Problem with HK6 physical switch did not cut-off at 12.4V setting

[asw338]

I am having a problem with an HK6 that did not cut-off which I already set the physical switch to 12.4V to avoid any triggers to BMW battery management warning on the instrument display. I do not have any kind of problem with HK4. I also noticed the voltage information on the display is inconsistent with the HK6. The voltage shown 12.37V on the main unit is different to the parking mode video which was recorded showing 12.67V. I believe the voltage information on the main unit has a more accurate voltage since it triggered the warning battery management on BMW. I have tested with V1.2 and the latest V2.0 firmware on the main unit but the same problem persists with different parking mode battery protection settings.

Here are the settings I had tested:

Battery protection timer cut-off: off
Battery protection voltage cut-off: off
Parking mode: Low bitrate recording
HK6 physical switch: 12.4V
Result: warning

Battery protection timer cut-off: off
Battery protection voltage cut-off
Parking mode: Low bitrate recording
HK6 physical switch: 12.4V
Result: warning

Battery protection timer cut-off: off
Battery protection voltage cut-off: on
Parking mode: Hybrid
HK6 physical switch: 12.4V
Result: warning

Battery protection timer cut-off: 8 hours
Battery protection voltage cut-off: off
Parking mode: Low bitrate recording
HK6 physical switch: 12.4V
Result: no warning

Can someone guide me with the setting for this kind of problems? Thank you and appreciate it.

 

[SC@AU]

Hopefully you didn’t receive one of these by mistake…!

Presuming you haven’t, which would be unlikely, I guess the next two logical areas to consider are a faulty HK6 regulator or that your BMW is right on the threshold of throwing the warning at around the cut-off point of the HK6 or perhaps, as BMW’s are known to be twitchy in this aspect, the hardwire connection is on a circuit that just isn’t happy having the additional power draw i.e CAN-bus ….Are you connected via fuse-taps or soldered in…? Do you know which circuit?
That said, you say the HK4 did not exhibit the same behaviour….

It would be surprising if there was a big difference in accuracy between the HK4 and HK6 on the cut-offs….
I don’t know if anyone here has done accuracy testing on the HK6 yet….?
@Chuck McCoy did an extensive review of the HK6 ahead of availability, but I’m not sure if the voltage cut-offs were tested…
I know @EricSan has recently tested the HK4 and found it extremely accurate at each selected voltage…think he’s planning to do the HK6 when he has one in hand….
I can do the test as well on a standard HK6 (and also confirm the NO cut-off on the modified version I’ve received) but am waiting on delivery of a DC bench unit so won’t be for a few days unfortunately….

 

[viofo]

Does the camera enter the parking mode successfully?

 

[TonyM]

I also noticed the voltage information on the display is inconsistent with the HK6. The voltage shown 12.37V on the main unit is different to the parking mode video which was recorded showing 12.67V.

Your parking video shows 12.65V at 06:59
Your app screenshot shows 12.37V at 07:18

It is possible that your battery voltage dropped from 12.65V to 12.37V in 19 minutes. The at-rest voltage can drop sharply in the first few minutes after turning off the ignition.

The HK6 will not cut-off the supply to the dashcam until the voltage is below the trigger value for at least 90 seconds. You set the HK6 to 12.4V. In that time, your battery may drop further below 12.4V.

 

[asw338]

Hopefully you didn’t receive one of these by mistake…!
View attachment 86030


Presuming you haven’t, which would be unlikely, I guess the next two logical areas to consider are a faulty HK6 regulator or that your BMW is right on the threshold of throwing the warning at around the cut-off point of the HK6 or perhaps, as BMW’s are known to be twitchy in this aspect, the hardwire connection is on a circuit that just isn’t happy having the additional power draw i.e CAN-bus ….Are you connected via fuse-taps or soldered in…? Do you know which circuit?
That said, you say the HK4 did not exhibit the same behaviour….

