Blackboard C not being detected as a device on Windows 10

SPARK-X
1

I have not seen anyone else with the same issue but I got a blackboard c and tried to upload a program to it with Arduino v 1.8.13 (windows 10). After looking around some potential solutions, I do not think the cable is the issue since it is a data cable and the led on the blackboard is lit.

Link:

https://www.amazon.com/ask/answer/Mx3U … =VOTE_CAST

There was also no sound when I connected the cable and the blackboard to my laptop, unlike my Arduino Uno which made the noise and works fine.

I realized this issue when I tried to upload a sketch to the blackboard, but I only have one option for the port “COM 3” and it doesn’t say “Arduino Uno” next to it as it should. I saw that many people said that this is because I might not have the drivers installed, such as the CH340 and the HFTI, but this gave me issues because there is no detected USB device to install the drivers to. There is not even an unrecognized device detected by the device manager, which I didn’t see anyone else having an issue with.

I am very stumped and would appreciate any help with this. Thanks in advance.

2

The light doesn’t indicate data for starters. Some of these cables can be spotty for data. I would try to find a thicker cable to double check the cable first.

3

That is true, but I don’t have access to another cable c. I did look at the product description and FAQ however on amazon and the vendors said it is a data cable and supports serial applications so I think it should be fair to say this isn’t the issue? I wish there was a way to tell by just looking at it.

4

Hi D.

It’s either a bad cable or a bad USB to serial chip on the BlackBoard.

Have you tried a different computer and tried flipping the USB connectors around the other direction?

If you still have problems after trying that, contact Amazon and request a replacement cable and as long as the blackboard is OK that should do the trick.

5

Hello,

I just tried all of my USB ports and flipping it to both sides, and on the very last attempt, I got it to detect the blackboard! It even has the CH341 driver connected to it :). Not sure why the orientation is so sensitive, this must not be normal. I tried it in all 3 USB ports and flipped both ends of it twice before it worked. (That’s 9 different orientations before it worked!)

Also, It shows up on the port as COM 5, and not “COM5 (Arduino Uno)” and is giving me some upload problems, but it worked the first time and then stopped working. I think this has to do with the cable being a bit janky.

However, this is out of scope for this forum subject so I will consider my original question resolved and continue trying to figure out this issue.

Thanks for the help!

Just to make it clear to others who may experience this issue: make sure that the USB is functioning, if on a windows 10 it should make a noise when plugging the device into the computer. If the device has the CH340 driver installed then it should be good to go, or if not it should be an unrecognized device and the driver needs to be installed for Blackboard C. Good luck :slight_smile: