Professional Documents
Culture Documents
MP3 Players X PDF
MP3 Players X PDF
MP3 Players X PDF
Part X
TESTING THE OPTICAL PICK-UP
OF MP3 VCD/DVD PLAYERS
Identifying front-end problems the directory is
never displayed
in CD players, CDROM drives, even though the
laser-disk players and other disk spins at the cor-
optical drives is often thought rect speedor
overspeeds or does
to be a difficult task. This part not spin in the cor-
of the article describes rect direction (clock-
wise, as viewed
techniques to check from the label side).
functioning of the laser diode, 3. The eye pat-
focus voice coil actuator, tern is weak, dis-
torted or missing at
tracking voice coil actuator the RF test-point.
and photodiode array Try to eliminate
alternative causes
before undertaking
GP CAPT. K.C. BHASIN (RETD) these tests as there
is a chance of dam-
I
f the player is able to read the disk age due to accidents
directory, even erratically, the tests de- or electrostatic dis-
scribed here are unnecessary (unless charge. There is a
you suspect an intermittent behaviour of good chance that the
one of the sub-systems) as all major parts of tests will only con-
the laser pickup assembly must be function- firm that the pickup
ing properly in order to do this. However, is deadnot many
there may be some marginally performing of the faults you will
components such as a weak laser diode or be able to locate are
shorted turns in the focus or tracking coil. easy to fix.
Sometimes a dirty lens results in symp- The following
toms that may be mistaken for much more descriptions assume
serious problems. Fisher Electronics Slim-4000 vertical 4-CD stereo system with that the pickup is
For intermittent faults, first carefully digital AM/FM stereo tuner & tower speakers still installed in the
inspect the pickup assembly for bad sol- player but selected
der connections and hairline cracks in the tern, this indicates proper functioning of portions are disconnected when required.
flexible printed cables. Interlock switches all the major components of the optical This enables you to conveniently use the
may be dirty or wornout. Mechanical prob- pickup. If, however, any of the following circuitry of the player to control certain
lems may result in intermittent behaviour are observed, testing of the laser diode, functions for the live laser diode and pho-
as well. focus and tracking actuators and/or pho- todiode tests.
todiode array is suggested: It is also possible to test the pick-up
1. The start-up sequence does not com- in standalone condition, but this requires
When and why to test
plete due to obvious failure of the pickup an alternative power supply to drive the
the pickup to perform some action. For example, there laser diode. Since the microcontroller will
If you have examined the RF test-point is no attempt to focus. not be imposing its own will on those
with a scope and found a proper eye pat- 2. Focus appears to be established but parts of the pickup still connected to the
MAINTENANCE
MAINTENANCE
MAINTENANCE
tion to avoid damage to the laser diode. connecting the laser diode. be an increase in the laser output power
Make all connections with power turned Slowly increase the current until you beyond its normal rangewhich may
off as the momentary glitch from attach- get a beam. Use an IR detector for beam shorten its life substantially.
ing the probes and/or an accidental short- detection. If you get the polarity back- If the laser output power has de-
circuit can easily burn up the laser diode wards or are actually measuring across creased, there is probably nothing that can
and other parts. the internal photodiode, the voltage across be done as the feedback circuit is already
the diode goes above 3 volts or is less doing its bit and the adjustment will have
than 1V. Then, turn power off and re- little effect. Thus, make sure the optics
Testing the laser diode with
verse the leads. Some laser diodes get de- are as clean as possible before you touch
an external power supply stroyed by a reverse voltage greater than the laser power.
