Machsupport Forum
Mach Discussion => General Mach Discussion => Topic started by: spencyg on November 15, 2006, 08:34:44 PM
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I'm just finishing up (so I thought...) a bridgeport 3 axis mill conversion. I just soldered up the last of the connectors this morning and figured I'd be well on my way to making computerized metal chips. Or not.
I have both the PC Motherboard Parallel port as well as a second PCI parallel port installed in a 1GHz Dell desktop. The only program loaded onto the machine is Mach 3. My controller consists of a power supply, (68 vdc), 3 Gecko G201's, and a cnc4pc.com parallel port breakout board. The motors are 8 wire steppers wired parallel. I have all my limit switches OP'd together on one input, and each home switch has its own pin. All switches used the method described in the Mach 3 mill book (5v, 470 ohm resistor, yada yada yada). I've tested my inputs (outputs from my mill to the computer) and they all trigger high (a tripped switch is sending a 4.75v signal). When I power up the controller, the steppers lock under power.
When I'm in the congif menus, I have tried both the motherboard parallel port, as well as the PCI board. Neither of them relay any signal back and forth. Messing around this evening, I got the PCI board to trip the "LED's" on the diagnostics screen which are in the form of the end of the DB25 connector. These leds are tripping when I trigger a limit switch or home switch. The LED's for the appropriate functions below the DB-25 LED cluster don't light up. I have noticed that with the machine and program sitting idle, a number of the LED's on the DB-25 cluster are lit up...without any inputs or outputs being requested (at least on purpose). I am admittedly way deep over my head on this one. I'm a mechanical engineer...this electrical stuff just makes me cranky:) I think I'm close, but there is obviously something in some setup menu that I have overlooked. There has been some discussion about the type of parallel ports which work with this system...I didn't know if that would have an effect on anything...??? Needless to say...the motors are not responding to any manual keyboard emulator jog inputs. Any help would be most appriciated.
Spencer Garrett
www.gpe-machine.com
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Hey Spencer,
I have pretty much the same setup minus the second port. Where are you at? I think we can get you going.
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Hampden, Maine....about half way up. Getting somebody who knows what in gods name is going on with that stupid machine would be a sanity-saver for sure. I have a feeling that there is something with my port config or something like that...actually...I have no idea. ???
Spence
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I have sent you an e-mail.
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If these videos dont get you up and going, then you best give me your electrical engineering papers :)
http://www.machsupport.com/videos.htm
Also the reading stuff here http://www.machsupport.com/documentation/M3M1_84-A2.pdf
Trust me, this stage will eventually be behind you and the chips will soon be flying.
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I found myself much closer last night after a phone discussion with Brett (thanks again!). My initial trials were with what I thought was a straight thru DB-25 cable. I think it actually wasn't straight through, because when I took a second cable (which was purchased from an electronics shop, and not a computer shop), everything started to wake up. I was able to get all limit and home switches to function. I also got the motors to do their thing, but only after disabling the limit switches. Without disabling the limits, I couldn't reset the Mach 3 e-stop...the message kept saying I had limits triggered, when I didn't. Any ideas on this one?
Spence
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Hello Spence,
You are welcome. I don't know for what though, you did it all yourself. Good job. ;) The only thing I know to do on that alarm is good old troubleshooting. Check your voltage and see that the switches are making and braking. Check to see that they are wired right and the active low, high is set up to work with your config. You may be able to narrow it down by disabling one switch at the time until the problem goes away. You will have to disable all of the limits you have wired to a single pin though. There is allways the possibility of it being a noise problem also. Have you ran the driver test? What is your debounce set at?
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I'll start knocking off possibilities one by one....its just a matter of time now. I'm not sure what the debounce setting is....what should it be? What does it do?
Spence
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It helps confirm that an input is actually being seen. After the time you set your debounce to, mach will then acknowledge it. It helps remove flakey readings. Set it to 1000 and see if that helps any.
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Hi, Spence
If your still not able to Reset machine and you have it wired up try changing the state, Active Low to opposite of what it,s set now.
Conf.-Port Pins Input's, scroll down to E-Stop, if that doesn't work set it to Emulated, then you can Reset, though your weired E-Stop won't work. Be Carefull now only Screen Reset , Stop will stop moves.
As far as your Limit's and Home switche's
In actuality you can use three switche's to control Home and Limit's with one Pin on your Par. port, if the Switche's are stationary to the axis that's moving with a tab that trigger's them at each end of travel.
If your using Two limit switche's at opposite end's of each axis and the home Switch's are located with one limit ( same Position ), you can use that limit switch for your Home switch also, Still just One Pin used.
If your using Normanly closed switche's they need to be wired in series, N - Open SW parallel
You can Emulate limit/home Switch's also, (some ver. of Mach you need to set the port to 0).
Hope this Helps, Chip
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All of my limits and home switches are working in that they light up the screen LED's when they are activated. I have all 6 limits OP'd together, so if one trips, they all trip. This is set to active high, as the trigering of the switches opens the ground and allows just under 5V to go to the pin. The home switches each have their own pin, and they also are set at active high for the same reason....triggering the switch sends the pin to 5V. I still have 3 yellow screen LED's lit up on the diagnostics screen with the pseudo DB25 style layout (talking with Brett last night, this may be a feature of the newest download only). I need to find out why the computer (or controller) is considering the top 3 LH pins as engaged. I went to school with Brian Barker, and he lives right down the road, so I've promised him some fine ale if he can come over and straighten me out...
Spence
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Hey Spence, you didn't tell me you lived near heaven. Brian is ALLMOST a god. ;D
You are in good hands.
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No Doubt !!! ::)
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Hi, Spence
It just doesn't get any better than that, HU ! !.
Thank's Chip
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Well...it all came together last night. It was great to see Brian again, and he whipped me into shape in a hurry. We found TONS of noise in my controller cabinet with his oscilliscope which is causing lots of ghost signals...so I need to work on re-wiring a few parts of the box. After it was decided that some serious measures were needed on that end, we temporarily disabled the limits and homes and went to town having fun with the control of the machine. Holy Crap. The old Bridgeport was doing things that they never intended when she was buit...and at a speed which would have broken a finger if it got in the way of the flailing hand wheels. All I can say is "I have seen the light"...Muchos Gracias to my old friend Brian for all of the help and inspiration.
Spence
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I think I can get Spence fixed up :) He lives about 15min down the road and I went to collage with him .... So I went over and gave him a hand getting the mill up and running. He did a GREAT job getting the mill converted to a CNC mill! I think he should make kits for others to convert there mills 8)
It is a small world!