# IR Learning mode

The Pinscape unit can learn remote control commands through its IR sensor. To use this feature, you have to set up the IR receiver, as described in the Build Guide.
After bringing up the IR learning dialog, get your remote control ready by pointing it at the Pinscape IR sensor. Don't press any buttons on the remote yet. Click the Learn button when you're ready. When prompted, press and hold the remote control key you want Pinscape to learn. The dialog window will update automatically as soon as Pinscape learns the code, which usually only takes a second or two.
If the learning process fails, you can click "Try Again" to give it another go. IR transmissions occasionally fail due to momentary problems, such as interference from another light source. If Pinscape refuses to recognize the code after a couple of tries, though, the remote probably isn't compatible with the Pinscape hardware or software. There are two main possibilities:

- If the pulse display at the bottom of the dialog shows a series of lines, the sensor is properly detecting the physical IR signal from your remote, but the Pinscape software doesn't recognize the data format. There are many IR data formats; the Pinscape software recognizes about 30 of them, which cover most of the major consumer electronics companies, but there are many other obscure protocols that Pinscape doesn't recognize. In this case, there's hope: the problem is purely a matter of software, so we might be able to add support for the new protocol in a future version if you contact the Pinscape developers and let us know about it. Tell us the make and model of the TV or other device, and include the contents of the "Show Raw Data" window.
- If the pulse display at the bottom of the dialog is completely blank, the sensor isn't receiving any signal at all from the remote. This might mean that your remote is using an IR wavelength or modulation frequency that the Pinscape sensor can't receive. Unfortunately, this type of incompatibility is difficult to solve, because it would require replacing the sensor with one that can work with your remote. But replacing the sensor could create a whole separate problem, in that the Pinscape software is only designed to work with the recommended sensor type. Before giving up, you might want to double-check that the sensor itself is working, by trying a remote from different manufacturer.