It would be surprising if there was a big difference in accuracy between the HK4 and HK6 on the cut-offs….
I don’t know if anyone here has done accuracy testing on the HK6 yet….?
@Chuck McCoy did an extensive review of the HK6 ahead of availability, but I’m not sure if the voltage cut-offs were tested…
I know @EricSan has recently tested the HK4 and found it extremely accurate at each selected voltage…think he’s planning to do the HK6 when he has one in hand….
I can do the test as well on a standard HK6 (and also confirm the NO cut-off on the modified version I’ve received) but am waiting on delivery of a DC bench unit so won’t be for a few days unfortunately….

Hi, all these wires (HK4) were connected to correct fuses in the fusebox and it was used for previous model A329 and new A329S without problem. The current HK6 is the second unit after I got a replacement for defective 1st unit from Amazon. Both HK6s did a same results which did not cut-off and triggerred warning message.

 

[asw338]

Does the camera enter the parking mode successfully?

Thank you for your concern. Yes, it entered into parking mode and recording LBR. I guess the HK6 following or receiving the 12.65V information (screenshot recorded parking mode video) and continued recording parking LBR but it is actually the voltage that has dropped to 12.37V in live screenshot.

 

[asw338]

Your parking video shows 12.65V at 06:59
Your app screenshot shows 12.37V at 07:18

It is possible that your battery voltage dropped from 12.65V to 12.37V in 19 minutes. The at-rest voltage can drop sharply in the first few minutes after turning off the ignition.

The HK6 will not cut-off the supply to the dashcam until the voltage is below the trigger value for at least 90 seconds. You set the HK6 to 12.4V. In that time, your battery may drop further below 12.4V.

Both 12.37V and 12.65V are in ignition off. When the car started, the voltage jumped rapidly to 13.44V in the live app. The HK6 did cut-off completely when I used 12 hours timer battery protection app.

 

[SC@AU]

OK, just had chance to do a bit of a quick and rough test on the standard HK6 and its voltage cut-off...

The Regulator module cut-off slider is set at 12.4V.

Based on what I tested, the HK6 cuts off supplying Output power at 12.28V. This was repeated and confirmed a few times.

I didn't record any video, but have a few stills –


Input @ 12.4V, output 4.98V. ACC wire still connected.

ACC Wire Disconnected. Input 12.4V. Output 4.98V. (Red LED on Constant)

Input decreased to 12.3V. Output 4.98V (same after 5-10mins). (Red LED blinks occasionally)*

Input decreased to 12.28V. At this point, the module LED begins to flash regularly. At exactly 90secs, the LED goes out and the Output Voltage cuts from 4.98V to approx 2.5V and drops steadily...

After approx 45secs, the output Voltage is @ 0V. (note, this gradual ramping down may partly be the responsiveness of the cheap multimeter)

To Note:

– I didn't test the other voltage cut-off values on the HK6 slider. But if there is a similar correlation, it may be 'safer' to select a value one higher than the voltage you would like a physical cut-off to happen. Unfortunately, there is obviously nothing higher than the max 12.4V value on the selector.

– This was a quick and basic test, measuring the voltage on the output pins of the HK6 module. The voltage cut-off may be more accurate when the camera is connected and the circuit complete, I don't know...There may also be some two-way 'smart' communication to aid the accuracy of the cut-off, again, I don't know....

– * The Red LED within the body of the HK6 Regulator Module seems to indicate various 'states'. None of this is documented, but from my observations, it is On Solid when Power is connected and above the threshold voltage and/or the ACC wire is connected and has voltage. When the Input voltage is decreased (and providing the ACC wire is disconnected i.e Parking Mode has been triggered) and the range starts to come close to the final cut-off value, the LED Blinks Slowly – this is occasional and seems to have a slightly random pattern. To me, it's like it's indicating that the Cut-Off threshold is close, but the output voltage remains on and constant. With the slider at 12.4V, this blinking started in the low 12.3xV to 12.29V. As soon as 12.28V was reached at the input, the LED Blinks Regularly/Quickly. 90 secs after this starts, almost exactly, the LED goes Off and the Output Voltage from the HK6 is cut.
So the Module LED does serve somewhat as a useful indicator of the Input/Output Voltage state at the HK6. Unfortunately, I should imagine in almost most installs, no one is ever going to be able to easily see the LED and it's likely hidden away...!


