Thanks Daniel:

  Ill release a new zip package soon with new driver and dll. The new one will show version numbers of the dll and the driver so we can start to track any troubles. Ill also turn on frequency driven spindles..

Art

Okay, another night of frustration.  Nothing I seem to do causes Darwin to even acknowledge that the configured parallel port is active.  Despite the fact that I'm using all the same settings I have my Mach3 configured for and runs whenever I start it.  I don't know if it has something to do with my Windows 7 config or something up with Darwin.  None of the pin statuses change in the Darwin configuration screens or in th Mach4 Diagnostics tab when I physically manipulate them.  The configured port (0x9C00) is the port being used by Mach3 and I see it in the device manager.

Current configuration:

  - Fresh installation of Windows 7 Home Premium with updates.
  - Darwin2014-1.0.zip (from this thread)
  - Mach4 1.0 build 1889 (same behavior with 1888)

I will attach the screen shots of the Darwin configuration windows as a zip to conserve space, but include the the PulseStats and Ports Control windows in-line to show that Darwin appears to bless my machine and that I have PP configured and enabled.




These images are from Darwin after I start the plugin configuration from Mach4. 

-Freeman

Hi Analias:

   I have to say all looks very good. Your pulsing is good, the way your turning things on and off looks good. waterfall is great..
In fact it all looks good. Id have to say its working. Yes, I hear your responce. " No it friggin isnt..". (I also respect the amount of
rustration your likely feeling.). Happens to me too when faced with the impossible.
   So, whats next? Id have to test right at the printer plug. Im convinced its working. If your port address is definitely the same as
your mach3 address then it must be working. Logically then, what could cause it to fail. We have enough reports of working systems
to know the port address selector and pulse code works ok.. also i/o works ok. So what could stop it is the question. I can come up with
only 1 real suggestion to eliiminate any possibility of charge pump's or something turning off the breakout board and making it look as if
it isnt working when it really is.

  So try this, ( first Ill annoyingly ask you triple check the address is correct as logic dictates it the highest chance of being the trouble,)
then Id ask you to unplug your printer port plug .
   Your pins are all showing a low., ( Except pin 11 but thats a special pin that the motherboard negates, so its really low as well.)

  The only way input pins can be low is if their held there by an input, otherwise many of them will pull high. So simply unplugging the
printer port plug should change the ports dialog to show some highs as the display shows the raw input data, nothing else. Makes
no difference as to system settings or config, raw data is raw data. Im thinking perhaps a breakout board is holding everything low
until it sees a proper charge pump signal.. so lets eliiminate just one problem.. unplug the plug, does anything read high or does anything
change? ( And triple check the port address...just in case...yeah I know..   )

Art

Oh..just one more comment because Ive been caught by it.. Make sure the ACTIVE port of Mach3 is the one your using. I had a system with 2 ports,
and I used port #2 really, and port 1 wasnt used. But when I converted I used the port1 address, which didnt work as port 2 was the correct one to use.
  So just ensure the port is correctly the one Mach is using.. I only mention it because as I say I was once bitten by that..

Good luck
ARt

Art,

I effectively side stepped the issue.  My X3 controller was using a PCI PP card that the original owner installed.  I enabled the PP on the motherboard and set it in EPP mode.  The Darwin plugin configuration and Mach4 now see changes from breakout board.  With any luck, I'll have Mach4 moving my axis in a very short while.

-Freeman

Freeman:

  Way to go!..

Art

Art,

Is the version of Darwin supplied in this thread limited to the first two motors?  I am getting "Too fast" errors in Mach4.  I thought I read or heard that this version had the motors all enabled.


-Freeman

Art,

Most functions in the Darwin configuration screens seem to be working with the exception of jogging with any of the motors and triggering Charge Pump #1 (pin 17).

When I have motors 0 - 2 (x,y,z) enabled and I try jogging none of the jog LEDs light, the job box border turns red, and the state of the configured pins never changes.

The same with the Charge Pump #.  I can toggle the pin in the config screen and nothing happens.  I've tried with Freq set to 0 and 100Hz.  The only thing I can do in this screen to change the stage of the PP is to negate the signal - all it does it toggle the state of the pin on the PP.  Do I need to set the charge pump frequency (I think the charge pump is frequency triggered).

I suspect all of these are related to a root cause.  I'm hoping you can hit me with the clue bat, you may have to hit me several times 


-Freeman

I figured out the issue about enabling jogging and the charge pump.  The Emergency signal needs to be configured correctly.

Freeman:

   Yes, and the frequency of most charge pumps is about 12500 hz. as I recall.

Actually, the rest has ot be configured properly for mach4, but when testing there is a button on the ports
page that shows the drivers ESTOP condition, you can press reset to make it green at which point all signals will
work when toggled and the motors should drive.

Art