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Author Topic: New - First Question - X - Y - Z - Touch Off Plate - Screen and Script Request  (Read 14307 times)

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Hello,

I am brand new. I have a CNC router that I purchased recently. I have a touch off plate set up and working correctly. Currently I am using the "Blue Screen" and have a script loaded into the Auto Tool Zero Button.

I probably have this all wrong but the way I see it, the Blue Screen Set allows you to make corrections to the touch plate thickness for Z via a input box on the screen but I do not see any input box for corrections for tool radius on this screen for X and Y. Edit: I just learned that you can add a line into the script for touch plate thickness but I still think I will need a window to input tool radius. (not sure) ???

Objective: I want to use my touch off plate to find X and Y and be able to input the tool radius into a correction window.
I do not know how to make screens or scripts and I would like to download a screen and script that does this. (all tricks and techniques are appreciated)

Note the Blue screen has a neat setup for a center finder device but I do not need this. I just want to use the touch off plate for X - Y and Z.

Thank You,
Bill J.
« Last Edit: May 01, 2008, 03:15:56 AM by BJenkins »

Offline jimpinder

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Yes - the touch off plate has everybody fired up - and is a great thing  but if we are not careful it will lead to lazy machining.

All tool offsets can be entered in the tool table, and if you are approaching CNC in a professional way, all your tools are entered in here first.

I can appreciate that, unless you have some locking mechanism on your tool changer, then tool depth will vary, but diameter is constant and should be in the tool table. You can then use one of the many offset calls to put your tool in the right place.

It would only be a small addition to the script to then pull the diameter from the tool table, zero the DRO and add the diameter on each touch.

I will have a look at it and see if I can come up with anything - including your DROs for the diameter.
Not me driving the engine - I'm better looking.

Offline Chaoticone

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There was a nice thread on the yahoo group or CNC zone about this a while back. May want to do a search there for it. May have been posted here as well. Can't remember.

http://www.machsupport.com/artsoft/cnczone.htm

Brett
« Last Edit: May 01, 2008, 05:45:43 AM by Chaoticone »
;D If you could see the things I have in my head, you would be laughing too. ;D

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Offline jimpinder

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Here is a VB script you can try. I used the script from the other forum as a basis.

It takes information from the tool table, so your tool must be entered there, and selected as the current tool.

It basically touches a plate on the left of the tool, a plate in front of the tool and then touches the top of the work piece (or plate)
It sets the DRO's to zero + the tool diameter then moves the tool away a short distance.

If you take the plate(s) off, and type G0 X0Y0Z0 it should put the tool on the bottom left hand corner of the work, at the work level as a basis for starting work (although I am not necessarily saying that is where you should start from.

Be careful - I have not tested it

Download it then rename it with a macro number in the macro file of Mach3 e.g. M201

I have only given it 1 inch movement in any direction, therefore you should jog to with 1 inch of your touchplates before using it. Type in M201 and away you go.

« Last Edit: May 01, 2008, 06:50:40 AM by jimpinder »
Not me driving the engine - I'm better looking.
Thanks a bunch!

I will review the link, load my tools into Mach and download the script. I do understand that caution is required to prevent driving a tool bit into the table or work piece.

I will report back with my results.

Thank You,
Bill J.
Update:

Now that I have played with the “Auto Tool Zero” button, I would prefer to check one axis at a time. It’s a neat button and I may add a all in one script to it later on. 

The following refers to buttons that are found on the modified Blue Screen Set. There are four arrows, X+, X-, Y+ and Y-. There is also a Z arrow that I already have a good script for. To see this specific screen you can click on the link. Scroll half way down the page. I do not have any preference on the screen set but it does have the arrow buttons that I want to use. http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?p=436270#post436270

After experimenting, I became confident that I could touch off of X, Y and Z using the XYZ arrow buttons. I zeroed each axis after touching and after completing the touch routine for XYZ, I selected "Go To Z" and then selected "Regen" and finally “Cycle Start”. I’m not sure if this is the technique or sequence that most use or not but it seems to work.

There is a script associated with each of these XYZ arrow buttons. Now I need to determine if the individual scripts for the X and Y arrow buttons accomplish the following.   (I have a good Z script already)

(1)   I need the scripts associated with the X+ and Y+ arrow buttons to make the compensation for my touch plate thickness for X+ and Y+ only.  (not for X- and Y-) My touch plate is 0.0635 inches thick.

(2)   I need all the X and Y arrow button scripts to reference the tool selected in the tool information window and make the radius correction. It is important that this radius correction only be applied for the touch off script. My drawings already have compensated for the tool offset. My tools are in the Mach Tool Table as recommended.

A friend walked me through the Z script last night and I now have some understanding of what the script says but not enough to write the script from scratch. Below are the current X+, X- scripts. If changes need to be made, I should be able to edit Y+ and Y- the same way.

Thanks in advance for taking a look at them.