ACC+ Voltage status is crucial to the operational Cut-Off of the HK6. The monitoring of the Input voltage only begins after the ACC voltage has been cut i.e triggering the camera into Parking Mode. If voltage remains on the ACC wire, the HK6 will never physically Cut-Off Output, regardless of the value selected on the Slider...

I decreased the input to 11.6V, with ACC connected, Output @4.98V

To the OP @asw338 , I initially wondered if there was a chance you could have some voltage on the ACC wire and hence why your HK6 wasn't cutting off at below 12.4V and your car throwing the warning, perhaps along the lines of the reasoning behind @viofo question .....But then, you've confirmed that the camera does go into Parking Mode...So that kind of rules this out.

If the accuracy of the HK6 voltage cut-off IS as per my small test here, which seems to be nowhere near the results observed on the HK4 by @EricSan , then it may well be that the 0.11V+ disparity to the slider selection is enough for your battery to discharge and trigger the BMW warning...??

This probably doesn't solve your issue, but hopefully does prove that the HK6 does not seem to be cutting off at very close to under 12.4V.....

SC

 

[TonyM]

OK, just had chance to do a bit of a quick and rough test on the standard HK6 and its voltage cut-off...

The Regulator module cut-off slider is set at 12.4V.

Based on what I tested, the HK6 cuts off supplying Output power at 12.28V. This was repeated and confirmed a few times.

I didn't record any video, but have a few stills –


Input @ 12.4V, output 4.98V. ACC wire still connected.
View attachment 86140

ACC Wire Disconnected. Input 12.4V. Output 4.98V. (Red LED on Constant)
View attachment 86144

Input decreased to 12.3V. Output 4.98V (same after 5-10mins). (Red LED blinks occasionally)*
View attachment 86145

Input decreased to 12.28V. At this point, the module LED begins to flash regularly. At exactly 90secs, the LED goes out and the Output Voltage cuts from 4.98V to approx 2.5V and drops steadily...
View attachment 86146

After approx 45secs, the output Voltage is @ 0V. (note, this gradual ramping down may partly be the responsiveness of the cheap multimeter)
View attachment 86147


To Note:

– I didn't test the other voltage cut-off values on the HK6 slider. But if there is a similar correlation, it may be 'safer' to select a value one higher than the voltage you would like a physical cut-off to happen. Unfortunately, there is obviously nothing higher than the max 12.4V value on the selector.

– This was a quick and basic test, measuring the voltage on the output pins of the HK6 module. The voltage cut-off may be more accurate when the camera is connected and the circuit complete, I don't know...There may also be some two-way 'smart' communication to aid the accuracy of the cut-off, again, I don't know....

– * The Red LED within the body of the HK6 Regulator Module seems to indicate various 'states'. None of this is documented, but from my observations, it is On Solid when Power is connected and above the threshold voltage and/or the ACC wire is connected and has voltage. When the Input voltage is decreased (and providing the ACC wire is disconnected i.e Parking Mode has been triggered) and the range starts to come close to the final cut-off value, the LED Blinks Slowly – this is occasional and seems to have a slightly random pattern. To me, it's like it's indicating that the Cut-Off threshold is close, but the output voltage remains on and constant. With the slider at 12.4V, this blinking started in the low 12.3xV to 12.29V. As soon as 12.28V was reached at the input, the LED Blinks Regularly/Quickly. 90 secs after this starts, almost exactly, the LED goes Off and the Output Voltage from the HK6 is cut.
So the Module LED does serve somewhat as a useful indicator of the Input/Output Voltage state at the HK6. Unfortunately, I should imagine in almost most installs, no one is ever going to be able to easily see the LED and it's likely hidden away...!


