seat tilt sensor switch

[Aghajoon]

If its a true angle sensor than it sends a different reading at different angles. The resistance changes, or if its a hall device then it sends a voltage change.

sorry for very noob question. considering that there are only two wires what are the odds that this is a simple on/off switch?
don't those complicated sensors you mentioned need more than two wires?

[Burgerman]

Mostly yes. But it may be just resistance? It is most likely a simple magnetic switch. Or mercury switch. I have no idea without measuring it. You are likely correct though. But dont blame me if you damage anything!

[swalker]

Before digging too deeply into the tilt actuator and limit switches, I recommend that you do some more investigation. I encourage you to use a disciplined approach to isolate parts of the system as much as possible to see what is causing the problem.

You should be able to easily isolate what component is causing the problem by simply disconnecting components from the system (by unplugging cables).

So far, you have reported some interesting results:
1. With the tilt actuator plugged in, you report that the tilt switch on the ICS switch box is yellow.
2. With the tilt actuator unplugged, you have reported that sometimes the tilt switch on the ICS switch box is green and other times it is yellow.

This implies that the tilt actuator is not the sole cause of the problem (because the problem is present when the tilt actuator is unplugged.

I think it would be worthwhile to unplug the RNet cable for each of your chair's actuators from the 8-pos Connector Block (as shown in the diagram on page 57 of the ICS Technical Manual). After doing that, cycle the power a few times. Before turning the wheelchair off when cycling power, leave it on long enough for the RNet and ICS systems to get into a steady state (probably around 30 seconds or so).

Doing this should allow your wheelchair to operate at normal speeds with without any ICS switches being yellow and without the RNet yellow turtle icon being displayed.

If that is the case, try the above with only one actuator plugged in. Do this for each actuator (testing with only one plugged in at a time). Given that you might have an intermittent problem (as indicated by 2 above), you may have to try cycling the power and using the wheelchair a bit to build some confidence that a specific actuator is working correctly.

If no single actuator causes the problem, then you can start testing them 2 at a time.

If no pair of actuators causes a problem, then you can start testing 3 actuators at a time.

In doing so, you may be able to identify what is failing.

Note that by unplugging from the 8-pos Connector Block, you are removing two cables, a General Module and the actuator from the system. Your problem could reside in a cable, the General Module, or in the Actuator. If you can confirm the problem is in a single actuator, you can then start testing the electrical components that cause the inhibit behavior you are experiencing.

And, there is always the chance that it is the ICS Master Module or the ICS Switch Box.

Steve

[Rye]

Was this issue solved? Did any of the seat functions work after this happened? If not, the older ICS modules didn't have fuses so if something shorted...it stopped all seat functions. The newer (old now) ones had 20 or 15amp fuses that would keep the ICS from getting fried. I destroyed a 2g ICS and burned up many fuses because of poorly routed wiring.

[Rye]

Also, the 2g seating had "dumb" actuators that needed the separate module boxes to make them smarter. I think the newer (now old) actuators have the modules built into the actuator casing. I'm not a Permobil expert, but I've taken a lot of them apart since 2013. Like they said these are over complicated.