On Thursday, April 28, 2011 09:15:11 AM Mark Thomas did opine: > Yes, it's driving convemtional steppers, doubt that it's better but it's > better than scrapping a working box. I have been driving it with > TurboCNC but the old laptop I was using died taking the disk and all my > setup info with it. All my other machines are conventional > step/direction and I have been using EMC2 for a few years with them so > simply want to bring the old box back up with EMC2 instead of reverting > back to TurboCNC (although it is a good basic program in its own > right). > > The driver itself is the one that originally came as standard with Taig > mills before they switched to step/direction ones. There is a > conversion board available to allow step/direction input, but I don't > see the point as I believe EMC2 will handle the phase style once set up > properly.
That conversion board, unless it can do micro stepping, is a step sideways, only cutting the port pin usage in half. > Cheers, > > Mark I have been told that it can, but driving it with the 4 line mode will run it in what is basically the full step mode. By using step/dir, you cut the pin usage on the port in half, and a smarter driver can then micro-step the motor. This has a number of advantages in that resonance effects at certain speeds are smoothed over, with the result in most cases being a quite noticeable increase in the actual, usable for everyday work, speed of movements. Throw in that micro-stepping also seriously reduces the motor noise and I would never go back to full step. When I was just getting started, and had bought my first 3 axis xylotex kit, I did some experimenting, and found that I was having motor stall lockups using full step, at speeds in the 6 or 7 ipm range. Switching to 1/4 step got me up to 12 or 13 ipm, and the 1/8 step mode would work fairly reliably at 15 ipm. Then I made some dampers for the motors, and that got my X/Y above 25 ipm. Currently, with my home made Z axis drive using a 10 tpi screw and a 425 ounce motor geared down 17/42, that axis, with gib drag free can do 35 ipm both directions. The head is countersprung. The rest of my X/Y screws are 20 tpi oem acme's, direct drive with 262 oz motors. > On Thu, 28 Apr 2011 09:06:45 +0100 > > "Ian W. Wright" <[email protected]> wrote: > > Lawrence, > > > > Is this driving conventional steppers or something > > different. Is it a better system than microstepping? > > > > Ian Motor performance issues would make me say no, microstepping is better, much better. -- Cheers, Gene "There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order." -Ed Howdershelt (Author) <http://tinyurl.com/ddg5bz> <http://www.cantrip.org/gatto.html> "I always avoid prophesying beforehand because it is much better to prophesy after the event has already taken place. " - Winston Churchill ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ WhatsUp Gold - Download Free Network Management Software The most intuitive, comprehensive, and cost-effective network management toolset available today. Delivers lowest initial acquisition cost and overall TCO of any competing solution. http://p.sf.net/sfu/whatsupgold-sd _______________________________________________ Emc-users mailing list [email protected] https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/emc-users
