Teknic Power4-Hub

[martyscncgarage]

I found the Teknic Power4-Hub to be a great value at $49
It can distribute power to your Clearpath SDSK/SDHP motors and with an external +24VDC power source, it will keep your drive logic powered up.
Why is this beneficial?
1: If there is a drive fault, and you use an Estop Contactor to remove main motor power, it will keep the drives powered up so you can visually look to see the drive blink codes and also look at the drive with Teknic's MSP software to look at the faults

2: The encoder knows the last commanded position. You can use MSP to set the drive to return the motor to the last commanded position should it move from that position on power up at a speed at which you program. If you use (and you SHOULD) use an Estop contactor to remove axis motor power during a fault, when Estop is cycled, and motor power is restored, the drive will move the motor back into position. (I will demonstrate this feature in an upcoming video on the SYIL X4 CNC mill.

The one drawback I see, is that Teknic uses the Molex SABRE connectors on the board. If you have the room to coil up any extra motor power cable, no problem. But if you need to shorten the cable you have two options, cut the cable to length, and crimp new pins and connectors (if you have the tool and the skill to do it properly) OR cut the cable, solder and heat shrink the Sabre connectors back on at the correct length.

I feel it would be beneficial if Teknic builds a Power4-Hub with Terminal blocks instead of Sabre connectors. The applications Engineer says if enough individuals contact them, they will consider it. SO here is their contact page link:
https://www.teknic.com/contact/
Just ask them to consider building a Power4-Hub with Terminal blocks so that the motor power cables can be cut and easily terminated.

Link to Power4-Hub for more information:
https://www.teknic.com/contact/

[embain14]

I found the Teknic Power4-Hub to be a great value at $49
It can distribute power to your Clearpath SDSK/SDHP motors and with an external +24VDC power source, it will keep your drive logic powered up.
Why is this beneficial?
1: If there is a drive fault, and you use an Estop Contactor to remove main motor power, it will keep the drives powered up so you can visually look to see the drive blink codes and also look at the drive with Teknic's MSP software to look at the faults

2: The encoder knows the last commanded position. You can use MSP to set the drive to return the motor to the last commanded position should it move from that position on power up at a speed at which you program. If you use (and you SHOULD) use an Estop contactor to remove axis motor power during a fault, when Estop is cycled, and motor power is restored, the drive will move the motor back into position. (I will demonstrate this feature in an upcoming video on the SYIL X4 CNC mill.

The one drawback I see, is that Teknic uses the Molex SABRE connectors on the board. If you have the room to coil up any extra motor power cable, no problem. But if you need to shorten the cable you have two options, cut the cable to length, and crimp new pins and connectors (if you have the tool and the skill to do it properly) OR cut the cable, solder and heat shrink the Sabre connectors back on at the correct length.

I feel it would be beneficial if Teknic builds a Power4-Hub with Terminal blocks instead of Sabre connectors. The applications Engineer says if enough individuals contact them, they will consider it. SO here is their contact page link:
https://www.teknic.com/contact/
Just ask them to consider building a Power4-Hub with Terminal blocks so that the motor power cables can be cut and easily terminated.

Link to Power4-Hub for more information:
https://www.teknic.com/contact/

Marty,

I'm following this close, i have powerhub all wired up but was failing to see the benifit. If this can be changed in msp it would be a game changer for my cnc!

Thanks

[Gary Campbell]

Lack of terminals, i.e., the ability to use proper wire lengths, is the main reason I don't use the hub. The secondary reason is that I fail to see the benefits from the additional mentioned features on a router table.

I believe that no good whatsoever comes from coiling dc power or control wires, so I custom cut each wire and land them in terminals. I do it this way even tho I own a Molex Sabre connector crimp tool. Right around $400, it's the most expensive crimper on my assembly bench

[carboncymbal]

Thanks for the feedback Marty. I’ll reach out to them. I’d also like to see the IPC-5 that had terminal blocks instead of molex connectors.

That said, I did just shorten one of the Teknic Sabre cables on a build I am doing now. I have to say I have not been impressed with the Teknic cables I have received. Most insulation crimps are making marginal contact at best. I’ll snap some photos. I have found this on both the Sabre and mini-fit jr connections. I have also found the insulation on individual wires within cables cut nearly to the copper when the outer sheath was cut.

I shortened my cable with new Sabre crimp terminals and an Engineer PA-21 crimp tool. I must say that my crimps
looked better than the factory crimps and I trust them more than the factory crimps. I do question of the 2.5mm die on my PA-21 is a bit small, so I just ordered the Engineer PAD-13.

