Stepping through troubleshooting & configuring Acorn for a router with user Arturo

[martyscncgarage]

Hi Marty... thanks for helping me out.
I attached all you requested. I had to put the pictures within word documents, which allowed me to add a bit of text.

The report is also included.

I also want to confirm that the position of the table HOME is to be at the FRONT-LEFT corner. On the picture of the Limit Switches, the FRONT of the table is where the laptop is.

Please remember that I have all these issues:
1. Movement along all axes when I command to move in the positive direction. I can take it as it is now for the Z axis but not for the X and Y.
2. Limit switches tripping when starting from a complete OFF condition as I explained on yesterday posting.
3. Connectivity of the four Fault signal wires.
4. Opinion for improvement on the overall design and construction of the machine.


This is the third time I type all of the above. I hope Marty that get it this time.

Thank you,
Arturo Martinez

Ugh, Arturo, upload .JPG images, not images pasted in a Word document.
It will have to wait until I get to a computer with MS Word on it.....

Marty

[Arturo Martinez]

I'm sorry Marty, I did not know you don't have easy access to MS Word.

So, seems like you'll see them later once you get access to Word; is this correct?

Thank you,
Arturo Martinez

[martyscncgarage]

Arturo,
Please post a screen shot of the Advanced Axis Configuration page in the Wizard.
Also, please remind me WHICH drives and motors you have.

You have axis movement on all axis correct?

We have some setup to do. I will try and walk you through the whole thing right here on the forum, step by step.

Please note, I will be busy this weekend and will only be able to respond in the evenings Saturday and Sunday.

Marty

[cnckeith]

Keith,
The last (third) posting went thru, however all the attachments show as "Not downloaded yet" even though they all had a green check mark under column STATUS when I loaded them into the posting edit session.

So, did they go thru, that is, can someone actually see them?

On the Attachment window, each document line has a button named "Place inline". What is this for? On previous postings that successfully send a photo I never had to hit this button.

For the sake of keep going, I'm sending these attachments to you on your gmail address.

Arturo Martinez

we see them, please follow my instructions and report back with fresh photos and screen shot of the updated wizard settings.
https://youtu.be/IfjjCiyAPCo

2.) for the home switches use "HomeAll" and wire X, Y, Z home switches into one input and use the wizard to set the input to "HomeAll" this tells CNC12 to expect all of the home switches to be wired into one input. use the provided home all schematic. typically input 1 is used for "HomeAll". are your switches NO or NC? we like NC home/limit switches. set the wizard accordingly so it know what type of switch input to expect.

3.) wire all the drive faults into one input (this input is typically input 5). if drive fault signals are NO (normally open) wire them in parallel into one input, if they are NC (normally closed) wire them in series into one input. and be sure to use the wizard i/o map to tell Acorn CNC12 which input you are using for drive ok/fault, (use #5) you can see a nice example of this if you take a look at the Acorn Clearpath schematic

4.) put estop on its own input just like you see in many of the Acorn hook up schematics. typically input 8 is used for estop. move the estop input separate from the drive faults.. these are not the same thing and need to be on different inputs. use the wizard to define input 8 as estop.

[Arturo Martinez]

Marty,

I have attached the Advanced Axis Configuration page.

Yes, I have movement in all axes. This was confirmed thru manual jogging and by the HOME RESET button.

Marty, I appreciate your effort however, I am not in a hurry, thus I suggest you to take a break these two days. This is because I am reading the Acorn CNC12 manual to get familiar with what I can start safely doing once my issues are resolved.

Thank you and have a nice weekend,
Arturo Martinez

[martyscncgarage]

No worries. Slow and steady as time.permits.
Please provide the brand and model number of your drives.
Marty

[Arturo Martinez]

I am sorry, I forgot to include the motor's info:

Components List
• The Z axis is moved with a NEMA 23 StepperOnline 23HS45-4204D-E1000 and controller StepperOnline CL57T.
• The X axis is moved by one motor NEMA 34 StepperOnline 34HS31-5504D-E1000 and controller StepperOnline CL86T.
• The Y axis is moved by two motors on rack-pinion-drives NEMA 34 StepperOnline 34HS31-5504D-E1000 and controller StepperOnline CL86T. These motors are paired in the Wizard.
• Each motor has its own power supply.
• CNC12-PRO is running on a laptop DELL Latitude.

