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General Mach Discussion / Re: Plasma Application, Mach3 torch height control.
« on: March 12, 2010, 03:42:05 PM »
Hi,
I am new to this forum and have been reading the comments made about THC in Mach3.
I am an electronic engineer and building a Plasma Table for in house operations.
Since the info about THC in the Mach3 documentation is weak at best, I thought I would state what I believe I have figured out, then let others here verify my assumptions.
Once all is understood I will design a solution that uses Mach3 the most economical way. Please make any comments to my statements here to help!
1. It would appear that Mach3 has all the controls needed for THC via: ARC OK, THC Up, THC Dn and Z axis Home (for floating head) inputs to the Par Port and Torch On output.
2. It also appears that in order to get to these signals and provide 4 axis of control for dual X, Y, and Z you will need a second Par port.
3. In addition, it supports DROs for Z Axis position and Torch Voltage if the data can get into Mach3. Any others required or desired?
4. If Mach3 is controlling the Z axis as normal via the first Par port, the additional signals THC up and THC down are injected into the current position known by Mach3.
5. To close the Z height control loop, using a Brain is slow due to its update frequency, so the control loop would be better if outside of MAch3.
6. What is the preferred way to get the DRO information into Mach3? Modbus or USB?
7. The Torch Arc OK and the Torch On Command are usually dry contact closures.
8. The Torch Voltage signal from various Plasma Units will vary across a large scale and should be isolated for safety.
This is a good start, please comment and we will go from there.....
Thanks in advance,
Steve
I am new to this forum and have been reading the comments made about THC in Mach3.
I am an electronic engineer and building a Plasma Table for in house operations.
Since the info about THC in the Mach3 documentation is weak at best, I thought I would state what I believe I have figured out, then let others here verify my assumptions.
Once all is understood I will design a solution that uses Mach3 the most economical way. Please make any comments to my statements here to help!
1. It would appear that Mach3 has all the controls needed for THC via: ARC OK, THC Up, THC Dn and Z axis Home (for floating head) inputs to the Par Port and Torch On output.
2. It also appears that in order to get to these signals and provide 4 axis of control for dual X, Y, and Z you will need a second Par port.
3. In addition, it supports DROs for Z Axis position and Torch Voltage if the data can get into Mach3. Any others required or desired?
4. If Mach3 is controlling the Z axis as normal via the first Par port, the additional signals THC up and THC down are injected into the current position known by Mach3.
5. To close the Z height control loop, using a Brain is slow due to its update frequency, so the control loop would be better if outside of MAch3.
6. What is the preferred way to get the DRO information into Mach3? Modbus or USB?
7. The Torch Arc OK and the Torch On Command are usually dry contact closures.
8. The Torch Voltage signal from various Plasma Units will vary across a large scale and should be isolated for safety.
This is a good start, please comment and we will go from there.....
Thanks in advance,
Steve