE_THIS-link.net> wrote in
> Has anyone else with a 60c had a similar problem?
>
The metal
> clips in the battery case don't seem to hold the batteries very
snugly.
Oh no - I've had different Garmins over the last six years with this
kind of problem. It appears that this will persist as long as the
manufacturer is called Garmin.
--
Heinrich
http://www.gartrip.de
mail: new<at>gartrip.de
Thor
the watch-dog circuitry power it down. That would explain why it happens on
all the models.
"Heinrich Pfeifer" <n-s...@gartrip.de> wrote in message
news:c2mgub$b0i$1...@online.de...
Don F
news:D%s3c.30388$aT1....@newsread1.news.pas.earthlink.net...
I haven't had this problem with my 60C (yet) but I have been using fresh
Alkaline batteries exclusively.
Although there are obvious reasons why you should suspect a battery
contact problem, would a swap over to Alkalines for a test run be in order?
I have had the opposite problem where NiMH batteries fit fine and where
Alkaline batteries had to be forced into the same holder. There is sometimes
a size difference.
Don F
red rover
All these models would presumably have different
firmware and for a given model different releases of
firmware. Do you believe they would all have bugs
that cause them to hang? I'm not familiar with
and any watchdog that powers down a unit because
the processor has locked up. They generally are
designed to reset the processor so that it can recover.
But a power monitor circuit (sometimes combined with
watchdogs) could shut it down if it felt the batteries were
on the verge of dying.
Steve
"Thor" <spa...@hotpop.com> wrote in message
news:l%z3c.5$N8...@news1.west.cox.net...
Peter
> I suspect it is actually a firmware bug that causes it to lock up, making
> the watch-dog circuitry power it down. That would explain why it happens on
> all the models.
Various firmware releases on my GPS 12, III+, and eMap had no impact on the
problem. Putting extra springs or foam in the battery compartments to keep
the cells from losing contact immediately cured it in all the units.
RIck Lindstrom
Legend, and a friend with a Vista has the same issue. I'm convinced
that it's a problem of battery movement in the compartment.
Even though there are many references to this issue on the internet,
and Garmin was even once giving out retrofit springs, a call to
Garmin's support department proved them to be either clueless or lying
about knowing that a problem exists.
In any case, I solved the problem completely by cutting a couple of
small pieces of foam to go between the batteries and the compartment
door- the idea is to immobilize the batteries in the compartment. If I
ever get around to it, I intend to try a little self adhesive weather
stripping stuck to the compartment door.
This is apparently more of a problem with rechargable batteries than
with alkalines because the rechargables are heavier and tend to move
around more in response to vibrations or bumps.
Just my 2 cents worth.
red rover
My etrex yellow has this problem. I had some
quick exchange via email with Garmin where
they seemed really keen to fix it and then they
dropped it. That was a little over a year ago
so I presume they decided that support of the
old etrex wasn't worth it.
Steve
"Chris Malcolm" <c...@holyrood.ed.ac.uk> wrote in message
news:c2nj4h$dm7$1...@scotsman.ed.ac.uk...
designed to reset the processor so that it can recover.
>
> Several Garmin models have suffered from a well-known and
> admitted-by-Garmin bug which caused the units to switch off when
> following a route where the waypoints were too close together (and in
> some awkward kind of configuration). AFAIK they've all been fixed by
> later software releases except possibly one of the Gekos.
Thor
lots of times its a bug. Check out these links for examples:
http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?s=5beb6a449680955030b7d3b2c916edd
c&showtopic=66627
http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=64379&hl=60c+shutoff
http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=63770&hl=60c+problem
"red rover" <NOnatpr...@sympatico.ca> wrote in message
news:vgE3c.25781$hG.2...@news20.bellglobal.com...
Thor
lots of times its a bug. Check out these links for examples:
http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?s=5beb6a449680955030b7d3b2c916edd
c&showtopic=66627
http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=64379&hl=60c+shutoff
http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=63770&hl=60c+problem
"B a r r y" <Keep_it_in_the_...@aol.com> wrote in message
news:kevt40t2bheho9p36...@4ax.com...
> On Wed, 10 Mar 2004 08:05:37 GMT, "Thor" <spa...@hotpop.com> wrote:
>
> >I suspect it is actually a firmware bug that causes it to lock up, making
> >the watch-dog circuitry power it down. That would explain why it happens
on
> >all the models.
>
> I wouldn't.
>
> The eTrex problem was easily solved with tape, foam, leaves, toilet
> paper, or whatever else could be used to prevent the batteries from
> moving.
>
> The problem was easily duplicated.
>
> Barry
William
"Thor" <spa...@hotpop.com> schreef in bericht
news:cRv4c.8$N8...@news1.west.cox.net...
> Not that poor battery contact wouldn't also cause power-down, but I think
> lots of times its a bug. Check out these links for examples:
>
>
http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?s=5beb6a449680955030b7d3b2c916edd
> c&showtopic=66627
> http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=64379&hl=60c+shutoff
> http://forums.groundspeak.com/GC/index.php?showtopic=63770&hl=60c+problem
>
Same problem here, hapens 2 times ...the screen go's blank and the 60C
powers down without any reason.
I also think it's a bug. My 60C is about one week.
regards,
William
Belgium
red rover
waypoints problem was never solved for
the Etrex yellow. Several others confirmed
my observation on this NG and Garmin exchanged
several emails with myself before the trail went
cold. I think they just decided the model was too
old to spend time fixing bugs for problems that
occured so infrequently.
Steve
"Chris Malcolm" <c...@holyrood.ed.ac.uk> wrote in message news:c31svj$as1
> The bug I'm referring to was fixed by software release for all the
> eTrexes. See Garmin's web site.
>
xLad
Magellan MAP 330 has thick, coil springs and solid contact "buttons" that
absolutely stay in place and don't cause "battery wobble" when the unit is
being used.
My Garmin Etrex Vista--as with most other Garmin units that I have tried--has
much thinner and "tinnier" contacts than does my MAP 330. I notice that, in
the Vista, alkaline batteries fit more tightly than the NiMH rechargeables
I've been using, which have been Ray-O-Vac.
Has anyone else noticed this? I only noticed it recently, which makes me
wonder what type of quality control some battery companies have with regard
to physical battery size, esepcially the "AA" category.
Warm regards from,
Firefishe
Caching In On The Journey
--
On Tue, 9 Mar 2004 21:47:11 -0500, Jack Yeazel wrote
(in message <404E81AF...@FinalApproach.net>):
Eric
in a firmware release and wasn't related to the battery compartment design.
I can't understand why Garmin wouldn't spend a few more pennies to beef up
the battery contacts to prevent this problem since it seems to affect so
many units. I've got a 76s that I'm happy with. I was looking at the 60cs,
but I'll wait to see what the 76cs is like since I don't want to have to
perform some aftermarket redesign using rubber bands and foam on the 60cs
battery compartment.
Eric
H.W. Stockman
"xLad" <an...@anon.xq> wrote in message
news:0001HW.BC7D75CD...@news.charter.net...
> Garmin's always seemed to have had this problem. My older generation
> Magellan MAP 330 has thick, coil springs and solid contact "buttons" that
> absolutely stay in place and don't cause "battery wobble" when the unit is
> being used.
>
> My Garmin Etrex Vista--as with most other Garmin units that I have tried--has
> much thinner and "tinnier" contacts than does my MAP 330. I notice that, in
> the Vista, alkaline batteries fit more tightly than the NiMH rechargeables
> I've been using, which have been Ray-O-Vac.
>
> Has anyone else noticed this? I only noticed it recently, which makes me
> wonder what type of quality control some battery companies have with regard
> to physical battery size, esepcially the "AA" category.
When I used NiMH AA in my Kodak digital camera, they would often make poor
contact (as in no, or erratic power when the unit was turned on). I "solved"
the problem by bending out the leaf springs. My brother claimed he was finding
the same thing for his digital camera. That was a while back, and the NiMH were
Nexcells and Eveready. Now I use Gold Peak, and that camera is long gone.
I'm hesitant to do much bending of the 60c springs, because I figure I'm in a
world of hurt if a spring breaks. However, I figured the NiMH contacts were
probably getting oxidized (they have been used at least 50 times), so I did the
perhaps futile trick of cleaning the contacts with a pencil eraser, and also put
foam in the back of the battery case.
All this makes me appreciate my awkward Magellan STP battery cartridge, with its
coil springs.
Tom Gainesviulle, Mo.
paper in the cover to stabilize the batteries and haven't had a
shutdown since. I think it's more a case of the batteries moving than
a loose spring - the cover should hold the batteries not the springs.
Tom
Gainesville, Mo.
kb10...@hotmail.com (RIck Lindstrom) wrote in message news:<b4085275.0403...@posting.google.com>...
Bob Bowter
poor battery contact. Specifically, I looked at the voltage drop
between a contact and its associated battery terminal while tapping
the unit.
Cleaning the contacts and batterie terminals with alcohol resolved the
shut-down problem and resulted in a two bar increase in battery
condition as indicated by the 60CS's "fuel gage".
later, I put some foam cut from a mouse pad under each contact to
hopefully further reduce the chances of a shut-down. Before adding
the foam, there was a noticeable ringing and other sounds indicative
if loose objects within the unit when the 60SC was tapped.
Garmin certainly could improve their battery contact design. My 12XL,
Vista, and III+ all required simple modifications to the contacts and
careful attention to the cleanliness of both the unit's contacts and
the battery terminals.
Decades of experience has proven to me that this is a problem with
most battery powered devices. I suspect it shows up more often with
GPS units due to the vibration we subject them to.
"H.W. Stockman" <stockman3@earth-REMOVE_THIS-link.net> wrote in message news:<D%s3c.30388$aT1....@newsread1.news.pas.earthlink.net>...
H.W. Stockman
"Bob Bowter" <ica...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:80fed4c.04040...@posting.google.com...
> Using an oscilloscope, I traced the power-down problem with my 60SC to
> poor battery contact. Specifically, I looked at the voltage drop
> between a contact and its associated battery terminal while tapping
> the unit.
>
> Cleaning the contacts and batterie terminals with alcohol resolved the
> shut-down problem and resulted in a two bar increase in battery
> condition as indicated by the 60CS's "fuel gage".
I haven't had another spontaneous shutdown
(knock on Formica), after doing two things:
1) putting a piece of polyethylene (closed cell) foam
at the back of the battery pack, and
2) cleaning off the contacts of all my NiMH batteries with a
pencil eraser! I'd recharged those batteries at least 25 times,
and they were getting a noticeable fuzziness at the contact points.