TT-1 Tool Touchoff Block

[Bob]

Cnckeith,
Not sure what happened being it was the first time to use a bulletin board but the post that I generated and your responses just disappeared. I'll try and start over, I would like to use the automatic tool touchoff to set my part zero. I will be using a home built aluminum touchoff block with the following dimensions (3" x 3" x 0.745"). My original question was how to tell the Acorn controller the height of the block to be subtracted inorder to establish part zero for the (Z) axis. I need to ask how to build a configuration file for the TT-1 that would include the touchoff block thickness. Any help would be much appreciated.
Bob
PS You ask what my purpose was, to establish tool length or to set part zero and I responded to set part zero. Initially it was part zero on the small portable CNC router that we are using to learn how to use and setup this new controller but I plan to use it to control a DynaMyte 4400 milling machine with a 10 position tool changer which does have tooling mounded in tool holders. So the next thing would have been setting tool length. Thank you for your help.

[Gary Campbell]

Bob...
It's been an active day. Your thread is on the second page: (with an answer) viewtopic.php?f=60&t=1363

[cnckeith]

the simplest way is to enter the Position of the top of the touch off device relative to part zero in the part setup screen.
so for example if the top of the touch off block is 2.345" above part zero (wcs) here is what i'd type in for part position on the part setup screen for Z. F1 setup, F1 Part, use "next axis" to go to Z

another way would be to write a macro to set Z position
G92 Z2.345 ; sets Z position in current WCS to 2.345"

you could us the probe cycle to seek the touch off block automatically, then with the above macro mapped to an AUX key on the VCP. press it and that would set the Z 0 position using the touch off block.

you could also take it a step further and include more commands in the macro to further automate the entire procedure, "go to probe x y location using a G28 (if it is always in the same location) , seek probe in Z, etc.etc..

there are several different strategies for auto part and tool setup procedure depending on the type of tooling being used and the type of machine and homing procedure being employed.

[cnckeith]

there are several way to use a touch off block to setup tools.. here is one way to use a touch off block to setup tools
https://youtu.be/iJcq_G8yRdc?t=15m14s

[Grifftek]

Hi

not sure if I should resurrect this old post or start a new one.

I am working on a job where I need to machine a large qty of printed circuit boards. the machining operation is very simple, I just need to cut off some of the plastic from a dual row header soldered to the PCB. They want me to remove all of the plastic but they do not want me to cut into the top surface of the PCB. I already know that this is will be nearly impossible but I am trying to improve my odds! I know that when I run jobs like this for hours that my spindle grows and the cutter will start to cut deeper. I have seen as much as 0.004" of spindle growth. I can periodically chase this growth by resetting Z zero, but if I go on break or otherwise leave the machine to cool down it shrinks and I have to chase the offset.

Is there a macro that could touch off the tool on the tt1 automatically while I'm running the program that would automatically track the spindle growth? If I could call this macro with an M code periodically (or for every part if I wanted to) from within my program I could eliminate having to do this manually.

I have an Atrump B5AC machine with an oak board, Yaskawa drives, TT1, Delta inverter

If you guys had a wireless probe, I could also grab the probe and pick up the top surface of the PCB and track through any variance in board thickness as well

Thanks for any help you can provide

Bill Griffin