Hello all I have just joined your site after the excitment of getting a 6ft x 11ft c.n.c.cutting table. it weighs abit over 2ton and took me all weekend to get it up the driveway and in my shed.It has a Baldor servo systems drive. I dont no wether the electronics are ok or not but it was driven from a commodoor colt that I was told has died with the softwear lost when it went up in smoke. I hope to turn it in to a router table with the option of a plasmer later on. Is thear eany one in N.W Tasmania on the forum.

Could you upload pictures? I, for one, would like to see this!! :)

John (bloy)

If Black Hills is near you, please send me a Private Message and I will send you the email address of one of the CNC members.

Andy

I Hope to upload a pic. soon will take pic. and then have to work out the process of up loding. look back bye the weekend I will try to get one up bye then.
chears.

Black hills ??? am going to look that one up will get back to you on that.
chears

Black Hills is in the same state but about 2 hr away.

I don't know anyone else

I have taken a few pic's with a mobile phone so thear a bit small but I hope you can see the size from them. The table has been removed so I could make it easyer to get in the shed. one shot shows the cables that have to be conected to the box. one shows the vacume pump under the table that was used to hold cardbord to the table to be cut. the head has a knife and two thingy's to crease the cardbord so it will fold. I now have the work shop manual for the electronics but dont no what softwear it runs on.

regards Stuart

Hi again I have read the book on the electronics and hope to have the cable conected to the control box this weekend but I have one big problem It needs 3phase 415vac.
I only have single phase 240vac and a converter from single phase 2 3 phase will only give me 3 240vac phases so my first plan will not work. I was going to conect to the inverter that drives my lathe so now I'm looking at getting 3phase power on and the cost or eany ather options I can come up with.

Your phase converter is proberbly ok provided it has a sufficient current rating.
When dealing with 3 phase the voltage is measured between the phases rather than to common. Your 240V is one phase to common. The same 240V when supplied as 3 phase is specified as 415V between phases. Each of the 3 phases is 240V to common.
You can confirm this with a voltmeter by measuring between the phases of your converter.
Paul

Why is 3 ph needed? it is probabally only the vacuum pump that is 3ph the control is most likely 1ph.
Al.

Hi I was going to reply as soon as I read your message but then thought better and whent and stuck a molty meater on the out put of my inverter and was suprised bye the result. it is a big inverter, it runs my lathe 530mm swing, 1500mm between centers, 21" by 5ft and the motor is 17amp and runs with no problem so the inverter will have no problems as far as ampes go but with the motor running the voltage is over 1000v but very unstable ( 800 up to 1400vac). so I went and dug 2 ather inverters out of the cuboard and tryed them as they are single phase 2 three phase and they gave me 240vac between phases but they are only small inverters.

Hi yes the vac. unit runs on three phase but the servo driver cards are 150vdc so it has a big three phase transformer that drops 415vac down to 107vac three phase then recterfies that to dc giving it 149.8vdc to the driver cards and each phase is fused at 6 amps so if I could find a single phase 107vac transformer at about 20amps I would be ok except the cost of byeing it hear in tassy. and the cost to run the transformer of that size is out of the equation. it will be cheper to just get three phase power on and then thear is ather benerfits to having it on as well.
regards Stuart Tasrobotics

Hi

You could get a purpose built transformer made from a crowd in Campbellfield (Melbourne) called Altro (www.altro.com.au).

I'm happy to pick it up for you and store it until someone uses the car ferry.


Andy

but with the motor running the voltage is over 1000v but very unstable ( 800 up to 1400vac). so I went and dug 2 ather inverters out of the cuboard and tryed them as they are single phase 2 three phase and they gave me 240vac between phases but they are only small inverters.

It could be your meter is not giving a true RMS reading or maybe you are seeing spikes or phase shift caused by your lathe.
Were the measurements taken with or without a load?
See if you can find specs on the inverter or maybe you can find an electrician with decent test gear to help you.
Paul

Thanks for the offer and will keep it in mind and have ather options to find out about. My boss gave me some more today so finding out about them.
ragards Stuart ( tasrobotics)

Hi I talked to an electrical engerneer and he was suprised at the resolts I got when I tested the inverter and will be doing some more tests.
regards Stuart (tasrobotics)

Can eany one help with this.
I have found out the softwear that the mcc controler cards need's.
This is a quote from the book on the controler card:
The input command structure for the rs232c command protocol has been made identical and closely accepted machine tool industry standards consisting of a series of ASCII character transmissions.
The question is what free CNC softwear will controll it????
regards Stuart (tasrobotics)

