Hi all, new here. Long first post but hoping I can get some help here
I got a cnc press brake that needs a new control system and am wondering how hard it would be or if its even possible to use Mach 3 to run it. Some of the specs.
-Has (well will have) Y1, Y2 hydraulic ram axis's with servo valves and linear encoders. Valves will require a +/- 10vdc signal, encoders have to be bought yet so whatever works here. Need the control to close the loop.
-Has 2 servo motor axis for back gage (X and R) control that I will probably upgrade with DMM tech servos and drives that could be run on a step and direction and closed loop at the drive.
- Has an ac gear motor with brake for a crowning axis adjustment with encoder feedback. Assuming I can control this with a VFD with a Fwd/Rev signal and let the VFD operate the brake and have a set ramp to it. Optionally could convert this to a servo motor setup with closed loop at the servo drive. As is I need the control to close the loop from the encoder feedback.
- Has adjustable pressure via a Nachi valve, the driver for this requires a 0-10vdc analog signal. Currently is no feedback on this, I would like to put in an electronic pressure sensor and atleast have a readout of the pressure though, but that should just be a 0-10vdc input.
-Also have a dual pedal foot control that I would want to use to step through the program.
I'm assuming I would need to run a Galil card or something of the like to do the closed loop stuff correct?
Now onto the controller questions. I need Y1 and Y2 to be slaved together but yet be adjustable some times for tilt adjustment, is it possible for mach to do this with like a button on the screen to bump like the left side of the ram down "x" amount?
The machine has a fast approach speed of the ram that is achieved by activating a pair of solenoid valves that switches the high pressure oil to a smaller inner cylinder (inside the large ones) and letting the large ones suck oil direct from the tank, Is it possible for Mach to run this? I'm thinking one would have a rapid speed move to a clearance ht above the material, then maybe the ram has to pause for a split second while these solenoids switch back to putting the high pressure oil to both the large and small cylinders for pressing speeds. Would be good for it stop above the work anyway so operator can make sure sheet is up against the stops.
Would it be possible to prgram this by means of a table of sorts that let you fill in stuf like bend 1 angle, bend1 tab length, bend 1 ht offset, and then bend2 and bend 3 etc? Maybe a way to set up tool offsets for the different punches and dies I might have, say lower dies are work offsets and punches are tool ht offsets. Lower die offsets would affect the ht of the back gage stops (R axis).
Can Mach do bend angles from a stored table that I can fill in from test bends or past work? I mean like with this punch and die, with this material and this thickness, Y has to go this far into the metal to get 90 deg bend or 45 deg bend?
I know its alot of questions, and thanks in advance for any help. I see some guys here have made some neat tubing benders on Mach3 and it looks like my project should be doable, but I have to figure out the details. I have seen Bigtoy's cnc press brake build on dynomotion with Mach 3 and like it as well, but I believe he programs it with G code, and I'm hoping I could do something like a fill in the blank thing to program or it will wind up too complicated for anyone but me to run the thing, not that that is all bad, but it would be nice if it was pretty easy to teach someone the basics of operating and doing a simple new program on it.