1N00-610 Genesis Super Truck v1.0 03/04
Fault Finding
Tornado International Ltd. has been manufacturing this type of equipment for
over thirty years. The result is a well proven product which, by a combination
of tried and tested designs and the best of modern technology, offers many
years of profitable operation. However all things built by man can fail. This
section is intended to guide you through the basics of fault finding on our
equipment.
Foreword
Keep an open mind! When trying to fault find on the equipment look first at the
simple things. Has any work been carried out on the equipment recently?
Have any changes been made to the equipment? Have there been any
unusual occurrences? It is always tempting to suspect the electronics, but it is
most often something simple. A corroded connector, a broken or damaged
wire or even, dare we say it, misuse by the operator.
The most important aspect of fault finding on the equipment is to observe and
WRITE DOWN THE SYMPTOMS. This is true if you are going to fault find
yourself and even more important if you are going to telephone Tornado for
assistance. In nine cases out of ten, give us concise and full symptoms and
we will accurately diagnose the problem. Take time to observe what happens
when various actions are taken. When the red console stop light is on, when
the green console start light is on. Drive the model and note what happens
when driven in all directions and in all parts of the operating area. What
happens if the receiver is changed for the spare, or the slave timer is
changed? Each set is supplied with a comprehensive spares pack. It has two
uses. One, to enable you to continue to operate after a failure and two, to help
with fault finding by exchanging known good items for suspect ones.
Principles
At its simplest, the model is controlled by switching resistors of varying value
across the channels controlling the model. If the red console stop light is on
(i.e. the position is not in play) these are fixed resistors in the slave timer.
When credits are available and the green play button is pressed, relays in the
slave timer transfer control to the driving controls. When the forward/reverse
control is moved a connected variable resistor alters the length of the
transmitted control pulse. This in turn is interpreted by the receiver, which
turns on the drive motor in the desired direction. From the above you will see
that if the resistance of any of the circuits or wiring connected to the
transmitter channels changes, the model will react accordingly.
For example, all of the models are in the playing area with all of the playing
positions on stop. (Red light illuminated on the driving controls). All of the
models will be stationary. If we disconnect the console connecting plug for
console 1 & 2 we have changed the resistance across the channels for the
first two models by presenting an open circuit to the transmitter. (We have
also removed power from the console but that is academic for this example).
The transmitter interprets this as a resistor change (which it is) and changes
the length of the eight affected pulses (4 per model) accordingly. The receiver
©Tornado International Ltd. 2004
-30-
Confidential
