Messages

6391

General Mach Discussion / Re: mach3 use ACK250 and MPG on LPT2

« on: October 08, 2017, 04:36:08 AM »

Hi,
sorry my slang enuf=enough.... so you have plenty of inputs, more than is required.

Craig

6392

General Mach Discussion / Re: Spindle RPM and Threading Problem

« on: October 08, 2017, 01:09:05 AM »

Hi,
you've got a lot of things on the go, no wonder you're getting confused. Start with getting the spindle to run then worry about other stuff.

When you manually turn on either of the contactors does Mach see the input signals? You should see the LEDs for the inputs you've used on the
machine diagnostics page. When you MDI either an M3 or M4 are the solenoids coming on as they are meant to? Does the spindle start to
rotate and does it eventually come up to speed?

I think what's happening when you MDI an M3 or M4 the spindle speed DRO is reading the current S command, that is to say the speed that the spindle
should get to not its actual speed.

If you turn the spindle manually does the index signal show on the machine diagnostics page? Once you get the index to work and work out how to
get Mach to read the actual spindle speed THEN start thinking about threading....threading without all these other things working is a joke.

Craig

6393

Mach4 General Discussion / Re: New people welcome !! Come in here and introduce your self!

« on: October 08, 2017, 12:46:29 AM »

Hi Dennis,
welcome. Post some pics of your controller and/or the manual. Should be able to help.

Craig

6394

VB and the development of wizards / Re: Doubts about M6 macro

« on: October 07, 2017, 08:16:49 PM »

Hi,
I've changed to Mach4 and was never very good at VB when I was still using Mach 3, however:

Code: [Select]

x = GetToolChangeStart(0) 'X igual a 0
y = GetToolChangeStart(1) 'Y igual a 0
z = GetToolChangeStart(2) 'Z igual a 0
a = GetToolChangeStart(3) 'A igual a 0

is the means that Mach recalls its last know position. Within Machs core there is a variable that stored the last X value prior to the toolchange
and GetToolChangeStart(0) is how you access it.

Not sure about question 2). I don't have an ATC so in my Gcode programs which have an m6 toolchange I wish the machine to halt UNTIL I
hit <cycle start>. Do you require the machine to resume automatically? If you do then program a cycle start... something like DoOEMButton(nnn)
which is equivalent to a button push and if nnn reflects the number of the Cycle Start button your good.

Question 3) I am confused, you say you are using an output...so Mach is sending a signal to your breakout board....and then activating what?
I think your terminology is confused, you should send a signal TO Mach with an input. Aside from the confusion of terms what can you tell me about
the signal. I have seen on professional spindles a contact that detects if a tool is in place. It is a mechanical switch and doesn't require Mach or any thing
else to be running for it to be read. Is the signal you've got like that? If it is your toolchange macro would just read the state of the input, ie whether
a tool is already in place and do one set of instructions if it has and do another set of instruction if it hasn't. The m6 macro shouldn't have to run for
the signal to be valid.

Not clued up enuf on VB to tell you how that last structure would work in practice.

Craig

6395

Mach4 General Discussion / Re: Touch Panel for Control

« on: October 07, 2017, 07:33:42 PM »

Hi,
Graham posted this only a few weeks ago, might be just the ticket for you;
http://www.machsupport.com/forum/index.php/topic,35438.0.html

Craig

6396

Mach4 General Discussion / Re: Touch Panel for Control

« on: October 07, 2017, 07:28:47 PM »

Hi,
yes. A touch screen is a function/feature of your PC, Mach3 or Mach4 don't actually have to do anything. I recall seeing some posts where someone
had made a screen especially for touch screens, the buttons were bigger. M ost standard screens are so jam packed with buttons, Dros, Leds etc that
you touch the screen and could be indicating several items, not just the one you intended.

6397

General Mach Discussion / Re: mach3 use ACK250 and MPG on LPT2

« on: October 07, 2017, 07:23:11 PM »

Hi,
you have enuf inputs why not use them.

There are a couple of ways that you could economise on inputs.

For instance you've got three inputs for 1,10,100. If you had a push button and you pushed it once the machine would cycle to the next level, from 10
to 100 say, push again, from 100 to 1 and so on. It would require only one input not three and be nearly as good.

I notice also that you have 4 inputs to select x,y,z,a. You could reduce that to two inputs say I1 and I2:
I1 and I2 off means x
I1 on and I2 off means y
I1 on and I2 on means z
I1 off and I2 on means a

Still if you have enuf input as is why bother to make things hard?

Craig

6398

General Mach Discussion / Re: mach3 use ACK250 and MPG on LPT2

« on: October 07, 2017, 01:53:24 PM »

Hi,
no. The ACK250 is a motion control device. LTP2 requires Machs parallel port driver which is also a motion control device.
Mach can only have one motion control device active at once.

I'm not familiar with the ACK250. Can you post a manual? Does it have spare inputs? The only pic I've seen of it suggests it might.

Craig

6399

General Mach Discussion / Re: Servos vs Hybrid Steppers with CS labs controller

« on: October 07, 2017, 09:26:39 AM »

Hi,
what sort of encoder is fitted?. It will have a bearing on the controller.

Craig

6400

General Mach Discussion / Re: Servos vs Hybrid Steppers with CS labs controller

« on: October 07, 2017, 09:19:52 AM »

Hi,
yes. Looks like all of it needs to be hooked up. the -15V,0,+15V supply outputs can be used to synthesise the command input. An +15V enable signal
must be applied to term #8.

0V is applied to pin #10 and a voltage between +10V and -10V applied to pin #11. This voltage could the output of a pot spanning -15V and +15V
or a slowly varying signal from a signal genertor. The speed of the servo should follow the input voltage.

The servo/drive combination has no ability in itself to detect or fault out under following error. It does have an armature over current fault, Thus if the
command input is stepped in a sufficiently aggressive manner the servo will attempt to follow but fail to do so as the armature goes over-current and
faults out.

If you had an oscilloscope you could monitor the encoder output to ensure that it is available for the position control loop.

Craig