Consider the following only if there is no 3Vthe reverse voltage rating is listed in The following will enable you to play
indication of laser output while the laser the specification sheet. a disk, even if it has some problems with
diode is connected to the player and you Without a laser power meter, however, noise or tracking: Put the oscilloscope
do not have schematics or a service you have no way of knowing when the probe on the RF test point. While the disk
manual to determine whether the laser limit for safe beam power (for the laser is playing, you should see the eye pat-
power circuits are functioning. diode) is reached. For this test, increase tern. Mark the exact amplitude of the
Typically, the current is in the 30- the current only until you get an indica- peaks. Also note the playback quality, so
100mA range at 1.7-2.5V. However, the tion on the IR detector or you see the red you can recognise if it changes.
power curve is extremely non-linear. There dot. You are not trying to measure power, While the correct voltage for the eye
is a threshold below which there is no just to see whether it works at all. A typi- pattern is not the same in all players, typi-
output. For a diode rated at a threshold of cal threshold is around 30 mA. Sometimes, cal values are in the 1-2V range. If you
30 mA, the maximum operating current the operating current is marked on the find it to be only a few hundred mV, there
may be as low as 40 mA. A sensing pho- pickup. Do not exceed this current. is likely to be a problem. Caution: A weak
todiode is built into the same case as the If you detect a beam and there was eye pattern can also be due to improper
laser diode to regulate beam power. It is none before, the problem is most likely in focus bias adjustment. Check whether it
critical to the life of the laser diode that the players control or power circuits, not is an electronic problem. The laser power
under no circumstances is the safe cur- in the pick-up. may be normal.
rent exceeded even for a microsecond. Turn the laser power adjustment with
Laser diodes are also extremely sensi- the player power switched-off to avoid the
Laser power adjustment
tive to electrostatic discharge, so take ap- possibility of electrical noise causing cur-
propriate precautions. Also, dont try to As mentioned earlier, the laser diode may rent spikes. Mark the exact position of the
test them with a volt-ohm-meter, which get destroyed when attempting to adjust laser power adjustment, so you can get
could exceed their safe current rating on its output power. However, if you suspect back to it if there is no effect or it makes
the low-ohms scale. Even connecting the a weak laser as indicated by noisy play- things worse.
test leads can blow the laser diode from back or poor tracking performance, and Turn the control the slightest bit clock-
static. Always make or break power or test have eliminated all other possibilities such wise. Turn on the power and/or note the
connections with the player turned off. as servo adjustments, attempt one of the eye pattern amplitude. If the laser diode
Use a 0-5V DC linear supply with a 50- procedures described here. is not at the limit of its power, you should
ohm resistor in series with the diode; a What adjusting the laser power prob- see the amplitude change from what it
switching supplys spikes may destroy the ably does isnt compensating for a decrease was. If it has decreased, try the other di-
laser diode. If you use a variable resistor, in laser diode intensity, but rather a rection.
make sure it is at its maximum resistance buildup of dust and other junk on the Note the playback quality. Has it
when you start, so as to keep the current optics (possibly internal and inaccessible), changed for the better? If not, laser power
under 20 mA. Keep in mind that a wall which reduces the beam intensity at the is probably not the problem. If the ampli-
wart (a small power-supply brick with in- CD and the return beam intensity even tude of the eye pattern is unchanged, ei-
tegral male plug, designed to plug directly more. There is a subtle difference as the ther you are turning the wrong control or
into a wall outlet) rated at 5V may actually optical output of the laser diode itself is the laser is at its power limitand it may
put out 8V or more when unloaded, so feedback-controlled and shouldnt drift get damaged soon. Try the same test in
check the current into a short circuit before much and the result of an adjustment will the counterclockwise direction if the am-
MAINTENANCE
plitude decreases. AC socket or remove the batteries, as you tracking and increase the needed servo
If there is improvement, you can risk dont need to use its internal power. driver power. A CD player that is overly
leaving the control at the new higher- With power supply switched off or the sensitive to slight disk defects even after
power setting, realising that you may be variac turned all the way down, connect all the proper adjustments have been per-
shortening the life of the laser diode. Do the 24SWG leads to one of the located formed may conceivably be a result of
not push your luck by continuing to turn pairs of coils. Now, turn on the power this type of fault. An additional symptom
up the power, unless you have tried all and slowly adjust the variac or rheostat may be an unusually hot servo driver IC.
