HI All:
RC11 is online. It deals with certain issues that have come up with various
lathe topics. Some Mill fixes, but only fairly insignificant ones. RC2 has
been removed. RC11 will become the final lockdown version prior to Release
1.0. Though some bugs exist in Mill, bug reports are incredibly low and
most of those are more quirks than bugs. I will update RC11 quickly as any
bugs occur and then release 1.0 .
While there is much more to do to Mill as well, if I face facts, it will
never be complete, but I have many requests wondering when R1.0 will be out
so they can try it. (Some people understandably will not use less than a
release.) and since mill is no more quirky than Windows itself, theres no
real excuse to hold the Release 1.0 version..
New features:
Laser XY Grid.
This is development level code for Laser digitizers. You use it by
setting an output for "Digitize Trigger" and then enabling the Grid on the
corrections tab. Zero the Laser Grid at your X,Y 0,0 point after offsetting.
From that point forward, any G1,G0,G2 or G3 which passes a grid coordinate
will trigger a Digitize pulse output as the axis passes that coordinate.
This pulse will be approx. 20-40us in width. If you code a grid shaped
movment, you will trigger on the intervals specified on the corrections tab.
This is a test development so that digitizers can play with their triggering
and data to see if possibilities exist for this method. I will code Macro
commands for the control when appropriate. For example , if you set the grid
to 5mm X and Y and then execute a GCode program which sweeps a 5x5 grid, you
will end up with a trigger at the 5mm division points of the movement.
Movement does not need to stop to trigger, so a line in the above situation
like:
G0X100 will generate a trigger at 0,5,10,15,20..etc.., but you must start
the gridding with a move to g0x-1 so that the move will cross the 0,0 point
to trigger there as well.
Rutex Tuning.:
Again, development in progress, A button exists on the motor tune dialog
box. Only getting PID values and setting them is coded, but completely
untested so I don't know if it works at all yet. I haven't gotten to actual
hardware tests. Rutex users: Let me know if it actually does read the PID
registers properly when you press the GetData button. SendData will also
change them theoretically, but since its untested, it will be a miracle if
it actually talks. I will hook up my rutex drivers to some power to test
further when I get to auto tuning and waveform display of the overshoots.
This is just the preliminary SPI control code to tak serially to the drivers
through the printer port SPI control lines. It uses approx. 250Hz to tak,
but I will be upping that to 5Khz on next version. It assumes the port1
address is connected to the rutex motherboard.
Lathe Display will now follow tool offsets that are known at load. Hit regen
if you change a tool offset in the table after a load. It should also follow
the path properly.
THC is reset to zero offset and the DRO is rationalized when an M5 is
executed. Torchheads shouild let me know if this is problmeatic and I will
remove it ASAP. G28.1 during THC correction may now work properly as a
result as long as an M5 is encountered before the G28.1, but this remains to
be seen.
Thanks, Happy cutting..
Art
www.artofcnc.ca
