Messages

11

General Mach Discussion / Re: Help Me Please - Mach3 Corrupting Code

« on: April 03, 2015, 06:04:06 PM »

By Jove Sir, that's on the button - it was set on 'Absolute'

Lord knows how that has become moved, nobody to blame but me I suppose but that is where it is going wrong for me. There is one hell of a lot of check boxes and settings which I must confess I know precious little about.!!

if they were Volts Amps R's and I's I would be able to walk in there with my boots on but being an old newbie to CNC I find it quite daunting at times.

   
Many Thanks, it is nearing the witching hour (Gone 11pm)  here so I'm not going to try it out tonight.

Should the  the Distance Mode be set to Absolute or Incremental ?

12

General Mach Discussion / Re: Help Me Please - Mach3 Corrupting Code

« on: April 03, 2015, 05:45:23 PM »

Many thank you for your reply Rich, but I'm a bit lost here. Where and what is the 'IJ Mode and where do I find it?

13

General Mach Discussion / Help Me Please - Mach3 Corrupting Code

« on: April 03, 2015, 04:45:54 PM »

I'm back with another dopey problem. I haven't used my Mill since before Christmas, but I'm sure this problem wasn’t there when I last use it.

For some reason or other my code from CamBam is not being translated properly. What it is making the machine do is create a multitude of circles.
 
There are circular cutouts and profiles in the job but it wants to cut them from using the start point as the centre. It is best to see the screen shots of the Tool Path to explain what is happening.

I have attached a test file of my G-Code in case it is something dopey that I am doing again!

Once again my grateful thanks to all.

p.s. the second image is the results of the code in the .txt file. The first image is supposed to be a name plate engraving which worked fine before!

14

General Mach Discussion / Re: Help Please with PWM Spindle Motor Speed

« on: November 19, 2014, 11:27:58 AM »

Hello again John, and thank you so much for your advice. Well as you say, not the best news, but frankly I was half expecting a reply as such. However, the good news is in one respect, it is not something stupid that I have been doing (Which was what I was also expecting!) and in another respect, it looks like what I have bought is a bit of a pup in so much as in its present form it would never do what it is expected to do.

I have briefly looked at both your recommendations and on reflection I will probably go for the the Chinese option after a little research. I would prefer to go the route of the Roy Harding recommendation for one I prefer to spend money at home if I can, and I still don’t trust the little yellow bugga’s. What does put me off though is that it looks like I am going to need a ‘Motor Speed Inverter Unit’ also..


What I think I will do before I do anything else is to drag the scope over to the Mill and have a poke about to see what exactly is going on with that signal, which is probably what I should have done in the first place.

Once again thank you so much for your help and I’m sure I will get back here to let you know what I find and above all what I do to resolve the issue.

15

General Mach Discussion / Re: Help Please with PWM Spindle Motor Speed

« on: November 19, 2014, 07:28:47 AM »

There is a video of what happened when I bumped the PWM base Frequency down to 5Hz at

http://youtu.be/zptYwb7_8uQ

16

General Mach Discussion / Re: Help Please with PWM Spindle Motor Speed

« on: November 19, 2014, 06:59:24 AM »

Sorry about my absence yesterday, however I am back hopefully with a renewed vigour to put this to bed.

Okay, firstly, I bumped the PWM base frequency down to 2Hz as you recommended and the motor seems to respond in the same manner as you mention, it tries to pick up, but it is pulsed about 5 times per second. When I go back to the Config|Ports & Pins|Spindle Setup, Mach3 has changed the  PWM base frequency to 5Hz. I have some video of it which I will post later.

Secondly, after ringing out the Break Out Board I have amended the schematic of the Break out Board to show the correct routing of the Spindle Output Port. The original is incorrect in so much as Pin 1 of the ‘MOTO’ connection is connected directly to Pin 1 of the LPT Port, whilst Pin 2 is connected Hi (TTL Vdd)  via one segment of the SIL resistor.

You query what I mean about what I mean in ‘Negative Going’ This may be an old term, but Positive and negative going relates to the pulse position with respect to 0v. I have attached a drawing which I used to show the kids at College to demonstrate what is meant by Positve or Negative going.


