I’m completely new to BlueROVs and would really appreciate some advice.
I was given this older BlueROV2 by my employer when it was no longer needed. As far as I’m aware it has been sitting unused for quite a while. I’ve never had it running successfully, so I don’t know if this fault already existed or if I’m introducing it during setup.
When the unit is all plugged into the topside interface I don’t see a link light.
I have checked the cables for continuity and they seem fine.
On power-up, the internal Fathom-X LINK LED comes on solid.
After approximately 10–20 seconds, the LINK LED goes out and stays off.
The Fathom-X Power LED remains on.
My PC never establishes an Ethernet connection to the ROV through the tether.
Is this normal?
What I’ve tried
Booting from the original Companion SD card.
Flashing a fresh BlueOS image to another SD card (I know the Pi 3 isn’t officially supported, but it does boot).
Both SD cards show exactly the same behaviour.
The Raspberry Pi appears to boot.
BlueOS briefly broadcasts a Wi-Fi hotspot, and I managed to connect once, but it later disappeared.
Windows detects the FXTI as a Realtek USB FE Family Controller.
My question
Has anyone experienced the Fathom-X LINK LED coming on during boot and then turning off after 10–20 seconds?
Does this normally indicate:
a failing Raspberry Pi Ethernet interface,
a faulty internal Ethernet patch cable,
a faulty Fathom-X board,
or something else?
Is there a recommended way to determine whether the Raspberry Pi or the Fathom-X is dropping the Ethernet link?
The link light not coming on has nothing to do with the Pi, or BlueOS. It is a standalone piece of networking hardware!
You’ll want to verify that you have a twisted pair connected between the Fathom-X in the ROV and the topside FXTI - it is best to check resistance of each wire, and make sure they’re roughly equivalent. Chances are, these wires are not connected well if you’re not getting a connection!
With no link light led on, there is no ethernet connection, plan and simple.
You can verify the Pi is ok by connecting an ethernet cable directly from it to your computer, and appropriately setting your static IP address for that network interface as covered in the documentation.
To clarify, BlueOS is in fact officially supported for Pi3s, up to at least BlueOS 1.4.
It’s looking likely we’ll have to specify it as unsupported for 1.5 and above due to increasing performance loads and expectations, and because of that we don’t recommend using a Pi3 in new projects, but given you’re working with an existing vehicle we would definitely recommend upgrading from the old (and no longer supported) Companion software to using a compatible BlueOS version instead!
If you’ve connected via ethernet cable directly, did you see any lights on the ethernet jack?
Did you properly set your IP address to 192.168.2.1?
Does this system have a Pixhawk or Navigator onboard? t is likely a Pixhawk - do you observe any lights flashing on it? Your system may be old enough it is running companion os instead of BlueOS - the interface is at 192.168.2.2:2770
Sending data over a long tether isn’t easy! A faulty Fathom-x board on either side, or a damaged tether can prevent connection. Measuring tether pair individual wire resistance from end to end, and trying other tether pairs if available are the common troubleshooting steps. Without a link light on both Fathom-x, you just won’t get a link!
You’re correct- the link light on that Fathom-x needs to be on for the Ethernet ports on each end of the tether to be linked. It looks like you connection is ok, but verify the same color wire pair is connected on both ends of the tether, and maybe try another colored pair to try and get that link light to come on and stay on… Otherwise one or both of those fathom x boards may be faulty!
How long is your tether?