Can eany one help with this.
I have found out the softwear that the mcc controler cards need's.
This is a quote from the book on the controler card:
The input command structure for the rs232c command protocol has been made identical and closely accepted machine tool industry standards consisting of a series of ASCII character transmissions.
The question is what free CNC softwear will controll it????
regards Stuart (tasrobotics)

RS232 is the spec for a standard serial port.
It implys that you control the thing from a dumb terminal.
Hyperterm is the software provided by Microsoft that can do this but you need more information. You need information on speed, parity (odd or even)and stop bits.
Could be expressed in the format 9600,N,1 or 2400,O,1
See if you can see something like this in the documentation.
The pinout would also help as you may need to make up a special serial crossover cable.
You also need information on the codes to send, this could be G codes, suppose you could experiment with one hand on the estop or power switch.
Paul

If you want a free RS-232 program and also various cable diagrams see www.cadem.com
Also you will need the list of the various command codes specific to your machine.
Although the language for G code is set out in RS-274-D it is by no means standard as there are differences depending on the type of machine, also M codes are usually machine specific and defined by the machine tool builder.
Al.

Hi I have got the code for the controler and have down loded some softwear so will compair the code list and see if it will work. thanks for the link to cadem but my machine is not in the list of machines that it will controll but if it does I will upload the conections and detales of the baldor controler to the cadem site.
regards Stuart Tasrobotics

Hi all I have tryed to run the table on my inverter and the inverter wont handle it and shuts down with an (op) code but that is what I thourght might happen.
I think the large transphormer in the controll cabnet is drawing so much power the inverter just wont run it. so three phase power is going to be the option I think as I have been told aura hear in tassy will put it on for nothing I only have to pay for my electrition to conect it to the box and up grade my fuse bord ( had to be done at some time to give me brakers insted of the old white fuses) so will update soon as I get power on to it and see if I can get it to do eanything.
Regards Stuart

if I could find a single phase 107vac transformer at about 20amps I would be ok except the cost of byeing it hear in tassy. and the cost to run the transformer of that size is out of the equation. it will be cheper to just get three phase power on and then thear is ather benerfits to having it on as well.
regards Stuart Tasrobotics

Just my 2 cents worth... as far as running a single phase transformer, the basic power equation is the same, the secondary 150 V supply will use whatever current it needs, this will change with motor loading etc. but the power usage will be the same as far as the primary side of the transformer is concerned, meaning the same power requirements using either single or three phase, given the single phase supply will have higher current on the supply side, only because it is not spread over the 3 phases, so your power bill will be the same, except of course you will have 2 extra service fees for the extra meters and the cost of upgrading your switchboard. I guess you will have to decide which way is better for you. Having said that I would definately put breakers in if nothing else, fuses are nasty for many reasons which I wont bore you with, I'd offer to put them in for you in exchange for a look at the machine and some beers, but I'm up in the pointy bit of the country, my wife and kids might not appreciate the idea ;0

As you mentioned 3 phase power has other benefits, especially when talking about running motors. I would also be concerned about your readings from your inverter, while it may be just the meter used, it could indicate other problems possibly even with the transformer having a broken or floating neutral, this can cause all sorts of problems, if it is the inverter, doubling the input voltage to you transformer will do the same to its output, more or less, so your 150v supply is now pushing the 300v mark...

I dont think that is the case, you haven't mentioned any explosions from your driver boards, but you should probably get someone to check it out.

hope I haven't put any one to sleep with this long winded reply

Russell.

Thanks for your reply. If your ever in Devonport tassy your welcome to have a look.
I have been looking in to it some more and am in the prosses of getting 3PH power on.
The unit uses more current than a standerd single phase supply can give with out up grading the supply to my home and all the way to my shed.
I have a large lathe with a 21" swing and nilly 3m between centers that will benerfit from geting 3ph on and am able to pick up 3ph motors and things ok. Hear in tassy we use one electronic meter for three phase power and the upgrade of the old fuses is over due have been going to do it sence bying my home 6 years ago, so no more excuses. so the expence of three phase over upgraded single phase ????
I think three phase is the better option as I work as a motor rewinder and can pick up all sorts of three phase goodies that is economical for me to do up at home.
Hope to hve three phase power on with in a month and will then have to sit down and learn how to program and comtrol the table.

Fair enough, it definately would be better from a motor point of view to go 3 phase and your in a better position than most to take advantage of it, keep us updated with pics as you get it going.

Russell.