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Flirc presses keys without me using the remote


bugmenot

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I received my Flirc a couple of days ago and programmed it on my Windows 7 64 bit PC to work with my Harmony Remote.

The Programming worked fairly straight forward but I keep having a problem that basically prevents me from using Flirc at all: When the dongle is connected to the computer, it periodically keeps sends random key presses to the PC. I tried blaming the remote control and even removed the batteries to make sure the remote is not sending random signals.

Using the Flirc Utilities from here () I can see that just having Flirc connected results in keys being pressed at random. Only those that are registered with the device are being pressed, though.

To clarify the problem, here is what happens and how I can reproduce this error:

  • Open Flirc and clear configuration.
  • Manually record a couple of buttons from my remote.
  • Verify the buttons work in Flirc Utilities (or any other software that uses those keys).
  • Remove batteries from Remote.
  • Keep keyboard focus in Flirc Utilities to capture key presses.
  • Sometimes immediately, sometimes after a while, some of the programmed keys will show up in Flirc Utilities as being pressed. Both the keys and the pressing interval seems random.
  • Behavior stops as soon as I disconnect Flirc from the PC.

In a media player application, this results of course in total havoc and makes Flirc unusable, which otherwise is exactly what I want for my media setup.

Are there any ideas how to fix this or how I can provide more information so we can find a solution together?

Thanks!

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I think during the recording process ghost keys were recorded.

Fire up the GUI and hit delete. Be patient and let the phantom signal show up and it will be deleted from memory. Keep doing that until phantom signals go away. Let us know if that does the trick.

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Fire up the GUI and hit delete. Be patient and let the phantom signal show up and it will be deleted from memory.

That sounds like the right idea. I'll try that once the problem comes up again. Usually when I'm on the couch and the movie has started (i.e. when it's most inconvenient).

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So i have checked with USBTrace and have following detected:

1. Starting Flirc-GUI pass trace messages in USBTrace

2. Pressing "Erase" -> Messages

3. Pressing button on remote in key-accept mode -> Messages

4. if i wait few seconds - GUI write "button already erased" , no messages in USBTrace

any advice? some kind conflicted software/drivers? msi350ai-e45 with Win7-32, flirc is used for XBMC

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 4 weeks later...

Just reporting that all of a sudden I have this problem now too

I will re-record keys as suggested. Just weird that it worked fine for weeks and now it's become a problem

Please let us know how it goes. I'm going to try and figure out how to prevent this, I have a few ideas..

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Hi Jason

Thanks for the reply, if this info is of any us:

It's just the back button that seems to be getting pressed over and over... worked fine for weeks.

So a film would be playing and it jumps back to a menu in xbmc, and then back to the main menu etc, weird

Also, to test what I did was I removed the battery from my logitech remote and left the flirc in the usb port. it still happens.

So it's not the remote itself sending the command. When I remove flirc from my usb the problem no longer happens.

I'll re-record all the commands again and wipe my flirc and let you know.

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I'm struggling to download from your link, it keeps sending me on an endless loop to download some video downloading software

Probably more convenient is to press "more reply options" in the bottom right of the quick reply then options to attach files will be present.

Pleasant regards

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I see the problem, you definitely have spurious signals recorded.

You have 5 signals paired with Backspace

You also have two signals paired with 'i'

I deleted all instances of those, please record backspace and 'i' again.

Remember, if the GUI says successfully recorded and you don't feel like you've recorded the key, hit the 'delete' button and wait for that same signal to be deleted. I'm going to fix this in the next firmware release. Find the modified config attached. Let me know how it goes.

MJMC_modified_config.bin

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Find the modified config attached. Let me know how it goes.

Thanks for this

Out of interest whats in the "modified config" compared to the one I just uploaded?

Will re-record over the weekend and update you thanks

I think the reason for so many signals recorded to the one key is the GUI would often say "Key recorded" without me doing anything at all... I posted about it in a separate thread, was driving me mental.

Anyway keep up the great work I love Flirc and i'll update you over the weekend, thanks.

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  • 1 month later...
  • 3 months later...