Thank you,
Arturo

[martyscncgarage]

First, my apologies if you seem I am oversimplifying things. I am trying to be very basic. Second, I am using your current Wizard screenshots as a basis for starting. Do not change Wizard settings unless I suggest you do so.

Ok, Let start with wiring:
Use the attached Leadshine schematic for reference. Mark it up for any changes. This schematic does not have a Drive alarm. We will add that.
(Do not change the drive type radio button in the Wizard, just use the schematic for reference)

HOME/LIMIT SWITCHES:
First, we need 3 limit switches on the home positions of the machine ONLY. We are deviating from the schematic in that we are going to use IN1 and HOMEALL :
Bring each wire pair from the Normally Closed (NC) connections on the switch back to the control cabinet with Acorn in it.
X- (Switch on left side of gantry)
Y+ (Switch on BACK of machine AND on the MASTER Y axis motor side [not the slave side]) We are going to home the router in the traditional way, to the back left.
Z+ (Switch on TOP of the Z axis)

Next wire the 3 limit switches in series according to my hand sketch, Home Limit wiring.pdf (attached). One end to COM and the other end to IN1
Make sure INPUT 1 on the Wizard is set to HOMEALL and NC

ESTOP BUTTON:
Now, lets set your Estop button up. (You do have an Estop button correct? With NORMALLY CLOSED Contacts?) USE the attached Acorn Schematic for reference.

Wire one of the Estop button NC contacts to COM on Acorn and Wire the other to IN8 per the schematic.
In the Wizard, set INPUT 8 for ESTOPOk and NC

DRIVE ALARM
We are going to ASSUME your ALARMS are NORMALLY OPEN. That is during normal operation, each drives contacts are open. During a fault, they close. (We will prove this later in CNC12 and use the DIAGNOSTIC SCREEN)

(SEE ATTACHED Drive Alarm wiring.pdf sketch)
Take a wire from EACH Drive's ALM+ terminal and wire them all to Acorn INPUT 5
Take a wire from EACH drive's ALM- terminal and wire them all to Acorn COM
In the Wizard change INPUT 5 to DRIVE OK and NO


OTHER SETTINGS ON INPUT AND OUTPUT MAP
Set OUTPUT 5 to OUTPUT 5 (you do not need reverse on a router)
Set OUTPUT 6 to OUTPUT 6 (there is no VFD to reset and the axis drives have no reset input. If they error, you have to power them down and restart)

WRITE THE SETTINGS TO CNC CONTROL CONFIGURATION after making changes to the Wizard.

Next Step, we want to test your switches and Estop button.

START UP
I HIGHLY RECOMMEND YOU REMOVE THE BELTS FROM THE AXIS MOTORS ON THE MACHINE UNTIL WE ARE READY TO TEST MACHINE MOTION
Power up the control including Acorn
Power up the PC
Start CNC12
DO NOT Home the machine
At this point watch the dialog box and Press your ESTOP button. Did you get the "EMERGENCY STOP DETECTED" message in RED?
Now release the Estop button. Did you get the "EMERGENCY STOP RELEASED" message in GREEN?

NOW from the main CNC12 screen, press the Keys ALT and I together. This will bring up the diagnostic screen.
In the far upper left, top line (INPUTS), IS the "virtual LED" Green under the number 1 (This is INPUT 1) If so,
Press the X- limit switch (left side of your gantry) does the "virtual LED" go RED when you press it? if so then:
Press the Y+ limit switch (Back of your table on the side with the MASTER Y axis motor) does the "virtual LED" go red when you press it? if so then:
Press the Z+ limit switch (on TOP of your Z axis) does the "virtual LED" go RED when you press it?
If so, you are good.

