Messages

621

General Mach Discussion / Re: Looking for an alternate (small) video window

« on: February 18, 2009, 07:41:04 AM »

I tried Centrecam but it has a major flaw- it wont stay on top of the mach window and while its on top it grabs the keyboard focus so you cannot control mach. If you click on the mach window the video window drops under so you cannot see moves. The only way around this would be 2 screens, or to really shrink the mach window which is unworkable.

I really like the software centering feature of CentreCam. I guess we need to lobby Brian to add that tothe mach video window.

622

General Mach Discussion / Re: Looking for an alternate (small) video window

« on: February 17, 2009, 03:38:59 PM »

I have just mounted a cam on an arbor and tried the video window. Its neat, but I have some mechanical concerns about the stability of a plastic camera mount. The mach video probe seems to require that you  do some mechanical calibration to center the image. I dont see how a plastic mount will be reliable

I looked at the CentreCam web site and see he made a nice metal mount, but I see no provision for alignment, so it must be in the software. I got the software to work, but cannot seem to figure out how to use it or to align it. There doesnt seem to be a help file or any form of documentation, even though there is a help button on a screen- it does nothing. The web site has no listing for a contact.

Has anyone got Centrecam working? Is there any way to get in touch with the developer?

623

Newfangled Solutions Mach3 Wizards / New version of CopyCat, V1.1

« on: February 10, 2009, 09:03:22 PM »

I have completed a new version of the CopyCat wiard. There are several interesting changes.

1) Z movements have been changed. It occurred to me you would not want to make actual Z Movements while you were probing a part, but you obviously need to make Z moves in the code. So I have added a Zup and Zdown button. There is a DRO for a safeZ and for a Z depth. Pressing these buttons will enter the Gcode, Zup will do a G00 to Z 'safeZ' while Z down will first do G00 to 10% of the Zsafe value, then do a G01 to the Zdown value.

2) I added a Cancel button to the arc commands. I think I have fixed the issues about getting into arc mode and not being able to get out.

3) I have added a second screen with Probe functions. This will use a touch probe and find an edge in either of the 4 directions, or it will find a circle center. If you wanted to find a corner you could first find one edge, which will save the last probed value, then find the second edge.. Finally, RAISE THE PROBE above the work and click the GoTo Probed value button. You could then return to the main screen and use that location for one of the movement commands.

I also added the code from German Bravos Circle Center wizard. If you dont have a touch probe you can still find the center of a circle by this method. Note you can combine the center finding, using the 3 point calculations, but finding the location by an X or Y probe move.

I improved the Help file, but its still a long way form the Manual Rich wrote. Sorry Rich, I made all these changes just after you wrote your manual!

The code is below, just unzip the file into the Mach3\Addons folder.

Any feedback is welcome, hope you like the changes

624

Newfangled Solutions Mach3 Wizards / Re: COPYCAT - "KOOL"

« on: February 08, 2009, 09:30:29 AM »

Thanks for the notes.

I have never played with a video cam. I think I have one around here, Ill dig it out and try a few things.

Screen design is tough- there is already to much stuff on this screen, and the organization is not the best. I really need to learn to use a draw program so I can generate better buttons, and Id like to make 2-state LEDS to make some displays easier.

Delete last move might be hard, but I can simply add a cancel button for arc or circle so you can get out of it.

I remember having trouble getting the full circle/arc stuff to work right. I though I had it, but its been a year since I did all this. I will do some testing and see if I can fix it.

I was thinking about a second screen to put the probing stuff. Maybe that would also be the place to do the video window. You could click to the second screen, do your jogging or probing until you had the machine wherever you wanted it, then return to the main screen to select the object button.

I have also consideerd putting all the setup stuff, like feeds, spindle control, etc on another screen. It would be kind of a startup screen, but you could go back to it if needed. It would give me more room on the main screen to make it neater.

I will do some experiments, maybe post some test version here.

I do not think your 'biggie' is possible. The way the VB subsystem works in Mach each time it is invoked its a fresh start, and its not possible to use functions form other wizards. I think you can do what you want with a simple comment- use CopyCat to collect the base points, then where you want to later insert a block of code just place a comment- (add bolt circle here). Then when you have built your base program go to an editor and drop in the other code. Not as neat as being able to jump in and out of other wizards, but it can work.

625

Newfangled Solutions Mach3 Wizards / Re: COPYCAT - "KOOL"

« on: February 07, 2009, 10:14:28 PM »

I am working on adding a probe function into CopyCat. It will let you find the center of a hole, and the edge of a part. I should have something ready in a few days.

626

Newfangled Solutions Mach3 Wizards / Re: COPYCAT - "KOOL"

« on: February 07, 2009, 06:28:26 AM »

I will have a look tomorrow. Ive been on the road, I will get home later today.

thanks for the effort on the manual, Im sure it will be helpful

627

Newfangled Solutions Mach3 Wizards / Re: COPYCAT - "KOOL"

« on: February 02, 2009, 09:14:40 PM »

I was wrong! the reset button was supposed to be the standard reset, actually it is 'reset feed override'. I simply selected the wrong entry on the list in screen4. Il get a fix out for that.

628

Newfangled Solutions Mach3 Wizards / Re: COPYCAT - "KOOL"

« on: February 02, 2009, 07:49:53 PM »

The lower left corner has the standard mach e-stop or reset button. Its a plain button, probably should have made it the common red image button, then it would be more obvious.

629

Newfangled Solutions Mach3 Wizards / Re: "Graphics" run in preview

« on: February 01, 2009, 11:35:15 AM »

In the latest version I have added a gcode window to the preview screen, so now you can see both the code and the path. When I want to watch it run through the code, like when Im testing the order of cuts, I just scroll down the code window, that highlights the tool path with the current line. It seems to me that does the equivalent of the preview.

The preview button on the main screen is a not a VB function its coded into Mach. I cannot get that from a wizard.

630

Newfangled Solutions Mach3 Wizards / Re: COPYCAT - "KOOL"

« on: February 01, 2009, 11:27:06 AM »

Glad to hear you like CopyCat.

You should not need the Jog page, CopyCat allows the jog functions to work- at least all the keyboard jogs. I dont have an MPG hooked up, but it ought to work, as should the Shuttle Pro. Ill go check it out with my ShuttlePro.

INPUT VALUES:
What would be nice is to have two MPG's set up one for the X & Y and just scroll around to move the axis's.
Couldn't get the jog shuttle to come up, thus the manual movement. Would be nice if the values came from
Mach's DRO's.

You are missing something here- the whole point of CopyCat is to get the direct input from the DROs. You jog around with the keyboard until you are at a point, then click the button for the kind of move you want- rapid or feed. CopyCat reads the DROs and builds the code.

Note the important difference between this and Brians Jcode plugin. That one records every move you make with a jog. CopyCat only records the points you select, so if you have to jog back and forth until you hit an exact point it will only record that point, not all the moves until you got there.