Messages

346

Parallel Port breakout boards, motherboards, and dedicated accessories / Re: PMDX-122 Ethernet smooth stepper install

« on: January 30, 2015, 03:04:00 PM »

**EDIT** IGNORE THIS PARAGRAPH ** It is the ENCODERS that are shown connected to board #2
Figure 11 in the PMDX-122 User's Manual shows the motors connected to board #2.  That was only for ease of drawing.  The motors may be connected to either board.
*********************

The numbers on the two boards (#1 and #2) are for reference only and they do not necessarily reflect which PC (or ESS) parallel port they should connect to.

If the Mach3 configuration (Config->Ports & Pins, then click on the "Motors" tab) has the motor step and direction signals assigned to pins on port 1 (i.e. the "step port" and "dir port" are set to "1"), then connect the ESS port 1 to whichever PMDX-122 has the motors connected to it (that would be PMDX-122 #2 as show in Figure 11 in the PMDX-122 Users' Manual).  Likewise, if the Mach4 configuration has the step and direction signals on port 2, then connect the ESS port 2 to whichever PMDX-122 has the motors connected.

I assume I have to translate the pin numbering to match the unconventional numbering of the smooth stepper, is this the case?

I'm not sure what you mean by "unconventional numbering".  As far as I can recall, the SmoothStepper numbers its pins the same as a standard PC parallel port.  ESS Port 1 has output pins 2-9, 14, 16 and 17, and input pins 1, 10-13 and 15.  Port 2 is the same except that there is a SmoothStepper setting that allows port 2 pins 2-9 to be inputs instead of outputs.

** SEE MY NEXT MESSAGE **
Bob

347

SmartBOB controllers and dedicated accessories / Re: Newbie growing pains PMDX422

« on: January 29, 2015, 09:55:57 PM »

Bob,  I followed the path and did not see a value labeled overall rating, they provided a base score of 5.9.  Graphics is 6.4 and gaming graphics is 6.4.  Let me know if I can provide anything else.  By the way, I have no time pressure when I get everything running it will be an upgrade to my existing system which is running fine on Windows XP/Mach 3 now.

My apologies for not replying sooner.  Those numbers look more than sufficient for the PC to be responsive enough.  I regularly run Mach4 and our plug-in on machines with ratings around 3.2 to 3.4, with the low score coming from the graphics performance (motherboard graphics chipsets are not barn burners, performance wise).  All I can guess (and it *is* a guess) is that some other program or service that is running is occasionally pre-empting Mach4 for substantial lengths of time (close to 1 second).

Regardless, there is a new firmware and plug-in release that should help avoid the motion underruns.  This version changes how our plug-in schedules data transfers to the device.  See this announcement:

http://www.pmdx.com/PMDX-Forums/index.php?topic=45.0

Give this a try and see if you can then set the motion buffer length closer to the default value.  Note that this new plug-in will only run on Mach4 build 2192 (and newer ones when released).

Bob

348

Parallel Port breakout boards, motherboards, and dedicated accessories / Re: My PMDX-126 Thread

« on: January 29, 2015, 12:50:03 AM »

When you say:

they came on individually for both forward & reverse when the codes were typed in

Just to be absolutely clear, do you mean that when you entered the "M3" command the "Fwd/Run" LED on the PMDX-107 came on and the "Rev/Dir" LED stayed off.  And when you entered the "M4" command  the "Fwd/Run" LED went off and the "Rev/Dir" LED came on?  And that both of these LEDs were not on at the same time, right?

If this is the case, make sure that you've set parameter 11 in the VFD to "0" (zero).  And verify in your copy of the VFD manual that param 11 = 0 makes B6 mean "run forward" and B7 mean "run reverse".  Also verify that this setting means the inputs are "not latched".