“Did the supplier send any documentation with the unit”? of course not !!! You’re very lucky if you get a receipt.

The Controller did not come with an external Pot, there is a onboard Jumper option which allows you to select between the onboard Multi-Turn Trimmer which if I remember is about 100k, or external PWM. The jumper I have selected is onto the external PWM option.

17

General Mach Discussion / Re: Help Please with PWM Spindle Motor Speed

« on: November 17, 2014, 08:15:27 AM »

Hello again John, The Schematic is attached at the bottom of my second last post as a schematic.pdf.

As a side element, can you recommend a Speed Controller that works with the Spindle Motor I purchased and with Mach3 ?

18

General Mach Discussion / Re: Help Please with PWM Spindle Motor Speed

« on: November 17, 2014, 04:24:36 AM »

Thank you once again John for your help, it is greatly appreciated. I will try this out later today and get back to you.
 

I don't want to muddy the water any more at this stage, but after writing  my last post I did ponder about the PWM signal to the Speed Controller being inverted from the Breakout Board. I have a full set of Spare PCB's for the Mill's Electronics and I am going to ring through the 5v Line to the MOTO Connector to validate my statement that there is an error on the Drawing. My thinking is that if the Pulse train is Negative going and the Speed Controller is expecting a Positive going then that could explain why my findings are so erratic. (Y/N??) 

I'm not too sure what would happen if as I am thinking the PWM Pulse train was inverted, if it would indeed work at all.

Just thoughts of a desperate and demented individual.....  

19

General Mach Discussion / Re: Help Please with PWM Spindle Motor Speed

« on: November 16, 2014, 05:16:02 PM »

Hello John and thank you so much for your reply. This is becoming a more of a quest or a mission to make this thing work properly, but at this point I am seriously thinking of ditching the Motor and Controller and either going back to the ‘Hanging Dolly’ and Flexi-Shaft or splashing out even more money on a different Spindle Motor set-up.

The kit came from (You guessed!) ‘Fleebay’ on http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/400W-CNC-Spindle-Motor-Kits-PWM-Speed-Controller-400W-Motor-With-Mount-Bracket-/221360481671?pt=UK_BOI_Metalworking_Milling_Welding_Metalworking_Supplies_ET&hash=item338a1ce587

I must confess, the Motor is quite impressive, very quite at 6,000 to 8,000 RPM with very little run-out.

The specs on the PWM Controller are:
•   Support AC and DC input
•   DC Input : DC 15-160V
•   AC Input : 12-110V input
•   Support Current :10 A
•   PWM input : level 3.5-12V VPP
•   Frequency :1K-10KHZ(Particularly suitable for MACH3 spindle speed control.)

  The Breakout Board is what was supplied with the Mill, which I have modified to take opto-couplers for the limits, e-stops and a touch pad. Pin1 from the LPT port as in the drawing from a kind person on CNC Zone is fed directly to the Speed Controller.

The Power supply is a 48v 10A SMPSU with enough power to blow your hat off.

As I said in the very beginning, it works fine I just cannot get it to marry up with the spindle speeds on the DRO’s it’s not a matter of being out a 1,000RPM or so, it is running about 75 – 80% out.

I really appreciate any help that anyone can throw at me; I cannot believe I am the only ‘Muppet’ on the Planet to have bought one of these .

One slight caveat with the drawing I have posted is that if memory serves me the pulse train on the Pin 1 is negative going to where pin 2 on the ‘MOTO’ Port is High (5v) In the drawing Pin 2 goes to deck. 

20

General Mach Discussion / Re: Fitting Limit/Home Switches to TONSEN TS3040C CNC

« on: November 15, 2014, 09:42:52 AM »

I was starting to think it was a reference to placing the machine on a suitable pile of trinitrotoluene, flicking the switch and  enjoying the next few minutes watching all the pieces eventually return to ground zero.         Evil

Sounds like a really good idea, Toluene is a bit pricey though and as my wife used to say, 'Don't you think you have wasted enough money and that bloody thing'