other alternatives. while watching the lens. If you are con- However, many of these ICs run hot nor-
If you do not have an oscilloscope, nected to the focus coil, youll see the mally, so dont worry unduly as the pos-
you can still try the above procedure by lens moving up and down. If you are con- sibility of shorted turns is really quite re-
carefully listening to the audio to deter- nected to tracking coil, youll see it mov- mote.
mine whether there is any change. Its a ing from side to side. An intermittent may only show up dur-
little bit riskier: The laser power adjust- If there is no motion, turn off the power ing dynamic operation, with certain CDs
ment may be very sensitive and you have supply, reverse the polarity and try again. or other peculiar circumstances. The in-
no direct way of knowing how much you For a typical pick-up, the 4-5V power sup- termittent could be at the solder connec-
have increased the setting. ply and a minimum of 22-ohm resistor tions or the fine, printed ribbon cable that
should cause the lens to move through the connects the moving lens assembly to the
entire range of motion up and down or side remainder of the pickup.
Testing the focus and
to side, as appropriate. Once you have
tracking actuators exercised the first coil, switch connections
Testing the photodiode array
If your CD player has a rotary positioner, and repeat for the other. If the motion is
there may be no separate tracking coil as jerky, the lens assembly is dirty. The photodiode array in an optical pickup
coarse and fine tracking may be combined. Clean the lens assembly carefully first consists of an IC with typically four or six
Typical linkages between the lens/coil
assembly and the body of the pickup are a
sliding shaft (focus) and rotation on the
shaft (tracking), or a hinged hinge. With a
sliding shaft and rotation on the shaft, the
slide can get gummed up, preventing reli-
able focus and tracking. With a hinged
hinge, one or both hinges may break, as
these are often made of thin, flexible plas-
tic. Repair is not really possible.
To test whether the lens is focusing or
tracking properly, perform the following:
First, identify the cable leading to the fo-
cus and tracking voice-coil mechanism.
This is usually a 4-conductor cable sepa-
rate from the data and laser cable (at least
at the pickup end). Disconnect it from the Panasonic SC-AK410S Nitrix series mini system with 5-CD changer and 3-way speakers
main board before testing. Using a digital
multimeter, you can locate the pair of coils with a bit of compressed air (not high- detector segments. Four segments are used
with very low resistance (a few ohms). pressure) and then with Q-tips and iso- in the less common single-beam pickups,
One of these is focus coil and the other is propyl alcohol. Do not lubricate. Repeat while six segments are used in 3-beam
tracking coil. the tests after cleaning. pickups.
Construct one of the following test cir- If both the tests are positive, the focus These segments are usually designated
cuits: and tracking actuators are functioning. If A through F. A, B, C and D form the main
1. Take a 4-5V DC eliminator. Con- either you were unable to locate both pairs detector, which is used for both focusing
nect a variac at its output and a 22-ohm, of coils or one or both actuators did not and data recovery. Generally, segments E
1W resistor in series with a pair of 50cm, move, you have located a problem. An and F are used in a 3-beam pickup for
24SWG insulated wires. open coil can be due to a cable problem or fine tracking feedback. The same has been
2. Take a 5V DC power supply con- a break in the coil. If the break is right at assumed in the following discussion.
nected in series with a 100-ohm variable the solder connections, which are usually All the six photodiodes are connected
resistor and 22-ohm, 1W fixed resistor with visible once the plastic protective shroud is to a common point, which, during opera-
a pair of 50cm, 24SWG insulated wires. popped off, you can repair it. However, tion, has a DC bias voltage of around 5V.