Here is a test you can run.  Remove the wire from the "Fwd/Run" terminal on the PMDX-107 (which should be connected to the B6 terminal on the VFD).  There should now be NO signal connected to the B6 terminal.  Then move the wire from the "Rev/Dir" terminal on the PMDX-107 to the "Run/Fwd" terminal.  Now go to Mach and give it a non-zero spindle speed and an "M3" command.  If the VFD is correctly configured the spindle should run in the reverse direction.  If it still runs in the forward direction there may be some other parameter in the VFD that needs to be changed.

Bob

349

Parallel Port breakout boards, motherboards, and dedicated accessories / Re: My PMDX-126 Thread

« on: January 28, 2015, 12:01:25 AM »

But I'll start with a very easy question about the PMXD-107 first.
- Does the PMDX-107 generate the 5v/10v power for the PWM signal? If yes then a yes answer will do, just want to make sure.

Yes.  DIP Switch #6 controls whether this is 5V or 10V.  See the PMDX-107 User's Manual section 4.0 on page 12.

The T terminals on the VFD seem easy enough;
T1 - 0v/gnd gets hooked to the Agnd on the 107
T2 - Ref Input gets hooked to Aout on the 107
T3 - +10v which I don't think I need

Almost correct.  Terminal "T2" is the "remote speed reference" and terminal "T4" is the "local speed reference".  Which one is used depends on how terminal B7 is configured.  If you leave B7 un-connected, then terminal "T4" should be connected to the PMDX-107's "Aout" terminal.  If B7 is connected to B2 (+24V) then connect the PMDx-107's "Aout" to terminal "T2".

The B terminals are what I'm not sure of, I think I'm confusing myself or over thinking it;
B2 - +24v output. I was told this is the power terminal to close the other B terminals for their function. I'm guessing this goes to the 107's COM for the onboard relays?
B3 - Digital Output, 0v-+24v (zero speed). I have no idea what this is for and don't think I need it? Didn't use it with the G540.
B4 - Drive Enable. I had a jumper from B2 to this before, I was told this needs to be active before a "RUN" can be activated. I was thinking about having this and B2 going to the main contactor so it would be active when I hit the power switch for the cabinet, but then it would be active all the time while the power is on in the cabinet. So I do need advice on this because I don't know if having this on the Fwd/Run terminal on the 107 will activate this first or not? And I did think of the relays on the 126, but I was hoping to use those for flood & mist later on.
B5 - Run Forward.
B6 - Run Reverse. Don't know if I need this for a mill?

These will be used to allow the PMDX-107 to turn the spindle on and off, and/or control the direction:

B2 - Yes, this connects to the PMDX-107's "COM" terminal
B3 - Yes, you do not need this.  It indicates when the spindle is stopped.
B4 - keep jumpered to B2 (+24V), the VFD will not do anything if this is left "open"
B5 - Connect to the PMDX-107's "Run/Fwd" terminal
B6 - *if* you ever want or need to run the spindle backwards and depending on how you have parameter 11 configured (see below), connect this to the PMDX-107's "Rev/Dir" terminal.
B7 - Leave this disconnected to select "local speed control" (terminal T4)

According to the only version of the manual I was able to download (without registering on a web site) says that parameter 11 controls the start/stop logic (i.e. the function of terminals B4 to B6).  It says that the default setting for units in the United States is "4", which makes B5 a "run" signal, and B6 a "jog" signal with both of these being latching signals (i.e. once B5 is connected to +24V the spindle will run until B4 is disconnected from +24V).  THIS IS NOT THE PROPER SETTING.  Verify and/or change parameter 11 to "0" (which is the European default).  This makes B5 "Run Forward" and B6 "Run Reverse" and the inputs are non-latching (i.e. the motor moves only as long the "Run Forward" is connected to +24V).

Also, parameter 05 controls where the VFD gets is speed commands.  This should be set to "AI.AV".

See your manuals for instructions on how to set the parameters using the built-in keypad.

