Arduino rescue?

I am worried that my Arduino Uno R3 is dead after it spent the winter in the garage. It used to work, but now it won't appear when plugged in to the computer.

It lights up so it's taking power from the USB cable, but dmesg | tail shows that it hasn't even been seen as a device. This is the case with three different cables on two computers. Is there anything I can do to retrieve the situation?

Don't give up hope on it! It might be a faulty cable too (the USB cable from the computer to the device.)

Try the following:
Find another device that uses a Type-B (square) USB connector, and see if that device is recognized.
Lift upward (Gently) on the "A" (rectangle) side, and listen to hear if it is recognized by the computer. I've had to apply a little squeeze (metal shell down towards the connections, but Very Little!) to most of my "A" connectors, as the time goes on of unplugging, plugging..

Try a different A to B cable (Identical ends)..
Watch the Activity LED's of the arduino when you plug it in.. You should see the TX/RX & "L" (D13) LED's flash.

Worse case, as I did last week, I blitzed the bootloader of my mega2560. (Corrupted it somehow, while holding reset when working with a Linux laptop as the IDE base..) There are plenty of instructions out on the net on how to re-burn the bootloader if you either have another Arduino to use, or jTag bitbang (Serial I/O method)... I managed to wire-up a simple ISP programmer using a spare Duemilinova (See examples/ArduinoISP ), and connecting it to the ICSP pins of the mega.

Hope some these tips help.

Unless you live on the south pole, I don't think it would have got cold enough in the garage to kill an Arduino.

Thanks for your help. When I plug the old one in, on, TX, RX and L all light up and remain lit.

I have just got a replacement arduino, which hooks up fine, so I may try reburning the bootloader with that. Only the L flashes when I plug it in until I upload to it, though.

Hmm.. sounds like the ATMega16U-mu serial<->TTL chip is hung.. (holding pins PD4 (RX-LED) PD5 (TX LED) (I imagine PD2 & 3 (RX-Data, TX-Data) as well, and PD7 (DTR, which applies the brief start-up reset to the 328) all high.)

Let's see... You said You have a replacement (yes, it's good the price is still low enough to spring for a replacement! When my MEGA2560 crashed, I found a local store that carrie the XDRduino 2560 (MEGA2560 R3 clone) for only $40 (but I've seen them for much less on EBay)), so that's good.. If you're feeling adventurous, and want to see if you can revive the old one (Never hurts to keep a handy back-up!) I've found a few links on how to go about the 16U reset process (loading the 16U's bootloader firmware back into the chip).. And the fun thing is, You can use the new UNO as the ISP loader!

One link, Off-site from here gives a good idea on how to go about it, including links to software for the process. You can also turn the newer UNO into a ISP programmer, (Using pins D10-D13), to the ICSP1 pins in the upper-left corner (just right of the USB socket) on the older device. Virtuabotix is under construction It also gives a link for the 16U firmware.

There's also a discussion here on the Arduino.cc site, I ran across, also covering the process. Broken/unprogrammed UNO R3? =( - Installation & Troubleshooting - Arduino Forum

(wiring them together, Use the shematic for the Uno R3 at http://arduino.cc/en/uploads/Main/Arduino_Uno_Rev3-schematic.pdf , to wire the pins 13 to 10, to the 6-pin ICSP1 header , D12 to MISO2, D11 to MOSI2, 13 to SCK2, and D10 to Reset2, simply jump +5 to +5, and GND to GND on both boards.) (there is also some note, of needing a 10uF capacitor across the reset on the dead UNO, but that is only for bootloading the 328 (Main MCU), so that can be ignored.)

I used a Duemilinova clone as my ISP loader on the 2560. Just took adding a set of male-female jumper wires, and following the wiring diagram in the Files->Examples->ArduinoISP sketch. (which you would upload to the new UNO), and added the Error (D8) Heartbeat (D9) and Prgm (D7) indicators, using a Protoboard plugged into the Duemilinova.

Hope some of this helps! It took me a few tries to get the 2560 functioning again, and I still got an odd error from the bootloader, even though the 2560 runs fine! Either It was seeing older 2560, and not the R3 version, or I might've popped one of the wrong fuses in the 2560. (haven't gone that far yet.)

Hi,

I have similar problem to noparadise. My Uno is connected to the computer but I can't see it in the device manager, only the LED ON on the board is lights.
Can I use arduino nano with same chip as ISP loader?

Post a link to where you got the board from or a picture of the board. That will help identify the correct drivers.

I've bought nano from here: Geekcreit® ATmega328P Nano V3 Module Improved Version With USB Cable Developmen Sale - Banggood USA It works correctly. UNO is official R3

So you posted a link to where you bought the board you are not asking for help with?

I see.

You say the Uno is an official one.

WHERE DID YOU BUY IT FROM? Post a link.

Sorry, here is the link: https://www.pololu.com/product/2191

Has this board ever worked?

Sure

gelfling6:
Hmm.. sounds like the ATMega16U-mu serial<->TTL chip is hung.. (holding pins PD4 (RX-LED) PD5 (TX LED) (I imagine PD2 & 3 (RX-Data, TX-Data) as well, and PD7 (DTR, which applies the brief start-up reset to the 328) all high.)

That looks about right - thanks gelfling6, I have(so far unsuccessfully) tried to reset the bootloader, but I'll work through the links you gave and try to get the tx/rx up again.

noparadise:
I am worried that my Arduino Uno R3 is dead after it spent the winter in the garage. It used to work, but now it won't appear when plugged in to the computer.

Well, If anyone wants a 2nd deep-freeze test, ALL of my equipment is presently sitting in my trunk, and has been there for at least 2 weeks so-far... and we're in the middle of a deep freeze here in Southern New England. (north-eastern point of the USA, Central of the State Of Connecticut) If I were to power them right out of the trunk, they might be a little sluggish, but they're in storage until I can find a new home for myself.

Maybe they'll be cryogenically improved :grinning: all I know is that mine is (still) dead. Maybe it was the spiders. I hope you find them a new home soon.

Curiously a Raspberry Pi failed after one month somewhere because of mouse urine. That may explain why it failed.

That's it then. I'll have to source a different cleaning fluid.