On Fri, 2011-03-18 at 20:58 -0500, Jon Elson wrote: > pre-measuring all your tools and entering the > length offsets in the tool table, > so you don't have to touch off at each tool change.
Or you can add a tool length probe station and have tool length measurement happen automagically, without interrupting the program. You *definitely* need something far more rugged on a real milling machine in an actual machine shop, but the switch itself need not be more complex than a snap-action button: http://softsolder.com/2010/12/06/improved-tool-length-probe-switch/ The stability and repeatability are surprisingly good: http://softsolder.com/2010/12/07/improved-tool-length-probe-switch-repeatability/ http://softsolder.com/2011/01/15/improved-sherline-probe-length-switch-repeatability-selah/ When it comes time for a tool change, the G-Code does the G30 / Tx M6 dance and puts up a prompt. My ArmStrong tool changer swings into action; it finishes by whacking the spacebar to continue. A subroutine measures the new tool length, adjusts the offset, and the G-Code continues with a properly adjusted tool. That doesn't solve the "my tool broke and I can't jog manually" problem, but for my simple needs it's *wonderful*: swapping tools is no longer a major pain. One gotcha: Axis will occasionally leave the machine in the G59.3 coordinate system (which has absolute machine coordinates) after I interrupt the program, even if I interrupt it when G54 (which has the tool & fixture offsets) should be active. This is most likely due to my misunderstanding of how coordinate systems work, not an intrinsic flaw. Highly recommended... -- Ed http://softsolder.com ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Colocation vs. Managed Hosting A question and answer guide to determining the best fit for your organization - today and in the future. http://p.sf.net/sfu/internap-sfd2d _______________________________________________ Emc-users mailing list Emc-users@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/emc-users
