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[RedwoodsMama]

 Moving all my Pleo boxes a few days ago, I had forgotten the pleo I got last year that is a Prototype, ( PleoPets thought..) seeming to run 1.1...this pleo ran twice a couple of days ago, about a minute and half before the electrical system freezes or stops and this is with a fully charged battery. I never pursued this any further before, so not sure what to do next. Should I reinstall the operating system, if so, which one should I try. If he starts and then stops is it because his file is corrupted or something else? Is there something else I should be doing instead of reinstalling his operating system? I would like to use this guy, but don't want to damage him any further by doing the wrong thing. Any advice? I can post a video before he stopped if need be.

                    Thanks.                RWM 

 Below is the original topic and pictures and info about him.



http://bobthepleo.com/forums/index.php?topic=3113.0


Topic: Unusual Pleo just arrived today...can't explain the differences.....  (Read 913 times

[Talon]

Hi, Redwoods! I'm no programmer but I would try installing the operating system. I would go with 1.1 as Luna suggested. If I remember correctly, you said your computer is running Windows Seven sixty four bit and you couldn't get the operating system to install properly or something? My computer is running Vista thirty two bit. If you want, I could try installing it using mine if you like. If you know how to Skype, I'd even let you be present through the whole thing if you're worried. Just let me know.
Talon

[RedwoodsMama]

Thanks Talon, I may try that. Do you think I should try a skit just to see if it will work also? I am thinking it is a electrical problem as today the Pleo would only go, Huh, and not even move...not sure what that means? Frustrating when you have a nice Pleo with no real skin problems but you can't get it to work properly, I did notice also that at the factory or someone else perhaps perhaps messed with the back feet...they seem to have more glue residue around the opening than I am used to seeing. If it was the factory then they were a bit sloppy, usually the feet look pretty clean.              Kat if you are on, can you suggest anything? Should I post the video of her running for a minute or so..?            RWM  


IMR, if you get a chance to read this can you check Angus, your 2009 Pleo that you got and check his feet, esp the back or rear feet and tell me anything that is written on them... My guy not only has no number on his feet, but his back feet are unusual and have only the China and Chine, nothing else which is different. I think Luna already checked STephans feet for me last year, and he has something written on them, and my guy doesn't '. Thanks.

[Talon]

Good call, Redwoods. I'm not one hundred percent sure about this but I think a skit would load quicker and take less energy than loading an OS. If something is wrong with his electrical system, he shouldn't be damaged further just from running a skit. Again I'm no programmer, those are just my thoughts.
I also remember from reading in your old topic that he doesn't run well using the egg batteries? What sort of battery are you having to use and how are you charging it?
Talon

[kat]

I would see if you can get him to run a skit.  If he runs a skit then I think his issue isn't mechanical and is more likely to be either an OS issue or a battery issue.  But I guess we can rule out the battery issue if the battery your using in him works in your other pleos. 

[RedwoodsMama]

  Thanks, I will try a skit then, if he is most likely running 1.1, does it matter which skit........? Thanks Kat!   RWM 

[Crewella]

Doesn't matter which skit really.  Good luck. 

[kat]

As Crewella says, any skit will do   Let us know how it goes.

[RedwoodsMama]

Ok, I did try a skit, I tested it first in Major Tom and it worked fine, so no problems with the skit, China URF, or song, good movement and sound, When I tested it in this guy..................ZILCH...nothing no movement or sound, He does run for anywhere from nothing to over a minute before stopping, One day he ran on the egg batteries, and the next would not though they still had juice. He did run good, but still stopped on the battery that both you and I have Kat that is for Ugobes and RB, kind of strange I think. So what is next?

                 If it is mechanical.   what does that mean...should I still try the update of operating system,do I downgrade first then reinstall or what ?I do not want to damage him further in any way. I don't want to attempt anything till I hear from the "experts", LOL, I trust your judgement. Today is a STORMY day in the redwoods and the last day for a cat calendar contest so I have a lot  of fur baby photos to upload and enter still so that will keep me busy till I hear back.

                       Thanks In advance for all the advice.      RWM 

[InmemoryofRomeo]

I think a loose wire/wires, would explain why he works sometimes and not others, just depends if the wires are connecting or not and how long before they disconnect.

[kat]

I agree with IMR.  If the skit didn't work in him then he has a mechanical fault.  Most likely a loose wire or wires.  Not sure how to go a out fixing that.  One thing I do know is that it is not safe to try to update his OS.  If you do that with his current power issues you may corrupt his files. 

[RedwoodsMama]

IMR or Kat, any idea where to check for the loose wires. where would be the most likely place to look? Glad I did not go any further. Thanks.            RWM  

More details...

