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Author Topic: Everything has gone haywire  (Read 4851 times)

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Everything has gone haywire
« on: October 26, 2006, 10:51:43 PM »
It all started back at the end of summer...but I'm just getting around to fixing it now. I'm running G320's with a Campell board.
My router has 3 axis, with Y and A slaved. Y started to fault constantly at the end of August. I replaced the breakout board, but it wasn't the board. I replaced the driver, but it faulted again. Today I replaced the encoder on the Y motor, all power/encoder cables and put line drivers on all four encoders, figuring that the distance warranted them.

Now, the only motors working are the Z and the Y.
X and A lock up like they should, but do not respond to any jog commands.
Unhook the power to the motors, and move the axis...the Gecko fault lights go on like they should, indicating that the encoders work. Pull off the encoder cables, of course all the motors take off like blue striped apes. Reverse any motor's wiring and the motors jerk around like they normally would.
The breakout board's LED's show that it is getting signals from the PC, for all the axis when I try to jog in different directions. But the x and a motors just sit there...dumb. I'm wondering if something in the Mach 3 config has changed, but I can't see it for looking at it.

I'm going back outside to shuffle around the drivers and see what happens. (I really don't want to do this though.)

I'm perplexed by the perplexity of the situation. Anybody been here before???

Thanks

Offline Chaoticone

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Re: Everything has gone haywire
« Reply #1 on: October 27, 2006, 08:19:16 AM »
Hello Lindsay,
    Do the 320s have the blue push on connectors as do the 201s. By the picture on their website it looks like they do. Mine started doing crazy stuff once and this was the problem. It tried to drive me crazy. Those connectors will push on in two positions. 90 degrees from one another.  I was taking my meter probes and checking across the screws that tighten the wires, everything was as it should be. This was a false reading. They were loosing connection between wire connections and pin connections. I pulled the connector off, rotated 90 degrees, problem went away. Contacted Gecko and they sent new ones, no questions asked. Not sure if this is your problem but would be worth checking.

Brett
;D If you could see the things I have in my head, you would be laughing too. ;D

My guard dog is not what you need to worry about!
Re: Everything has gone haywire
« Reply #2 on: October 27, 2006, 03:41:38 PM »
Yes they have the blue terminals; they are delicate little things.
I've put them all in a box today and am sending them back to Gecko.  We'll see what happens. I've gone nuts trying to sort this out.
I'll put in intermediate screw barrier strips so I don't mess with the driver connectors anymore.
Meanwhile-no router.

Regards

Offline Chaoticone

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Re: Everything has gone haywire
« Reply #3 on: October 27, 2006, 03:51:21 PM »
Lindsay,
    Did you try rotating the connectors, or swapping drives? Did you confirm that these are the root of the problem?
;D If you could see the things I have in my head, you would be laughing too. ;D

My guard dog is not what you need to worry about!

Offline chad

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Re: Everything has gone haywire
« Reply #4 on: October 27, 2006, 04:09:15 PM »
It sounds to me that it is time for one of those methodical pain in the @$$ top down debug sessions. Start with the power go wire by wire don't assume anything, meter every wire out and know exactly where they start and stop. Check fuses (measure continuity not just look at it). then check the motor / encoder wiring slowly and carefully. then move on to the computer/ breakout board. Take it one pin at a time. If you have a scope this really helps, if you don't a led and a 330 ohm resistor can help trace problems on the 5 volt ttl side. Make mach out put something and make sure that you are getting what you should be. Double check your encoder A /A , B /B it6 is easy for things to pop up here. You will figure it out, it will probably be something stupid and you will want to hit your self in the head with a brick. I know i have. I find it helps to draw the entire system out as a schematic and then compare the sch with the actual...

Good luck.
Chad

Offline Chaoticone

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Re: Everything has gone haywire
« Reply #5 on: October 27, 2006, 04:47:15 PM »
I could not agree with Chad more. Earlier I was suggesting one place to check that I had problems with. There is no better felling than trouble shooting, finding the exact problem and repairing it. ;D There is a lot of people on this forum to help. :)
;D If you could see the things I have in my head, you would be laughing too. ;D

My guard dog is not what you need to worry about!
Re: Everything has gone haywire
« Reply #6 on: October 27, 2006, 06:31:09 PM »
I've done everything I can think of outside of the control box. Cables, motors and encoders are fine. I've rebuilt the cables totally ,( power and encoders)  checked, checked and checked wiring on the terminal connectors. We had a tornado back at the end of summer and the power went nuts around here for a couple of weeks, as the crews were out pulling trees off lines and such. All my grief seems to have happened after this - I don't know if the events are related or not. Makes for good drama though.
It is likely something inside the control box, but I'm walking away from it for a couple of days - just to clear my head. I don't tend to get into a hurry firing things up anymore. I usually walk away, then come back after some time off then look over things again: find all kinds of kinky things.
While the equipment is down, I'm building a new, swanky looking control box, (I've been sitting on some swell aluminum sheets for a while). New SS relays (I just got some cheap), barrier strips, lights, knobs, wire, extra wraps of bindertwine, library paste, etc. and anything else laying under the workbench. Reinstall Win2000. (why not? it'll build character if nothing else)
While rebuilding, I will do as you say. Test it precept upon precept, line upon line, pin by pin, wire by wire. Doubtless, as it always is, something will show up that will make me feel stupid.
If nothing else, this will give me time to learn how to use Rhino.