Road Cycling - S710i IR USB Connection nightmare

Hi all,

Today I went out and bought the Polar S710i with additional cadence sensor and IR USB Interface (not cheap) after much saving. Having read through the forum on the advantages / disadvantages of the various HRM's, and the quirks with the Polar PPP software, I thought I was well prepared for the acquisition and installation. WRONG

I did all the right things. I downloaded the latest patch for the PPP software. I made sure that the interface wasn't connected during the installation of the software and the patch. I made sure that the settings in the software were right for a W2000 system with USB connection. I made sure that the device was working properly in the device manager. I made sure that the watch was in the connect mode when trying to get the computer to talk to the watch. No dice......

The Polar Uplink function works fine - I can get information from the computer to the watch (monitor) OK, but cannot get the IR thingy to work, and hence cannot upload exercise files from the watch back to the computer to track / monitor etc my training.

I am more than a little peeved at the moment, :mad: and am hoping that I am doing something simple wrong, and that one of you can help me out here. Any assistance would be fantastic.......... :(

Hi there, I own one too, don't have any problems with it. I plug the IR interface the first thing before I install the program and everything. The Polar USB Interface must be appearing correctly in the Device Manager. In the software, under options and preferences, click on the hardware tab and select USB. Click on the options then, the USB interface autocheck should be on. Also, you should try to restart the computer after doing all that, just in case the IR interface isn't loaded properly. Make sure the watch is the correct model too.

If all things are fine, you should check the amount of light that could be interfering with the connection. If it is too bright or there is too much sunlight, you might want to use your hands and cover it up for a little while, select your watch to connect mode and you should be ready.

However, there was one thing I did different from you. I installed the program without the patch and installed the IR interface at the same time. It was after that that patches started to come out and I downloaded them to patch the software. If all things don't work, maybe you should install the IR interface first, followed by the PPP software and then the patches. Remember to keep the IR interface connected at all times. Try it out and see how it goes, hopefully everything can be fixed and if not, please post back and let me know.

My 710i is very sensitive to the placement of the IR unit. "Very" is an understatement...

Are you sure you've got the correct alignment? What works best for me is laying the watch on a desk with the receiver resting on the strap. Like this:

http://foosoftware.com/imgsvr.php?key=mon.jpg

I do remember having to go through the install process for the USB interface a few times until it worked.

I did things in this order:

- install "base" software
- install Polar's USB driver from their website
- apply PPP updates

If you get frustrated you can always return the Polar USB unit and purchase a standard IrDA unit for your PC. The "i" in 710i means the watch can talk to a standard IrDA port... a fact I discovered after buying the Polar USB unit.

Here's something I found which may be useful (apparently there's a conflict between the IR unit and certain motherboard USB controllers)...



I had similar problems.
You need some help from Polar.fi helpdesk to determine if
your PC-USB interface is compatible with the IR-USB Polar interface.
The problem is the Polar IR-USB interface revision.


Also note this:



The drivers for the USB connected interface are installed when
installing/updating the software version PPP SW 3.02.007 or later. You will
find the software updates at the following URL: http://www.polar.fi/support

Please note: When updating or installing the software the Polar IR Interface
must NOT be connected into the computer's USB port. Installing differently
will cause problems.

After updating process you can connect the interface. By default the USB
Interface Auto Check function is on i.e. if the Polar IR Interface for USB
port is connected the software detects it automatically and uses it in IR
communication.

Connect the interface and press the HR monitor button on the toolbar of PPP
SW 3.0 to see if the yellow led in the interface flashes. If not check that
the interface is connected properly. You can try the communication if the
interface does not flash; only the led may be defective. Also the IR element
may be broken although the led flashes.

Possible things for malfunctioning

The USB interface with the drivers must be installed with the instruction In
the user's manual of the interface. The most important thing is to have the
interface NOT connected into the USB port when installing/updating the
software for the first time that the USB drivers are not installed. If the
interface/drivers are not installed with the manual instruction remove the
USB drivers using the attached program. Then disconnect the interface from
the port. To install the drivers again run the update file for the version
PPP SW 3.02.007 or later. You must have administrator rights to install
drivers to the operating system. It is possible to install the software with
user rights but USB drivers are not installed. The software gives the error
message that installation is not successful although it is only the USB
driver installation which is not complete. Installing without administrator
rights may cause problems later when installing the USB drivers with
administrator rights.

Hi again,

Thanks heaps for the responses. I have tried the position thing as suggested F1_Fan, still no dice. I have emailed Polar for some help, but guess that will take a while.

In the meantime, I think I will uninstall everything, hook up the IR device, try the basic install with the patch and see what happens......... after my ride of course. Hopefully things will work by then, otherwise my zen-like state may be slightly altered.

Any other suggestions will be greatfully accepted. Thanks.......

Hi

I just stumbled on your post - it is quite old now, so you have probably solved your problem. In case you haven't, here are a couple of things that thwarted me.

Firstly, if your computer has its own IR port, make sure the polar IR interface is not near it. My laptop has an IR port on the right hand side, so I MUST place my polar interface on the left.

Secondly, the polar USB interface will not work if your computer has OPEN HOST CONTROLLER - check the USB port in Device Manager. If this is your problem, the polar agent in South Australia will replace the interface with a serial port version.