Messages

161

General Mach Discussion / Re: 'y' and 'z' axis working together?!?!

« on: January 28, 2009, 01:03:35 PM »

You do not say how you have wired yur three axis. I assume you have used stepper motor. Each stepper motor has a drive card which require a "step" wire, a "dir" wire and an earth wire.

I assumw you are using an LPT1 parrallel port output to your machine.

The outputs to the machine can be pins 2 to 9 and 1,14,16 and 17.

It is normal, but not essential, that you put X on 2,3  Y on 4,5 and Z on 6,7. 8,9 are normally kept for an A axis but can be used for other things. 1,14,16 and 17 are used for output to the spindle, etc.

These are allocated on Config/Ports and Pins/ Motor Outputs.

Make sure you motor drivers are wire to seperate pins, and also the allocation is properly done on Ports and Pins.

162

General Mach Discussion / Re: Axis substitution with Mastercam

« on: January 27, 2009, 04:41:06 AM »

You do not say what you are trying to do. It seems that you wish to do some engraving or similar cutting work on the side of a cylinder. To do that you seem to be drawing a flat picture, then wrapping it round the cylinder in Solidworks.

The problem is the diameter of the cylinder - and - therefore - the length of the picture or script.

Some people, faced with this problem, have the A axis set out as a linear axis, and adjusted the steps per unit to match the circumference of the cylinder (in fact they merely ran the A axis from the X or Y drivers as a three axis machine). This only worked on a fixed diameter of cylinder.

If you want to use a rotary or angular axis on the cylinder, then you will have to use mastercam to produce the GCode, and also have Mach 3 set up as A axis angular.

I have been thinking about the use of a fourth axis, because so many applications can be run on three axis. My own problem is milling large wheels, where my miller does not have the reach for a full wheel. The solution is to use a circular table and mill a segment, then rotate the table to the next segment. Do I need a fourth axis to achieve that, or can I do it manually.

I suppose the true fourth axis (i.e. angular) is the milling arm, where it is used to come in and drill, or machine a block of material at an angle. In the old days we would have to set up the workpiece at the correct angle, then mill it vertically. Today just tell the machine.

163

General Mach Discussion / Re: z axis losing position and plows into fixture...help

« on: January 27, 2009, 03:56:37 AM »

The code - fed into my office machine, seems to descride a circle, with two sidings.

The program seems to start on one of the sidings, describe an arc to the main line, run round the circle, and then turn off down the second siding.
It repeats that 3 times.

On the fourth time it joins the main line, travels round the circle, but it goes too far and cuts a third siding in the opposite side of the circle. This is a new cut at 0.525 depth and the same feed, where you have used three feeds to get to this depth on the rest.

The error, if it is an error, seems to be at line 700.

164

General Mach Discussion / Re: tuning motor issue

« on: January 27, 2009, 03:23:03 AM »

Louis - what you need to do is find out where the problem is.

I will assume you have your steps per inch/millimeter properly set, your acceleration is reasonable etc. I assume that both your X and Y motors are set to the same settings as each other.

What you need to do is check the X axis motor and make sure it is all working correctly. If it is, then, without altering any settings on Mach 3, change the four drive wires on the motors - i.e. run the Y axis motor from the X axis wires (nothing else needs to be changed). Turn to Mach 3 and jog the X axis, the Y axis should move. Put commands in the MDI line for the X axis, the Y axis should follow exactly.

If the Y motor does not operate correctly, then the fault is a mechanical one with the Y motor, or the slide etc of your mill. Check it for smooth operation, and make sure th gibs are not too tight.

If the Y motor works correctly, then connect the X axis motor to the Y driver wires, and check that (using the Y jog and controls) - see if that works. If it doesn't, the the fault is in Mach3 or the driver.

If you can, change the wires from the LPT1 socket to the drivers - X for Y again, and try running the axis. If the fault is on the same motor, then it is your driver, if the fault has changed, then the fault is in Mach, probably with the settings. (If you cannot physically change the wires, the reassign the wires on the Config/Ports and Pins page, this will have the same effect).

I do not know the Hobbycnc product, and how much choice you have about wiring it. If it is all prewired, then you cannot do much else. If it is not prewired, then you can use different pin outs to drive the axis, to check all the pins.

I can't go much further at the minute until you post some results.

165

General Mach Discussion / Re: Xbox controller,x axis moves the wrong direction on my lathe!

« on: January 26, 2009, 05:25:24 AM »

I don't know what an Xbox is, but the hotkeys function under Config assigns the keyboard keys to the various functions. If Xbox replaces the keyboards to a certain extent, the try there and see what happens.

Try using the auto assign function with it.

