Posted February 7, 201510 yr Have any of you ever had issues with signal interference when controlling your trains? Today I had 60051 and 60052 set up in a classroom environment. I had checked everything at home and all worked fine. (Worked fine at home afterwards also.) Batteries were fully charged (Lego rechargeable) and new batteries in the controller. But during the session signals to the trains were either not getting through or were very significantly delayed. Other (possibly) relevant information: There were a lot of laptops in the room (not close to the trains) but all were off or at least closed and therefore in sleep mode. There are about 6 double fluorescent tube lights on the ceiling and there was wifi in the room. Any suggestions as to probable causes and potential solutions greatly appreciated.
February 7, 201510 yr According to LEGO, bright sun light can interfere. And according to this comment, fluorescent lamps to.
February 7, 201510 yr Hmmmm, interesting. Have a similar type of environment depending on where the boy and I are playing at the house. Personally, I have not experienced any interference issues. Keep us posted if u find an actual cause. Might just be all the above and the room design, lots of reflections, solid walls, etc
February 7, 201510 yr Maybe the IR sensor was obstructed and the signals had to reflect off of the walls to get to it.
February 7, 201510 yr Author According to LEGO, bright sun light can interfere. And according to this comment, fluorescent lamps to. Ah... I think that might be the issue. I thought of that today but unfortunately turning off the lights was not an option. I'll set it up another day and try it with the lights off. Thanks everyone for the comments. Edited February 7, 201510 yr by Crazywater
February 8, 201510 yr The PF receiver struggles with range, particularly in large rooms. In areas with high ceilings you can't rely on reflected signals so line of sight becomes more important and the effect of interference more pronounced. When running PF trains at exhibitions the effective reliable range is 1 to 2 meters, pointing directly at the receiver, beyond that you lose control.
February 8, 201510 yr I had similar issues playing Tech Ball with my PF IR controlled robot in a sunny open hotel lobby with fluorescent lights. It worked great at home but at the competition, it was sluggish in responding to IR commands.
February 8, 201510 yr If you have the room, you could try putting up a marquee over the layout, I used that at my show when I was running my Technic models.
February 8, 201510 yr Author The PF receiver struggles with range, particularly in large rooms. In areas with high ceilings you can't rely on reflected signals so line of sight becomes more important and the effect of interference more pronounced. When running PF trains at exhibitions the effective reliable range is 1 to 2 meters, pointing directly at the receiver, beyond that you lose control. It was just a double loop on a 1 * 1.7m table and I was standing right at the table. I had similar issues playing Tech Ball with my PF IR controlled robot in a sunny open hotel lobby with fluorescent lights. It worked great at home but at the competition, it was sluggish in responding to IR commands. I hear you. At one point my 60051 took off a full speed and I couldn't stop it. Yep, you can guess what happened next! If you have the room, you could try putting up a marquee over the layout, I used that at my show when I was running my Technic models. It's a good suggestion but wouldn't be an option for my case. Edited February 8, 201510 yr by Crazywater
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