What is ComPair?
ComPair, Computer Aided Repair, is a service tool for Philips Consumer Electronic Products. ComPair is a further development on the European DST, service remote control, which allows fast and more accurate diagnostics. ComPair has three big advantages.
- ComPair helps you quickly get an understanding how to repair the chassis in a short time by guiding you systematically through the repair procedures.
- ComPair allows very detailed diagnostics, and is therefore capable of accurately indicating problem areas. You do not have to know anything about [I2C] level, and therefore capable of indicating problem areas very accurately, because, ComPair takes care of this.
- ComPair speeds up the repair time, since it can communicate with the chasis, provided, the microprocessor is working, and all repair information is directly available. When ComPair is installed together with the Force/Searchman electronic manual of the defective chassis, schematics and PWBs are only a mouse click away.
ComPair consists of Windows based fault finding program, and an interface box between PC and the defective product. The ComPair interface box is connected to PC via a Serial or RS-232 cable.
For this chassis, the ComPair interface box and the Tv communicate via a service connector/s. The ComPair fault finding program is available to determine the problem of the defective television. ComPair can gather diagnostic information in two ways.
- AUTOMATIC [BY COMMUNICATION WITH TELEVISION]
ComPair can automatically read out the contents of the entire error buffer. Diagnostics is done on I2C/UART level. ComPair can address the I2C/UART bus of the television. ComPair can send and receive I2C/UART commands to the microcontroller of the television. In this way, it is possible for ComPair to communicate Read and Write to devices on the I2C/UART buses of the TV set.
2. MANUALLY BY ASKING QUESTIONS TO YOU
Automatic diagnosis is only possible if the micro controller of the television is working correctly, and only to a certain extent. When this is not the case, ComPair will guide you through the fault finding tree, by asking questions to you. for example:
Does the screen give a picture? Click on the correct answer YES/NO.
And showing you examples: Measure the test point [17] and click on the correct oscillogram you see on the oscilloscope. You can answer by cliking on a link (e.g; text or a waveform picture), that will bring you to the next step in the fault finding process.
- By combination of automatic diagnostics and and interactive question/answer procedure ComPair will enable you to find most problems in a fast and accurate way.
Besides fault finding, ComPair provides some additional features like:
- Up-or -downloading of presets.
- Managing of preset lists.
- Emulation of European Dealer Service Tool [DST].
- If both ComPair and Force/Searchaman (Electronic Service manual), are installed, all the schematics and PWBs of the set are available by clicking on appropriate hyperlink
For example: Measure the DC voltage on capacitor [C2568] (Schematic/panel) at the Mono-carrier. => Click the panel hyperlink to automatically show the PWB with a highlighted capacitor C2568.
=> Click on "Schematic" hyperlink to automatically show the position of the highlighted capacitor.
COMPAIR ORDER CODES (US)
Compair software: ST 4191
ComPair interface box: 4822 727 21631
AC Adapter: T405-ND
ComPair quick start guide: ST 4190
Compair interface extension cable: 3139 131 03791
ComPair UART interface cable: 3122 785 90630
Note: If you encounter any problems, contact your local support desk.
ERROR CODES
The error code buffer contains all errors detected since the last time the buffer was erased. The buffer is written from left to right. When an error occurs that is not yet in the error code buffer, it is displayed at the left side and all other errors shift one position to the right.
HOW TO READ ERROR BUFFER
You can read the error in three ways,
On screen via SAM, if the set have picture.
Examples:
Error: 0 0 0 0 0: No errors detected.
Error: 6 0 0 0 0: Error code [6] is the last and only detected error.
Error; 9 6 0 0 0: Error code [6] was detected first, and error code [9] is detected newest error.
VIA BLINKING LED PROCEDURE
When you have no picture, See the blinking LED procedure.
You can detect it by ComPair too.
HOW TO CLEAR ERROR BUFFER
- By using clear command in SAM menu
- To enter SAM, press the following key sequence on the remote control [062596], directly followed by the OSD/STATUS button. Do not allow the display to time out between entries while keying the sequence.
- Make sure the menu item CLEAR is highlighted. Uae the Menu Up/Dn button if necessary.
- Press Menu Right button to clear the error buffer. The text on the right side of the "Clear" line will change from "CLEAR?" to "CLEARED".
- If the contents of the error buffer have not changed for 50 hours, the error buffer resets automatically. Note: If you exit SAM by disconnecting the mains from the TV set, the error buffer is not reset.
