Hello Guest it is March 28, 2024, 06:25:18 PM

Author Topic: Pokeys 57CNC board setup  (Read 2168 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Pokeys 57CNC board setup
« on: May 28, 2019, 12:33:20 PM »
I am having problems trying to connect up a Pokeys 57CNC board to Mach 4. I previously had mach3 and ran directly from the parallel port to my Gecko G540 controller. I have a newer Win10 64bit computer and I am using Ethernet to talk to the Pokeys board. It connects and talks just fine. I made a IDC to DB25 adapter cable and then plug in my old parallel port cable to it to go to my Gecko G540. I verified that all pins had continuity on my adapter.
What is confusing me is how to just talk to the motors and make them move. The Pokeys tech support says that all the IDC/DB25 pins are fixed mapped and that I dont have to map them. So what do I do in Mach 4 to make it work? I have enabled motors X,Y,Z,A to motors 0,1,2,3 and set their step parameters the same as was in Mach 3. Do I need to go into "outputs" and define anything for things like "Spindle On", "Jog X++" etc.
I dont have a charge pump so that is disabled on the G540 and is not Enabled in the Mach 4 config.
I have tried to follow what Pokeys published for mach 4 setup but it does not cover setting mach 4 up. It stops at that point.
I would appreciate any help from someone who has connected up a Pokeys 57CNC board before.

Thanks
Scott
Re: Pokeys 57CNC board setup
« Reply #1 on: May 28, 2019, 05:40:01 PM »
1.why not connect directly from Ethernet to pokeys
2.did you run pokeys setup to establish the connection
3.did you put the correct constant ip
Re: Pokeys 57CNC board setup
« Reply #2 on: May 28, 2019, 10:12:42 PM »
One thing you might want to check is the wiring of the motors, the manual is misleading for Pokeys57cnc.  This post has a good discussion about this, and a drawing.

https://www.machsupport.com/forum/index.php?topic=39468.0

I struggled for a while until I learned this.

Offline gorf23

*
  •  183 183
    • View Profile
Re: Pokeys 57CNC board setup
« Reply #3 on: May 29, 2019, 08:48:43 AM »
I assume they mean setup the motors as externally dedicated in the pokeys config with no pin assignment.
Re: Pokeys 57CNC board setup
« Reply #4 on: June 02, 2019, 04:51:37 PM »
1.why not connect directly from Ethernet to pokeys
2.did you run pokeys setup to establish the connection
3.did you put the correct constant ip

1: I am doing this
2: did that also
3: yes.
The one big "fundamental" problem I finally realized, after watching a video of someone talking about the Pokeys57CNC board, is that I am not plugged into the DB25 IDC connector. I am plugged into the Pendant IDC connector. Ugghhhhh! Stupid error.  :-\
After I switched to the correct one most everything started moving. I found a connection issue with the X-axis direction signal but fixed that.
Thank you, everyone, for your replies. I felt like one of "those" PC tech support callers who can't figure out why their PC won't turn on when they have the power strip plugged into itself.
Scott
Re: Pokeys 57CNC board setup
« Reply #5 on: June 02, 2019, 06:07:40 PM »
some thing misunderstanding here
you answer you use Ethernet
 then after you said you use"DB25 IDC connector."
my friend this 2 kind of connection   

Re: Pokeys 57CNC board setup
« Reply #6 on: June 03, 2019, 09:56:12 AM »
Ethernet is to the Pokeys57CNC board then out of it is a IDC 26 pin connector that then converts back into a DB25 to connect to a Gecko G540. So it is both but in and out of the board.
Re: Pokeys 57CNC board setup
« Reply #7 on: June 03, 2019, 10:57:35 AM »
I finally got it all working. Dumb error on my part, I had the DB25/IDC connector plugged into the wrong spot on the Pokeys57CNC board. I was in the pendant connection not the DB25. I switched it a it all works now. I was also able to get my spindle ON signal to work using one of the axis enable pins. I tied the spindle on to the Xaxis enable pin and then that pin on the G540 terminal that it turns on powers my relay switch that turns my spindle on.

Scott