Centroid Community CNC Support Forum

I am researching a retrofit using the Hickory Cobtrols and Leadshine EL7 for the axis on a Hardinge CHNC II. I would like to use the Fanuc Spindle drive. It is pretty self contained and runs off a 0-10v signal. It has its own encoder and feedback which I believe it outputs through the spindle up to speed output on the drive.

What I can’t figure out is where than information connects to the Hickory control so it knows spindle location for threading and such.

Can you explain where that would input on the Hickory please.

Thanks Gary

You would connect the spindle drive's control signals -- run forward/reverse, fault, reset, 0-10V (or bipolar +/-10V) analog sped control, etc. -- to PLC terminals as usual. A spindle at-speed signal is generally not needed, especially on a lathe. There is no harm to wiring it to a PLC input if you want, but you don't need it.

All that has nothing to do with threading, except to the extent that it allows you to make the spindle turn at approximately the desired RPM. For threading on a lathe, you need to connect the spindle encoder -- which turns 1:1 with the spindle -- to one of the encoder inputs on the Hickory board.

It is very unlikely you can use the spindle motor encoder for this purpose, because the motor probably drives the chuck through V belts, and likely at an unequal ratio. The spindle motor encoder just needs to connect to the Fanuc drive, so the drive can run its closed-loop motor speed control.

The CHNCII should have a spindle encoder, and it is very likely that spindle encoder has a 5V differential quadrature interface as required by the Centroid control. The Hardinge CHNC II+ I did a couple years ago had a 1024-line Heidenhain ROD426 encoder, so I just needed to put a DE9 plug on the original cable and plug it into the Centroid control board.

Thanks Much for the reply, you just sort of made a light go off for me. I had it in my mind that the encoder, actually pulse generator that connects to the Fanuc drive was the same as the spindle encoder, but now I see that you are correct there is a separate spindle encoder and that makes sense to me.

Nice to know you have retrofitted a CHNC II+, as that is what I have. Two of them actually. When I contacted the online sales they recommended the Hickory control.

What are your thoughts for this machine?

Thanks Gary

Hickory with Yaskawa motor/drives would be incredible on a CHNC.

Does your CHNC II+ have the Fanuc servos; the Parker servos; or something different?

The one I did two years ago had Parker AC servo drives and motors that were in good working order, so I left them in place and controlled them with an Oak unit.

Axis position feedback is from the Heidenhain encoders on the ends of the ballscrews (separate from the resolvers on the servo motors).

My machine has Siemens DC servos and originally I thought I would leave them and use the Allin1DC, but they don’t meet the 6 amp minimum for the control board. That is when they recommended the Hickory controller.

It seems like it would be a really simple change over and has 32 inputs and outputs so that would be helpful with all the different parts on the CHNC.

So I went ahead and ordered the Hickory control and will use the Leadshine EL7 servos.

Thinking about the tool turret now. I have some 4 sided gang tool plates for the machine and for the immediate future I think I will index the tools manually. I have done some testing and I can get it where it needs to go with a push button and a good eye.

That way I can focus on everything else first, but eventually I would like to get that working also so I can program tool changes.

Will I need any other hardware that I might want to get now?

Thanks Gary

gary make a photo album with lots of photo of your project so we can see what you see.
google photos is free and easy.
and then post a link to the photo album here.

Thanks, I will see what I can do to document the process?

Any thoughts or experience on the CHNC turret and what it might take to control it?

Thanks Gary

Just wanted to let you know that I found some really good information about the CHNC turret on another thread ( https://centroidcncforum.com/viewtopic. ... ret#p79025 ) and I now I think I have a good understanding of what will need to happen with the wiring for the the inputs and outputs to control it and the sequence of how the solenoids fire. What I didn't find anywhere yet is how those inputs and outputs are programmed for the actual control to know when to fire according to the encoder position. I will continue to dig, because I imagine that the information is here somewhere already. If some one knows where to find it that would be appreciated.

Thanks Gary