Help...Before I blow another drive!

[hcrotalus]

I am using a G540 and Keling KL23H286-20-8B stepper motors with a 48VDC power supply running on MACH3.

First off I could not get the 540 to come out of FAULT using the default MACH3 profile. I followed the 540 setup directions:
1) setting my parallel port to EPP
2) connecting pins 10 to 12 on the 540 (E-STOP)
3) setting the charge pump output to pin 16 and enabling it in MACH3.

It would not come out of fault.

I then downloaded the Gecko 540B.xml and ran that in MACH3. PRESTO! the fault cleared!

I then plugged in a stepper motor (no load) into the X-Axis. Using the arrow keys I was able to to turn the stepper first forward (smoothly) then backwards (smoothly) then forwards then POP! No more drive!

I must have the wiring on the motor wrong but I can't figure out were! I want to run the stepper in bipolar parallel mode. So looking at the data sheets I figure:
G540
Connector Motor wires
9 Blu/Wht (A)
9 Red/Wht (C not)
8 Blu (A not)
8 Red (C)
7 Blk/Wht (D not)
7 Grn/Wht (B)
6 Blk (D)
6 Grn (D not)
5 2.7k resistor (to limit current to 2.7A)
1 2.7k resistor

Stepper Specs here: http://www.kelinginc.net/KL23H286-20-08B.pdf

G540 Specs here: http://www.geckodrive.com/upload/G54...3%20MANUAL.pdf

I splurged to get this drive and now it looks as if I will be buying another one! Any ideas?

Thanks
Todd

[jalessi]

Todd,

Your wiring is correct.

Have you tested the power supply voltage to see if it is correct?

Jeff...

[cyclestart]

I splurged to get this drive and now it looks as if I will be buying another one! Any ideas?

Have you checked the fuse ? If it's not that, well.... this company has been very good to it's customers. Give them a call.

[hcrotalus]

Thanks for helping out. I did test the power supply before I hooked anything up to it. It is setting at 42.0VDC no load. I did also check the PS after the mishap. Same reading. I checked the resistance of the windings on the stepper just as I have it wired and both coils are sitting at 1.5 ohms just as the spec sheet says. Before I blow the y, z and A drive portions of the 540 I will also ask Gecko...

[Crevice Reamer]

I doubt the drive is dead. The only thing that will ACTUALLY kill a G540 drive is Too much voltage, connecting the power in reverse, or shorting ACROSS the power terminals. Make sure no loose wire strands shorted across.

Call Gecko Tech Support:

(714) 832 - 8874

CR.

[hcrotalus]

So I spoke with Gecko and they said that the last test they do to the 540's before they leave is to short the coil outputs and make sure the unit can handle it. They doubted that the unit was bad. They said that it would be a first! They also felt strongly that the problem was with the power supply. Armed with that information and the reassurance from this forum that I wired the stepper right, I tried a 24VDC power supply. I tried the y-axis and it worked (I hadn't yet done anything with that axis yet). I then tried the X-Axis again. Nothing! Now thinking that it was possibly a parallel port pin blown problem. In Mach3 I swapped the step and direction pins for the x and y axis.

The X-Axis now worked when using the Y-Axis in Mach3! But strangely so did the Y-Axis when using the X-Axis in MAch3!?

I swapped the pin config. in Mach3 back and now everything works as it is designed!

So what was the real problem? The power supply. The POP that heard was probably the power supply fuse. But I can't even begin to explain the pin config. issue!

In the end everyone on this forum was right! I was told to check the power supply and that the 540 probably was not dead. Good job! Thanks!

By the way, anyone looking for the pinout and wiring diagram to interface the G540 to Keling 425 motor wired in Bipolar parallel it is in my first post and it is correct.

Thanks guys!

[Crevice Reamer]

Glad to hear all is well!

What is the Amperage of your power supply? Your motors require a MINIMUM 5.6A.

CR.

[hcrotalus]

I have a surplus 42VDC 20A unregulated power supply. I only had it fused at 4 amps on the supply side while testing though. I am still not sure that something isn't wrong with it because it seems to be drawing more current than I think it should. Usually when I plug it into the wall the plug sparks. I am not use to this. The output is correct at 42VDC according to the sticker on the frame which makes me think that the transformer is good. There is no AC component that my meter can pick up which also leads me to think that my rectifiers are good. Perhaps I am just not use to such a large power supply.

[Crevice Reamer]

Twenty Amps is a LOT of wattage alright, and WILL spark when you plug it in. Eventually or sooner, the sparking will damage the plug/receptacle. You should install a 20A rated switch to turn it on with. This power supply is WAY overmatched and will cost you about triple more electric bill than a more matched one.

What equipment are you powering with those 425s? Mill? Router? Size?

CR.

[Richards]

Congratulations on getting things sorted out.

The sparking that you're getting when you plug in your power supply is due to in-rush current. Twenty to eighty times the normal current is required for a few A.C. cycles when a linear power supply is first turned on. There are several simple designs that use resistors or thermistors to limit the in-rush current. Using a switch, switches the problem from the plug and socket to the switch's contacts. Most of us would rather replace a switch than replace a wall receptacle.

Your motors will not be able to draw twenty Amps from the power supply, so other than having something that is over-kill for the job (with free sparking thrown in), your power bill will be about the same whether you use that large power supply or whether you use a power supply sized correctly. Granted, there will be some additional loss because power supplies are not 100% efficient, but you could probably run that power supply for years before the cost of lower efficiency made up for the cost of buying a normally sized unit.

[hcrotalus]

The power supply was free. Can't beat that (if it works). I am powering Joe's 4x4 hybrid router.
Yes, an ON/OFF switch would be nice (a must!). I am just in the initial main component testing phase right now. All of the components are just siting on the bench. The enclosure should be here next week.
The way I figured the size of the power supply was by:

4 steppers @ 2.8A/phase = 11.2 A and then take 2/3rds of that is 7.4A. So it seems that the power supply is almost 3X what I need .... but it was free!

[H.O]

Hi,

Twenty Amps is a LOT of wattage alright, and WILL spark when you plug it in. Eventually or sooner, the sparking will damage the plug/receptacle. You should install a 20A rated switch to turn it on with. This power supply is WAY overmatched and will cost you about triple more electric bill than a more matched one.

Jumping in late here..... It is not recomended to switch the DC-side of the powersupply. I don't know about the G540 but with the G201/G210 it's been known to kill drives due to the high inrush current. Better put the switch on the AC-side of the supply or double check with Geckodrive first.

Regarding the electric bill... Just because the powersupply CAN supply ~800W (and therefor consume 800W+) doesn't mean it does so all the time. If it only has to supply 250W to its load it will only "use" 250W+losses. Leave it without a load and it might consume 10W, load it with 20A and it might cosume 900W.

/Henrik.