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ISSUE — EtherCAT Error / CS8 Shows 'E' — Flair Started Before CS8 Finished Booting

CONFIRMED RESOLVED BOTH BOLT BOLT JR

Summary

The CS8 controller displays E (error) and EtherCAT fails to connect when Flair is opened before the CS8 has finished booting — a process that takes approximately 5 minutes. Close Flair, wait until the CS8 display shows A, then relaunch Flair. On a cold start, always power the robot first and wait for A before starting Flair.

Symptoms

  • CS8 controller display shows E (instead of A for normal)
  • EtherCAT connection fails to establish
  • A couple of restarts resolve it in most cases
  • Tends to happen intermittently at startup

Systems Affected

  • Bolt (Oscar Molano — confirmed)
  • Bolt Jr (likely — same CS8 boot sequence)

Software Environment

BOTH

Possible Causes

  • Flair was loaded on the PC before the CS8 finished its internal boot sequence
  • The CS8 takes approximately 5 minutes to fully boot after power-on
  • If Flair attempts to connect while CS8 is still initialising, EtherCAT handshake fails and CS8 can show E

Solutions

Solution A — Cold boot in correct order

CONFIRMED BOTH

Contributor(s): ~ Colin Michael Quinn — 2024-11-20

Steps

  1. Turn everything off completely — PC and robot.
  2. Power on the robot first. Wait.
  3. Watch the CS8 display window at the rear of the robot.
  4. Wait until the CS8 shows A before proceeding.
  5. After CS8 shows A, power on the Flair PC.
  6. Once Windows and InTime have loaded, start Flair.

Notes

"Turn everything off and cold boot. Boot PC after bolt says A." — Colin Michael Quinn

The CS8 takes approximately 5 minutes to boot. Rushing this step is a common cause of EtherCAT E errors at startup. The Flair PC can be powered simultaneously with the robot — just don't launch Flair until the CS8 shows A.

Solution B — Restart Flair

CONFIRMED BOTH

Contributor(s): Timothy Heys Cerchio — 2024-07-11

Steps

  1. If CS8 shows E and EtherCAT won't connect: close Flair.
  2. Wait 30 seconds.
  3. Reopen Flair — the CS8 should now show A and EtherCAT connect normally.

"You probably just started Flair too early - when CS8 was still booting/loading." — Timothy Heys Cerchio

Timeline

Event Date Contributor
Reported + confirmed quick fix 2024-07-11 ~ Oscar Molano, Timothy Heys Cerchio
Confirmed: cold boot sequence required 2024-11-20 ~ Colin Michael Quinn

Official Documentation

Document Section Notes
Flair v7.4 Operator Manual Startup procedure CS8 boot sequence

Flair Classic Manual — Ch.14A High Speed Robots / EtherCAT — p.235

Flair Classic Manual — Ch.22 Network Direct — p.313

Flair 7 Manual — Ch.11 High Speed Robots / EtherCAT — p.195

Flair 7 Manual — Ch.19 Network Direct — p.263

WhatsApp Excerpts

[11/7/2024, 5:54:27 am] ~ Oscar Molano: Hello guys, I just got twice an E on the bolts display inside the machine any idea what that means, ethercat connection was unable to succeed, a couple of restarts solve it, but I wasn't sure what to check respect the E

[11/7/2024, 5:59:22 am] Timothy Heys Cerchio: You probably just started Flair too early - when CS8 was still booting/loading...

[20/11/2024, 5:57:10 pm] ~ Colin Michael Quinn: Turn everything off and cold boot. Boot PC after bolt says A

Revision History

Date Change Editor
2026-05-24 Initial extraction Tom D / Claude Code