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Canada
Asked — Edited

My Ez-B Needs Service

Waited over a month to get my kit. First time I plug it in, needs a firmware upgrade ... attempted to do so and got this result:

Firmware Updater Version: 2013.03.18.00
5/16/2013 8:23:44 PM - Begin

Attempting connection on COM6
Connected to COM6 at 9600
EZ-B reports EZ-B Firmware V2
Connected

Welcome to EZ-Robot!:)

This is the first time you have used this EZ-B. After this upgrade, we recommend that you take a moment to view the tutorials at www.ez-robot.com/Tutorials. Nearly every question you have regarding EZ-Robot is answered in the Tutorials.

Press the HELP menu option to watch a video about this Firmware Upgrade process. Otherwise, press UPDATE when you are ready.

5/16/2013 8:23:55 PM - Sending bootloader
Starting Boot Loader...

5/16/2013 8:24:03 PM - sending ping
5/16/2013 8:24:04 PM - sending ping
5/16/2013 8:24:06 PM - Sending bootloader
I am EZ-B BootLoader. Gimmie Firmware!


5/16/2013 8:24:13 PM - Step 1 of 2) This process will take 2 minutes. The status bar will display progress.

5/16/2013 8:24:13 PM - Updating... (22,656 Bytes)
5/16/2013 8:24:35 PM - Uploaded


Have not been able to connect to EZ-B since.


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Canada
#6  
no it is running on XP with a dongle. My laoptop with win7 and built in bluetooth cant detect it at all.
#7  
Somehow you're going to need to find and install the Microsoft bluetooth drivers. Also how far away is the EZ-B from your computer ?
Canada
#8  
Bluetooth is a very well defined protocol, and there is really no reason for it to not work with "any" bluetooth with any driver other than lazy programming. I don't think I want a product that, after I buy it tells me " ... oh, by the way, it only works with MS BS".

Definitely not happy and this is definitely not EZ robotics ... I have used many controllers and never had this kind of issue where a very well defined protocol is not properly supported.

This has been a bad experience from shortly after I ordered and waited nearly a month with not a word from EZ-R. then when it gets here, finally, I ordered from a Canadian company and have to pay customs ... I live in Canada. To top that, My "brand new" product, has firmware that is out of date. Very poor business and I am very disappointed.

Who do I speak to to return this product?
#9  
Send your complaint and request here: http://www.ez-robot.com/About/Contact-Us.aspx .

This seems to be a very common issue with first time users. There are a lot of posts from people asking for help with first time connection problems. Most of the time it ends up being third party Bluetooth drivers. EZ Robots has been very clear in the past that only MS Bluetooth drivers are supported by them. Once these drivers are installed most people are very happy with their EZB experience. I myself had the same issue and by installing the proper MS BT stack got me up and running in no time. I'm very glad I stuck it out and cant imagine having my robot functional without it.

Good luck and try to have fun.
Canada
#10  
There is nothing in the sales and promotional material that states I need MS drivers for my bluetooth.
Canada
#12  
I reiterate, There is nothing in the sales and promotional. That is a support document, something I would not be looking at unless I experienced a problem. Why would I expect a problem from something advertized as EZ?

That still does not explain why this system does not "properly" support a very well defined protocol!
#13  
Microsoft Windows 7 and 8 using Microsoft bluetooth stack are the only platforms I'm running with two EZ-B boards and there are absolutely no issues when that combination is used. Nothing else is supported.
PRO
Synthiam
#14  
sorry to hear about your trouble, however you are not using the default Microsoft Bluetooth stack.:) Once you are using the default Microsoft Bluetooth stack, your troubles will be gone.

The word "EZ" is indeed implying easy. However, you will need to follow the Tutorial section as part of the EZ. The support section has taken a lot of work to ensure all questions are addressed:) Please press the SUPPORT button from the top of this page and follow the tutorial. Or, please use one of the many notifications in the software that brings you to the tutorial. Even the message you pasted from the firmware suggests you use the tutorial.

I can tell this is not using the Microsoft Bluetooth stack because of this message..

Quote:


5/16/2013 8:24:13 PM - Step 1 of 2) This process will take 2 minutes. The status bar will display progress.