Bob

350

Parallel Port breakout boards, motherboards, and dedicated accessories / Re: My PMDX-126 Thread

« on: January 24, 2015, 11:28:10 PM »

Since you are using a SmoothStepper and will be using our PMDX-107 for spindle speed control, you should also check our app note AN002 (PWM Spindle Speed with Mach3, SmoothStepper, PMDX-125 or PMDX-126 and PMDX-106 or PMDX-107), also at http://www.pmdx.com/AppNotes.  This app note covers the various settings needed to make spindle speed control work with a SmoothStepper and our boards.

Bob

351

SmartBOB controllers and dedicated accessories / Re: Error msg with PMDX 407 board

« on: January 24, 2015, 11:24:28 PM »

After hooking up my Sherline (KBIC) DC motor controller, I get the following message. "Spindle speed capped by current range". Any ideas. Note the spindle turns on and off and when the spindle is on I get 6.6 volts between Aref and Agnd terminals on the 407 board. I have the Mach4 set on line 0 to min .05 and Max 1.00 in the config - spindle tab

That message is generated (by Mach4 - not our plug-in, FYI) when Mach4 sees an "S" command where the commanded speed is higher than the "max" value in the currently selected spindle speed range (in Mach3 this was called "Spindle Pulley Configuration").  Unless you have some script running that changes the spindle range selection, this is indeed "line 0" from the spindle configuration table (found by going to the Configure menu and selecting "Mach", then click on the "Spindle" tab).

The "min" and "max" values here are usually in RPM units, and while Mach4 accepts floating point values both here and in the "S" command, that is non-standard.  The standard calls for integer values.   I"m not sure why you have the range set to 0.05 to 1.0 unless you have a *VERY* slow spindle :-)  For that range, any "S" command with a value greater than 1.0 will generate the message that you saw.

I think you are seeing 6.6V on the PMDX-407's analog output because that is most likely the voltage coming out of the P3 terminal on the KBIC (the KBIC accepts a control voltage of 0-7 volts).  And since our plug-in sees the commanded spindle speed at the max value, it tries to drive the analog voltage to the reference.  Just to make sure, you should have the following connections between the KBIC and the PMDX-407:

KBIC   PMDX-407
P1       Agnd
P2       Aout
P3       Aref

So I think the best answer is to change the spindle "min" and "max" settings in Mach4 to match the actual spindle RPM range of your machine - which should also match the range of "S" values in your GCode files.  It may also be possible (but I do not recommend this as the "S" values would be non-standard) to keep your existing 0.05 to 1.0 spindle range and edit the "S" commands in your GCode file to be within that range.

Bob

352

Parallel Port breakout boards, motherboards, and dedicated accessories / Re: My PMDX-126 Thread

« on: January 22, 2015, 05:57:32 PM »

The AC hot and neutral may go to either of the two screw terminals on J8 - there is no polarity.

The "0.150 amp max" specification is for the maximum current that the PMDX-126 draws from the AC power input.  Since the PMDX-126 has its own internal poly-fuse, any external fuse in the AC line feeding the PMDX-126 would be to protect the AC wiring, and a 0.25A to 0.5A fuse should be sufficient.  If you don't care about the wiring then you don't need an external fuse on the AC line feeding the PMDX-126.  Whether or not you need a fuse in the AC power to your motor power supply is a whole nother matter.

FYI - speaking of motor power supplies, we have an app note covering EStop switches and configuring the PMDX-126 to control power to the motor and/or spindle drivers (including external fuses).  If you are interested, see app note AN003 here: http://www.pmdx.com/AppNotes

Bob

353

SmartBOB controllers and dedicated accessories / Re: Newbie growing pains PMDX422

« on: January 21, 2015, 12:11:32 PM »

Sorry for the delay.  I have tried your INI and GCode file on our PCs here and had no problems even with the GCode buffer set to the default of 250ms.  We've been investigating ways to mitigate issues with response time on certain classes of computers.  One of them is something you can do, but if you can wait another day (hopefully) we have an updated plug-in that should fix this problem at its source.

