Camera won't adhere to Cut Off Timer settings

[Graeme2812]

Hi,

I've recently had a DR900X hardwired to a new vehicle. Under battery protection in the app i have set the cut off timer to 6H and the Low voltage cut off to 11.8V & 22.8V.

My understanding from how this will then work is that the camera should shut off after 6 hours *and* / or if the voltage drops below 11.8V & 22.8V before the 6 hours are reached.

Some 20 hours in this afternoon since the vehicle was stopped (i.e ignition switched off), I notice that i can still access the camera via the app and access Live View etc which to me suggests the camera is still live.

Have i misunderstood how the battery protection works or is the camera not behaving as per the settings?

Thanks

Graeme

 

[BlackboxMyCar]

You're correct in that the shutoff will occur when either voltage or timer cutoff levels are reached - in other words, whatever comes first for 11.8V or 6 hours.

Have you ensured you have parking mode enabled / the dash cam is entering parking mode?

 

[Graeme2812]

Thanks for the reply.

Yes, I believe the device is entering Parking mode as I have set it to give the auidable warning (Parking Mode Enabled) when the ignition is switched off which I hear and the recording LED turns green.

Is it possible the camera would stay live for as long as the parking impact/motion detection is triggering? Could the impact/motion detection have an impact on when the cutoff timer starts?

 

[BlackboxMyCar]

The dash cam should be powering off solely based on the voltage and timer cutoffs you have enabled, so something doesn't seem correct.

Do you have a voltage meter to check what voltage is your vehicle's battery at after about 20 hours (when the dash cam continues to be on for 20 hours)?

 

[Graeme2812]

I do, yes. It's a new vehicle but the battery should be easy to find and test.

Incidently, it now seems to have powered down but long after the 6 hours.

I think a test of the battery voltage and perhaps a reset of the Dashcam might be in order to see if it resolves.

 

[BlackboxMyCar]

Yeah, it's concerning for sure if the dash cam won't power down (aka kills your vehicle's battery).

 

[KANNINA 2.0]

Are you by any chance leaving your phone connected to the cam via wifi? I'm wondering if maybe the timer won't start if the wifi connection is active and it relies on the voltage setting in that case.

Mine definitely cuts off at the voltage limit, I know because my phone notifies me, but I've never timed it to see if it cuts off at the time limit...

 

[Graeme2812]

It's not conecting to my Phones Wi-Fi as its out of range but it will be conecting to the home Wi-Fi as a Hotspot when it's parked up at home. Which is where it's having the issue. (haven't had a chance to try it away from home yet)

 

[Graeme2812]

So an update. Stuck a multimeter on the battery and its reporting 12.1v. The vehicle hasn't been run for 2 days but its a brand new vehicle with 200 miles on the clock. Vehicle is also warning of degraded battery condition and to start engine etc.

Took the car out for a run and it's back up to 12.8v. I've switched Wi-fi off before entering parking mode/ignition off. The camera is still connected to my home Wi-fi for the cloud service however (car icon is blue in the app).

I've also increased the Low Voltage Cut-off from '11.8V & 22.8V' to '12.5v & 24V' and kept the timer set to 6 hours meaning the camera should shut down around 6pm today.

The camera has been installed by a local professional installer and not by myself and it also has a CAT 7 approved tracker that was installed by the dealership so it's difficult at this stage to isolate. The fact the camera didn't power down after 6 hours is a concern

 

[KANNINA 2.0]

The fact the camera didn't power down after 6 hours is a concern

I agree. Maybe I'll reset mine and time it, see what happens.

 

[Graeme2812]

Since setting the Voltage cut-off to 12.5v, it appears the camera has responded as around an hour after testing the battery at 12.8v, it's now sitting at 12.5v and the camera is no longer accessible on the cloud, assumed switched off. I haven't been able to test the cut off timer however.

As the car is hardly doing any miles at the moment, sitting for a few days at a time, i am going to put the battery on a smart charger. This way the voltage should hardly drop and it will be an opportunity to test the cut-off timer.

