Help needed with Siemens 840D and Renishaw probe

[BWay]

I have several programs I am working on that require the use of a Renishaw part probe with a Siemens 840D control. I am able to use the standard Siemens cycles to measure ID, OD, etc. but want to get into more custom programs that could allow me to use the probe in more creative ways. Does anyone have any good examples or experience with this type of G code programming?

For record...the machine is a G&L VTC2000 VTL.

[tfisher]

Hey BWay i am new to this furum but hope i can help. I run a Giddings and lewis HBM PT1500 and do alot of probing and checking parts with the probe in many different ways. I don't know if i can help you but let me know what you are thinking of doing as far as probing and I'll try to give you a hand.

[BWay]

Hey BWay i am new to this furum but hope i can help. I run a Giddings and lewis HBM PT1500 and do alot of probing and checking parts with the probe in many different ways. I don't know if i can help you but let me know what you are thinking of doing as far as probing and I'll try to give you a hand.

Thanks for the reply. Here are a few questions I am working through and maybe you can add some insight.

1) Are you probing using the standard Seimens Cycles only?
2) Do you have the ability to "Jog" probe?
3) Siemens or Fanic Controls?
4) Have you created custom programs that integrate your probe into the G code programs?
5) Have you had any calibration issues?
6) Have you used different stylus steups besides a the standard straight stylus?
7) What kind of accuracy does the probe measure?

Lots of quesions....

Thanks for any input offered.

[maweber49]

You might investigate buying Renishaw Inspection Plus for the Siemens 840D. I think it's about $1100 but it will give you the option to probe in a 3 axis vector mode for a single point on a surface, using L9821 macro. You need to have an MP700, OMP400, or an RMP600 probe to get the accuracy with that macro. If you just want to use the Siemens probe macros, they'll pretty much just probe along the principle planes of the machine.

I've written numerous custom probe macros for the Siemens 840D including 5 axis but unfortunately I sell them for a living.

[mike9696]

Hi there
We have lot of machines with Siemens control and most of them with
probes, There are few ways you can program a probe,
1st is using Siemens measuring cycle
2nd is using RG PARAMETERS AND R PARAMETERS
3rd is using custom variables
using Siemens cycles you can make spreadsheets of the result and then send to QA OR programming room for SPC purposes
and the accuracy most of them .001mm
we are using fixed probes, probes on turret and of coarse milling heads
I used star probes with milling head and with vertical lathe.

[tfisher]

Hey BWay I use the standard siemens probing cycles but furtunately for me there are alot more cycles for probing on the boring bar than the vtc. I use the cycles in my programs alot. For example one of my programs i need to mill a slot to connect two other slots (like the slot across the end of your openside wedgelock or widebody) the two side slots are done on a mill with a fourth axis so for me to get the end slot to line up with both side slots i need to either indicate the two existing slots or in my case i probe the bottom of both slots then using the two readings my program will calculate what the angle between the two slots is and rotate my work offset so the end slot will blend in with both side slots. I use the probe in this way alot. I like to use the machine to crunch all the numbers in my programs so i can't make a mathematical error. As for your other questions i can't probe in jog mode i wish i could but i don't think as of now it is possible. My probe seems to stay calibrated quite well, however i do recalibrate every few months just to be sure. I also have not had the need or opprotunity yet to use different stylus. Hope some of what i wrote will be helpful if you need any help with writing a custom macro for doing some probing let me know. I currently have macros written for all probing cycles that i use on an everyday basis. When G&L came to set up my probe they didn't seem to leave me with much info so if you're in the same boat i can probably help.

[BWay]

Thanks for everyone's input...it seems that I found the right group of users.

As for using Siemens cycles for measuring...no problem.

Does anyone have sample code of a custom probe cycle (not standard cycles) that uses the probe measured data to get inputed back into R values?

[maweber49]

Here's a snippet of code. This just measures a ring gage and saves the actual values to R variables. The variables at the beginning (RG1X, RG1Y, etc) are ones that were created in the GUD area by a definiton file, so you won't find these on your machine, but you can create your own. This is kind of a cool thing about the Siemens. This program uses Siemens cycle 977 to measure the bore.

ZCLEAR=30.0
RG1X=10.0
RG1Y=20.0
RG1Z=-1.5
PDEPTH1=.25
RGDIA=2.625

G01 F300. ;APPROACH FEED
G0 Z=ZCLEAR ;MOVE TO HIGH
C0. A0.
X=RG1X
Y=RG1Y ;MOVE TO CENTER OF RING GAGE #1
Z=RG1Z+10. ;MOVE TO Z 10" ABOVE TOP OF GAGE
G1 Z=RG1Z-PDEPTH1 ;MOVE Z BELOW TOP OF RING GAGE

SPOS=0

;Set modal parameters
_VMS=1.5
_NMSP=2
_FA=2
_PRNUM=1

_MVAR=1
_SETVAL=RGDIA
_KNUM=0

CYCLE977

R101=_OVR[5];THIS IS THE PROBED X LOCATION
R102=_OVR[6];THIS IS THE PROBED Y LOCATION
R105=_OVR[4];THIS IS THE PROBED DIAMETER

G01 Z=RG1Z+2. F300 ;MOVE TO Z 2" ABOVE TOP OF GAGE

[tfisher]

You can use the standard cycles to load the actual dimension straight into one of the R parameters. all the probing i do i use the cycle for "only measurement". To do this i turn the chbits off by entering 0 so the measurement result page does not pop up then after the cycle 977 or whatever cycle the particular probe cycle is all you have to do is write for example R1=_OVR[5] this is where the probing cycle stores the actual value that it just probed. _OVR[5] is the X value _OVR[6] is the Y value and _OVR[7] is the Z value. the _OVR values can be seen if you go in your parameter page under user channel user data GUD6 i think. Hope this helps. I can send you one of my actual programs if you want. Just saw some one beat me to it oh well. Hope it helps anyway.

[BWay]

This code looks good and very similar to something I have been working on. What I am finding is that the standard cycles on the machine I have only cover some of the measurements I want to perform. Do either of you have a sample of code were you are measuring with the probe without using canned cycles?

Thanks.

[guypb]

Here's a snippet of code. This just measures a ring gage and saves the actual values to R variables.

Hey maweber49 - is your first name Mark by any chance?

I would recommend Inspection Plus as the way to go personally - cuts out a lot of the overhead and uses a standard set of variables - my concern with custom probing code is using variables that impinge on other programs. I only know of 1 company that actually maps what programs use what macro variables.

[maweber49]

hey Bway. I have to go with Guy on this. Inspection Plus is the way to go. To write code to probe longhand (without the use of macros) is a bit of an undertaking and you will be writing a LOT of code just to measure a single point. Unfortunately it's not as simple as G01, G02, G03.

to guypb;

you are correct. It is Mark. 'tis a small world we live in, is it not?