Firstly... Thanks for an amazing product.

However...

...this is another "me too".

My RaspBMC was working fine, then not responding to the remote, then shortly after it would crash requiring reboot.

This behaviour continued for a couple of weeks.

 

I removed the FLIRC, and intending to reprogram it, (desperate measures. I was ready to try anything), and plugged it into my PC.

I had a text editor open, and with window focus, and it was immediately apparent that the FLIRC was generating keypresses.

I fired up EventGhost to capture the keypresses.

Mostly <enter>, circa 200 presses, but with a healthy smattering of up down, left and right arrows, with a couple of -- thrown in in a five minute period.

 

Then I had to go to work.

On returning home, I started to investigate again, but could not replicate the problem!

It is dark outside now, the previous test was done in daylight.

I have tried to confuse the FLIRC with various light sources...

LED torch

Daylight bulb

Long life bulb

Standard torch

"laser" pointer

...but it is steady as a rock.

 

I'm going to plug it back into the media center for now, but it's clearly not something I can rely on.

Please keep me informed of any developments in resolving this problem.

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Firstly... Thanks for an amazing product.

However...

...this is another "me too".

My RaspBMC was working fine, then not responding to the remote, then shortly after it would crash requiring reboot.

This behaviour continued for a couple of weeks.

 

I removed the FLIRC, and intending to reprogram it, (desperate measures. I was ready to try anything), and plugged it into my PC.

I had a text editor open, and with window focus, and it was immediately apparent that the FLIRC was generating keypresses.

I fired up EventGhost to capture the keypresses.

Mostly <enter>, circa 200 presses, but with a healthy smattering of up down, left and right arrows, with a couple of -- thrown in in a five minute period.

 

Then I had to go to work.

On returning home, I started to investigate again, but could not replicate the problem!

It is dark outside now, the previous test was done in daylight.

I have tried to confuse the FLIRC with various light sources...

LED torch

Daylight bulb

Long life bulb

Standard torch

"laser" pointer

...but it is steady as a rock.

 

I'm going to plug it back into the media center for now, but it's clearly not something I can rely on.

Please keep me informed of any developments in resolving this problem.

Have you tried re-programming it when it wasn't constant spamming presses (e.g. in the dark). Interference may have got recorded with it first time.

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Have you tried re-programming it when it wasn't constant spamming presses (e.g. in the dark). Interference may have got recorded with it first time.

Interesting you should say that :)

 

I have gathered Slightly more accidental information to the above observations.

While, (after), removing the batteries from the remote control, (to be sure that it wasn't part of the equation) I jogged my desklamp... and the FLIRC generated a keypress.

So  I turned the desklamp OFF, and the FLIRC generated a constant stream of <enter> and <up> keypresses, interspersed with occasional "-"s.

Depriving the device of light altogether, (Putting it in a cardboard box on a USB extension lead), stopped it... so it is behaving in this way in very low light conditions, but not No-Light conditions.

So then I decided to reprogram it. Start from scratch, so I unplugged it and replugged it, but it appeared completely inert, not responding to any input.

I had to reboot my PC to get it to be recognised, and then, the PC downloaded the bootloader/driver again. (Yes, it was always plugged into the same USB port).

Long story short, once the PC recognised it again, I used the "clear configuration" option to start afresh, and reprogrammed it, and it appears to work.

Turning lights on and off no longer has any effect on it.

I'll keep an eye on it.

 

<later>

OK. It now transpires that it responds to the FLIRC software, but after programming the keys, and exiting the FLIRC software,  it does not detect any button presses on the remote and generate any input detectible by EventGhost, or on the Raspberry Pi Raspbmc.

It's possible that it's just a faulty item rather than a firmware bug, and the bahaviour with the lights was simply it's death throes.

are there any further tests I can reasonably do at home, or should I return it for disection?

 

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@rbridd: I'm starting to think that it is faulty to.

Could you follow up "support at Flirc dot tv" (trying to avoid spam bots). Please link to this thread in it and attach your Flirc configuration file.

Jason will have a look at it and we'll go from there. Don't worry, we won't leave you hanging :)

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