Thanks again for the input folks, and will post any updates as they happen.

 

[Graeme2812]

Just an update for anyone following.

On friday afternoon I took the battery off the smart charger and it registered 12.5v and green (fully charged). The camera was also off. Over the next 45hrs (camera still off) it dropped to 12.28v.

We used the car on Sunday afternoon where it was driven for several hours with the camera on. Took a voltage reading when stopped that evening and it was registering 12.63v soon after switching off, with the camera set to switch off after 6 hours or on reaching 12v. It switched off based on the timer setting. On Tuesday morning (around 37 hours after switching off the car) the battery was reading 12.26v.

 

[lerxst]

I’m having the exact same problem with the exact same setup: a DR900X, permanently connected to wifi (either house wifi or car’s hotspot) that is completely ignoring the cut-off timer setting. The camera just runs forever until my blackvue battery drains to 0% and switches off. Yes, camera is in parking mode.

I think it’s a firmware bug that’s existed for months but I’m not sure. Has anyone made this setting work on a DR900X?

 

[Graeme2812]

Sorry to hear that @lerxst

I found that since I made the required changes to the firmware OTA - and not by installing the microsd car into a PC reader - the shutdown timer seems to have worked.

I assume you have tried resetting the SD card and a fresh install?

 

[lerxst]

I’ve reset three times and tried the setting via OTA and via PC editing the SD card. No difference either way.

 

[rcg530]

I'm in the middle of my review of the DR900X-2CH and CM100LTE 4G LTE connectivity module. The documentation and my test findings show that battery protection features (low voltage cut-off and parking mode timer cut-off) only are functional when connected to power via the 3-wire hardwiring harness. I haven't run a 6 hour timer cut-off while using the power port adapter, but the documentation states that both features are only enabled when powered by a 3-wire power source (battery/accessory/ground). A couple of weeks ago, I did run a 6 hour timer cut-off while connected to the 3-wire harness and that worked.

If you're using the cigarette lighter/power port adapter to connect the DR900X to a dash camera battery pack, the battery protection features are not functional. You'll still have the OG version of BlackVue parking mode (stationary for 5 minutes = enter parking mode, any motion exits parking mode) when connected to a dash camera battery pack using a power port connection (2-wire) to the battery pack.

Just this morning, I ran a test using the power port adapter connected to my test power supply. I have the low voltage cut-off feature firmware setting set to 12 volts. I was able to run the voltage down to 11.6 volts without the camera turning off. When I had this camera connected to the 3-wire hardwiring harness and the accessory power was turned off, the low voltage cut-off feature turned off the camera when battery voltage level reached 12.16 volts for 40 seconds. This appears to confirm that using the power port adapter to power the camera does not allow the low voltage cut-off feature to function.

• The camera must see the loss of power on the "Accessory" power wire to:
  • Enable native parking mode
    • Enter parking mode when Accessory power lost
    • Exit parking mode when Accessory power restored
  • Enable the battery protection features (low voltage cut-off / parking mode timer cut-off)

The power connector for the "X" series cameras has the following power mapping:

• Center = Ground
• Ring = Accessory (switched) power
• Sleeve = Battery (constant) power

The power port adapter provides power to both the connector ring and sleeve at the same time. The camera cannot detect any loss of power on the accessory power line (ring connector), so it cannot determine when the vehicle's ignition has been turned off. That results in no native (immediate) parking mode and no battery protection features.

I hope I explained that clearly enough and someone finds it helpful.

 

[lerxst]

I'm in the middle of my review of the DR900X-2CH and CM100LTE 4G LTE connectivity module. The documentation and my test findings show that battery protection features (low voltage cut-off and parking mode timer cut-off) only are functional when connected to power via the 3-wire hardwiring harness. I haven't run a 6 hour timer cut-off while using the power port adapter, but the documentation states that both features are only enabled when powered by a 3-wire power source (battery/accessory/ground). A couple of weeks ago, I did run a 6 hour timer cut-off while connected to the 3-wire harness and that worked.