First, I'd like you to get the "Windows Experience Index" values for your PC.  In Win7, go to the Start menu, then select "Control Panel".  In the control panel window, select "System and Security" and then select "System".  If you do not see the "System and Security" heading, it may be that the control panel is set to show all items instead of categories.  In that case, just look for "System".  Near the middle of the "System" dialog there is a section titled "System".  Look for the line that shows the "rating".  It will be a single number (something like "3.4") which is the overall rating, followed by a link that says "Windows Experience Index".  Click on the link and tell me the overall rating and the numbers for "Graphics" and "Gaming Graphics".

The possible work-around that you can do yourself is to change the screen refresh rate in Mach4.  To do this you need to edit the screen set:
- In Mach4 click on the Operator menu and select "Edit Screen"
- Go to the "Screen" menu and select "Save screen as" and save it to a new file name
- In the upper left corner there is a box labeled "Screen Tree Manager", and it usually  starts out with two lines, something like:
    wxMach
    + Default
- Left-click one time on the "wxMach" line
- In the lower right corner of the screen is another box labeled "Properties".  Look for an item names "Refresh Interval".  The default value is 50 (for 50 milliseconds).  Change that to "100" (which is the same refresh rate as Mach3).
- Go to the "Screen" menu and click on "Save Screen"
- Go to the "Operator" menu and click on "Edit Screen" to exit the screen editor
- Now load the new screen set by going to the "View" menu and select "Load Screen".  Change into the "Screens" directory and select the screen set that you created above.

When we release the next version of our plug-in, you should re-load the original screen set, or at least change the refresh rate back to 50ms.

Bob

354

Parallel Port breakout boards, motherboards, and dedicated accessories / Re: My PMDX-126 Thread

« on: January 19, 2015, 09:49:33 PM »

Yes, you can run a single "ground" wire from any of the "GND" terminals on J12 to all of your limit switches.  All four of the "GND" terminals on J12 are tied together on the PMDX-126 board (and also tied to the four "GND" terminals on J11).

NOTE: Just to reinforce this, the "GND" connections on J11 and J12 are **NOT** then same as the "PCgnd" on connectors J1 through J5.  The signals on J11 and J12 are isolated from the "PC ground".

Bob

355

SmartBOB controllers and dedicated accessories / Re: Newbie growing pains PMDX422

« on: January 18, 2015, 08:54:57 PM »

Having to set the GCode buffer to 1000 (i.e. buffering 1 full second of data) seems extreme.  If things are happening as designed in our plug-in and device, that means that the PC is spending close to 1 second in a mode where it is not allowing our plug-in any CPU time.  However, having the GCode buffer this large is not necessarily "bad" (presuming there are no underrun errors).  The drawback is if you try a "feed hold" it will take up to 1 second before the machine responds and starts slowing down.  EStop will halt motion immediately, irrespective of the buffer setting.

You mention that you were getting buffer "overruns".  Could this have been "underrun" instead (specifically "Motion queue underrun")?  Or does the error message really say "overrun"?  Providing the actual error message will help here.  If you can recreate this and the message shows up in the Mach status line, you can click on the "History" button and then save the contents of the history window to a file.

Does this error always happen at close to the same place in the GCode file?

Does the PC have any anti-virus software installed (including Microsoft's Windows Defender)?

Is the PC connected to a network while Mach4 is running?  If so, try unplugging the Ethernet cable and then running Mach4.  Or is this running a wireless network connection (i.e. WiFi)?

I have sent you a person message with my email address.  Please send me a copy of the GCode file and your Machine.INI file (located at Mach4HobbyProfilesPMDXMillMachine.ini, presuming you are still running a configuration named "PMDXMill").

Bob

356

SmartBOB controllers and dedicated accessories / Re: Newbie growing pains PMDX422

« on: January 15, 2015, 10:33:15 PM »

Bob,  I set MAXRPM to 4000.  Error message is now Spindle Speed failed for RPM 0, max RPM 4000, PDMX 407 unavailable.  I then set MINRPM to 300, no change.