166

General Mach Discussion / Re: Newbie needs HELP with limit switches

« on: January 26, 2009, 05:18:46 AM »

There is a bit of a learning curve with limit and home switches. Post Hood your XML, and he will look at it. In the meantime I will try and explain the problems.

You do not say whether you bought the Syil  electronics with the machine, but I will assume you have.  As far as I see it the machine is, to a great extent, prewired, and shows the limit/home switches as 15,13,12 and 11 (x,y,z and a). What it does not say is whether that signal is +5v or 0v.

Go to Config/Ports and Pins/Inputs and  configure the "Home" switches of x,y and z to the pins shown - port 1, pin ** and enable them. Now come out of that, and change to the dianostics page and see what that says. The diagnostics page shows leds for all the switches. Are any of them activated - Yes or No. If the answer is No, then manually press the switches, or activate them and see if the led lights - if they do then all is well.

If they are already on, then you have them incorrectky configured. Go back to Ports and Pins, Inputs, and tick the "Active Low" box for each pin. Look on the diagnostics page, and this should extinguish the led's, and they should now light when activated.

If that is alright, then you are away, and your home switches will work.
Mach 3 knows when it is "homing", or is "limiting" and therefore you can use the same switches for both functions. If the switches are obviously placed for a limit function at one end (or the other) of an axis, then you can activate the appropriate "limit" on the Ports and Pins/Inputs page, ascribing the same pin number as you did for the home function. It does not say if there are switches at both ends of the axis, if there are, you can ascribe both limits. Don't worry about use, Mach 3 will pick out which function it needs.

Your problems will begin if your leds are not lighting at all, then we will have to start seeing why.
Try this first, and come back if you have problems.

167

General Mach Discussion / Re: Offsets for spherical tools

« on: January 26, 2009, 04:43:27 AM »

I'll concur with that.

If you search for visual basic on the forum, there is a complete list of Mach3 specific functions in VB somewhere, if you haven't already got it.

168

General Mach Discussion / Re: Help with G-Code?

« on: January 26, 2009, 04:35:52 AM »

The problem is the R command in the line.

This can be positive or negative. If you make it positive it will trace one way, if you make it negative, it will trace the other way. I see yours are positive, try and make it negative. If you do, you will see the toolpath alter to give you what you want.

Don't ask me what the rule is, I don't know. I always have this difficulty. Put it in as positive, look at the toolpath display - if it is wrong, change it to negative - thats what I do.

169

General Mach Discussion / Re: Introduction

« on: January 25, 2009, 03:29:32 AM »

Whats binary ?

170

General Mach Discussion / Re: Offsets for spherical tools

« on: January 25, 2009, 03:15:48 AM »

If you want to run a macro alongside GCode, then the macro must be written and then put in the correct folder so that Mach3 knows where to look for it. If you are using a Mill screen, then the folder is Mach3/macros/Mach3mill.

VB is a good program, in that you can check all your code before posting it, by stepping through the program. If the program won't step there is a fault, and it should be highlighted, or the cursor stops at the right place.When you first load the GCode, Mach 3 reads the program, complete with macros and displays it on the toolpath, so it gives you an idea whether you are right or not.

Be careful, because if the machine is attached and on, the machine will move in response to " Code" instructions. I write all my VB on a different computer, where I have Mach 3 installed, but not connected to any machine. In this way I can run the complete GCode, with Macros.

If you look at the video tutorial on scripting and copy say the part where you download the tool change position from the user DRO's for a test, this will get you going. Rather than writing complex codec, keep it simple, using easily recognisable variables. Then do the maths, and then write out the code to the machine. This is one of my macros for  rounding off a bar.

Rem Round End swinging arm

Code "G0 Z-17"

For depth = 0 To 10 Step 0.25

xpos = 26.34 - depth
Code "G0 X"&xpos
Code "G1 F25 Y15"
Code "G0 X"&(xpos+1)
Code "G0 Y-1"

Next depth 


For getting parameters from DRO, write them into variables first named something like oldxpos, oldypos, oldzpos usiing simple instructions like

oldxpos = GetOemDro(**)
OR
newxpos = GetUserDRO(***)

do whatever you want with it, then either post it back to Mach3 e.g. SetVar(10,newxpos) or write the code for the machine to run using Code"G1 X"&newxpos &"Y"&newypos  etc.

the machine runs as though you are writing the code on the MDI line, the only drawback being that you cant see it, the program just shows the macro number, not the macro itself.
I write some comments in the VB for the macro to post to the machine and it appears on the comments line, to let me know whereabouts the macro is, since some of them take an hour to run, where they are thinning down bar stock, then putting the profile on.

Stick at it.

If you email me and tell me what it is you want to do exactly, I will write some code for you, but I am a bit busy for the next three weeks, although I have some free evening time this first week.