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Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« on: May 03, 2017, 03:29:59 PM »
I have the Gecko G540 and I'm trying to set it up with Mach3 ,what are the correct settings that mach3 needs to be set.

Offline Tweakie.CNC

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Re: Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« Reply #1 on: May 04, 2017, 02:02:13 AM »
The G540 Users Manual shows the switch wiring configuration.
The following shows the Mach3 Inputs set-up for the switches.

Hope this helps.

Tweakie.
PEACE
Re: Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« Reply #2 on: May 06, 2017, 04:22:13 PM »
Hi,
I'm guessing you're setting up Mach for the first time and are probably somewhat confused about the choices to make, I certainly
was when I was setting up my mill for the first time.

As Tweakie has shown you it is possible to assign an input pin to each home switch, one per axis. You could in fact assign limit
switches individually also, two per axis but you would run out of available pins with the 540. The method I adopted largely because it
seemed easy to understand at the time was to have one home switch per axis, one Estop and one limit switch input for a total of 5 inputs.
I was using a single PP and BoB at the time and so 5 input was all I had and if I'm not mistaken the 540 has the same limitation.

I bought and fitted three top quality roller plunger microswitches and fitted one to each axis and assigned one input each as a home switch.
Given that your home switches set the zero machine reference of your machine at each turn on it makes sense to use the best and most
repeatable quality switches/sensors to establish it. Limit switches are fitted at the end of all three axes, one at each end for 6 switches.
They are all wired normally closed and in series and assigned to just one input. If any one limit switch goes open the machine faults out
and you will have to manually bring the machine back into bounds before you can reset it. Because all of the limit switches are combined
Mach cant tell which axis is out of bounds nor can it tell which direction triggered the limit. You will have to inspect the machine and decide
how to handle each 'out of bounds' excursion.

You will no doubt have read that you can combine home and limit switches and in interests of saving inputs and the number of switches
many do. When homing the machine temporarily looks to the limit switch assigned to the axis being homed as home switch. If any of the
limit switch 'string' opens then Mach will interpret that event as home switch for the axis being homed. There could be mistakes, for instance
if a Y axis limit switch was accidentally triggered while Mach was trying to home the X axis then homing is compromised and a later crash
or out of bounds error likely result. Having said that lots of people do it this way without problem. I would still recommend that the switches
which will double as home switches be good units to achieve best repeatability.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'
Re: Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« Reply #3 on: March 03, 2018, 03:43:04 AM »
I have two switches for the x axis, one on each end. I have one switch for the y axis with adjustable stops on each end. I have two switches for the z axis, one at the top and one at the bottom. As I have it wired, I have both of the x axis switches wired in series and connected to input 1 of my G540. The y axis switch is connected to input 2. The two z axis switches are wired in series and connected to input 3. All of the grounds are tied together as in the Gecko manual.

The problem I'm having is that no matter how I configure the settings in ports and pins/inputs, I cannot get the z axis switches to do anything. When on the diagnostic tab, I can see the switches for x and y light up the appropriate input light, but the z axis never indicates anything and will not trigger a stop. I have checked continuity of the switches for all of the axis and see no difference in the measurements with my Fluke meter. I have checked all for voltage too... All three of the above circuits show zero volts to ground in a normal state. If I engage any of the switches from any of the circuits, I get approximately 11 vdc. I don't know if that voltage is correct but it does show that all 3 circuits are functioning exactly the same and that all of the switches are connected NC. I have all three inputs enabled in Mach3, (++, - and Home) for each of the axis. Also, all three inputs use the same input pin for each axis, 10 for x, 11 for y and 12 for the z.

I changed the physical wiring terminal of the z axis switches to the #4 pin of the G540 and changed the input pin to 13 in Mach3. This changed nothing as far as the way the z axis switches are not functioning.

Is there a simple fix for this? Should I wire the switches so that I have each home switch has an individual input... x to input pin 10, y to 11, z to 12 and connect the remaining switches in series to input pin 13? Maybe there is something else mis-configured in Mach3... Maybe my G540 is malfunctioning. I wouldn't think so, but not ruling it out.

Other than this issue, everything seems to be working perfectly, even the spindle control.

What am I missing?

Tony
« Last Edit: March 03, 2018, 03:46:25 AM by dorrisant »
Re: Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« Reply #4 on: March 03, 2018, 04:45:21 AM »
Hi,

Quote
Should I wire the switches so that I have each home switch has an individual input... x to input pin 10, y to 11, z to 12
That was what I recommended in the first place but you've done something different.

If you have three home switches, one for each axis and each on its own pin you will need ANOTHER SIX switches for the limits, one at each end of each axis,
they can ALL be in series NC and connected to ONE pin on the Gecko. As it stands you have what amounts to limit switches on each axis with each axis
having its own pin.

The real problem you have is that somehow you are confusing Machs pin numbers and the Geckos pin numbers and your Z axis switches are not being 'seen' by
Mach. I you can solve that you can probably get the existing arrangement to work.

Craig
'I enjoy sex at 73.....I live at 71 so its not too far to walk.'

Offline TPS

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Re: Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« Reply #5 on: March 03, 2018, 06:09:37 AM »
can you post your xml please.
anything is possible, just try to do it.
if you find some mistakes, in my bad bavarian english,they are yours.
Re: Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« Reply #6 on: March 03, 2018, 10:22:25 AM »
Craig, I will try to configure the switches as you said... Each axis will have a Home switch connected to the Gecko. So X will go to input one, Y to input two and Z to input three while the remaining switches (connected in series) go to input four. In Mach3, I will assign X Home to pin 10, Y Home to pin 11 and Z Home to pin 12. I will then assign X++, Y++ and either Z++ or Z-  to pin 13. Does this sound correct?

I'm sorry, I do not understand what the XML is that I should post. I will surely do this if it is explained.

Sorry guys, I am new to this kind of configuration. I sure appreciate the help though.

Tony
Re: Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« Reply #7 on: March 03, 2018, 10:32:29 AM »
Also, I was under the impression that all switches for the X axis were to be connected to a single input of the Gecko and assigned to it's own pin in Mach3... This may indicate my error.

I was also under the assumption that you could use just one switch for limits and home for each axis...

I'm not saying the above statements are true, I'm just showing you the logic I followed. This detail may reveal my error(s) to you.

Thanks again.

Offline TPS

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Re: Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« Reply #8 on: March 03, 2018, 12:13:12 PM »
I'm sorry, I do not understand what the XML is that I should post. I will surely do this if it is explained.
Tony

c:\Mach3\Your profilename.xml
anything is possible, just try to do it.
if you find some mistakes, in my bad bavarian english,they are yours.
Re: Limit switch set up on Mach3 with the Gecko g540
« Reply #9 on: March 03, 2018, 12:15:43 PM »
I found it but am having trouble trying to post it. I keep getting this error:

"Sorry! There is already an attachment with the same filename as the one you tried to upload. Please rename the file and try again."