Gain access to the lens for visual in- this requires a great deal of manual dexter- If the photodiodes are connected in com-
spection. For this, you need to eject the ity and patience, as the wire is really fine. mon-anode configuration, it will be nega-
disk, open the drawer or, in some cases, Shorted turns in the fine coils or an tive. If common-cathode configuration is
actually remove the clamper. In a por- intermittent are still possible. Shorted turns used, it will be positive. The reason is
table or boombox, the lens is readily ac- reduce the frequency response of the that the photodiodes need to be reverse
cessible. Unplug the CD player from the servo, reduce the reliability of focus or biased for normal operation. The outputs
MAINTENANCE
of the photodiodes feed several operational junction drop in the forward direction and photodiode array.
amplifiers, which are set up to amplify very high resistance in the reverse direc- Any unusual reading such as a signifi-
the current from the photodiodes. The nor- tion. If you use a digital multimeter in cantly lower resistance for one of the di-
mal connections may be at virtual ground diode testing mode, the junction drop is odes, a short or open diode, a short be-
potential or these may feed into large-value typically 0.7 V. There may be a very slight tween diodes or variations in sensitivities
resistors. difference between the readings for seg- is an indication of a problem. This is some-
The connector to the photodiode ar- ments A to D and those for E and F. what unlikely, though bad solder connec-
ray is usually separate and typically has An initial test of photodiode response tions or breaks in the flexible cables are
at least eight wirescomprising connec- can be made by using an external light not ruled out.
tions to photodiodes A through F, ground source (a flashlight or other incandescent A defect found in the photodiode ar-
and bias voltage. bulb or IR remote control) to illuminate ray usually means that the laser pickup is
You need to identify the wires. First, the lens directly from above. With the mul- not salvageable with reasonable effort.
locate the ground using the ohmmeter. timeter connected to reverse-bias each di- Even if you could locate a replacement
Then locate the biasit usually goes to a ode segment, illuminate the lens. The re- photodiode array, aligning and soldering
low-value resistor and then to the supply. sistance reading should drop, possibly dra- the surface mount package is quite a chal-
Another way to identify the bias wire is matically. Segments A to D should show lenge without the factory jigs.
to turn on the player and measure each of reasonably similar sensitivities but these Assuming that these tests dont turn up
the possibilities: The bias is the highest or may differ for segments E and F (which anything, the next step is to verify that the
the lowest, with no noise or ripple. It is should be similar to each other). photodiodes are picking up an optical sig-
powered all the time. Similarly, with the photodiode connec- nal and evaluate the relative strengths of
Now identify the photodiode segments. tions restored to normal, you can use an each segment using the laser diode, optical
Very often the connections are marked on oscilloscope to monitor the RF test point. A system and disk combination. For these
the circuit board; for example, there may source of IR directed towards the lens from tests to confirm proper operation, the opti-
be several labeled test-points designated above may result in a detectable change in cal alignment must also be correct.
A+C, B+D, E and F. Since the A and C the signal, but only when the photodiode For the tests using the internal laser
segments and B and D segments are usu- array is properly biased. This signal may diode, you need to set up either an ad-
ally shorted together on the circuit board, be present all the time the CD player is justable focus with continuously rotating
this provides all the information needed turned on or only when the player is trying spindle or a stationary spindle but sweep-
to identify the photodiode connections. It to focus or perform some other operation. ing focus. The latter is more straightfor-
is not important to distinguish between A With an IR remote, you should actually see ward but requires the optional signal gen-
and C, or B and D for the following tests, the pulsed signal for each key-code. On a erator for best results. In each case, the
though you will want to be able to sepa- typical Sony CD player, you could get about objective is to cause the lens-disk distance
rate them. 0.1V signal at the RF test point using a VCR to sweep through perfect focus without
With power off, there is essentially no remote control as an IR source. requiring the focus servo loop to be closed.
light on the photodiode array. Unplug the However, even on a functional pick- This results in a signal that includes the
photodiode connector from the main up, due to the nature of the optics, these point of maximum signal amplitude on a
board. Using your ohmmeter, test each responses may be very weak or undetect- periodic basis. Alternative methods may
diode for open and short, as you would able. Thus, failure of either of the above be used to accomplish the same purpose.
test any signal diode. There should be a tests is not a strong evidence of a bad Both techniques require the use of an ad-
MAINTENANCE