Look at Top row of LED's (INPUTS), under #8 (ESTOP), press your ESTOP button, does the "VIrtual LED" go from Green (normal state) to RED (when button pressed?) If so you are good.

TO EXIT THE DIAGNOSTIC SCREEN PRESS ALT+I again.

Let stop here. You do the above, PLEASE post a SCREENSHOT of the DIAGNOSTIC screen(ALT+I), and your Wizard INPUT OUTPUT SCREEN with your control on and machine NOT against home/limit switches and your Estop in Normal condition. Post with your results.
PLEASE upload .jpg images, not images pasted into a word document.

Keep in mind, I am here, and you are there. We may have hiccups along the way. Posting screen shots of the diagnostic screen and requested Wizard pages will help me figure out what's what and get through it.

We are going to go through this process here on the forum so others have the benefit of seeing the process. These preliminary things should be done with NO BELTS from the motor to the machine screws/rack on the machine (no machine movement) but so we can observe motor motion. OR done on the bench before mounting to the machine.
Marty

[Arturo Martinez]

Hi Marty, thanks for all the work you did today.

I have done all the tasks that you requested.

There are two exceptions, thou. I am going to write this posting in the same sequence of your tasks requests:

HOME/LIMIT SWITCHES
You requested to have 3 limit switches: X-, Y+ and Z+, serially connected. This is one of the exceptions: The machine already has TWO limit switches on all axes, that is, there is a limit switch on X-, X+, Y- slave, Y+ slave, Z- and Z+; also, they are all serially connected. I only placed switches on Y slave because the electronic components are closer to the slave Y linear rail.
It is my opinion that as long as all are serially connected and the last wire plugged into IN1 and the other into COM, the final effect is the same as what you are asking. Nevertheless, I can re-wire all switches if you still need me to.

The INPUT 1 on the wizard has been set to HOMEALL and NC

E-STOP Button:
The INPUT 8 on the wizard has been set to ESTOPOK and NC and this is working as you indicate.

DRIVE ALARM
All ALM+ are now connected to IN5.
The INPUT 5 on the wizard has been set to DRIVEOK and NO.

OTHER OUTPUT SETTINGS
OUTPUT 1, 5 AND 6 have been changed to OUTPUT 1, 5 AND 6 respectively.

The other exception I have is in the motor belts:
I could not remove the belts unless I disassemble both motor mountings.
Instead, I moved the pinion down enough to disengage the rack. They are separated about ¼” and clamped so that there is no movement. That will work OK for testing.

RUNNING THE CNC12

After updating all settings, I started CNC12 and ran all the tests that you requested. I am attaching pictures to show these tests.

The DIAGNOSTIC screen is confirming that all changes made are effective.

Since the forum software re-sequences the order of the attached pictures, you may have to reorder them in your mind.

CORRECTION: OF ALL 11 PICTURES I TRIED TO ATTACH THRU THE FORUM ONLY 3 SEEM THAT WILL GO THRU. I'LL HAVE TO LEARN TOMORROW HOW TO SET UP THE GOOGLE METHOD TO SEND THEM AGAIN TO YOU.

Thank you,
Arturo Martinez

[martyscncgarage]

Arturo,
Bring all the limit switch wiring in pairs back to the control cabit if you like. I believe using a shielded 1 pair cable is best practice. BUT it is important that you place the Y+ switch on the Y master axis. You could simply swap the motors from slave to master and master to slave at Acorn and reverse the motor rotation as necessary in the Wizard (we'll eventually want the Y axis moving the gantry to the back when you press Y+ on the virtual jog panel) in the Wizard if you don't want to physically move the switches.

We only want X-, Y+ and Z+ connected in series using the NC contacts to Input 1. Please correct this. We will use the soft limit feature for the other end of the travel, to be setup later. Leave the other limit switch pairs in your control cabinet unconnected for now.

There is a reason for the Y+ switch on the master axis. It will be apparent later.

Also, post screen shot of the diagnostic page. (Alt+I)

Yes, whatever you can do to disengage the motors from the machine is best for now.

Marty