If you're using the cigarette lighter/power port adapter to connect the DR900X to a dash camera battery pack, the battery protection features are not functional. You'll still have the OG version of BlackVue parking mode (stationary for 5 minutes = enter parking mode, any motion exits parking mode) when connected to a dash camera battery pack using a power port connection (2-wire) to the battery pack.

Just this morning, I ran a test using the power port adapter connected to my test power supply. I have the low voltage cut-off feature firmware setting set to 12 volts. I was able to run the voltage down to 11.6 volts without the camera turning off. When I had this camera connected to the 3-wire hardwiring harness and the accessory power was turned off, the low voltage cut-off feature turned off the camera when battery voltage level reached 12.16 volts for 40 seconds. This appears to confirm that using the power port adapter to power the camera does not allow the low voltage cut-off feature to function.

• The camera must see the loss of power on the "Accessory" power wire to:
  • Enable native parking mode
    • Enter parking mode when Accessory power lost
    • Exit parking mode when Accessory power restored
  • Enable the battery protection features (low voltage cut-off / parking mode timer cut-off)

The power connector for the "X" series cameras has the following power mapping:

• Center = Ground
• Ring = Accessory (switched) power
• Sleeve = Battery (constant) power

View attachment 56506

The power port adapter provides power to both the connector ring and sleeve at the same time. The camera cannot detect any loss of power on the accessory power line (ring connector), so it cannot determine when the vehicle's ignition has been turned off. That results in no native (immediate) parking mode and no battery protection features.

I hope I explained that clearly enough and someone finds it helpful.

I’m using the Blackvue B-124X battery module, hard wired to the fuse box in my car, using the factory supplied cable, and following the manufacturer’s directions. The fuse it’s wired to loses power when I turn my car off. The DR900X is connected to the B-124X using the factory supplied cable, following the manufacturer instructions.

Are you saying that because the B-124X uses only a 2 wire connection to the fuse box (that’s the factory supplied cable and manufacturer’s directions for installing the B-124X) and insulates the DR900X from changes in vehicle power (until the B-124X itself is depleted), the cut-off timer will never trigger? Or am I misunderstanding?

Thanks!

 

[rcg530]

I’m using the Blackvue B-124X battery module, hard wired to the fuse box in my car, using the factory supplied cable, and following the manufacturer’s directions. The fuse it’s wired to loses power when I turn my car off. The DR900X is connected to the B-124X using the factory supplied cable, following the manufacturer instructions.

Are you saying that because the B-124X uses only a 2 wire connection and insulates the DR900X from changes in vehicle power (until the B-124X itself is depleted), the cut-off timer will never trigger? Or am I misunderstanding?

Thanks!

The description of the power connection to the B-124X from your car's fuse box sounds correct.

The B-124X has a "Dashcam" port which is the output power port for the B-124X. The B-124X's "Dashcam" port does provide a battery (constant), accessory (switched) and ground connections. The B-124X comes with a 2-wire power adapter to plug into that 4 pin "Dashcam" power output port which only provides "Battery (constant)" power and ground. That 2-wire cigeratte/power port adapter connector provided with the B-124X cannot be used for this installation.

You need to have purchased or created a similar power cable to this optional accessory for the B-124X:



That 3-wire cable has the Molex connector that plugs into the "Dashcam" port of the B-124X and it provides battery/accessory/ground connections. That cable would then be spliced together with the 3-wire hardwiring cable provided with the DR900X.

I had problems ordering the B-124X 3-wire cable due to some issue with the BlackVue ordering website. So, I decided to create my own cable, by extending the wire run on the 3-wire harness provided with the DR900X and I purchased Molex connectors / terminal pins to create the end that plugs into the "Dashcam" port with all three wires in place.

