TrackIR lags

[boeing767]

I just bought TrackIR 5 Pro, but isn't doesn't work corretly. The software seems to lag.

When i look at the tracker screen and the gauges screen I see the three dots moving normaly, but when i'm looking to the gauge page at the same time it sometimes freezes for a while. This problem also occurs when playing games like Condor Soaring simulator.

What I did:

- Removed the energy save mode on the usb-hubs in Windows
- Decreased the light sensor (now set tot 253 if i'm right)
- removed object in the back ground

But it doesn't solve the problem. What's wrong?

Thanks,

[Seth Steiling]

My initial recommendation would be to switch to the 5.0 software. It's better optimized for use with TrackIR 5 out of the box, and it has a much better UI, in my opinion. If it doesn't address the issues you're having, Vincent can probably chime in on the likely causes more effectively than me.

[boeing767]

Thanks for your information. I will try the software soon. Another question, not related with the error above.

I was trying this product for about 2 hours (with a break between it), but it might sound strange, but my eyes where burning a bit after this!? Can this be related to the infrared?

[Seth Steiling]

Nope. The power that the IR LEDs put out is less than your eyes would be subjected to from basic atmospheric light outdoors. It is a fraction of the IR output from a normal incandescent light bulb.

[VincentG]

In case you are curious about the actual math.......

The TrackIR/SmartNAV operates by tracking reflected or emitted IR light that is imaged by a CMOS sensor. The sensor and emitters are tuned to 880nm, slightly above the visible spectrum, you can see them emit a slight glow when the room lights are off, and this is the very upper end of the red spectrum. The sensor and IR LEDs are covered by a very special plastic that we custom designed with Bayer to block all light below 820nm, it passes all light above this point, it is called a band pass filter.

The LEDs emit at 880nm and are standard off the shelf IR LEDs; we run them all the time when the unit is turned on. There are 4 of them and they each have a total radiant output of about 23mw/sr, which is 23miliwats per ster radian. Total output power is NOT 4 X 23 mw/sr as the LEDS do not overlap exactly; they create a coverage pattern with slight overlap at the edges. Also, the LEDs to not emit a uniform brightness, they have an angle to half intensity, so the center of the overlapping LEDs is the SAME brightness as the center of each LEDs output, hope that makes sense.

Your eyes ARE sensitive to IR light, you can't see it, but your eyes will register the "power" of the light, your pupils will shrink down as if you were looking at light in the visible spectrum. Remember, we are just slightly above red in the visible spectrum. You won't feel your pupils getting smaller when our device turns on because we are a relatively low level of light for an average room condition. If you turn out all the lights in the room, put the unit about 1 foot away from your face and watch your eyes in a mirror, you will see your pupils contract, they are "seeing" the IR light.

As for the amount of power the LEDs output, it is many of times lower than simply going outside, not to mention on a bright sunny day. As I had seen posted before, we are a small fraction of the IR output from a normal incandescent light bulb. ANSI references spec ANSI Z 136.1 - 2000 for laser power emission, but we are not a laser, so in the back of the spec they reference ANSI/IESNA RP-27.1-96, which is the spec for lamp output, basically what we are and what ANSI says to use. Maximum exposure for our wavelength range, which is from 700nm to 1100nm is 10mw/cm2. To convert our power output, which is about 30mw/sr, we apply sr x 1cm2/distance2. Typical user distance is 18" or about 45cm (on the conservative side, most users are further away), so 30mw/2025 = .015mw/cm2. Needless to say, we are on the safe side!

If you have any further questions or concerns please let us know.