5/16/2013 8:24:13 PM - Updating... (22,656 Bytes)
5/16/2013 8:24:35 PM - Uploaded


Notice how it says "this will take 2 minutes"? And the time your upload took was 22 seconds.

Other Bluetooth stacks do not follow the "well documentation" that you mentioned a few times in your posts. There is no enforcement on Bluetooth standards. Now, surprisingly.... Microsoft is the only one who does it right:) Go figure! Our communication method follows standards, therefore needs to be used by compliant stack.
USA
#15  
You will truly enjoy EZ-B once you get the BT sorted out. Your enjoyment will far surpass any troubles you may initially had. We are here to help. Stay positive.
PRO
USA
#16  
The " first time around" doing things can be confusing just follow the instructions. Once your familiar with the setup which usually takes less than 15 minutes you can have a new ezb connected and ready to receive commands in just a couple of minutes. Its faaaar better than the hoopla of arduino.
#17  
****"it only works with MS BS". *****

There are a lot of people that hate Microsoft for some reason. Perhaps they don't like to march along with the crowd. However, it is the standard now a days. If you want this product to work for you maybe you need put aside your prejustice of MS and use their stack. If you want to walk the less trodden path then EZB may not work for you.

I understand about not following the crowd as I try to avoid it as much as possible. However my ideals sometimes give way to my passions. Robotics being one of them.

Sorry, this is just the way I see it.
Canada
#18  
my post #7: I state my windows 7 laptop with MS drivers does not even detect the EZ-B. My XP desktop with dongle does as does my android cell phone and my laptop under Linux boot. But this is not the point. I even tried updating my Win 7 bluetooth driver and still can't even detect the presence of the EZ-B ... within 10cm of my laptop.

There is "nothing" in your promotional or sales info that states I need MS drivers for my bluetooth. I believe my EZ-B is defective, I am very disappointed and at this stage there is little that can be done or said to correct this.

I have contacted EZ Robotics and asked to return the product. I am not interested in the kind of service I have received here nor am I happy with the product.
PRO
USA
#20  
@spacelou I can see you are frustrated trying to use unsupported software. The reason the default stack is used for development is because its the most widely used and brings consistency to the updates and ongoing support. This is a DIY platform , if you ensure you are using Windows 7 and the drivers that come with it by default ( meaning there's no need to make any changes or customization) I assure you it works. Thats the beginning of the "EZ" in ez robot. Just use what your computer came with. Unfortunately with other OS there are inconsistencies that cannot be planned for with the amount of man hours available for development. Can you imagine how difficult it would be to make every variation of OS and drivers work? Not that the other OS are not good at what they do. This community is filled with beginner success stories of DIY hobbiest. We even have a 12 yr old named niek who has done cool things.

So install win 7 a reasonably up to date OS or Win 8 the most recent and your troubles will be resolved.

If you want to use your win 7 laptop then uninstall the Bluetooth drivers them let windows 7 find and install the device itself. It will apply the default stack and resolve the issue. Just to let you know until the software update ezb Bluetooth shows up as linvor , one the update is done it will shows EZ Robot. We can get you going , promise.
Germany
#21  
Ok, i have exactly the same issue. I am using a Toshiba laptop which came with its own BT-Stack . I will try to replace it with the BT Driver of Microsoft and try again?! Is that correct?
United Kingdom
#22  
Yes
PRO
Canada
#23  
Hi @mproux,

I had issues with my Toshiba laptop as well. I had to uninstall the Toshiba Bluetooth drivers and go back to windows based bluetooth as well. I believe I also had to get SP3 for Winxp (yeah I know I'm old skool) to get things working right.

Hope that solves it!
United Kingdom
#24  
I believe Win XP SP3 introduced the native MS BT stack in to windows so you are right, SP3 is required for XP.
Germany
#25  
Ok, guys, finally *eyeroll* figured out how to uninstall Toshiba BT Stack and install the MS BT stack. The connection was found and the update worked fine, even though I have two COM3 interfaces *confused*, where one of them is for the EZ-B. But i am able to connect and control my first servos. Thanks for your support!
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