PJLINK troubleshooting

Modified on Wed, 14 Jul, 2021 at 4:49 PM

PJLINK is a protocol (preset communication standards) used for projector installs to turn the projector on and off, this means the system requires zero manual intervention, which is ideal for club owners. The screen can also be controlled to lower and raise at the right time.

If a customer reports issues with the screen not coming down or projector not turning on, this is an issue with Automation. There are some background checks we can perform before referring a customer to their AV provider:

Firstly check kibana to make sure the Salesforce logins are consistent (this is requirement for the App, not Automation and allows us to see the AV commands in the events log)

Then check the kibana events log for the Automation commands, are they firing correctly? They are called 'AV Command Compiled' and should appear before a class starts and after it ends (unless classes are scheduled back to back)

If the projector is not turning on, even though the commands are firing, ask the customer to check the IP address, is it static? Is the projector on a different network? Does the projector need a firmware update? (the firmware version is found within the projector menu settings, it can then be compared to what it should be via the manufacturers website).

If the AV command compiled event is firing every 10 seconds, this means they have 'Send continuous commands' toggled on. The AV provider should be able to explain why this is turned on and might suggest turning it off.

See below for a decision tree based on kibana findings:

There is a scripted response within Freshdesk called PJLINK troubleshooting. to guide you on some initial checks, see below:

Please send a photo of the Automation settings, these are found within the App Settings > Automation.

For PJLINK to function the following needs to be true:

1. the I.P address of the projector needs to be static

2. the projector and iPad need to be on the same network

3. Powersave is turned off on the projector

4. the projector password is correct

5. the projector is on the latest firmware (found within the projector menu settings)

6. the Virtual App can find devices on your network. This is within iPad Settings > Privacy > Local Network > toggle Les Mills Virtual to ON

Meaning of the fields within PJLINK:

Status: Connected - Automation is connected and commands are sent (you should see these commands in kibana)

Status: Connecting - no commands are sent, Automation is attempting to connect but is coming up against a road block (check projector password)

Status: Disconnected - no commands are sent and the App is not attempting to connect

I.P Address field- this is the I.P address of the projector found within the projector settings

Projector password - this is the projector password

Please only escalate once the above questions have been answered, you've received a schematic of the equipment and a recent photo of the Automation tab in the App

If there is a router (rather than the iPad being hard wired to the network), here are some checks:

The router should not be connected to the audio system power. If it is, there is a risk of it being switched off by the user and affecting playback.

The router has to be connected to a network and is not free standing.

The system must be placed on a separate router. Wireless access points do not work reliably

A 2.4GHz band width is okay as long as there are not a lot of other devices running on the same frequency nearby. If there are a lot of routers nearby, there could be signal drops. A dual-band router will allow easy switching between 2.4 and 5.0 GHz frequencies.

It’s not uncommon to be able to connect to the router using a web portal through an access point; the issue isn’t so much being able to connect to the individual components to the network – it’s about getting the iPad and the router to communicate with each other. This must be done on a separate, independent router, which is used ONLY by the iPad and the projector.

We’ve found that systems enjoy a much higher rate of success when the router is physically present in the same room – it eliminates a lot of connectivity issues when the router is in as close proximity as possible to the iPad.

Projectors known to have issues with Automation:

Optoma 512

Projectors known to work with Automation:

Optoma EH415ST

Projectors known to need 'Send continuous commands'

NEC and BENQ brand projectors are known to require this feature to be enabled.