There have been reported cases where a user lost control of their computer's cursor when a ProComp amplifier was connected to the computer. This can be observed as the onscreen cursor pulling continously to one location on the screen, or additionally right- or left- clicking on a continoal basis. The user is able to still influence the cursor with their trackpad or an external mouse, but the onscreen cursor moves too rapidly to overcome. This issue was reproduced and confirmed through internal testing, and appears related to driver issues brought on by Windows updated, not an issue with the EEGer4 software or the amplifier being used.
We have included instructions below to attempt to troubleshoot the issue. If you have any issues during the process, feel free to contact us and we would be happy to help!
Without the amplifier connected, you should be able to control your mouse normally. To prepare for later steps once we connect the amplifier, please follow the steps below:
- Open the Windows Device Manager by opening the Start Menu and typing Device Manager into the search field.
- Within the Device Manager, locate Mice and other pointing devices and click the chevron (>) next to it. This will expand the category and display all input devices currently used by your computer. You may only have one item listed here if you are using a laptop's trackpad.
We suspect that the reason you are unable to control your cursor is because Windows is interpreting the signal being sent from the amplifier to the computer as a mouse. If this is the case, we should expect a new device to show up under Mice and other pointing devices once the amplifier is connected. Thankfully, we should be able to disable Windows from using the signal from your amplifier as a mouse.
- Connect the amplifier to the computer and power it on. If you see a new item added under Mice and other pointing devices immediately after doing this, proceed to Step 3.
- If you still have control of your cursor while using your trackpad, and do not see a new item under Mice and pointing devices, you may need to wait until Windows tries to recognize your amplifier as a mouse. You will be able to tell when this occurs because you will lose control over your cursor. Due to the rarity of this issue, we are unsure of what actions cause Windows to treat the amplifier as a mouse.
- Once you lose control of your cursor, remove the fiber optic cable from the amplifier. This should return control of the mouse to you, but still display the amplifier as a mouse within the Task Manager.
If you are unable to right or left click at this stage, press the Ctrl+Alt+Delete keys on your keyboard at the same time. This should open up a new screen allowing you to change users, open the task manager, and sign out. You will want to press cancel from the list to return back to the Device Manager. For whatever reason, this refreshes Windows to allow you to click normally with the trackpad.
- Locate the new device in the Task Manager under the Mice and other pointing devices category. During our testing, it displayed as Microsoft Serial Mouse.
- RIght-click on the device and click disable device. When you plug the amplifier back in to the fibre optic cable, you should now retain control over the cursor and EEGer should be able to recognise your ProComp as an amplifier.
Please ensure you do not accidentally disable your trackpad in the Device Manager, as this will make renabling the trackpad difficult without use of an external mouse.
If you are still experiencing issues at this stage or were unable to follow the steps detailed above, please let us know! We can provide additional troubleshooting by email or if you would like to set up a remote tech appointment to connect directly to your computer and provide troubleshooting from there.