From what I see in these scripts, it does not make the corrections described above. But I really am clueless about the script language and codes.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is the current script for the X+ arrow button:

Rem   VBScript for probing in the x direction
If GetOemLed (825) <> 0 Then       'Check to see if the probe is already grounded or faulty
   Code "(Probe plate is grounded, check connection and try again)" 'this goes in the status bar if aplicable
Else
   Code "G4 P1"         'Pause 1 second to give time to position probe plate
   CurrentFeed = GetOemDRO(818)    'Get the current feedrate to return to later
   Code "F4"
Rem   Probe left
   XNew = GetDro(0) + 3      'probe to current position + 3 inches
   Code "G31 X" &XNew
   While IsMoving()      'wait for prob move to complete
   Wend
   XNew = GetVar(2000)      'read the touch point
Rem   move back to the hit point incase there was an overshoot
   Code "G0 X" &XNew
   While IsMoving ()
   Wend
   Code "F" &CurrentFeed       'restore original feed rate
End If
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is the current script for the X- arrow button:

Rem   VBScript for probing in the x direction
If GetOemLed (825) <> 0 Then       'Check to see if the probe is already grounded or faulty
   Code "(Probe plate is grounded, check connection and try again)" 'this goes in the status bar if aplicable
Else
   Code "G4 P1"         'Pause 1 second to give time to position probe plate
   CurrentFeed = GetOemDRO(818)    'Get the current feedrate to return to later
   Code "F4"
Rem   Probe left
   XNew = GetDro(0) - 3      'probe to current position - 3 inches
   Code "G31 X" &XNew
   While IsMoving()      'wait for prob move to complete
   Wend
   XNew = GetVar(2000)      'read the touch point
Rem   move back to the hit point incase there was an overshoot
   Code "G0 X" &XNew
   While IsMoving ()
   Wend
   Code "F" &CurrentFeed       'restore original feed rate
End If
« Last Edit: May 02, 2008, 04:37:06 PM by BJenkins »

Offline jimpinder

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It might be just as easy to add three appropriately reference buttons on the screen - marked set x, set y and set z or similar.

I have to go now - to run our miniature railway - but will have another look tonight. I will include a sketch of how I see your co-ordinate system working - it might be different to the ideas that you have - but we need to get the ideas correct before we write the script.

The main problem is agreeing on where X0Y0 is in relation to your diagrams.

To advance a little - and give you something else to think about -  what you are doing is setting home switches - all be-it moveable ones.
The correct way to do this is set permanent home switches - for which the routines are already in Mach3, and then do an offset move (G54 - G59) to move you to the appropriate position for your workpiece and program.
Not me driving the engine - I'm better looking.
Thanks very much Jim,

I have a friend in my area (Knoxville, TN) that went out of his way this morning to explain some things to me via a Skype Voice Chat. (2 hours)

Now, I do understand things much better regarding the touch off system or locating a part home. I would like to explain his method which is probably the standard techniques but I feel that I would use the wrong term or in some way confuse the issue.
I would like to overview my understanding just to see if you think I have a handle on it and if you think I should or should not edit the scripts.

The following is a new guy rambling about what he thinks he has learned.

In general, I now understand that I can use the offset page to correct for tool radius for X and Y for touch plate operation and at the same time, not affect the offsets that I already have made in my drawings.

Also, I believe I understand that I could add a script line for the X+ and Y+ arrows that would take care of the touch plate thickness or I can add this additional offset to the tool radius and type it into the offset window. Or I can touch via X- and Y- and not have to make a touch plate thickness correction.

All of my G-Code drawings (tool path) already has the proper offsets for each tool diameter. So I now believe that I do not select a tool in the tool window. I understand that I leave the tool window at tool #0 to prevent offsets from being applied in my drawing.

Please let me know if this is different than your method or if you have any points that you think I'm simply wrong on.

At first, I just wanted to push the X+ or Y+ arrow and (somehow)(via magic script) have the tool radius compensated for along with touch plate thickness. Since I already have offsets in my drawings and therefore I should not select a tool in the tool window, I think that I should make the tool radius offsets for touching off on the offset page.

I still would like to add a line to the script that would take care of touch plate thickness for the X+ and Y+ arrows. If you think this is the way to go, I can post the X+ and Y+ scripts.

Thanks, I hope I didn't cause frustration or confusion with any of this.  Any ideas are appreciated.

Bill J.

« Last Edit: May 04, 2008, 10:30:23 AM by BJenkins »
Hello,

I did get an answer to the script modification I was looking for on the following link. I do appreciate the help here and will continue to check back to see if other tips and techniques are posted.

A lot of detailed work has been put into this CNCZone thread by a man named Ernie.
http://www.cnczone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=56079&page=6

Thanks,
Bill J.
Hello again,

Are there some examples of the touch off sequence somewhere on this site? It would help me a lot to see the basic sequence that is normally used. It sure seems like there should be.

I have the scripts and plate working perfectly but I still have a lack of understanding regarding tool radius correction.
Questions like when do you make the tool radius compensation - before or after touching, where you do it, and so on.

A friend did explain this but I must be doing something wrong.

Thanks,
Bill J.