Topics

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General Mach Discussion / Mach 3 Z-axis brake control by mach 3 estop

« on: January 08, 2019, 06:04:27 PM »

Hello, I am running a cnc router that has a brake on the z axis.  I would like the brake (24v relay controlled) to disengage when the mach 3 estop (the soft version, not the machine hardware estop) is cleared.  Is there a way within Mach 3 to setup a linkage between the estop and an output on my controller?  Running the CSLabs CSMIO/IP-A controller.  Basically, when I clear the estop within Mach, i want my output to fire which would disengage the brake.  Sorry if I am missing a clear function that can do this.  Thanks!

2

General Mach Discussion / Axis starts moving when resetting mach

« on: June 21, 2017, 08:57:21 PM »

Hello.  Newbie alert!!  Retrofitting a router with a CSMIO/IP-A and I have been through the manuals a bit for both mach and the controller to make what I think is the correct mach settings but I have the following problem:

When resetting mach, the x axis appears to be sent a signal to move in the positive direction (but it should not as I have not commanded it to). The carrier starts to move but mach immediately gives an error "ePID fault... Press RESET on MACH screen".  I believe I have a problem with my encoder settings in Mach, but not for certain.  The encoders are connected to the servo drive, then the drive is connected to CSMIO encoder inputs.  Drives are setup for Speed, not position.  I have the correct encoder port configured in the controller plugin, but I see in mach there is the Encoder/MPG settings screen.  Should I need custom settings in this screen?  Also, i have never used the PID tuning feature in mach, I am more interested in seeing if my encoders are giving me the correct feedback.  Thoughts?

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General Mach Discussion / Estop Circuit Enable using Mach Output?

« on: June 15, 2017, 03:01:26 PM »

I have a pilz controller that is used for my estop circuit.  One of the requirements to enable the safety circuits is a relay controlled input to the pilz controller.  I am retrofitting my router with a CSMIO controller and using Mach, but I did not see an obvious way to energize an output from mach in order to get the safety control circuit to enable.  I don't really know why the previous motion controller had an output that was required by the safety circuit, but my guess is it was energized when the motion controller was either powered up, or it might have been based on a software estop reset that triggered it.  Is there a way for me to trigger an output in Mach either when I hit the reset button or some other button or?  Thoughts?  Thank you

4

General Mach Discussion / Single limit switch per axis (moving switch)

« on: June 03, 2017, 01:11:06 PM »

Hello. I am retrofitting a CNC router with a new CSMIO controller and will be running mach.  Each axis on the router only has 1 limit switch that serves as both the positive and negative limits.  It does that is by mounting the switch on the carrier and then it uses stops setup at both ends to trigger the singe switch depending on which way the carrier moves.  My question is, am I able to use this setup with mach to do my homing, or will I need 2 separate switches/inputs coming into mach? (one for the positive direction, one for the negative direction). I see that mach has both an x++ and an x-- indicating it is looking for 2 separate inputs. Thanks in advance for you help/input.

5

General Mach Discussion / Z Axis Brake - AC Servo Motor - Let drive do it or use Mach3?

« on: May 27, 2017, 03:39:47 PM »

Hello.  I have a Yaskawa Servo Drive and Motor that power the Z axis on my router.  The Z axis also has a brake that is built into the motor.  I am putting in a new CSMIO controller and am not sure if I should use Mach3 to control the z axis brake or if I should let the servo drive control it.  Currently, the brake is wired up on a relay that was controlled by the last cnc controller that it had in it.  I know for sure the Yaskawa drive can disable and enable the z axis brake when it needs too, but, it currently isn't wired to do so.  I have a couple questions:

1. Which is a better setup? To let the cnc controller control the brake, or let the servo drive control it? 
2. The z axis also has a pneumatic cylinder on it to help offset the spindle weight, and so I am not exactly sure if the brake is needed to keep it from falling while the cylinder has pressure, or if the brake is used only when the machine is powered off/no pressure.   Any ideas on how to determine what the brake is actually needed for?

Any help would be appreciated.  Thank you

6

General Mach Discussion / Z Axis Air Assist

« on: December 23, 2016, 03:44:56 PM »

Not sure if this is the right area to post this so sorry if not, my first post.  My router has a pneumatic cylinder on the z axis that assists / helps the servo lift the weight of the heavy spindle.  Does Mach 3 or 4 have any feature for linking the pneumatic assist to the z axis movement?  Will probably be purchaseing a CSMIO/IP-S for this retrofit.  Or would this just be tied to an output that is somehow triggered in GCode?  Thanks, Bryan