(Topic ID: 12651)

Taxi drop targets

By cowman57

12 years ago


Topic Heartbeat

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Linked Games

  • Taxi Williams, 1988
#1 12 years ago

Starting to dig into my Taxi tonight...The Marylin drop targets don't reset at game start up, or during game play, but they do reset during coil test...Any suggestions????

#2 12 years ago

Do a switch test. They aren't resetting because the game doesn't know they are down. Try cleaning your optos first, and if that doesn't work you may have a cold solder joint or other issue.

#3 12 years ago

What are optos?

#4 12 years ago

You have 12 pins and don't know what an opto is? Look in manual. Good luck you've come to the right place.

#5 12 years ago

SO what are optos????

#6 12 years ago

Lasers

#7 12 years ago

I Belvie they are led switches. I know nothing about your game but usualy on a opto ther are two sides a white and a black. they have a light going between them and when a ball gets in the way they open. I had to clean a couple of mine on NGG.

#9 12 years ago

When did Williams start using optos. I want to know how I can own 12 pins, and not know what opotos are.

#10 12 years ago

Have no idea but from looking at your machines looks like somewhere between 86 and 88. Either that or you have never had a problem with one before. Alot of the new games use them.

#11 12 years ago

You have old pins. Some of the "new" ones even have these rectangular field of lights in the back box that produce images while you play. Crazy science.

#12 12 years ago

You mean like the transporter on Star Trek?

#13 12 years ago

You guys....stop pulling his leg.

Optos are switches based on photoelectrics. Instead of a physical switch like a leaf switch or microswitch closing, and opto uses a transmitter to send a narrow beam of light using an LED to a receiver that detects this light. As long as the receiver sees the light all is good. When the light is blocked, the receiver detects that a 'switch' has been made. Most of the WPC era of games (90 and on) use them. There are special OPTO boards that supply power to these light emitters/receivers and interpret the signals to send them back to the MPU as part of the standard switch matrix.

As for your original problem, check the switches that detect that your taxi drop targets are down. If one of them isn't making then the coil doesn't know to reset the targets.

#14 12 years ago

Thanks robertmee...Shouldn't the targets reset a the game start, and after each ball whether there is a sw problem or not???

#15 12 years ago

Yes they should....And I just checked....I guess Taxi does have Opto's for the targets...One of the first games to have them.

#16 12 years ago

Put your game into switch test mode. What does each target register? If you have a problem with the switch matrix not registering those switches, then they may not reset as the game thinks they are already up.

#17 12 years ago

Also, on the opto board, check that you have 12VDC power between pins 3 and 1 on the J2 connector

#18 12 years ago

You can also as a test, swap the opto boards between the the two sets of drops. If the problem follows the board, then you know.

#19 12 years ago

Sw test shows Marilyn left , center, right...as I drop them... What's with switch levels, as apposed to switch edjes?

#20 12 years ago

Switch levels show just that....the level, or current value (on or off) of the switch.

Switch edge shows the transistion from off to on only, and usually is a more useful test, as it only shows one switch at a time. That way if you trigger one thing like a target, and more than one switch registers in switch edge test, then you have a problem.

Go into switch edge test and trigger some other switches....specifically ones in the same column and row as those targets (look at your manual at the switch matrix chart). See if anything else registers as those targets.

#21 12 years ago

Oh, and in switch level test, when you triggered the targets did they stay on, or come on and then off, while the target was still down. In the case of targets, switch level may be a more useful test, as perhaps the opto sees then unsees the target while it is down.

#22 12 years ago

In any case, if the solenoid works in diagnostics but never fires in the game, then the game thinks those targets are up.

I'd check the two connectors on the opto board, reseat them, make sure no cracked solder joints as these opto boards get beat due to vibration.

I'd then clean the optos with some windex and a q-tip.

If that doesn't fix it, swap the opto boards and see if the problem moves to the other bank of targets.

#23 12 years ago

Thanks RM. In sw level test all dropped targets stay on...Continuing to check your other suggestions.

#24 12 years ago

Well now I know about optos...They were quite dirty. the cleaning took care of the problem. Thanks all....Well, most all.....wink-wink

#25 12 years ago

They started using them In 81 at least. Hyper ball has 9 optos.

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