[mgsanchez]

I purchased the Mini Mill new in 2001.

My Mini Mill won't retain date/time when I turn the machine off. When I restart the machine the date is 06-26-2066 and the time is 26:66:00 ( Back to the Future? ). I am not having any other issues besides the date/time retention.

I can set the Date/Time in DEBUG, POS-RAW-DATA page and it is fine as long as the machine is on.

This is how I set the date and time, in DEBUG mode, POS-RAW-DATA page;
SD mm dd yy
ST hh mm ss

Originally, I thought that my Mini Mill had a battery issue even though there was not a “Low Battery” alarm. I borrowed and installed 93-32-4307 KIT, PCB, Dual Battery Replacement Kit with new batteries to see if it would resolve my date and time retention. The Dual Battery Kit did not make a difference for the date and time retention. (BTW, my original battery still has a voltage of 3.11v)

I called my HFO for assistance and they sent me the procedure to set the date/time which I already knew how to do. I called them back and have not receive a return call... yet. I then call the Haas Factory and they said I probably need to clear my BBU-RAM.

So... I cleared my BBU-RAM by starting my Mini Mill and holding PRGRM CONVRS button until the memory screen displayed. Then I type M 3000D6C 300FFFF and pressed enter. The "Memory Test Passed" scrolled on the screen. I then went thru the Initializing, reloading all parameters, settings, offsets, macro varibles, and programs.

Same problem... I can set the Date/Time in DEBUG, and it is fine as long as the machine is on. Next time I turn the machine on, the date is "Back to the Future", 06-26-2066 and the time is 26:66:00

Any ideas...?

Thanks in advance!

[mgsanchez]

Ok, I think I know why my Mini Mill won’t retain it’s date/time. I believe that the battery is dead in the Dallas DS1286 IC chip. It is in an IC socket and it is just a matter of removing it and replacing it, no soldering required. It is located right next to the main battery that causes the low battery alarm. Really inexpensive at $4~$8.

I would like to thank John-100. His post #45 in this thread mention that it was a “real time clock/watchdog”. http://www.cnczone.com/forums/haas-m...battery-4.html

Did some addition research and found out that the Dallas DS1286 chip has an internal battery. I will get one ordered this weekend and swap it out as soon as I receive it.

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[mgsanchez]

Just a follow up to let everyone know that I was able fix my Real Time Clock (RTC) issue.

I found some New Old Stock DS1286’s on EBay. I purchased 5 for $25 including shipping. They had older date codes, 2 from 1996 and 3 from 1997. The reason I purchased 5 was to make sure I would get at least one with a good battery. The first one I bench tested showed a voltage of 3.02v. It was good so I installed it in my Mini Mill. I started the Mini Mill and my clock works again!

I bench tested my original DS1286 and the battery was in fact dead (0.22v). This doesn’t appear to be a common problem, but I hope it can help someone else that is experiencing issues with their RTC.

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[ESmalik]

Did you replace with the machine on or off? Was it literally just unplug old and plug in new? No re entering parameters or settings, firmware, mocon, etc? Aside from setting new date of course?

[mgsanchez]

Wow! It has been a few years!

Machine off! Yeah, plug-n-play. Just have to do a few things to get to the watchdog chip.

IIRC the watchdog chip is located on the last IC board. On mine, it is located right next to the battery for the memory.

Take pictures as you unplug/remove things so you have a reference for reassembly. Using an anti-static strap, you will have to remove one IC board to get to the one that has the watchdog chip. Mine had a zip tie to secure it to the board to prevent it from coming out during transport. Cut the zip tie and R&R the watchdog chip. Reassemble and reset clock.

If you are not comfortable with replacing the watchdog chip, contact your local HFO.

Hope that helps!

Disclaimer: Do this at your own risk!!!! Not responsible for anything YOU do!!

[ESmalik]

Perfect, thanks!

I figured it was a long shot digging up a 7 year old thread. Surprised there are so few with these symptoms. I guess there's just not many DIYers with "vintage" Haas these days.

I'll update with results.