Has anyone successfully used a Mach3 control to replace an outdated control on a commercial embroidery machine (with multiple heads). Are you willing to sell or share your knowledge?

Regards,

Jeffrey

Jeff,

There are quite a few postings here on that topic. http://www.machsupport.com/forum/index.php/topic,13859.0.html

Perhaps if you PM Khalid he may be able to give you more details of his setup and software.

Tweakie.

Tweakie .. thanks for answering.....I confess I don't have much knowledge about the embroidery machines.. i started working on making a Software that can generate G and Mcodes for the embroidery format DST... As you will be aware that the Tajima file format better known as DST format has some information of X/Y (Hoop) movement for each stitch and color change... the DST file format is complex binary coded so you can not open and read it directly..

As the embroidery files are abundantly available on the internet with DST format, so i decided to  make a GCODE EMBROIDERY SOFTWARE that can import DST file and convert it into usable Gand Mcodes..
The Gcode file then can be used with CNC converted sewing machine and you can make perfect replica... The one limitation is that we use Mach3 for driving the embroidery so SPM (stitches per minute) is very low..or you can say that you can not get more than 200 stitches per minute.. We are currently working on how to improve our Speed..but i have lot of others project running...

I make this software for only one reason... The commercial home embroidery machines having very small hoop area.. I made my machine with a hoop of almost 10" x 8".. I use WILCOM software to create the embroidery and then export it into DST format.. Import the file in my Gcode Embroidery software (This software is Public domain, and i kept it free for all hobbiest but not can be used commercially)....

Following is the link of the thread at CNCZone...
http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57404

Following is the download link of  the final version of my software...
http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57404&page=33

Following is my blog where you can see my work..by clicking the pictures they can be seen in large size...
www.my-woodcarving.blogspot.com

Best Regards

Hi Khalid, I looked for the download link for your software, but I could not find it. Could the program be emailed? Thanks, Jeffrey

I am familiar with embroidery amchine as my wife has 2...

I have also thought of using a program like mach for a quilting machine - similar process, just differnces in the amount of detail.

My thought is that the easiest way to do the operation would be to have a sensor in the sewing machine main shaft and use it to inhibit motion when the needle is moving down. I don't know how quickly Mach would respond to that signal. The other way would be to stop at the end of every move and cycle teh needle. That might be more like the way the original embroidery software worked.

It would be more work... But seeing as you have already created teh software to convert from DST to G-code - you might look at some existing sourcecode for a CNC control (there are a couple out there for DOS) and modify it so that the needle finction doesn't have to be explicitly programmed - it is a added function at the end of every move.

I have worked a little trying to decode the Janome format and there are 2 types of moves - a stitch or a position. A position move leaves a thread that needs to be cut. Kind of like G00. All the other moves would be G01 with a stitch at the end.

Hi,
The needle fuction is very simple... You can just download my software and play with it.. You will find how the needle is controlled through Gcode..

Khalid,

Like Jeff - I can't find the download link to your software either. It is not on the page you have given http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57404&page=33

Is it on your website ?.

Tweakie.

The link is on page 3. Just drop off the last 3.
Jeffrey

Thanks Jeff. 

Khalid, please disregard my last post - thanks to Jeff the link is found.

Tweakie.

But the Link is at Page-33 and in midway between the page..I think Post 388 and post No. 389 are the latest version.. You have to read all the Posts in Page No.33 to get the software working.
Regards