PR60 Screen Backlight Question - Problem

[Spektor]

Hi there -- I just got a PR60 Auto unit and had my first night using it. What an amazing piece of technology. It's virtually silent and I am amazed how it would vary the pressure up and down. Truly remarkable.

BUT there is one thing that really kind of drove me crazy -- the backlight on the display screen shuts off after only a few minutes. The other LED lights (humidifier setting) stay on, but the main screen backlight stays off. I thought turning the control knob or something would wake the screen backlight up but it doesn't. Pressing the knob actually shuts the whole thing down, and resets the pressure back down to the minimum, which is totally counterproductive.

I do have the LED lights setting option set at "ON", however that doesn't affect the display screen apparently.

I really want the screen backlight to simply stay on during the night. Is there anyway to make this work? How else can one see what pressure you are at during the night? Flashlight?

Serious design omission by Resp. They need a firmware update or something if necessary. A lighted display and a clock would be so much appreciated.

Does the S9 allow you to keep it's display screen lit up?

[Pugsy]

Flashlight is your only option.
Neither brand has the ability to keep the LCD area lit up. Most people would find that amount of light highly annoying so neither brand offers it.
The reason that there is a back light option for the humidifier light is that people complained a lot about just that amount of light disturbing them. Not enough people want to have the LCD lit up for them to offer it I guess.

[Spektor]

Flashlight is your only option.
Neither brand has the ability to keep the LCD area lit up. Most people would find that amount of light highly annoying so neither brand offers it.
The reason that there is a back light option for the humidifier light is that people complained a lot about just that amount of light disturbing them. Not enough people want to have the LCD lit up for them to offer it I guess.

That is absolutely positively beyond stupid. These machines can do everything but slice bread, yet they forgot something like this? I can totally appreciate that some people can't take even a minute amount of light while sleeping and they should simply have an option to shut the lights off or dim them like a clock radio, etc.. But for goodness sakes the manufacturers should have at least offered the option to keeping the screen on, or at minimum, set it up so that when you turn the control knob, the screen 'wakes up' like a cell phone or a computer that has gone to 'sleep'.

What is the point of displaying the actual operating pressure on a display screen, or visual warning for a mask leak etc, on a black display in a dark room!

I called Respironics and their tech told me that sure, just turn the knob and the screen will wake up...... Well we actually tested that theory over the phone. That works while the machine is plugged in but not blowing. But once the blower is running, the screen will not wake up if you adjust the controller knob.

The tech told me to call the home care provider and ask them to try another machine to see.....

This will get interesting.

[Pugsy]

I hadn't really thought about my current machine but I just now went and tested it. S9 VPAP.
Here is what happened...I started the machine and the back light stays on for maybe a minute then it goes off...then I turned the humidifier knob to change the humidifier setting and the light came back on. Pressure is shown in small numbers below the humidifier numbers which are large. The machine stayed on.

I will go dig out my PR S1 machine and see what happens if I do the same with it. Report back in a few minutes on what happens with it.
Edit...tested the PR S1..nothing short of turning off and back on will get the light to stay on.

So....try out a S9 machine...I think it will do what you want by being able to turn the humidifier knob since it is separate from the on/on button.

[Spektor]

I hadn't really thought about my current machine but I just now went and tested it. S9 VPAP.
Here is what happened...I started the machine and the back light stays on for maybe a minute then it goes off...then I turned the humidifier knob to change the humidifier setting and the light came back on. Pressure is shown in small numbers below the humidifier numbers which are large. The machine stayed on.

I will go dig out my PR S1 machine and see what happens if I do the same with it. Report back in a few minutes on what happens with it.
Edit...tested the PR S1..nothing short of turning off and back on will get the light to stay on.

So....try out a S9 machine...I think it will do what you want by being able to turn the humidifier knob since it is separate from the on/on button.

WOW! Thanks for the info! I will definitely call them. I wonder if its a firmware update issue or if they forgot to address it?

I wonder if the DME will even take the machine back. It shouldnt be a deal breaker but still. This is why they should let people test drive the machines before purchase....

[Pugsy]

I wonder if its a firmware update issue or if they forgot to address it?

I think that Respironics decided that the ability to easily see the pressure during the middle of the night was not a needed feature and they chose not to offer it. Either that or they just never thought of it.
Either way....it isn't there and you are the first person that I have heard complain about it in the 3 years I have been on the forum...so you are definitely in the minority.
Important to you I understand but not important to the majority.
Respironics doesn't care about us and what we want anyway. For as long as they have offered full data machines we have been complaining about the crappy 7/30 day averages that they offer...and still that is all we get.

