[Emc-users] Need help getting my machine to work.
Hi. I really don't know why this isn't working as it should, so I really need some help here. I have taken the default stepper.ini and pinout.hal files (both from the stepper directory) and adjusted them to my machine. The files contain test in them since I intentionally didn't configure homing on any axis. I first want to get the configuration to actually move anything at first. So the machine is a Proxxon MF-70 with steppers on each axis. The steppers are driven by a 3D-Step from nc-step.de (documentation in german only at http://nc-step.de/pdf/3dstep_doku_27.pdf). The pinout on the parallel port is as follows: Pin Meaning PC-view 1 spindle out 2 direction X out 3 clock/step Xout 4 direction Y out 5 clock/step Yout 6 dir Z out 7 clock/step Zout 8 optional dir C out 9 optional clock Cout 10 End/Reference Z in 11 Enable in (triggered to low by emergency stop) 12 End/Reference Y in 13 End/Reference X in 14 coolant out 15 opt. End/Ref. C in 16 Boost out 17 Sleep out (active low) The machine has 400 steps per millimeter on each axis. The controlling computer is an ALIX.1b from pcengines.ch, the parallel port works as I have verified with an evaluation copy of PC/NC from lewetz.de. The latency tests looked fine, even while moving windows around on the X desktop using a USB mouse. No overruns, lat_max and ovl_max where always under 25000 (as you can see in the configs, I have BASE_PERIOD at 5). IIUIC, the current configuration would give us movement speeds of up to 25mm/sec, but the machine actually can't move much faster than 8mm/sec (we had successful moves at 7mm/sec but didn't try much more since we had problems moving faster than 4mm/sec with the previous SMC800 controller), so we have some headroom here to make BASE_PERIOD even longer. My current config I have is attached. Symptoms I see are basically that I can't get the steppers to turn using the following procedure: start tkemc disable estop power on machine use manual movement What I get if I keep my finger on the keys to move an axis, I get a joint following error after a few seconds. As I currently don't have the machine within reach, I'm not 100% sure wether the enabling of the controller works or wether that already causes the steppers not to move. But with an open loop system, I still wonder where the following error comes from. regards, Sven PS: I also attached the configs I would use with homing enabled, but these might be outdated compared to the stepper_test.ini/test_pinout.hal files and are just there for reference. PPS: emc2 warns that the block statements are deprecated, but I'm not sure how I would go about replacing them. The or2 block seems to be quite ok for the goal I want to achieve. # local pinout config file for 3-axis steppers # using a parport for I/O # # load two or2 blocks loadrt blocks or2=2 # # first load the parport driver loadrt hal_parport cfg=0x0378 # # next connect the parport functions to threads # read inputs first addf parport.0.read base-thread 1 # write outputs last addf parport.0.write base-thread -1 # # finally connect physical pins to the signals linksp Xstep = parport.0.pin-03-out linksp Xdir = parport.0.pin-02-out linksp Ystep = parport.0.pin-05-out linksp Ydir = parport.0.pin-04-out linksp Zstep = parport.0.pin-07-out linksp Zdir = parport.0.pin-06-out # create a signal for the estop loopback linkpp iocontrol.0.user-enable-out iocontrol.0.emc-enable-in # create signals for tool loading loopback linkpp iocontrol.0.tool-prepare iocontrol.0.tool-prepared linkpp iocontrol.0.tool-change iocontrol.0.tool-changed # create a signal for spindle on newsig spindle-on bit # connect the controller to it linkps motion.spindle-on = spindle-on # connect it to a physical pin linksp spindle-on = parport.0.pin-01-out ### ### You might use something like this to enable chopper drives when machine ON ### the Xen signal is defined in core_stepper.hal ### # linksp Xen = parport.0.pin-01-out ### ### If you want active low for this pin, invert it like this: ### # setp parport.0.pin-01-out-invert 1 ### ### A sample home switch on the X axis (axis 0). make a signal, ### link the incoming parport pin to the signal, then link the signal ### to EMC's axis 0 home switch input pin ### newsig Xhome bit linkps parport.0.pin-13-in = Xhome linksp Xhome = axis.0.home-sw-in newsig Yhome bit linkps parport.0.pin-12-in = Yhome linksp Yhome = axis.1.home-sw-in newsig Zhome bit linkps parport.0.pin-10-in = Zhome linksp Zhome = axis.0.home-sw-in ### ### Shared home switches all on one parallel port pin? ### that's ok, hook the same signal to all the axes, but be sure to ### set HOME_IS_SHARED and
Re: [Emc-users] Need help getting my machine to work.
