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Mach4 General Discussion / Mach4 with ESS Slave Motor running slower than primary

« on: February 27, 2016, 11:15:37 AM »

I am experiencing the issue that seems to be quite accurately described here, except in my case it is Mach4:  http://www.cnczone.com/forums/mach-software-artsoft-software-/241440-slave-axis-slow.html

Put simply, on a Y axis with two motors, one motor moves faster than the other, even though both are configured with the exact same steps per, acceleration, etc values in axis tuning.  Mechanically, both sides are 100% identical in configuration.

While I am not 100% sure that the resolution described in this thread is what I need to do - that being to adjust the frequency settings for each axis, the Mach4 ESS plugin does not offer nearly the configuration options as the Mach3 plugin and those settings do not seem to exist, so I can't even review them to see if they are set properly.  Perhaps one of the other settings in the plugin might resolve the issue (such as misalignment numbers), but I cannot find any documentation anywhere describing these values or what they do.  They may have nothing to do with it...

Is it possible to see and/or review the frequency settings when using Mach4 or otherwise correct this issue?   Maybe it's a different root cause in Mach4 or with the ESS and someone can tell me what the resolution might be?

2

Mach4 General Discussion / Mach4 with ESS only homes Z successfully, on next axis it stops.

« on: February 20, 2016, 04:16:55 PM »

I am experiencing a homing issue with a 3 axis machine running ESS.   I have seen this particular issue mentioned here and there, but there has never been any "closure" on the issue, I.E. and indication of either whether it was solved, or if it was, how it was solved.  Any help would be appreciated.
 
Machine Details:
 
-          Mach4 Hobby (Latest version as of today).   The software is licensed. 
-          Windows 8.1 AMD64
 
-          Ethernet Smoothstepper.  The smoothstepper plugin is the latest available from Warp9’s site. 
 
-          This is a 3 axis, 4 motor machine with two motors driving Y.
-          The system uses 7 limit switches:  X++, X--, Z++, Z--, Y++, Y1--, Y2—
-          X--, Z++, and Y1—and Y2—are configures as home switches as well as limit switches.
 
All limit switches function as limit switches properly.  When actuating each limit switch, the appropriate indicator in Mach lights up, and movement stops as expected. 
If X—or Z++ is actuated, Mach reflects that those limits were hit, as well as their home indicators. 
If either Y- switches are hit, the limit indicator lights, and if both Y- switches are simultaneously hit, the Y- indicator and Y home indicator lights.
 
Homing is direction is defined as Z positive, Y and X negative.  Order is Z-X-Y.  When attempting to perform a homing procedure, Z moves to the upper limit/home switch, stops and backs off until the limit switch un-actuates.  The axis indicator turns green in Mach and zeroes, then it continues to X.    When the X--/home switch is reached, the switch actuates, and at that point the machine stops moving.  The axis never zeros, and never backs off the home/limit switch.  Sometimes I can regain control of the machine by disable-enable and can jog away from the limit switch, but other times all movement stops and we have to close and re-open Mach.  In the latter case, the ESS remains in communication the whole time (fast blink, and when restarting mach, the board communication error that happens during an ESS issue does not appear).
 
I have tried:
 
-          Disabling the switch inputs as limit switches and defining them only as home switches.
-          Reinstalling Mach and the smoothstepper plugin. 
-          Changing the order of axis homing.   
-          Tinkering with the buffer value in the ESS plugin configuration.  No value tried resolves the issue.
 
No matter the order in which the axes home, Z is the only one that homes properly and only if it is the first one.  If X or Y are set to home first, both exhibit the problem and it never gets to Z.  If X or Y are set to home second with Z homing first, Z completes and the issue arises during X or Y, whichever is defined as the second axis to home.   

It may be worth noting that Y is configured as a master/slave axis with two motors.  When Y is homing, it seems to perform properly in that the first side to hit the home switch’s associated motor stops, then the other side continues (to align the axis), but once both Y home switches are actuated, the aforementioned stopping is occurring. 
 
The behavior is the same whether the home switches are also defined as limits or not.  When the switches are defined as limits, Mach4 message history reflects a limit switch strike and a home switch strike.  If we disable the limit switch functionality, it only reflects a home switch strike.  In either case, the same behavior results, Z homes properly, X and Y do not. 
 
Can any insight be provided as to what is going on and how to correct it?