Messages

51

General Mach Discussion / Re: Problems threading on the lathe

« on: May 26, 2009, 06:49:50 PM »

reloaded xp serv pack 1 on the mill and loaded the latest drivers from the manufacturer and its now communicating with the SS again and running fine.

I did the same on the lathe and it now communicates fine for two or three parts and then looses communication if I get chatter from the parting tool on larger parts .

I am unsure why this is happening or how to resolve. the VFD for the spindle is on the wall aprox 5 foot behind the machine , the computer is at the front of the machine and the usb cable runs thru conduit to the ss which is in a very heavy steel cabinet at the back of the machine. I am guessing the vfd is now the problem. If the door is open it will loose contact with SS as soon as the spindle starts. With the door closed it only happens when the tool chatters.  On small parts where no chatter is present it will run for quite a while. The control wire for the vfd runs into the same cabinet as the SS and comes within aprox 2 feet. The cable is sheilded and grounded but there are 6 wires that are exposed for aprox 4" that run over to a terminal block.  Could this possibly be my problem and how would I resolve?

52

General Mach Discussion / Re: Problems threading on the lathe

« on: May 26, 2009, 03:40:18 PM »

thanks , deleted usb hub and reinstalled , recognized smooth stepper. Still loosing com with SS after about 5 minutes. Wife has ordered me another computer try

53

General Mach Discussion / Re: Problems threading on the lathe

« on: May 26, 2009, 02:48:31 PM »

ran ftclean , replugged the ss , same problem just says its an unknown usb device and cant instal the driver , keep getting the no better driver for your hardware message.

54

General Mach Discussion / Re: Problems threading on the lathe

« on: May 26, 2009, 02:22:24 PM »

downloaded everything fresh and attempting to instal. Now I get a message when I plug the SS in that says unrecognized USB device . Uninstal driver and run new hardware wizard to re-instal driver and I get a message stating there is no better driver than the one already installed.

55

General Mach Discussion / Re: Problems threading on the lathe

« on: May 26, 2009, 01:24:59 PM »

I have done a complete format on both computers as of yesterday so everything before yesterday is gone

56

General Mach Discussion / Re: Problems threading on the lathe

« on: May 26, 2009, 11:41:51 AM »

I dont know if this helps but when i reboot the computer I have to unplug and replug the USB going to SS before mach will communicate with it.

57

General Mach Discussion / Re: can mach be set to remember which tool is loaded on shut down?

« on: May 26, 2009, 11:34:44 AM »

I found the persistant tool check box and checked , it now has the last tool loaded when I launch mach .
I wonder why when I launch mach and it has tool 12 loaded in the dro and tool 12 is in place does it still send the signal to change to tool 12 when I run the program. If the software knows the tool called out is already loaded why would it send the signal to load that tool  to my PLC? Am I missing some simple setting?

58

General Mach Discussion / Re: Problems threading on the lathe

« on: May 26, 2009, 11:29:07 AM »

I have moved the computer to the rear of the machine and have a usb cable only a foot long between the computer and SS and I am still losing comm with SS every 5 minutes or so  . I just cant think of any other variables to try

59

General Mach Discussion / Re: can mach be set to remember which tool is loaded on shut down?

« on: May 26, 2009, 08:52:53 AM »

Thanks guys, I will be playing with this shortly , I def have to get some method going so that I dont have to pull the cover off the tool changer when I forget to specify which tool after start up.

I have many hours on a large commercial lathe and the way it works is you home the machine and then all the offsets are the distance from the home switch to the probe used to set tlo , no refrence tool.
It makes it very easy to set up a new tool , since your forced to home every time you start the machine the controller knows where its at and the probe is at a known position. I guess using a refrence tool is neccesary if you dont have a tool setter.

60

General Mach Discussion / Re: Problems threading on the lathe

« on: May 26, 2009, 08:43:27 AM »

I will be back on the project all day today , the only thing that bothers me is since updating the software on the second computer the machine it lives at is now losing comm with the SS also making me wonedr if its plugin or software related.
I wouldnt doubt there is a problem with long USB cable on the lathe , its nearly 10 feet from the front of the machine where the computer is located to the control cabinet at the rear and the cable is 12 feet long . I will try running the USB cable in a piece of metal conduit the entire length  along with ground . 
 Another thing that is odd is I loose communication even when the machine is sitting idle with spindle off and no motion .  I am sure it will be a simple fix once figured out .