    This is the pleo I am talking about that I got sometime last year, here is a video, I apologize for the dark quality, it was late at night and I did not have enough light, but you can see and hear him stop about the 50 second mark, it was a fully charged Li Polymer battery, I would like to know where is the best place to open this guy up to look for a loose wire, wires and does anyone have any photos of the inside of the Pleos so I can see what the wires should look like. Also is there a scalpel or certain knife to use that is best?            Here is the video <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGdUw_F72sU" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oGdUw_F72sU</a>

        Thanks          RWM 

[RedwoodsMama]

  If IMR, Kat or Crewella have any photos of Pleos insides of pleos you have taken apart or opened up, it would help a lot so I know what is "out of place" if it is a loose wire. Also if it is a loose wire, what do I do with it, is it soldered or connected or what? If you put the video full screen you can see it better, because it is dark. sorry.               RWM 

[kat]

I am thinking Crewella is probably going to be your best bet for pics of what to look for as she has skully her skinless fellow that she may be able to photo the right bits for you.  I am not really sure where or what the issue may be but if I was going to open him up I think I would start looking around the on off switch and the battery compartment and trace the wires that go between the two.  As for opening him up you shouldn't need a scalpel or knife.  With the Ugobe pleos you can use your fingers and fingernails to pull and rub at the joins or seams of the skin and with  time effort and patience you will be able to get the skin apart.  You just have to go carefully and slowly so that you don't accidentally apply too much force and tear the skin. You should try starting at the belly of the pleo around the battery compartment.  But before doing any of that I would talk to Crewella and maybe Pleopet  to see if they think it is a wiring issue or something else.  There may be other tests you can try to pinpoint more accurately just what the problem is that the rest of us are unaware of.  You may find that using dinomite on the pleo might give you more answers but I am not sure as I have never used it myself. 

[Crewella]

I'm afraid that this is too deep for me.  If there is a loose wire causing the problem, I'm guessing it's most likely to be between the battery compartment and the main board, but I think you have to take the whole Pleo apart to try to get to it.  Sadly I have two broken Pleos that I've never been able to fix, one completely dead and one that would start up but shut down straighaway, which I sent to Mike.  That one, I believe, had corrupted files and so wouldn't load properly, but you could change it's position through Dino-mite.

[mweed]

As Crewella said, most likely IF a loose wire is the culprit for this, it's in the power connections.  There are two circuit boards involved, and it could be anywhere from the battery connectors themselves, the wires leading from the battery to the main circuit board, or the wires running back up/down to the power switch.   All of which is located in the worst spot as for as trying to get into the pleo.

If you had someone who is really dexterous and has small hands, you might be able to get a couple probes from a voltage meter through the battery compartment to the power switch to check and see if there is a break in the wires supplying power.  I tried to do that with the pleo Crewella sent me.  I had to break loose a piece of plastic inside the battery hole, and I had to get help as I couldn't get my fingers in that tiny space.

But then again, it could be a loose/broken wire connecting almost any of the circuit boards inside the pleo, or as in Crewella's case, be corrupted data and not a hardware problem at all.

[RedwoodsMama]

 Thanks guys, but GEESH.................that does not sound good, My hands are small, compared to others, but my "good hand", is the one that has the fractured wrist, and my recent physical therapy apt evaluated my range of motion and I have approx. only 50% of the same range of motion in my "bad" hand the left one, so I am not going to do any good at this, Why can't it ever be anything simple!
          Since this pleo worked before, is it possible a wire or wires came loose just from this guy being dropped or handled roughly? The former owner said it was his sons who is autistic I believe and was a little "rough" with it, I did notice also a rear foot has what looks like very thick glue all around the outer foot and the other feet look clean.. almost like it had been taken apart, but the rest of it's skin, etc looks very pristine, I would love to open it up just to have a look, but pulling the skin around the belly does not seem to be easing out easily and I am worried about tearing good skin....................any other possibilities?

                     Mike, did you ever get that pleo fixed?              RWM 

[kat]

To give you an idea of what your up against

More details...

When you remove the skin the pleo is encased in a hard plastic shell and some foam.  To get at the bits you might want to look at - they are at the bottom of the pleo in the belly - and I believe you need to work your way down to them from the top - removing all the pleos insides from the top down so taking out all the motors and cables for the neck and tail to then reveal the screws you need to remove to get to the area you need to work on.  So basically as Crewella says you pretty much have to pull the whole pleo apart to get there. 

Have you tried using Dino-mite on him to see if that will tell you what his problem is?  It would be a shame to open him up and pull him apart if it isn't a mechanical issue but a corrupted data one.   

If you want to get a good idea of just what it would be like to attempt to pull him appart and find the issue you could take a look at Humpty pleo.  He is already open and in enough pieces that you would get a good feel for just how much stuff you would need to pull out to get to what your looking for.

[RedwoodsMama]

 Thanks Kat for posting the photo, You are right, way too much stuff to disassemble. I do have Humpty to look at, in fact he is not bad and running despite being "apart". If I run dinomite, on my old computer cause it is the only way I can hook up via USB cable, as far as I can remember, if it says he has a corrupted file, how do I fix that or can it be fixed? The fact he runs sometimes, but others not and he cant' run skits at all, sounds very confusing to me, If worse comes to worse, I guess I could use his skin as he is very very pretty, but more than likely he would just sit.......................Thanks for the photo. What would you do if he was yours and it said corrupted file....? I had forgotten about Dinomite cause it is on my old Windows XP.                    RWM 

[Talon]

Wow! Poor guy! Hopefully Dinomite will be able to give you some sort of report. If it's electric, he may not even register but it's worth a shot. Keep us posted.
Talon

[RedwoodsMama]

 Hi Talon , thanks for the cheerful thoughts. I luckily still have my old computer that has windows XP and dinomite on it, so will hook it up today and give it a shot, I forgot exactly how dinomite works but I think I can figure it out. If it registers, then I think that would be a good sign............. Keeping fingers crossed.  I will let everyone know what happens.       RWM