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Author Topic: Arduino or Pokeys  (Read 5644 times)

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Offline dresda

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Arduino or Pokeys
« on: February 17, 2014, 01:49:11 AM »
After a year of screwing around with my MPG (from Audrey in Russia, and by the way, it's a nice piece of kit with the LCD and 16 buttons) and now I find out that DSPMC motion controller doesn't support USB MPG's after I don't how many emails back and forth, Oh well. So now I have to connect some buttons and a joy stick and stuff, I have a pokeys56 but don't see much in the way of help yet I see loads of help on U tube for the Arduino, is this the same thing?
What should I use as I am not very good when it comes to electronics, pity that bloody MPG didn't work would have solved all my problems.
Ray.

Offline Hood

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Re: Arduino or Pokeys
« Reply #1 on: February 17, 2014, 02:29:58 PM »
Think if you went with the Adunuino you would have to write your own plugin unless  someone has already written one that you could get.
Hood
Re: Arduino or Pokeys
« Reply #2 on: February 17, 2014, 02:37:31 PM »
Hi Dresda:
If you are asking "is Pokeys and the Arduino the same thing?", the answer is no.

The Arduino is a basic micro-controller using the Atmel family of micro-chips, designed to run a variant of the "C" programming language, with about 12 digital I/O pins, some of them capable of PWM (Pulse Width Modulation), and 5 analog input pins. It is a  do-it-yourself black-box device, and a great tool for learning a lot about basic electronics.

The Pokeys family of devices are dedicated micro-controllers written in a compiled computer code, which is not accessible to the user. The devices have 53 I/O pins that have specifically designed functions to communicate with the Mach3 program, using a built-in library of all the Mach3 OEM codes. The firmware is upgradeable from the Pokeys web site. They have 2 very detailed operation manuals explaining all the Pokeys functions.

There is also a Pokeys section in this Mach3 forum.

Regards,
John

Offline dresda

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Re: Arduino or Pokeys
« Reply #3 on: February 17, 2014, 03:04:53 PM »
Ok so I will use my Pokeys 56 that I bought last year. I haven't touched the bloody machine since last year, and I mean last year... DSPMC has drove me up the wall with treading problems, MPG problems. I liked the RU LCD shuttle from Russia because I didn't have to try to figure out how to wire switches it had 16 + shift 32 buttons + LCD but it doesn't work with DSPMC, It almost works but NOT! buttons work but not the MPG or jog to rapid function which would have been nice, you could rotate the out ring up to 70 degrees slow or fast and that controlled the jog up to a rapid. So now I have to remember how to turn the machine on again and figure out the pokeys, wish I could find some video on hooking up simple stuff like jog switches and stuff, nothing fancy or is it that simple, don't want to read the manual that all foreign to me. Just ordered a mini keypad with track ball that should help, now looking at buying a touch screen monitor, will any touch monitor work, any thoughts? I'm fed up pending money on stuff that doesn't work.
Regards, Ray.

Offline poppabear

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Re: Arduino or Pokeys
« Reply #4 on: February 17, 2014, 03:30:45 PM »
There is also the Arduino Mega, has 50+ i/o, Several Analog channels, PWM, multiple communication interfaces, you can drive all kinds of electronic devices: LCDs, Graphic touch screens, steppers, MPG's (encoders) motors, etc. Basically everything the PK can do plus more, and you have control over the code, and the hardware, and it is MUCH cheaper you can get them at the local radio shack.

I have one here that I use to run 5 steppers, Spindle (pwm with analog feedback), with a LCD/Graphics touch screen, matrix keys, some spi driven devices and you can chain them with the multiple serial I/O channels.

I set up serial coms with it by using the source code that Brian released to do a Serial plugin, just added in my I/O commands to/from it.

Like any thing, what you choose to use will depend on how much you want to have control over, verses having someone else do the work for their product for you.

Scott
fun times

Offline dresda

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Re: Arduino or Pokeys
« Reply #5 on: February 17, 2014, 09:08:51 PM »
This is not really a hobby, I just want to get these two machines running were I can use them without weird stuff happening, I know it's not a Fanuc, you get what you pay for, I guess the stepper method is a no brainer until you talk analog motion control then it's a whole different story, I just thought after 20,000 controls sold I could just buy stuff and plug it in. Getting back to my last question, will any touch screen work with any screen set?
Thanks. Ray.

Offline Hood

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Re: Arduino or Pokeys
« Reply #6 on: February 18, 2014, 03:02:08 AM »
Quote
will any touch screen work with any screen set?


Yes, whether a screenset will be useful with a touch screen is another matter. For example if it is a cluttered screenset with small buttons then it may be hard to accurately select the button you require.
Hood
Re: Arduino or Pokeys
« Reply #7 on: February 18, 2014, 09:48:16 AM »
I just purchased a 23 inch acer touchscreen from best buy for $319. It works perfectly. I mounted it  right on the outside of  my ikeiga fx20. The screen is so freakin big that the little controls are not so little anymore. I used a cheap VESA mount so I can swivel  it to perfect alignment with my position. It makes everything so much simpler. No need for a pendant with this setup. Only problem is I want that screen everywhere in my shop now.

Offline dresda

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Re: Arduino or Pokeys
« Reply #8 on: February 18, 2014, 04:56:31 PM »
Hi Hood, what about the one you have created, does that work ok.
Ray.

Offline Hood

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Re: Arduino or Pokeys
« Reply #9 on: February 18, 2014, 06:03:44 PM »
Yes, thats why I primarily created it, although it has changed over the years its still very similar to the original :)
Below are screenshots of  my original and the ones I use now but all are really customised to my individual machines, that is the beauty of not using a background image to delineate areas. It means if I want to create a slightly different screen for a different machine it is just a case of moving things around and adding or deleting things.
Hood