This error message indicates that the PMDX-422 did not detect that the PMDX-407 was installed.  I have to apologize for the lack of documentation on the 407, specifically installation instructions.  You must change the setting of jumper JP1 on the PMDX-422 in order to run the PMDX-407.  This is located on the PMDX-422 along the short side of the 26-pin ribbon header, next to J10 (a 6-pin terminal strip).  JP1 supplies +5V to the PMDX-407.  When we ship the PMDx-422s, this jumper is set to "off".  You need to change the jumper to the "on" position (the two pins closest to the mounting hole).  You will have to remove the PMDX-407 in order to access this jumper.

** WARNING ** If you are not using the PMDX-407 keep jumper JP1 in the "off" position!!!

The 2nd thing to verify is that you have the PMDX-407 installed in the correct orientation.  Alas, the connector on the bottom of the PMDX-407 does not come with a "key" on it, so it is possible to install the 407 backwards on the PMDX-422, or to install it offset from the center of the connector.  When installed correctly, it should look like the 2nd picture on the PMDX-407 page (http://www.pmdx.com/PMDX-407).  The PMDX-407 circuit board should come very close to touching the relay on the PMDX-422, and the two mounting holes in the 407 should line up with the mounting holes in the 422 (so that you can use the standoffs provided with the 407).

Bob

357

SmartBOB controllers and dedicated accessories / Re: Newbie growing pains PMDX422

« on: January 15, 2015, 06:30:57 PM »

Bob,  I have downloaded 0.15.77 and installed. PDMX SmartBOB is configured including selection of 407.  PMDXMill loads but when [enable] pressed I get error message: Spindle max RPM is zero, cannot run spindle. Default setting ( I think it was 3500) has not been changed.  Any suggestions.

This is probably due to the spindle range settings.  In Mach4, go to the Configure->Mach menu.  Then click on the "Spindle" tab.  You will see a table with 20 rows (numbered 0 to 19) for entering spindle speed ranges and other info.  In row "0", enter a non-zero value in the "MaxRPM" column (or re-verify that this setting is indeed non-zero).  You can leave the "MinRPM" at zero if you want.  For now, the "Accel Time" and "Decel Time" and "Feedback ratio" are ignored, so you can leave them at their default values.  Click on "OK".

In the Configure->Plugins dialog, click on the PMDX-SmartBOB "Configuration" button.  Then click on the "Feature Config" tab.  In the "Spindle Speed Control" section there is a "Min PWM Duty Cycle" field.  This will affect the minimum spindle speed as the given percentage of the max RPM you entered in the previous step.  A common value is 5%, but this depends on how slow your spindle controller (VFD, etc.) can drive the motor.  For example, if your MaxRPM is 10000 and the min duty cycle is 5%, then any commanded speed below 500 RPM will be "bumped" up to 500 RPM.  The exception is zero RPM, which will stop the spindle but keep any "spindle enabled" outputs turned on.

If this does not fix your issue, please send me your "Machine.ini" file from the Mach4HobbyProfilesPMDXMill directory (since you said in your message that your profile is "PMDXMill").  You can post it here as an attachment.

Bob

358

Parallel Port breakout boards, motherboards, and dedicated accessories / Re: pmdx-126 will only work with hardwired step/dir, not 26pin cable

« on: January 13, 2015, 11:35:11 AM »

The usual cause of this is that the step and direction pins are not assigned to match the pin-out of the PMDX-133 (or PMDX-134).  The PMDX-133 needs the step signals to be assigned to parallel port pins 3, 5 and 7 (and 9 if you have 2 PDMX-133s), and the direction pins on parallel port pins 2, 4 and 6 (and 8 if you have 2 PMDX-133s).  See section 3.4 of the PMDX-133 User's Manual.  Note that this is NOT the default for Mach3 configurations.