ACC+ Voltage status is crucial to the operational Cut-Off of the HK6. The monitoring of the Input voltage only begins after the ACC voltage has been cut i.e triggering the camera into Parking Mode. If voltage remains on the ACC wire, the HK6 will never physically Cut-Off Output, regardless of the value selected on the Slider...

I decreased the input to 11.6V, with ACC connected, Output @4.98V
View attachment 86149



To the OP @asw338 , I initially wondered if there was a chance you could have some voltage on the ACC wire and hence why your HK6 wasn't cutting off at below 12.4V and your car throwing the warning, perhaps along the lines of the reasoning behind @viofo question .....But then, you've confirmed that the camera does go into Parking Mode...So that kind of rules this out.

If the accuracy of the HK6 voltage cut-off IS as per my small test here, which seems to be nowhere near the results observed on the HK4 by @EricSan , then it may well be that the 0.11V+ disparity to the slider selection is enough for your battery to discharge and trigger the BMW warning...??

This probably doesn't solve your issue, but hopefully does prove that the HK6 does not seem to be cutting off at very close to under 12.4V.....

SC

Out of curiosity, I repeated the same test at 12.4V with one of my HK6 units:
- My HK6 output sits at 5.05V
- The red LED blinked occasionally when the input dropped to 12.32V
- The red LED blinked regularly when the input dropped to 12.31V. Output remains at 5.05V.
- After 90s the blinking stops and the HK6 cuts the 5V output. I also observed the output ramped down steadily from 5V to 0V.
- I used the multimeter to verify the power supply output and check for any offset. The DMM read 12.30V at the stated output of 12.31V.

After testing all 4 settings on the HK6:
12.4V cut off at 12.31V
12.2V cut off at 12.11V
12.0V cut off at 11.91V
11.8V cut off at 11.70V

 

[SC@AU]

Good work @TonyM

That’s one thing I didn’t do, check any ‘offset’ between the DC supply and the meter….I can do shortly….
This meter is a cheapie (my good one is on-site) that I use for basic car stuff etc, so I’m expectant it may not be uber accurate to the 2nd decimal point etc..!

However, does seem there’s a better part of 0.1V disparity between the slider selection and actual voltage readings/cut-off outcome on the HK6, based on our two tests…..

 

[LateralNW]

It looks like the tests were done with no load on the output, which could skew the results.
The DMM's input load is negligible because of its high input resistance, but voltage variations may be caused by the open-circuit condition and the meter's measurement error (±% of reading + digits).

Without a load the voltage will float which may be the reason for the different output readings.

Placing a 1 amp load by using a 5 ohm 5-10W resistor on the output will give a better result.
It will be interesting to see if the output voltage drops below 5V

 

[SC@AU]

It looks like the tests were done with no load on the output, which could skew the results.
The DMM's input load is negligible because of its high input resistance, but voltage variations may be caused by the open-circuit condition and the meter's measurement error (±% of reading + digits).

Without a load the voltage will float which may be the reason for the different output readings.

Placing a 1 amp load by using a 5 ohm 5-10W resistor on the output will give a better result.
It will be interesting to see if the output voltage drops below 5V

Yes, I was open to this possibility, as I wrote in my post about whether having the camera actually connected would make a difference – there’s a number of potential reasons why it might….

 

[asw338]

OK, just had chance to do a bit of a quick and rough test on the standard HK6 and its voltage cut-off...

The Regulator module cut-off slider is set at 12.4V.

Based on what I tested, the HK6 cuts off supplying Output power at 12.28V. This was repeated and confirmed a few times.

Thank you very much for your hardwork and professionalism providing data in details @SC@AU

I wonder why HK6 triggered the warning message when I set the hardware slider to 12.4V and HK4 did not. As per your experiment, 12.28V cut-off is near to 12.2V setting. The accuracy of HK4 is more accurate than HK6 as when I set the HK4 slider to 12.2V, it triggered warning message and 12.4V without problem.

