Dothinkey's "Reconnect Self-Recovery" Technology Empowers Emergency Response in Automated Equipment

In the automated production process of camera module factories, the Image Grabber, as a core component of automated testing equipment, plays a pivotal role despite its small size. Its efficiency determines the efficiency of the automated equipment, and its stability determines the stability of the automated equipment.

Dothinkey Technology has been committed to providing the latest and best products for China's camera industry for 18 years. The Dothinkey Image Grabber has long been known for its stability and reliability.

However, real-world scenarios are extremely complex. As shown in the figure above, "connection" is the key:

  1. The connection between Image Grabber #2 and Camera #3 through fixtures and adapter boards;
  2. The connection between Computer #1 and Image Grabber #2.

There are several reasons that can cause the connection between Image Grabber #2 and Camera #3 to fail:

  1. The Image Grabber #2 itself or its connector fails;
  2. The fixture pins between Image Grabber #2 and Camera #3 are partially or completely faulty (most common);
  3. The camera itself malfunctions.

When these problems occur, the software will report I2C communication failures, abnormal currents, OS failure, or inability to capture images. For such hardware issues, the software is powerless. Only the relevant personnel can arrange for inspection and troubleshooting.

There are several main reasons that can cause the connection between Computer #1 and Image Grabber #2 to fail:

  1. Issues with the computer itself, such as problems with the USB 3 expansion card or the 10-Gigabit Ethernet card;
  2. The Image Grabber is affected by static electricity, electromagnetic interference, or other strong impacts, leading to partial or complete operational anomalies;
  3. Problems with the connecting cables: long-term wear can lead to unreliable connections or even complete damage; long USB cables are prone to interference; poor-quality cables can cause instability (most common).

When these problems occur, the software often reports that the device cannot be found or that the connection is lost. The corresponding functions of the Dothinkey DTCCM2 SDK will return a fault error code of -1104.

Maintenance personnel should investigate the cause of the problem. If hardware issues have been ruled out, software personnel can follow the steps below for recovery:

In Dothinkey's K series, G series, and all new products designed after 2019, to have an emergency response plan in case of unexpected events, Dothinkey Technology has added the "reconnect self-recovery" technology to the relevant products. When the connection between Computer #1 and Dothinkey Image Grabber #2 is completely abnormal and communication is impossible, the Dothinkey Image Grabber will restart itself to return to a normal state. When this happens, the upper-level machine software will receive a return value of -1104 when calling Dothinkey's relevant functions. At this time, the process mentioned above should be followed to re-establish the connection.

There is also an extreme scenario where the Image Grabber can partially communicate with the computer end, such as transmitting control commands, but some communication modules, acquisition modules, cache modules, or OS modules have already malfunctioned (some customers have experienced such situations due to external high voltage or static electricity).

In this case, the upper-level machine software can call the SystemRestart function to command the Image Grabber to force a restart. The recovery method can refer to the above process: first, disconnect the device, then determine whether a delay is needed based on the device's situation (since restarting takes time, and some devices may take longer), and then restart the device.

This function can avoid the awkward situation of having to manually shut down the Image Grabber in extreme environments. Since the upper-level machine software can fully control the Image Grabber, it eliminates the various troubles of automated equipment in unexpected situations.