Messages

571

General Mach Discussion / Re: What has gone wrong????

« on: March 08, 2014, 04:03:37 AM »

Not sure what you mean by "the terminal". I'm guessing you mean the work-clamp (what you were calling plasma ground). Is that correct? If so it should be connected to your table. Then you should have an earth strap from your table straight to a good ground - (or earth rod) but not to a ground point on your cabinet.

It's hard to tell from your pictures but they look like you don't have a good enough connection to your work with the work-clamp. If you have it connected to your table, try connecting it direct to your work. 30A should cut 1.5mm steel at around 5 to 6000mm/min no problem.

572

General Mach Discussion / Re: What has gone wrong????

« on: March 07, 2014, 10:09:50 AM »

12 - The frame of the table (and therefore the cutting bed) is not connected directly to my star point, I am guessing this is catered for by having the cabinet bolted direct?

Dave - As you're discovering plasma is a noisy beast. I'd strongly suggest you ground your table direct to ground - if anything this is THE rule for plasma systems. I'd certainly not use your cabinet. Grounding is never as straightforward as perhaps we'd like but I'd be thinking your passing all that noise straight into your cabinet and onto the electronics ground plane.

Just to be clear I'm talking about TABLE GROUND. Your work lead is NOT plasma ground. I know a lot of folks call the clamp plasma ground - but it isn't - it's actually the current source +ve lead.

Also what type of plasma start does your cutter employ?

573

General Mach Discussion / Re: LPT port "active low", "active high"???

« on: February 27, 2014, 04:26:56 AM »

E-Stop signal to Mach

Many ways to skin this puppy - but two are:

input pin ----------- NC switch --------------- ground (set pin Active HIGH)

or

input pin ----------- NO switch --------------- ground (set pin Active LOW)

The first is generally preferred.

574

General Mach Discussion / Re: LPT port "active low", "active high"???

« on: February 25, 2014, 01:01:06 PM »

ACTIVE just means exactly that i.e. what voltage (high or low) ACTIVATES whatever function is attached to that pin. You shouldn't think of HIGH as ON or LOW as OFF.

Charge pump puts out a 12.5KHz signal on an output pin i.e. the VOLTAGE on the pin changes from high to low at that frequency. It is only present when Mach is running and out of reset. You can configure it (like any other output) to be on any output pin you like - not just pin 17
 

575

General Mach Discussion / Re: A Puzzler: Is the Parallel Pin connected to the GND side or the PIN# side?

« on: February 25, 2014, 09:22:07 AM »

Your first drawing uses one pin so presumably you have each of the three home pins set to that pin number. Your second drawing uses three pins so you have each home pin then set to those three pins - yes?

Re: your E-stop - something is not as it seems - are you sure it's a NC?

If in doubt - please post your xml and autozero button code.

576

General Mach Discussion / Re: Limit rapid speed from a digital input

« on: February 18, 2014, 10:15:36 AM »

Ha ha but DRO 104 is Rapid Feedrate DRO which to me means it is showing the actual rate in Units per Min (if in G94) that the axis is moving after you have applied a Rapid Override %

Ha ha ha back - but DRO 104 doesn't do that - well not on my system anyway.... Doesn't matter what % you set DRO 223 to it makes no difference to the value in DRO 104. HOWEVER if you PUT a value in DRO 104 AND click Button 287 then it will not only override the NEXT rapid rate it will override any override % set by 223.

Anyway for Gary if he writes to OEM 223,  with the % of his rapid that  he wants, it will do as he wants

As I said - you were and are correct. (As long as he doesn't override the rapid override...   )

Ian

577

General Mach Discussion / Re: Limit rapid speed from a digital input

« on: February 18, 2014, 09:08:55 AM »

LOL - You've displayed DRO 223 on your screenset as a DRO but the standard set formats DRO 223 as a slider - i.e. they're the same thing. a slider is just a DRO that's drawn taller than it is wide - so just strike out the word "slider" in my previous post.

Anyway look - you were right. (But so was I - depending on WHICH DRO called Rapid Override you choose (223 or 104)) But then you were REALLY right because you said % whereas the other Rapid Override DRO is units/min.
Still - at least garyhlucas now knows to use the rapid override DRO rather than the rapid override DRO in his macropump or Brian.  

Ian

EDIT:

The one you are talking about is the actual rate that the Rapid will be moving at after you have set a %

Nope. like I said above, I'm talking about DRO 104 on the settings screen of the default set. You can change the DRO directly and it does what I said above...

578

General Mach Discussion / Re: Mach3/XBOX 360 Controller Question

« on: February 18, 2014, 08:26:03 AM »

Hi John - I think you've been suckered into responding to bunnyhudson's reply who for some reason chose to use his second post on the forum to reply to a 5 year old thread (which seems to be quite a popular hobby amongst a lot of noobs these days) . 

Ian

579

General Mach Discussion / Re: Limit rapid speed from a digital input

« on: February 18, 2014, 08:16:13 AM »

LOL - I think I see what's going on. I think you're talking about the slider (DRO 223) on the program screen labelled "Rapid FRO" which is indeed a % and I'm taking about the DRO (104) on the settings screen labelled "Rapid Override Rate" which is in units/min. Yours does what you say and mine does what I said.

To make things even more confusing, in the OEM spreadsheet your "Rapid FRO" is called "Rapid Override" and my "Rapid Override Rate" is called "Rapid Feedrate" so the opposite of the screen labels.

All that said - I always thought there were rapid moves and feedrate moves so WTF Rapid Feedrate is supposed to mean I don't know - particularly as it doesn't affect feedrate in any way. Problem is then that you have your DRO (slider) and my DRO which BOTH override RAPIDS (not feedrates) but do it in different ways (% vs units/min) at different times (now and later).

This is the second time in two days I'm going to say "dog's breakfast".

580

General Mach Discussion / Re: Limit rapid speed from a digital input

« on: February 18, 2014, 05:53:58 AM »

Hmmmm - Nope - I don't have No FRO on Queue checked. I have 50 in my rapid override DRO and whilst doing a 10000mm/min rapid I click the rapid override button and it doesn't reduce the rapid but it does reduce the next one. Also if I try it with rapid override already checked and change the value in the DRO during a rapid that doesn't come into effect until the next one either. Maybe I'm doing it wrong.

PS - I also notice my rapid override DRO is unit/min not a %.