I think that the SmoothStepper plug-in pays attention to the normal Mach3 step/dir settings (presuming that you are running Mach3).  Go to the Config->Ports & Pins menu, then click on the "Motor Outputs" tab.  For the X axis, set the "Step Pin #" to 3 and the "Dir Pin #" to 2.  For the Y axis set the "Step Pin #" to 5 and the "Dir Pin #" to 4, etc. (i.e. odd pin numbers for step signals and even numbers for the direction signals).

If this doesn't work, check in the SmoothStepper configuration dialogs and see if there are any step/dir configuration settings there.

If you are using Mach4 then the step and dir configuration must be in the SmoothStepper plugin configuration dialogs.


Bob

359

SmartBOB controllers and dedicated accessories / Re: Newbie growing pains PMDX422

« on: January 10, 2015, 04:46:36 PM »

I am configuring my PMDX-422 and have run into a problem.  Mach4 4.0.1.2157, Smart Bob 0.14.72.  Upon starting PMDXMILL active light illuminates on board.  Upon loading a program into Mach4 I get the message: vertex buffer objects requested but not found.  This does not occur if I load Mach4 using their sample configuration file. I have not configured any inputs or outputs and accepted Mach defaults with the exception of setting in motor configuration settings I use in Mach3.
Thanks in advance
Charlie

"Vertex buffer objects" are something used in video card graphics acceleration.  Some PCs with video on the motherboard do not support this feature, and thus you see this message from Mach4.  You can safely ignore this warning, it just tells you that it isn't using that acceleration technique.  Or you can make the message go away by changing the configuration in Mach4 (I guess our sample INI file has that enabled whereas the Mach4-supplied Mach4Mill file does not).  The effect of not using vertex buffer objects is that the tool path display will be a little slower.  In my experience this is not usually noticeable unless you are running a large and complicated job. The only solution to that is a different video card or PC.

To keep this error message from appearing, go to the Configure->Mach menu, then in the "General" tab look for the "Disable VBO Tool Path" item.  This in near the right edge of the dialog in the "Misc" section.  Check that and you won't see that message again.

Bob

360

SmartBOB controllers and dedicated accessories / Re: Spindle relay

« on: December 22, 2014, 04:57:11 PM »

I want touse the spindle relay to start my VFD. The VFD is connected  to a PDMX-122 board. When used  with a smoothstepper and mach3 the relay turns on the spindle ok.

how do I get M4 and the 422 to turn on the relay

Two things to check:
(1) Look in the "Macros" subdirectory of your Mach4 profile directory and delete all files that start with "M3", "M4" and "M5".  If you are using the PMDX sample profile and the default Mach4 Hobby install directory, that would be:
       C:Mach4HobbyProfilesPMDX-SampleMacros
The files are named:
      M3.mcc, M3.mcs, M4.mcc, M4.mcs, M5.mcc and M5.mcs
These are macro files that are supposed to implement the respective M-code commands but they do not work.  Deleting them allows Mach4's default handling of these M-codes which works just fine.

These macro files are installed as part of the profiles provided by Mach4Hobby (i.e. "Mach4Mill"), and were mistakenly included in the original releases of the sample profile provided with the PMDX-SmartBOB plug-in.

(2) Just to be complete - Go into the Configure->Mach dialog and click on the "Output Signals" tab, then scroll down to the end and you will see three spindle-related entries:
   Spindle On
   Spindle Fwd
   Spindle Rev
If you want the relay to energize whenever the spindle is running (regardless of direction, via "M3" or "M4"), then assign "Spindle On" to device "SmartBOBUSB", Output Name "Pin1", with a red "X" in the "Active Low" column and a green check mark in the "Mapping Enabled" column.

If you only want the relay energized when the spindle is running reversed (via "M4"), then assign "Spindle Rev" to pin 1 as above.  Likewise for energized only when running forward (via "M3"), use "Spindle Fwd".

Bob