Base3 Internal Diagnostics

The Base3 supports various diagnostics at power up and during operation. Problems monitored include PDI port power, the failure of a radio or serial connection component, or an unexpected behavior such as failing to associate to an Access Point in Network mode.

The common indication for an error is the breath lights, which start to flash rapidly.  These are the blue “LIONEL” lights at both ends of the Base3. Normally they ramp up and down slowly to indicate all systems are normal. The “Gear” button on the front of the Base3 can be used to silence the flashing of the breath lights; however, a power cycle will return the flashing if the error persists.

The B3SU is used to identify the detailed error condition. After the PC has been connected to the Base3 and the B3SU is started, click “GET” to import the Base3’s information. The various radios and serial ports are listed. Their status is normally indicated by a green box with the word “Good”. If any issues are present, that box will turn red with the word “Bad”. The information in the following sections can help troubleshoot the problem.

The 4 Error Classes #

The following four classes are what the Base3 continually monitors for faults:

1.  LCS PDI port power loss
2.  Failure on a serial port or RF, BLE, TMCC radio
3.  Failure of the Wi-Fi radio
4.  Serial port data integrity errors

Note: The Wi-Fi radio is in a separate class of error from the other radios because the RF, BLE, and TMCC radio error details are obtained over the Wi-Fi interface.

Error Classes and their reporting method #

1. When a LCS PDI port has a power overload or loss, the power on that port is switched off, and the green light above that port is turned off.  The power to the PDI bus is fused, and can be reset with a power cycle if the reason for the power loss was external.  When LCS modules do not initialize on a particular PDI port, check the power light on the back of the Base3.  To recover, turn off the Base3, unplug that LCS module chain from the Base3, and turn on the power.  If the light above the problematic port turns on, then check the modules and their interconnect wires.  If the light above the problematic port does not turn on when nothing is plugged into the PDI port, the Base3 needs to be serviced.
2. When an RF, BLE or TMCC radio fails, the breath lights will flash rapidly.  Use the B3SU to check the problem cause.  The failed radio(s) will be identified.  The breath lights can be temporarily restored to the normal slow ramping by pressing the “Gear” button.  The Base3 will need to be serviced to correct the problem.
3. The Base3 has 4 Serial ports; USB, LCS1, LCS2, and LCS3.  If any of these ports experience data corruption on an ongoing basis, the breath lights will flash rapidly.  This diagnostic data is not shown on the B3SU.  This condition is very rare, but nonetheless it is monitored. If the breath lights flash rapidly and the other monitored conditions do not show an error, it is likely there is a data integrity issue on the serial ports.  A bad serial or PDI cable will normally be the cause of this error.  The breath lights can be temporarily restored to normal by pressing the “Gear” button.
4. When the Wi-Fi radio fails, or does not have connectivity, the B3SU will not be able to connect.  In this case the breath AND orange “L” logo will flash to indicate the problem source.

WI-FI Error conditions: #

• If the Wi-Fi switch is set to AP mode, the Base3 will try to initialize in the AP mode.  If the Wi-Fi does not initialize properly, the Base3 will flash the breath lights, and additionally the orange “L” logo lights will flash rapidly.  The Base3 will need to be serviced to correct this type of problem as it indicates a hardware error.
• If the Wi-Fi switch is set to Network mode, and the Base3 was previously paired to a router, and the Base3 cannot establish connectivity with that router, the “L” logo lights will flash rapidly.  The breath lights will not flash, as the Base3 is operating normally.  The “Gear” button can be used to stop the flashing of the “L” logo lights.
• If the Wi-Fi switch is set to Network mode, and the Base3 has not been paired to a router, no lights will flash.  This indicates the Base3 will need paired to a router. After placing the router in WPS mode, press the WPS button on the Base3.  The “L” logo lights will sequence.  If a connection is made, the green activity light will come on for 3 seconds and then turn off.   If the green activity light does not come on and the “L” logo lights stop sequencing, the WPS pairing failed. You may try again, by pressing the WPS on the router, then on the Base3, and watch for the green light.  After trying the sequence several times and the pairing is not established, the “L” logo lights will flash rapidly.  The “Gear” button can be used to stop the flashing of the “L” logo lights.  Power cycling is required in this situation to reset the Wi-Fi system.
• If the Base3 has previously been paired with a router and this is no longer desired, the user can clear the SSID and Password pairing by holding the WPS button before turning on the Base3.  The “L” logo lights and the green light will flash alternately.  Power cycle the Base3 again to establish normal operation.