Formatting MMC card

[olman011]

This morning I retrieved the MMC card from our Symphonie logger. The logger was beeping and the screen said press any key to format card. I removed the card and brought it back to my office to download the data. The data was intact, but was missing the most recent 6 days.

 

I assumed the card was full. I then used my pc to delete the data in the "NRG" folder, but I did not delete the folder itself.

 

I went back out to replace the card. The logger asked instructed me to format the card by pressing "9" to erase and format the card.

 

After a few seconds, the logger reported that it could not format the card.

 

I then came back to the office and checked the most recent dataset to determine the battery level. It is listed at 1.2v. Would a low battery be the cause of the missing data and formatting problem that I am experiencing?

 

[David Carlson]

Running a logger with low batteries can lead to MMC write/format errors.

The Symphonie logger consumes a very small amount of current during normal data logging - on the range of 0.1 to 0.2 mA.  However, during MMC functions such as write and format, the logger has to draw much more current from the batteries.  Depleted batteries will not be able to muster the require power, and can lead to incomplete processing.