One of the most common problems encountered with the Argus is a really simple one: The Argus won't turn on. Or, if it does turn on, it will sometimes turn off, recycle, or "reboot" in the air. As seemingly simple as this is, there are a number of possible causes for it.
Possible causes of INOP Argus in aircraft:
| Defective Argus |
| Argus not fully seated in tray |
| Defective tray wiring (broken, loose) |
| Defective aircraft wiring |
| Defective circuit breaker going to the Argus |
Obviously, we are not in position to help you with any but the first. The easiest, and perhaps the only way to determine that the Argus is at fault is to remove it from the aircraft and power it up on the bench. Here's how:
| Obtain a DC power supply capable of supplying 15 watts or more at 12 to 28V. |
| Obtain a mating connector for the Argus. For ground use, a standard computer type DB25 female connector is fine since it doesn't need to blind mate. |
| Connect the GROUND terminal on the power supply to Pins 12 AND 24 on the DB25 |
| Connect the POSITIVE terminal on the power supply to Pins 13 AND 25 on the DB25 |
Connect the cable to the Argus and turn on the power. An Argus CE model should power up with no action on your part. A monochrome Argus has a Push/ON Pull/OFF switch. If you confirm that there is power at the appropriate pins and the Argus doesn't turn on, the Argus is at fault. Otherwise, look to the aircraft. If an intermittent problem is suspected, let the Argus run long enough to get hot and confirm that it continues to run (or that it doesn't).
If you are receiving this message on the screen, it inevitably has one of the causes listed here. If you want to confirm that the Argus input is functioning correctly, connect an RS-232 signal to the Argus:
| Connect the DATA terminal to Pin 16 |
| Connect the Ground or Low terminal to Pin 4 |
Send some data - any data - and confirm that the LOST message changes to an INVALID message. If it doesn't, it means that the Argus input circuit is defective. Note: this almost never is the problem!
This page created 16 May 2005
Updated 19 January 2006