Messages

691

CVI MachStdMill (MSM) / Re: How to get started with MSM Probing

« on: August 14, 2010, 11:09:52 AM »

I just read the whole guide and then went thru and printed pages 111-122 in the manual. There is more to it than I thought. The manual did answer my earlier question of probing a hole of a specific diameter to calculate the tool tip size. Are you or have you ever considered teaching professionally? You are very thorough in your explanations and I cant see you rolling your eyes at me! It is wonderful to have people like you share their knowledge and work so openly. Maybe all teachers start out like this and then some of us students wear them out? Great work.

692

CVI MachStdMill (MSM) / Re: How to get started with MSM Probing

« on: August 14, 2010, 10:39:09 AM »

Dave, just to help me understand. The "edge width" is used to calcualte the amount of angle you are varying from being perfectly square with your axis? What does the "Calibration Diameter" do? I am getting better at operating the probe but these variables dont seem to make a change in the operations that I can see. I am having much better luck at center finding a hole than I was. There might be a bit if noise on my machine. I had my debounce set to 500 (though I dont remember why) prior to your suggestion of setting to 100 for the set up. I do see it say face not found occasionally but I cant tell if noise or incorrect parameters triggered it. The way I understand the debounce, doesnt it require the signal be of a minimum time period to trigger so errant spikes wont trigger it? If the setting of 100 is too low during this testing is there a safe maximum debounce setting? If my debounce is increased to accomodate the noise should I slow my feedrate? Seems like the longer the trigger signal would also mean the axis had traveled farther prior to reacting. Is that close to correct?

693

CVI MachStdMill (MSM) / Re: Probing and touch plates - your MSM experience?

« on: August 14, 2010, 10:19:46 AM »

I called it a probe at 3' in length and a diameter of .155. Havent you heard of A2ZCNC's Monster Mill? :-) I have worked thru the beginning steps with out too much problem. It seems that pressing the "probing ver" is essential after changing any screens. Or at least I dont see the "probing ver xx.x" at the top of the screen after a switch. Not sure if it effects anything but I do get some inconsistencies. I will keep working thru your steps. All of my + & - probing worked fine in single step mode. However when probing an edge (which I am not sure I understand yet) it does some inconsistent actions. Again thank you so much for your help and the manual. I have not read the probing guide the whole way thru but I will get it working if at all possible.

694

CVI MachStdMill (MSM) / Re: Probing and touch plates - your MSM experience?

« on: August 13, 2010, 04:56:09 PM »

Ok set up the probe and unchecked the active low. In tool 250, I called it a probe at 3' in length and a diameter of .155.  I insert the probe into the middle of a hole and use the centering probe icon in the wc page. It moves in 1 direction touches and just goes a little past the start point and then says X+ is out of range. If I use it as an X+ edge finder it seems inconsistent. Usually it returns to the same place but it occasionally seems to retract the specified distance. ?

695

CVI MachStdMill (MSM) / Re: Probing and touch plates - your MSM experience?

« on: August 13, 2010, 03:55:54 PM »

I am using a PP, mach .016, Beta 5 of MSM and Xp pro. A device to connect the touch plates and the existing probe would be great. Can they get 1 here this week? I think the issues with the probing so far are set up issues or operation. It does stop and retract just fine. It just doesnt seem to go far enough even though the distances specified are plenty large to accomodate it.

696

CVI MachStdMill (MSM) / Re: Probing and touch plates - your MSM experience?

« on: August 13, 2010, 03:42:12 PM »

The 74LS06 IC is an open collector device. It will not try to apply an input voltage to the input pin of the BoB - the Open collector device looks like a normally open switch to the input pin.
Dave I totally missed that one (74LSO6 IC). I was only seeing the resistors. I gathered the power was going to have to come from the machine side to keep the isolation however I do appreciate the clarification. I will have to look into where to get a prebuilt circuit like that. I could still use my probe and run thru your routines til then I would think. It would be cool to have all 3 implemented. Is there a way for a tools diameter to be measured and updated similar to the length? Seems like a round hole of a known size could do it. I am still working on getting the probe to work correctly in your screens. Works fine as a G31 but seems to do something wrong in your probing routines. More settings, I am sure.

697

CVI MachStdMill (MSM) / Re: Probing and touch plates - your MSM experience?

« on: August 13, 2010, 02:02:53 PM »

The board provides no interface circuitry except pullup resistors on pins 10, 11, 12, 13 and 15. (Pins
1, 14, 16 and 17 are available on the board but do not have pullup resistors).
The board provides no conditioning for any of these pins - just a pass-thru
connection.

I see the need for the parallel connections so any 1 of the (now) 3 N.O. switches can trigger it. My board appears to have the pullup resistor built into pin 15 (the 1 use presently for my probe). Til this point I have been running a touch plate (moveable) and a probe seperately but changing the active low status with each application. I am beginning to see the light. I just need to look at your circuit a few more times and figure out which side of the board to get this 5v from? Or if that is needed.

Due to budget cuts, the light at the end of the tunnel has been extinguished.

698

CVI MachStdMill (MSM) / Re: Probing and touch plates - your MSM experience?

« on: August 13, 2010, 01:45:35 PM »

I have a hobby cnc pro board and have been using pin 15 for my input. I am not sure about the pull up resisitor though I do know about the "Magic Smoke", I tried it once, maybe twice. Didnt see any real magic in it. I will be back rewired!

699

CVI MachStdMill (MSM) / Re: Probing and touch plates - your MSM experience?

« on: August 13, 2010, 11:58:12 AM »

Dave
I see you mention that you can connect all of the touch plates and probes together (in series I am guessing) to use only 1 input. You do mention this in the instructions and even show a wiring diagram of which I am having a hard time grasping. My (Zarzul's actually) probe is active low"x" and the touchplate is opposite, correct? At 1 time, when I first installed it. I had my probe connected incorrectly or the way you are reffering to and it seemed like all was well but the led's rersponse. Am I missing something? Between the ears? Help fill that void with knowledge!

700

VB and the development of wizards / Re: Break-In Wizard

« on: August 13, 2010, 11:47:18 AM »

OK, got a chance to run it. Great work. Easy to set the parameters any way you like. It runs as many cycles as you select. I am a little confused on the spindle warm up .tap. My wizard does activate the spindle (m3) but I am not sure if it fluctuates the speed. I notice if I run the .tap file for spindle warm up it just runs the spindle with no axis movement. Is there a way to call this up at the same time? I am thinking that it would be like calling for a tool change.  Anyway it seems to work very well and thank you.