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Author Topic: Question on 4 Axis Toolpath?  (Read 7125 times)

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Offline Mauri

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Re: Question on 4 Axis Toolpath?
« Reply #30 on: January 13, 2020, 10:01:55 PM »
SMAV,
The only way it will display correctly on the Toolpath is if the Top of your chess piece is Z=0 and Z=0 in the Mach4 setting.
If Z is set to anything else it will NOT display correctly in the Toolpath, however it will cut correctly.
This makes it very difficult when cutting anything but a previse round shape to the accuracy you want to cut.
For example if you are cutting it out on say a 25mm diameter steel rod that is accurate then if the G-Code has Z=0 as the top of the Rod you intend to machine then it will display correctly in the Toolpath as well as display correctly.
So when you load your G-Code it will display correctly, however as soon as you enter the correct Z height it will not display correctly.
In other words Z being ZERO at the Centre of the Part then it will NOT display correctly, but Z = 0 at the TOP of the Part then it will.
So until the fix this issue, it is best to ignore it.
Regards,
Mauri.

Offline smav

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Re: Question on 4 Axis Toolpath?
« Reply #31 on: January 14, 2020, 01:42:00 AM »
I figured out most of the issues I am having. The script as Mauri wrote it is for a machine with the rotation along the x axis. Once I realized that I could get the tool path to display correctly as long as I set the DRO value correctly. However if I change the 0 value to 1 for the button down function in the " mc.mcToolPathSetARotationAxis(inst, 0)" It will and does give me the picture I posted above and changing the DRO value does not correct it. I took the same gcode for the piece above and changed all the Y coordinates to X and it did display correctly. I also changed the setting for the rotation in the toolpaths tab as well to say "Rotation along Y axis." So it appears the orientation is correct but the value I am entering in to the dro is not correcting it like it does when I use it in the X axis.....Any suggestions on that?...Thanks

Offline smav

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Re: Question on 4 Axis Toolpath?
« Reply #32 on: January 14, 2020, 01:20:36 PM »
Thanks Mauri for the clarification on that. That was one of the things I figured out last night after I realized I could get the chess pieces to show up correctly in the X axis. I also noted that DRO value that you enter corrects for the z position. What I was attempting to accomplish last night was to be able to swap the rotation to the Y axis, which I thought I could accomplish by changing the zero to a one in the script for the "A rotation" button down script and it would orientate the piece on the screen correctly but the when you enter a value for the dro it moves the z axis but does not regenerate the toolpath like it does when it is set for the X axis.

April of 2018 Dazed+Confused listed the script that was need to correct for the z axis so the radius could be adjusted or corrected to show the toolpath. He wrote "mc.mcToolPathSetAAxisPosition(inst, 0.000, 0.000, getValAsNumber);" for the "dro Radius" which would be the x, y value to be 0 and the z is whatever you input in to the dro. That is what I believe makes the correction so that whatever the work piece Z zero position is, it can be corrected for the toolpath generating. When I wrote that line of the script for the DRO as you stated " mc.mcToolPathSetAAxisPosition(inst, 0.000, 0.000, 0.000);" and tested it I found as you stated the g-code has to have the top of the work piece as zero.
I am going to attempt to work on getting it to swap to the Y axis again tonight and be able to have it correct it with the dro radius  value but if you have any ideas I would appreciate it. Using the code Dazed+Confused published back in 2018 works for the X axis as stated but simply changing the axis value in the line “mc.mcToolPathSetARotationAxis(inst, 0)” from 0 to 1 doesn't seem to work as itended.

Offline smav

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Re: Question on 4 Axis Toolpath?
« Reply #33 on: January 15, 2020, 12:28:59 PM »
The script that Dazed+Confuse shared in this thread back in 2018 works for objects orientated on the X axis, does anyone know how to get it to orientate and work on the Y axis?

Offline smav

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Re: Question on 4 Axis Toolpath?
« Reply #34 on: January 27, 2020, 12:43:42 PM »
If anyone is able to get a rotary toolpath to show up orientated along the y axis, it would be appreciated if you share it here......thanks