I have a Robertson AP3000X on my boat. The J-box (brain) was replaced last
year due to corrosion on the circuit boards. Last weekend, I was using the
boat and noticed that the LCD control head seemed to be displaying the
information very dimly. I also noticed that if I toggled through the modes,
several modes would display the information very clearly, while others were
very dim and hard to read. I used the boat anyway, and the problem got
worse. Now not only are several of the mode pages very dim, they also
display unrecognizable characters that are not supposed to be there. The
head still functions normally. If I know what page I am on, I can engage
the autopilot and use it, but I can't read the display because it is full of
gibberish. Often, if I turn it off and back on, it will work fine for a
while. Occasionally it takes several cycles of turning it off and back on
to get it to display normally.

I suspected corroded wires from the J-box to the control head, so I took all
of them off of the control head, one at a time, cleaned them thoroughly and
re-connected them. I did the same for all of the wiring coming from the
J-box. It made no improvement. I don't suspect any problems with the
J-box, since it's basically new. I did inspect it visually for corrosion
etc and see none. I suspect a problem with the control head, but am
confused why it would display properly on some pages and not on others. I
guess it's probably not the LCD itself, since it will display perfectly on
some pages, but not on others.


Any suggestions?


Thanks in advance!


Gary


Reply




Gary wrote:
I have a Robertson AP3000X on my boat. The J-box (brain) was
replaced last
year due to corrosion on the circuit boards. Last weekend, I was
using the
boat and noticed that the LCD control head seemed to be displaying
the
information very dimly. snip


I have a Fluke multimeter (67? 77?) that has a LCD display that fades
out every two years or so. If I open the case and remove the plastic
frame that holds the display there is a sort of gray and pink rubbery
or
felt like looking strip on the bottom of that. That strip makes
contact
with a row of brass contacts on the PCB. The rubbery/felt strip and
the
contacts on the PCB are the contact points for activating the LCD
display segments.

If I take a Q-tip, wet it with isopropyl alcohol, and gently clean the
rubbery looking strip and the brass contact patches on the PCB I have
a
like new black on gray LCD display.


This process has saved me from wanting to buy a new Fluke about every
two years over the last ten years or so.


I wonder if you could be having a similar problem?


Jack


--
Jack Erbes in Ellsworth, Maine, USA (jackerbes at adelphia dot net)
(also receiving email at jacker at midmaine dot com)


Reply



This a common complaint with this type (lcd) display, and the best
remedy I know

Question: Can this be related to ciggarette smoking?


Terry K


Reply



Definitely not related to smoking...well, I'm a non-smoker and don't
allow it on my boat, but the previous owner did smoke, so I'm not sure I
guess I should say.

I have looked at the control head and am not sure if it's even
possible to disassemble it to clean it. Has anyone taken this unit apart
before? How do you do it?



Thanks! Gary