FJ 350a cable

[Nottingham82]

I am trying to make a programming cable for a fj 350a controller attached to a Racka cart. It is a 3 pin automotive connector and I have a programmable TTL UART usb connector. No matter what pin out and baud rate I try I get no connection. Im assuming there is a setting I am missing.

I have the evolution software and drivers installed and I have the directions on what to do when its connected. Just trying to get the whole system to talk. I know I can buy a cable but since I already have the hardware it seems like a waste of money.

[evoster]

Originally Posted by Nottingham82

I am trying to make a programming cable for a fj 350a controller attached to a Racka cart. It is a 3 pin automotive connector and I have a programmable TTL UART usb connector. No matter what pin out and baud rate I try I get no connection. Im assuming there is a setting I am missing.
.

No odd settings, just 19200 N81

[Nottingham82]

Thanks for the tip Evoster I think I fundamentally do not understand what I need from my hardware connections. I have a USB to 5v TTL UART Serial Cable and an automotive 4 pin connector. The fj controller uses 3 wires. No mater what I do I cannont get it to connect to the evolution software. I set it to 19200 baud rate so that eliminated 1 variable. since it is 3 wire I assumed TX RX and GND. But I have been reading there is a handshake protocol so I also tried plugging the cts to gnd because I saw somewhere that some other serial controller worked that way. Still get nothing. So I believe I'm just not getting the right wires to the right pins. Anyone have any thoughts on which wires of Tx, RX, GND, CTS, RTS, and VCC I need. Im assuming I dont need VCC since the evolution software wont work unless the golf cart is on. I assume the controller is getting any power it needs from the battery during programming.

[evoster]

Originally Posted by Nottingham82

Thanks for the tip Evoster I think I fundamentally do not understand what I need from my hardware connections.

You only need 3 wires RX TX GND.
As you mentioned, do not hook up VCC as that supplies voltage from controller to a handheld programmer. You don't want that on your USB PC line.

Some of the cheaper USB TTL adapters are known fails due to the controller's picky voltage levels. You'll eventually find a compatible one but my suggestion is to just buy a good cable from Cart Cables.

the controller waits for requests so you won't see anything until you first send data. A simple test is a request for Manufacturer ID by sending:
EB90010C0413000F00B8FB

The controller will respond with:
EB90010C2313000F4A46 ...

[Nottingham82]

Well I got something new to happen today. After going over all of my wires and settings and consulting a few other people I was getting nowhere. Then I just decided to start playing with the rx and tx wires leaving ground out it and I got evolution to say this. I double checked my license and data file. Any idea what this means?

[evoster]

Originally Posted by Nottingham82

Well I got something new to happen today. After going over all of my wires and settings and consulting a few other people I was getting nowhere. Then I just decided to start playing with the rx and tx wires leaving ground out it and I got evolution to say this. I double checked my license and data file. Any idea what this means?

the very first thing the evolution app does is request sw type from the controller and compare to what's in the loaded fdev

that error message is showing you the result:

Firmware (FW): 0
FDev: 1

If those don't match, the sw aborts.

I haven't seen an FJ that doesn't return a sw type of 1 so my guess is that you're not reading the RX correctly. I think you need that GND.

Use another serial app like putty or screen or write one with python or whatever. Send a request to the controller and sanity check that you're getting a valid response. That string I showed in previous message is formatted as a hex string for readability but you need to send as binary array.

If your controller really is returning a valid response with a sw type of 0, then you need a diff fdev then what's commonly found in the wild.

[Nottingham82]

Originally Posted by evoster

the very first thing the evolution app does is request sw type from the controller and compare to what's in the loaded fdev

that error message is showing you the result:

Firmware (FW): 0
FDev: 1

If those don't match, the sw aborts.

I haven't seen an FJ that doesn't return a sw type of 1 so my guess is that you're not reading the RX correctly. I think you need that GND.

Use another serial app like putty or screen or write one with python or whatever. Send a request to the controller and sanity check that you're getting a valid response. That string I showed in previous message is formatted as a hex string for readability but you need to send as binary array.

If your controller really is returning a valid response with a sw type of 0, then you need a diff fdev then what's commonly found in the wild.

Hmmm interesting. Thanks ill have a look under the hood and see what it's really trying to say.

[Nottingham82]

Well it seems to be parroting me. But it's not responding to commands. It send and receives but I just get back what I send. If I connect the ground I get a break error. I guess I'll buy a cable and pray it's not a problem with my controller.