Low battery on SD1000, to a poweroff.

gtokarsk

2

« on: 14 / August / 2014, 15:12:57 »

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Hi all!

I have been p-laying with my old SD1000, and even though in standard firmware my battery (number of them) show full and work just fine, on CHDK my camera powers off like after 2 minutes top....

All I am doing is use the interval script to take an image every 3 seconds - no flash....

I would really like to see if there's a way I change that behavior.. I think the % of the battery is either calculated wrong, or something else is wrong... Anyhow, if there's a number somewhere that I could tweak, either in some config file, or perhaps even edit a binary, I'd like to try it.. Any suggestions?

I am using this version of CHDK: CHDK-ixus70_sd1000-101b-1.1.0-2477-full
I tried, but could not get CHDK-sx230hs-101b-1.1.0-2477-full_BETA to work, to see if the issue exists there as well...

Any help would be appreciated!

Thx!

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waterwingz

12134

Re: Low battery on SD1000, to a poweroff.

« Reply #1 on: 14 / August / 2014, 15:37:20 »

That's a very old version of CHDK (1.1.0). You really should be using something newer.

Regardless, CHDK does not shut the camera down based on battery voltage. The Canon firmware does that. CHDK will display battery levels in percent and you can change how that is calibrated from the CHDK menu. But that won't change when the Canon firmware stops the camera.

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Ported : A1200 SD940 G10 Powershot N G16

gtokarsk

2

Re: Low battery on SD1000, to a poweroff.

« Reply #2 on: 15 / August / 2014, 22:43:39 »

Thx for the answer.
So CHDK has nothing with shutting down? Yet, when I boot into normal firmware with the same battery that got shot down, I can easily use that battery for 30+ minutes... that is why I was assuming that chdk is doing the shutdown.
As for the version, I cannot find any other versions for that camera.. maybe because it's an old camera?
Anyhow, all I am after is taking pictures in interval.. no flash, full auto, nothing fancy. there's a "timelapse" option on this camera, but it's only video resolution.. not even HD....
Are there any other options than CHDK?
I am open to any ideas....!

Thx!

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waterwingz

12134

Re: Low battery on SD1000, to a poweroff.

« Reply #3 on: 15 / August / 2014, 23:18:42 »

Quote from: gtokarsk on 15 / August / 2014, 22:43:39

So CHDK has nothing with shutting down?

I'll guarantee you 100% that there is no code in CHDK that will initiate a shutdown based on battery voltage. None.

Quote

Yet, when I boot into normal firmware with the same battery that got shot down, I can easily use that battery for 30+ minutes... that is why I was assuming that chdk is doing the shutdown.

CHDK can be configured to disable power saving features. And just using the camera a lot (with a script for example) will burn more juice than letting it idle in stand by.

Quote

As for the version, I cannot find any other versions for that camera.. maybe because it's an old camera?

Maybe.

Or maybe its a question of how hard you looked or where you looked? For example, the CHDK stable download page : http://mighty-hoernsche.de/ shows CHDK for firmware version 1.00C, 1.01A, 1.01B, and 1.02A. The dev page (which I would highly recommend) shows the same : http://mighty-hoernsche.de/trunk/

It's listed as the ixus70_sd1000 - CHDK combines the European name with the North American name. Why there are two for the same camera is a question you would have to ask the marketing geeks at Canon.

Quote

Anyhow, all I am after is taking pictures in interval.. no flash, full auto, nothing fancy. there's a "timelapse" option on this camera, but it's only video resolution.. not even HD.... Are there any other options than CHDK?

Other options than CHDK? But you might want to look at an intervalometer script? There are a few : http://chdk.wikia.com/wiki/User_Written_Scripts#Intervalometers .. "Choose your poison."

Other than CHDK .. there is always SDM. Google it if you are interested.

Quote

I am open to any ideas....! Thx!

Good. Go nuts. And you are welcome.

« Last Edit: 15 / August / 2014, 23:20:33 by waterwingz »

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Ported : A1200 SD940 G10 Powershot N G16

reyalp

13965

Re: Low battery on SD1000, to a poweroff.

