10
Notes on using a Serial to USB Adapter
If you are using a Serial to USB adapter to hook up your Champ timer to a laptop or
other computer, be sure to install the drivers on the miniature driver disc that came
with your USB adapter. Your timer will not communicate with the computer if you do
not have the drivers installed for a Serial to USB adapter. If you have misplaced the
driver disc that came with your Serial to USB adapter you can download a new
version from the manufacturer’s web site. If you bought the Serial to USB adapter
from us, we link to the driver downloads for the adapters that we have sold at the
bottom of our Champ Timer web page.
TROUBLESHOOTING:
If you have a “c” in one or more lanes
, this means that the lower sensor cannot
see the infrared LED light shining down on the track from the upper part of the timer.
Check to see if the lower sensor is completely set into the hole on the track and
pointing straight up. Check to make sure that no debris is blocking the sensor. Look
at the LED light that shines down on to the track and make sure it is pointing straight
down and did not get pushed up into the aluminum housing; the LED can be gently
repositioned if needed. The LED light should be about flush with the bottom surface
of the extrusion that it is shining through.
Check to see that no wires were pinched when the timer was mounted. Was a nut
put on the 1” long mounting bolt before the timer was attached? This nut provides
clearance for the sensor wires (see page 4).
If the first car is showing a “0.000” elapsed time on a race
, the timer is not
receiving the start signal from the start switch. Check to make sure the start
switch/reset cable is plugged in all of the way. Also, check to make sure the start
switch lever is fully depressed and that you can hear it “click” when the start gate is
put up into the “ready to race” position. You may need to slightly bend the metal
lever of the start switch down towards the floor so that it contacts the start gate
sooner. The middle connector of the start switch should not be connected, see first
diagram shown on page 7.
