Topics

11

General Mach Discussion / GC-01 Gecko G540 Chiller

« on: September 08, 2009, 03:28:37 AM »

Homann designs is pleased to announce the GC-01 Gecko G540 Chiller is now available.



The GC-01 is a cooling fan system for the Gecko G540 4axis drive system. The GC-01 mounts to the back of the G540 by the supplies steel stand-offs, positioning the fans approximately 1/4" above the back plate of the drive.

The GC-01 will accept a DC power supply in the range of 24V - 50V, producing a regulated 24Vdc supply for the fans. This supply is also available for other uses, such as relay coils etc.

For more information see;

http://homanndesigns.com/store/index...products_id=75

cheers,

Peter.

12

General Mach Discussion / Engineering Note for a 4 Axis G251 Controller

« on: June 23, 2009, 07:49:30 AM »

Hi,

I just finished a new Engineering note EN009 that shows a System Schematic Of
a 4 Axis controller that uses the MB-02 BOB, DC-03 V3 DigiSpeed and four Gecko
G251 drives.

The Engineering note EN009 can be found at the bottom of the following page.

http://homanndesigns.com/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=59

Cheers,

Peter.

13

Promote and discuss your product / MP-03 ModIO Pendant Kit now Available

« on: March 04, 2009, 02:12:59 AM »

Hi,

The MP-03 Pendant Kit is now available for sale.

http://homanndesigns.com/store/index...products_id=74


The MP-03 is a Kit of Parts that can be built into a Robust and full featured hand-held Pendant. The Pendant is based around the modbus MC-01 ModIO controller and LCD display. A Mach3 plugin is also supplied that enables easy setup but allows for customisation of the pendants functionality.

Included with the pendant kit is the following documentation and software files:

• DXF file of pendant enclosure with cut-Outs
• Schematic diagram for the Pendant wiring
• GCode .tap files for milling the enclosure
• MP-03 Pendant Mach3 Plugin.

Please note: This is a Kit of parts and not an assembled unit. You will need to have moderate soldering and electrical wiring skills. Additionally, you will need to mill out the enclosure cut-outs. As an option you can have the enclosure pre-milled if necessary.

Cheers,


Peter.

14

General Mach Discussion / Christmas break and 24Hr sale on MPGs and Flexible Couplers

« on: December 22, 2008, 10:06:48 PM »

Hi All,

Homann Designs will be closed from Christmas Eve until the 12th January. Any orders placed after the 23rd will not be processed until after the 12th.

I've put a number of products on Sale for 24 hrs, Specifically the MPG encoder Wheels and the flexible motor couplers.

http://homanndesigns.com/store/index...index&cPath=15
http://homanndesigns.com/store/index...index&cPath=21

I'd also like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support during 2008, and to wish you a safe and happy festive season.

As to myself, my family and I are taking the camper trailer to the west coast of Victoria (Port Fairy) for a break. I hoping it won't be as hot as last years break. It got to 45 degs Celsius. Far too hot to be in a tent.

Cheers,

Peter.

15

General Mach Discussion / Spindle and Speed control Section

« on: December 08, 2008, 07:42:59 PM »

Hi,

I've noticed that there are quite a lot of questions regarding spindle control, speed set-up, etc. It may be an idea to have a forum section specifically for spindle and speed control related questions.

It would make my life easier as I'm happy to help advise in this area, but, I need to scan a lot of sections to find the relevant postings.

Just a thought.


Cheers,


Peter.

16

SmoothStepper USB / SmoothStepper now available in Australia

« on: June 12, 2008, 09:22:37 PM »

Homann Designs is pleased to announce that the SmoothStepper has now arrived in Australia.

http://homanndesigns.com/store/index...products_id=51


So Jump the Queue....   
The SmoothStepper is a motion control device that connects to the USB port of a computer. It accepts commands from a software package such as Mach3, and produce very high quality pulse trains that drive step & direction motors.

At this time the only software package it works with is Mach3, but a Software Development Kit (SDK) is planned, which will allow you to control the SmoothStepper with your own software.

Features;

* USB Replacement for 2 parallel ports
* Integrated into Mach3 via plug-in
* No external power supply necessary
* Generates pulse rates to 4MHz
* Up to 34 I/O lines
* USB cable supplied


Note: Overseas orders are also welcome.

Cheers,

Peter.

17

General Mach Discussion / Mach Pendant Kit

« on: May 20, 2008, 09:02:45 PM »

Hi All,

For anyone who has been after a affordable hand-held pendant, yet have more functionality than just a MPG in a box, have a look at the Kit Pendant I've been developing. The plan is to provide enough information, so that people can put it together themselves with a minimum of external help.

The thread is on the CNC Zone at;

http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57759


Cheers,

Peter.

18

Promote and discuss your product / 80mm and 60mm MPGs now in Stock

« on: January 24, 2008, 05:24:15 AM »

Homann Designs are pleased to announce that the 80mm MPGs are now back in stock.

The larger 80mm Encoder is perfect for CNC pendants and larger machines

The smaller encoder is most suitable for hand held pendants.

Further information may be found at;

http://homanndesigns.com/store/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=15

Cheers,

Peter

19

Show"N"Tell ( Your Machines) / ModIO Yaskawa Pendant Project.

« on: September 16, 2006, 04:28:54 AM »

Many moons ago, 3 or 4 years back one of the members on the Master5 group (told you it was a while back) offered for sale a Yaskawa CNC Pendant. These appeared to be new and were offered at US$50.00.  Not a bad buy for a US$3000.00 pendant. I'm not sure how many were on offer but I was lucky enough to snag one.

The Pendants contains;

• 100 ppr MPG
• 4 x 20 Character LCD
• 16 position Spindle Speed override switch
• 20 position Feed override switch
• Selector switch for 5 Axis
• +/- jog buttons for each axis
• The usual array of Keys for various CNC functions
• All key have integral LEDs to indicate status

The pendant contains a controller board to communicate with the CNC controller via a proprietary protocol. Not very Mach3 friendly. 
So, the plan was to replace the controller with a ModIO based one. Apart from making the pendant operational and useful. it will serve as a test bed for the development of the Homann Designs Pendants.

Below is a photo of the old and new ModIO pendant controller. As you can see the form factor is identical.




Below is a photo of the Pendant with the new ModIO controller inserted. I am very pleased with the fit.




The software is comming along quite well. It's heavily based on the ModIO functionality. I am having a problem with the Key matrix scanning module. Its picking up multiple columns on particular keypress. I'm starting to suspect it's a problem with the Pendant itself. Maybe it's the reason they were sold off cheaply. I need to break out the oscilloscope to track it down.

The pendant can communicate with Mach3 via Modbus, either RS232 or RS485. I'll most probably RS485 as I'll also be using a ModIO for my lathe toolchanger. As the Pendant runs off 24Vdc I'll need to make a purpose built breakout board. It will have a RS485 to RS232 converter on it.

If you look at the photo of the ModIO pendant controller, you'll notice that the board is Ver:1.0 and there are a few on board mods.

I know that there are others who also bought one of these pendants and if anyone is interested in upgrading their Yaskawa pendant with the ModIO Pendant controller, let me know. Sooner, than lather. 

I'll post more as the conversion continues.

Cheers,

Peter.