Sven Mueller wrote: Hi. I really don't know why this isn't working as it should, so I really need some help here. I have taken the default stepper.ini and pinout.hal files (both from the stepper directory) and adjusted them to my machine. The files contain test in them since I intentionally didn't configure homing on any axis. I first want to get the configuration to actually move anything at first. snip Symptoms I see are basically that I can't get the steppers to turn using the following procedure: start tkemc disable estop power on machine use manual movement What I get if I keep my finger on the keys to move an axis, I get a joint following error after a few seconds. Following error on a stepper machine means either the step generators aren't properly connected to the rest of EMC, or they aren't getting enabled, or their limits are set too low and they can't keep up with the commands that EMC is sending. As I currently don't have the machine within reach, I'm not 100% sure wether the enabling of the controller works or wether that already causes the steppers not to move. But with an open loop system, I still wonder where the following error comes from. Found the problem: The following is in your pinout file: net Xenable axis.0.amp-enable-out = or2.0.in0 net Yenable axis.1.amp-enable-out = or2.0.in1 net XYenable or2.0.out = or2.1.in0 net Zenable axis.2.amp-enable-out = or2.1.in1 net AMPenable or2.1.out = parport.0.pin-17-out You are creating your own enable signals for each axis. However, there are already enable signals, created by the following in core_stepper.hal: # connect enable signals for step generators newsig Xen bit linksp Xen = axis.0.amp-enable-out linksp Xen = stepgen.0.enable newsig Yen bit linksp Yen = axis.1.amp-enable-out linksp Yen = stepgen.1.enable newsig Zen bit linksp Zen = axis.2.amp-enable-out linksp Zen = stepgen.2.enable When you connect the signal Xenable to axis.0.amp-enable-out, that _disconnects_ the signal Xen from axis.0.amp-enable-out (you can only have one signal connected to a pin, but you can have many pins connected to a signal). With Xen disconnected from axis.0.amp-enable-out, its value is always zero (false), and therefore the pin stepgen.0.enable never turns on. You really don't even need the OR gates to make a master AMP enable, since all three axis enables turn on and off at the same time. You can just use any one of them. The sample pinout.hal file recommends that: ### ### You might use something like this to enable chopper drives when machine ON ### the Xen signal is defined in core_stepper.hal ### # linksp Xen = parport.0.pin-01-out Since your amp enable is on pin 17, you can just uncomment that line and change the pin number: linksp Xen = parport.0.pin-17-out If for some reason you do want to keep using the OR gates, you should use the existing Xen, Yen, and Zen signals instead of creating your own. Just add the OR gate pins to those signals, as follows: linksp Xen or2.0.in0 linksp Yen or2.0.in1 net XYenable or2.0.out = or2.1.in0 linksp Zen or2.1.in1 net AMPenable or2.1.out = parport.0.pin-17-out Hope this helps, please let us know either way. Regards, John Kasunich - This SF.net email is sponsored by: Splunk Inc. Still grepping through log files to find problems? Stop. Now Search log events and configuration files using AJAX and a browser. Download your FREE copy of Splunk now http://get.splunk.com/ ___ Emc-users mailing list Emc-users@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/emc-users