[msradar65]

I can tell you that on my Resmed S9 if you turn the knob or tap the buttons the screen lights up for a short while and then goes back out again. The humidifier light stays on for a short while during warm up and cool down...then it also goes out. But again if you tap a button it lights up.

Personally I can do without the lights....annoying when trying to sleep...but I have to agree with you...it should light up if you tap or touch something. You want to know if the change took effect without having to turn on the light in the bedroom. I think this was better thought out by Resmed...

[Guest]

Flashlight is your only option.
Neither brand has the ability to keep the LCD area lit up. Most people would find that amount of light highly annoying so neither brand offers it.
The reason that there is a back light option for the humidifier light is that people complained a lot about just that amount of light disturbing them. Not enough people want to have the LCD lit up for them to offer it I guess.

That is absolutely positively beyond stupid. These machines can do everything but slice bread, yet they forgot something like this? I can totally appreciate that some people can't take even a minute amount of light while sleeping and they should simply have an option to shut the lights off or dim them like a clock radio, etc.. But for goodness sakes the manufacturers should have at least offered the option to keeping the screen on, or at minimum, set it up so that when you turn the control knob, the screen 'wakes up' like a cell phone or a computer that has gone to 'sleep'.

What is the point of displaying the actual operating pressure on a display screen, or visual warning for a mask leak etc, on a black display in a dark room!

I called Respironics and their tech told me that sure, just turn the knob and the screen will wake up...... Well we actually tested that theory over the phone. That works while the machine is plugged in but not blowing. But once the blower is running, the screen will not wake up if you adjust the controller knob.

The tech told me to call the home care provider and ask them to try another machine to see.....

This will get interesting.

I agree with you too. Guess there were just too many idiots before you who could not figure how to close their eyes when they were trying to sleep and they complained daily. It wouldn't be hard to give a choice in the User Menu now would it?

To Spektor: pick up an M series on Craigslist

[archangle]

Not only does the PRS1 screen not light up when you turn the knob, the display is so crappy, I can almost never read it with a flashlight. It's got a terribly low contrast and narrow viewing angle that I usually have to turn the room lights on to be able to see the display.

Hello, Phillips, the 1980's called. They want their LCD back.

[greatunclebill]

the newest system one's have the backlight and it works as previously described by others. the older system one's don't have a backlight at all, blowing or not.

[chunkyfrog]

I like the way mine lights up if I tap the lower rectangular button--(itty bitty, though it is).
It does beat having to keep a flashlight handy.
I would like a nice big snooze bar to temporarily turn the backlight on.
Of course no one there is listening.

[Guest]

I wonder if its a firmware update issue or if they forgot to address it?

I think that Respironics decided that the ability to easily see the pressure during the middle of the night was not a needed feature and they chose not to offer it. Either that or they just never thought of it.
Either way....it isn't there and you are the first person that I have heard complain about it in the 3 years I have been on the forum...so you are definitely in the minority.
Important to you I understand but not important to the majority.
Respironics doesn't care about us and what we want anyway. For as long as they have offered full data machines we have been complaining about the crappy 7/30 day averages that they offer...and still that is all we get.

Yeah well, I guess I'm special. They should pay me as a nitpicking product tester for them.

Yes, but as far as I can tell, when the screen goes dark and the blower is running, the screen DOES display the current pressure. When I woke up and the room was light it was somewhere around 10.5 (started at 4). But then, hey the sun had come up and I could see it!

That's what makes it so exasperating -- why bother showing relevant info on a screen, but then render it impossible to read? Now I know this has to be a design oversight. No one would intentionally design something like this otherwise. It makes no sense to do so. Better just show a completely blank screen in that case.

Gee, now I wonder if they left something critical out of their algorythms.... Centrals anyone?

[Spektor]

Not only does the PRS1 screen not light up when you turn the knob, the display is so crappy, I can almost never read it with a flashlight. It's got a terribly low contrast and narrow viewing angle that I usually have to turn the room lights on to be able to see the display.

Hello, Phillips, the 1980's called. They want their LCD back.

100% correct. Small, not angled, and BW. Very difficult to read, even with light on.

Better than DeVilbiss models but still, not an ideal design. Resmed beats it easily on this count.

[Spektor]

Just spoke with a respiratory therapist at Respironics -- he said that they do know about the problem with the backlighting. He said that it will be fixed in the next generation machine but he agreed he will talk to his design manager and see if they will be doing a firmware update for current machines and will call me back. Xing fingers.

[apsews]

It bugs me too that you can't get it to come back on when you are using it. I would guess that it bugs alot of people but they just don't say anything about it.