If there are three wires running the entire length of the power cable(s) between the B-124X's "Dashcam" power port and the power connector that plugs into the DR900X, then yes it should work just fine.

Based on the wiring I just did with my Cellink B battery pack which has the same power connector wiring (if I recall correctly), the B-124X's "Dashcam" port should have wires connected to the following terminals:

 

[lerxst]

The description of the power connection to the B-124X from your car's fuse box sounds correct.

The B-124X has a "Dashcam" port which is the output power port for the B-124X. The B-124X's "Dashcam" port does provide a battery (constant), accessory (switched) and ground connections. The B-124X comes with a 2-wire power adapter to plug into that 4 pin "Dashcam" power output port which only provides "Battery (constant)" power and ground. That 2-wire cigeratte/power port adapter connector provided with the B-124X cannot be used for this installation.

You need to have purchased or created a similar power cable to this optional accessory for the B-124X:

View attachment 56514

That 3-wire cable has the Molex connector that plugs into the "Dashcam" port of the B-124X and it provides battery/accessory/ground connections. That cable would then be spliced together with the 3-wire hardwiring cable provided with the DR900X.

I had problems ordering the B-124X 3-wire cable due to some issue with the BlackVue ordering website. So, I decided to create my own cable, by extending the wire run on the 3-wire harness provided with the DR900X and I purchased Molex connectors / terminal pins to create the end that plugs into the "Dashcam" port with all three wires in place.

If there are three wires running the entire length of the power cable(s) between the B-124X's "Dashcam" power port and the power connector that plugs into the DR900X, then yes it should work just fine.

Based on the wiring I just did with my Cellink B battery pack which has the same power connector wiring (if I recall correctly), the B-124X's "Dashcam" port should have wires connected to the following terminals:
View attachment 56515

It is really pretty pathetic that the cable Blackvue bundles isn’t the correct cable to actually use the cut-off timer feature with the B-124X. If you follow their directions for a hard wired B-124X install, you end up running only two conductors to the DR900X unit (as they only include a cigarette lighter socket/plug set to connect the dashcam to the B-124X).

I really appreciate you uncovering this corporate failure and untangling the technical problems it has created for us.

If I have the right pins to fit in the connector, I might be able to splice the DR900X’s hard wire cable to the B-124X supplied 4 pin connector, but I’m not sure. Do you have a URL for the cable on the Blackvue site, even if it’s not orderable?

Thanks everyone, this forum is immensely helpful!

 

[lerxst]

The description of the power connection to the B-124X from your car's fuse box sounds correct.

The B-124X has a "Dashcam" port which is the output power port for the B-124X. The B-124X's "Dashcam" port does provide a battery (constant), accessory (switched) and ground connections. The B-124X comes with a 2-wire power adapter to plug into that 4 pin "Dashcam" power output port which only provides "Battery (constant)" power and ground. That 2-wire cigeratte/power port adapter connector provided with the B-124X cannot be used for this installation.

You need to have purchased or created a similar power cable to this optional accessory for the B-124X:

View attachment 56514

That 3-wire cable has the Molex connector that plugs into the "Dashcam" port of the B-124X and it provides battery/accessory/ground connections. That cable would then be spliced together with the 3-wire hardwiring cable provided with the DR900X.

I had problems ordering the B-124X 3-wire cable due to some issue with the BlackVue ordering website. So, I decided to create my own cable, by extending the wire run on the 3-wire harness provided with the DR900X and I purchased Molex connectors / terminal pins to create the end that plugs into the "Dashcam" port with all three wires in place.

If there are three wires running the entire length of the power cable(s) between the B-124X's "Dashcam" power port and the power connector that plugs into the DR900X, then yes it should work just fine.

Based on the wiring I just did with my Cellink B battery pack which has the same power connector wiring (if I recall correctly), the B-124X's "Dashcam" port should have wires connected to the following terminals:
View attachment 56515

Happen to have links for the molex connector and pins on Digikey or Mouser perhaps?