Help! I think my 15-1994 is broken :(

[Bruzer]

I bought a 15-1994 a few years ago when RS was clearing them out. My intent was to use it with JP1, but I never got around to getting the cable or pursuing it further, so my remote went unused. Well now I've got a renewed interest in JP1. I just received my cable and have been playing with the software, but it appears that my remote doesn't seem to be transmitting a signal.

To make sure it wasn't a dumb JP1 error on my part, I reset the remote to defaults (9 8 1). I have a Sony TV and VCR, and I've manually entered and tried all of the listed codes but I can't get my equipment to respond. I believe my programming is correct, since the remote blinks correctly when I enter the codes and the LED lights up when I press buttons on the remote.

Is there some other procedure I can try to see whether my remote is actually transmitting or not?

My last resort would be to try and open the remote and see if anything looks broken. I see that there are 2 screws in the battery compartment. Once I remove those, do I just try and pry the remote apart?

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Bruce

[The Robman]

It sounds like your IR-LED might be broken or mis-aligned. I've never done this but you can apparently see the IR signal if you watch the remote through a camcorder, so you could try that to see if the remote is sending a signal.

If you have another learning remote, you could try learning the signals from the 15-1994 to see if that works.

To open the remote, read this...
http://www.hifi-remote.com/jp1/disassemble/

[Bruzer]

Rob, you're a genius (but we already knew that ). The camcorder trick was perfect for verifying that no IR signal was being sent from the remote. After some careful case opening (using the link that you posted), I was able to take everything apart. At first glance, everything looked intact and nothing appeared broken. While I was using my voltmeter, I noticed that one of the solder joints on one of the IR-LEDs was loose even though visually it looked good. Sure enough, when I pressed on that joint while pressing a button, it could "see" the IR signal. Using the same trick, I verified that I could control my TV. My soldering stuff is at work, but once I resolder it, I should be back in business.

Thanks again!

[The Robman]

I've never actually tried the camcorder trick myself. What does the IR signal actually look like when you use a camcorder?

[johnsfine]

When I did that with my old Sony Camcorder it looked like a white light. I'm trying to remember for sure whether that was a color LCD viewfinder or whether I checked the tape as well. I remember being surprised that it was white light, not red. Now I can't remember if I was just being stupid about that. I haven't tried it with my new camcorder.

I also could not see the ten Hz flicker of a ten-frames-per-second IR signal. It looked steady on for the whole time the button was pressed. I guess the viewfinder LCD was too slow for 10 Hz. The camcorder's CCD shouldn't be too slow to see 10 Hz.

[zaphod7501]

I've been doing the camcorder trick for almost 20 years. Of course I've been repairing them since they (camcorders) were introduced and remote controls were considered repairable by the manufacturers.

You generally see a white (whitish on a LCD) that flickers at a fairly high but discernable rate (data bursts at 120 HZ?). The flicker is important because that indicates a coherent output. On, but no flicker usually indicates that it's not working right unless it's a really old design that just sends a sinewave at different frequencies. It shows up white because it's so intense that the imager is overloaded.

[MaskedMan]

I've never actually tried the camcorder trick myself. What does the IR signal actually look like when you use a camcorder?

Rob, look at this page:

http://www.remotecentral.com/features/infrared.htm

[crust]

For reference, if you dont have a camcorder, many webcams (both of mine do it) will also see the IR emission. I have tried it with my Sony Eye Toy (which is really a dlink webcam) and it works great. I use use the amcap.exe program that is found around the web.

[spooky]

I just tried it with my Sony DSC-V1 using the nightframing feature which is IR based. Big white light on the front of the remote. By angling it I can see a series of white flashes from top to bottom on the LCD in sync with the pulsing which is apparent in the direct input but much more discernible using the angled input. Fantastic way to test a remote.

[classicsat]

Actually, many of the IR LEDS that are in the UEIC remotes emit a faint visible light when they are emitting a larger IR signal.