How do you guys feel about using non-factory crimp tools for these types of things? I was a bit more concerned about it till I saw the poor crimp consistency of the factory cables. Apparently those inconsistent crimps are in regular service without major issues.

Thanks,
Clay

[teknic_servo]

Hi Clay,
Thank you for your honest feedback. We take quality very seriously so your concerns and observations are important to us.

You can upload the pictures here or you can use the "Contact Us" link on Teknic's website. Please mention my name in your reponse so that it can directed to my attention: https://www.teknic.com/contact/

Your cable quality concerns will get full attention and corrective measures will be implemnted if required. I searched my database for cable RMAs and cannot find any related to quality. Nor have we been contacted by any customers regarding cable quality so I am not sure what happened here. What I can say is that we care and we are listening.

Thanks,
Tom T.

[Gary Campbell]

Clay's experience varies greatly from mine. I've purchased somewhere around 20 sets of Teknic wires and have not noticed a quality control issue.

Based on my experience, should you return them I am sure that Teknic will stand behind their product. They have a top shelf support program.

[martyscncgarage]

Clay's experience varies greatly from mine. I've purchased somewhere around 20 sets of Teknic wires and have not noticed a quality control issue.

Based on my experience, should you return them I am sure that Teknic will stand behind their product. They have a top shelf support program.

I would tend to agree. You are paying for Teknic quality and service. So far that's all I have seen out of Teknic. Also, I welcome their presence here as time permits. It shows their support for their products and integration with Centroid Acorn.

I'll check my cables when I shorten them.
Marty

[carboncymbal]

Here are a few pictures of the cables I received. I noticed the cut insulation first, which probably caused me to scrutinize the cables and crimps more carefully. The electrical connection crimps appear to be solid. These aren't issues I'd spend time contacting Teknic over because I can simply cut back and recrimp since I have the basic tools that I feel comfortable using. My main observation is that if I'm cutting back cable and recrimping, I would have been ahead if I had just made my cables from scratch. This only applies if you who feel confident in their crimping and have suitable tools (It obviously wouldn't be worth spending $150-$900 for crimp tools and terminals for a one-off project).

Upon closer inspection, I don't see any crimp issues on the Sabre fittings.

I also want to say that I realize my comments might make me look overly critical. As I mentioned, I was planning on just driving on with my own corrections. I imagine the vast majority of people who get these cables wouldn't notice. I probably wouldn't have either on the insulation crimps except I went back and forth about buying their cables when I knew I had the basic tools and terminals on hand to feel comfortable making my own. I reasoned that I would be better off using their cables since I'm not using the Molex brand crimp tools and assumed that the crimps would meet the exact manufacturer specifications.

My plan going forward is to purchase their cables for the overmolded ends that plug into the clearpath motors, but to make my own cables for internal connections (sabre-sabre and the 24v power 4hub power supply). I think it would be great if they offered the entire ecosystem with screw terminals for DIY applications rather than molex connectors, but I assume that isn't appealing to their OEM customers and may not have enough volume to justify such a change.


A photo of the Sabre-Sabre cable, the inner wire insulation has been cut 30-50% of insulation thickness

2 pin molex mini fit cable for connecting +24v to power4-Hub. Insulation cut to copper.

Molex mini-fit jr cable, strain relief crimp does not contact a minimum of 180 degrees of the insulation as recommended by Molex.

[martyscncgarage]

It would be most fair and beneficial for you to allow Teknic to exchange those cables so their Engineering team can inspect them. Change can't come without bringing their attention to it. Thanks for taking the time to post your pictures.

I echo your sentiment about screw based terminals.
I would like to think the could create the Power4-hub with terminal blocks. So I asked interested users to reach out to Teknic and request the feature.

Marty

[ShawnM]

Just for the record you don’t need to spend $400 on a crimp tool to customize your own cables if anyone is interested in doing so. I agree that excess coiled up cable is not the right approach. Custom cables made to length is the proper way to build a machine. I have a crimp tool that crimps Molex mini-fit junior connectors that I paid about $55 for from Digikey. The crimp tool, pins and extraction tool (for taking the cable apart) can be bought for under $85 and you can cut your cables to length. Sure the $55 tool doesn’t crimp both wire and insulation in one crimp, it’s a two crimp process, but it does the same job. I just didn’t want those who wanted to custom cut their cables think you needed to spend a fortune to do so.

Maybe Teknic could offer up “cable kits” for those of us who are the DIY type. A bag of connectors and pins for each cable and you order the length of cable you need. A simple diagram is all you need to make your own cables. It’s really not rocket science after all.