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Author Topic: Mach3 set up for clearpath motors and c62 BOB with Ethernet SmoothStepper  (Read 6844 times)

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I am having trouble configuring Mach3 to work with my clearpath motors while using the SCHP feature on my c62 board. 

The first problem is that the only way to enable the motors is through a hardware enable feature found on the RJ45 to clearpath driver cable converter bought from CNC4PC.com.  This hardware enable setting causes the motors to always be enabled and thus i lose the safety features built into the motors in the event of a crash.  The preferred method would be the software enable function on the cable converter which allows me to enable and disable the motors from Mach3.  I believe there is a setting in mach 3 that would solve this problem but i cannot seem to find it. 

My second problem is the SCHP feature.  I have enabled the dip in the c62 board and configured it in Mach3 but for some reason the c62 board just keeps cycling from standby to ready every 5 seconds. 

Here is a video i uploaded to youtube:  https://youtu.be/cgBtevyujE8

Thank you for the help
Hi,
the Clearpath manual shows Enable+ and Enable- in the 8 pin Molex IO connector, pins 4 and 8 respectively.
Page 42 shows that if 5-24V is applied to the Enable input is sufficient to enable the servo.

You need to set up an output pin on your BoB that hooks to the Enable input of your servos. That output would be under control
of your ESS/Mach.

Why bother with the charge pump? I've never had a charge pump setup in over five years I've been using Mach without problems.
I think the original idea was that it would prevent any unintended movement prior to Mach assuming control of the hardware.
If you turn the power on to your machine but without turning on the PC do any of the servos or spindle turn themselves on and move?
If not then maybe you don't need it either.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'

Offline ger21

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You shouldn't even be able to turn the power on untilMach3 is running. That's what you use the charge pump for.
Gerry

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Hi,
I can and do power up my machine and there is an interval when the PC is booting where power is available to spindle and steppers but
neither my spindle nor my steppers move until Mach instructs them to do so. I have had no reason to require the use of a charge pump
or other failsafe strategy.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'
Hi,
one feature that I discovered about Clearpath servos is that the HLFB can signal a fault under depowered conditions.

There are several fault reporting modes available to Clearpath servos, the one of most value is a 'In Position' error.
The signal is active high when the servo is in position and the signal goes low or deactivates when the servo is out of position.
This is the reverse of most servos 'Following Error' fault.

This arrangement means that if the servos are depowered then the HLFB signal will de-activate and Mach would be required to treat
it as a following error when in fact its just that the power was disconnected even momentarily. This could have implications about how you
power up Mach and your machine.

If for instance you use a charge pump that discontinued pulsing when in Estop condition AND had a depowering strategy as Gerry has proposed
then you could not ever re-enable Mach because of an enduring HLFB fault by virtue of the servos being depowered. A sort of 'chicken and the egg'
thing where one precludes the other.

Another alternative would be to have the charge pump pulse despite being in Estop. I believe there is a setting that allows this. That would mean that
the servo power supply could be energized and therefore the HLFB would go high and clear the enduring Estop fault so that Mach could be Enabled.

Yet another alternative would be that the HLFB NOT be hooked directly to an Estop. Thus if one or more of the servos got out of position and faulted
Mach would not Estop but maybe you could program it to CycleStop or FeedHold instead. That would prevent the depowering of the servos.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'
Thank you everyone for the input so far.  Craig, you ma be right that i don't need the schp.  I only considered using it because i wont be the only one using the machine.  But for now i need to get it operational.  So with that being said I do not quite understand how to send an enable signal to the motors through the breakout board. Here is the pin layout for the rj45 connection from the motor to the BOB.  What would the port and pin be for mach3 to send an enable signal from the output.
And what does HLFB stand for just out of curiosity?
Hi,
H(igh) L(evel) F(eed) B(ack). Its in the manual, it is the fault signal line FROM the servo TO your
controller.

'In Position' is the same intent as 'Following Error', it indicates whether the servo can keep up,if it can't
follow its commanded input, or as Clearpath put it, stay 'In Position' then it will send a fault signal to Mach.

You will need to know all about it if you are going to use Clearpath servos.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'
Hi,
the RJ45 plug I'm guessing was intended to go to Tecknics 'Motherboard' which you
don't have or want. Cut it off and wire direct to your BoB.

The Molex pins 4 and 8 are Enable + and Enable - respectively.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'
Hi,
while I don't know how your spindle is wired or configured certainly your Clearpath servos
will require an active high Enable signal from Mach. Therefore the servos cannot move
even if the power supply to the servo is active AND there were sufficient noise on the
Step signal line to cause the servo to believe that a movement command has been made
because the Enable signal is low.

Once Mach is 'live' then the Enable signal can go high but the Step signal is under Machs control.
I don't think you are risking having the servos behave in some uncontrolled and potentially dangerous
manner prior to Mach assuming control and therefore a charge pump is not strictly required.
Confirmation that your spindle cannot inadvertantly start as Mach powers up.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'