Currently, I am using parking mode timer protection to 8 hours without problem but not at 12 hours. It is nice to have 10 hours setting in the firmware and HK6 with a slider setting at 12.52V so when it drops to -0.12V cut-off, it still at 12.4V setting without any warning message for those who have other car brand name that is same to BMW voltage management system.

Thank you again to @SC@AU

 

[lufa6977]

I do not own an HK6, but I am curious if the built-in Bluetooth is affecting the voltage offset?

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

Are you using hybrid parking mode or low power impact detection?

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

The prior post was to show what we see on our YouTube all the time. BMW sooner or later will have the low battery errors. They just will.

 

[SafeDriveSolutions]

Currently, I am using parking mode timer protection to 8 hours without problem but not at 12 hours. It is nice to have 10 hours setting in the firmware and HK6 with a slider setting at 12.52V so when it drops to -0.12V cut-off, it still at 12.4V setting without any warning message for those who have other car brand name that is same to BMW voltage management system.

Thank you again to @SC@AU

8 hours on what parking mode?
Low bitrate
Time lapse
Low power impact detection
Auto event

8 hours is too much on a BMW.

 

[SC@AU]

OK, just a quick little follow up re the voltage switch off on the HK6 –
In light of my previous tests just using a multimeter and having no effective 'load' on the circuit, I thought I'd just quickly repeat with a load connected – and what better 'real world' relevance than actually having the camera connected – so here's a new out of box A329S connected on the end of the HK6 and hooked up to the DC supply.

Just as before, the HK6 starts its regular flashing at 12.29V. The first time I tested, the A329S actually powered off at 12.29V, which was a fraction above the 12.28 I was consistently getting when testing with the multimeter. However, subsequent tests only powered off the camera at 12.28V. It seems the cut-off threshold is right between 12.28–12.29V (for 12.4V Cut-off).


I know this pic doesn't prove much, but basically is the moment when the A329S powered off, 90secs after reducing the input voltage to 12.29V whilst in parking mode. (12.4V Cut-off set on HK6)

 

[SC@AU]

The prior post was to show what we see on our YouTube all the time. BMW sooner or later will have the low battery errors. They just will.

8 hours on what parking mode?
Low bitrate
Time lapse
Low power impact detection
Auto event

8 hours is too much on a BMW.

Is it just BMW (and associated brand family) that are this sensitive and throw the warning or are there others..?

I think there are a few issues going on here with the HK6 for the OP, which are effectively separate but perhaps combining to cause the issue:
a) It does seem the HK6 selected Cut Off voltages are higher than the actual voltage at which they cut output to the dashcam, more so than the previous HK4. The difference seems to be at least 0.1V or more, based upon my initial test and then followed up by @TonyM and also @EricSan in another thread (both of whom tested each cut-off selection and showed there to be a consistent off-set)....I know it doesn't sound much, but as we all know it all mounts up....
b) The BMW is very sensitive to any power draw (when off) and will throw the low battery warning.
c) The HK6, with the additional (although slight) load due to it's BT connection and LED is increasing the sensed power drain that the car is sensitive to.

If the HK6 is allowing battery power draw down to 12.28V, even when the selection is at the max available 12.4V, it could just be that this is unfortunately below the trigger point for the car's circuit warnings....

If BMW's really are this sensitive on their circuits, I guess it's a scenario where the use of a dedicated battery pack comes to the fore...or, as you suggest and based on your experience, lower the timer cut-off to ~ 3Hrs etc....Obviously, the setup with dedicated external battery is not for everyone for a variety of reasons.

I'm about to install a A329S 3CH in a MINI Clubman JCW and wouldn't even consider not using a dedicated battery(s). Regardless of not wanting the battery warning (I believe the MINI can throw a warning upon startup when it's detected a camera that has been in parking mode, though it goes away after a short time), I just want the maximum parking mode time that I can have, so it's a kill two birds for me....I'm also in preference of connecting straight through direct to the car's battery, much like I would with say an audio amplifier, and trying to stay away from the car's 'complex' circuits/modules/BUS as much as possible...Just feels cleaner to me.