« Reply #4 on: 16 / August / 2014, 01:32:38 »

Quote from: waterwingz on 15 / August / 2014, 23:18:42

Quote from: gtokarsk on 15 / August / 2014, 22:43:39
So CHDK has nothing with shutting down?
I'll guarantee you 100% that there is no code in CHDK that will initiate a shutdown based on battery voltage. None.

However, it is possible that the way CHDK is booted affects how canon sets the low battery limit http://chdk.setepontos.com/index.php?topic=4037.0

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Don't forget what the H stands for.

waterwingz

12134

Re: Low battery on SD1000, to a poweroff.

« Reply #5 on: 16 / August / 2014, 06:36:22 »

Quote from: reyalp on 16 / August / 2014, 01:32:38

However, it is possible that the way CHDK is booted affects how canon sets the low battery limit http://chdk.setepontos.com/index.php?topic=4037.0

That's very interesting. Canon wants to make sure somebody does not do a real firmware update with a low battery that might expire during the update causing corruption. At least in some cameras. Maybe I missed it in that thread, but do they handle "firmware update" differently than "diskboot.bin" booting?

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Ported : A1200 SD940 G10 Powershot N G16

srsa_4c

4451

Re: Low battery on SD1000, to a poweroff.

« Reply #6 on: 16 / August / 2014, 08:20:16 »

Quote from: waterwingz on 16 / August / 2014, 06:36:22

That's very interesting. Canon wants to make sure somebody does not do a real firmware update with a low battery that might expire during the update causing corruption. At least in some cameras. Maybe I missed it in that thread, but do they handle "firmware update" differently than "diskboot.bin" booting?

Routines that prepare a "reboot" usually put some stuff in specific locations of one or both TCM areas. The boot sequence checks those values and acts accordingly. I did not research this in detail though.

In case the OP checks back: try using the bootable SD card method to start CHDK.

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voyager_663rd

18

Re: Low battery on SD1000, to a poweroff.

« Reply #7 on: 28 / August / 2014, 12:20:04 »

I've had the same sort of early power off issue since (my) day one using chdk. I'll put fully charged 2000mah batts (new ones) in. Shows 100% in the cam. The cam shuts down ~20-25% charge left. That's ok by me. BUT when I recharge, I can only put in 560mah.

So the cam shuts down with 75% charge remaining. This on a ps5 IS. The explanation given above was what I was told way back when.

Do what I do: carry extra set or 2 of batts and learn to live with it. For what i get out of CHDK (raw & histo primarily), its a small price to pay IMO.

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waterwingz

12134

Battery shutdown voltages with CHDK and without CHDK

« Reply #8 on: 08 / December / 2014, 21:32:58 »

Did some testing on my A1200 & A560 (newer camera and older camera). Using an external variable power supply and a DVM hooked up to the "DC IN" socket of the cameras, I slowly adjusted the voltage down from 3V to see what the cameras would do. I wanted to know for sure if the camera "low battery" warning and "change the battery" shutdown voltages were different when CHDK was running than with just the Canon firmware running. I also wanted to know if it made a difference booting CHDK via the firmware update or SD card lock.

The intention of this experiment was to see if reports of lower battery life when using CHDK is in fact due to the camera using higher warning and shutoff thresholds when booted for a firmware update.

Unfortunately, no matter what combination I tried of CHDK vs no CHDK with autoboot or firmware update boot, both cameras always displayed the "low battery" warning at 2.2V and the "change the battery" shutdown warning at 2.0V

While it's possible other camera models have different shutdown thresholds, the two I tested do not. So much for that wonderful theory.

Note : I also tried a set of "dummy batteries" in case the cameras manage power via the DC IN socket differently that regular AA cell battery power. No difference.

reference links :
Disabling Canon's blinking battery warning icon
Power consumption: a590 measurements and waveforms.

« Last Edit: 08 / December / 2014, 21:46:49 by waterwingz »

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Ported : A1200 SD940 G10 Powershot N G16

ahull

634

Re: Low battery on SD1000, to a poweroff.

« Reply #9 on: 09 / December / 2014, 07:36:11 »

Interesting. Well so much for that theory.

I have been meaning to test this idea for a while. I was going to use one of my adjustable regulator modules to make the tests, but never got round to it.

One other thing I keep meaning to check, is the current drawn by each of my cameras in playback and shoot mode, to see which are the best candidates for long battery powered sessions.

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