How do I edit EMC2 Question

[cwebs]

I just got my cnc machine done and moving in Mach3. I am brand new to EMC2 and ran the stepconfig wizard. All three stepers moved in the test setup OK. When I tried the EMC2 program I kept getting a warning the Z was out of limits and I was not able to home. I think I set the home/limit switch to "maximum/home" Should I have set this to "minimum/home"? If so what, where and how do I edit this problem. I can Jog X and Y but not Z. Z just bumps a few thousands at a time when I try to jog. Touching the Z home switch is no help. Thanks for any help! Carl

[cwebs]

After hours of searching and hours of reading and thinking about it all night I have all problems solved.

[vlmarshall]

Great, what was it? Did you have your travels configured incorrectly?

I'd have tried to help if I'd seen your post. I just started using EMC at the beginning of this year, but I'm really enjoying it now.

[cwebs]

Originally Posted by vlmarshall Great, what was it? Did you have your travels configured incorrectly? I'd have tried to help if I'd seen your post. I just started using EMC at the beginning of this year, but I'm really enjoying it now.

I did not know how to set Homing rapids to go in the correct direction or how to get the stepper config back so I could fix anything. Still have a problem with limits. I am using homing switches as limits but I can't find how to config my other limits. I have Z Y X conected together but find no option for that.

[pminmo]

The people that monitor the EMC IRC channels are the best place to ask EMC questions. You can get there via their website.

[acondit]

Originally Posted by cwebs I did not know how to set Homing rapids to go in the correct direction or how to get the stepper config back so I could fix anything. Still have a problem with limits. I am using homing switches as limits but I can't find how to config my other limits. I have Z Y X conected together but find no option for that.

I think you will be much happier if each axis is on a separate pin. I did the three together originally on my first machine. If I hit a switch it would report a joint error on all three axes (axii??). Much more frustrating to figure out where the error is when two or more axes (axii??) are close to the switches.

Alan

[acondit]

Originally Posted by cwebs I did not know how to set Homing rapids to go in the correct direction or how to get the stepper config back so I could fix anything. Still have a problem with limits. I am using homing switches as limits but I can't find how to config my other limits. I have Z Y X conected together but find no option for that.

I hate to tell you to read the manual but that is how I got mine working. The critical information is in the integrators manual under configuration:ini file:homing. You need to read that information to understand how the variables that control homing work. EMC2 offers a lot of control over how homing works that Mach doesn't. More control means more complexity.

I use combined home and limit switches, one switch at each end of travel.

Here is what I did in my ".hal" file.

# create a signal for the limit switches net both-home-x <= parport.0.pin-11-in net both-home-y <= parport.0.pin-12-in net both-home-z <= parport.0.pin-13-in net both-home-x => axis.0.neg-lim-sw-in axis.0.pos-lim-sw-in axis.0.home-sw-in net both-home-y => axis.1.neg-lim-sw-in axis.1.pos-lim-sw-in axis.1.home-sw-in net both-home-z => axis.2.neg-lim-sw-in axis.2.pos-lim-sw-in axis.2.home-sw-in

And here are the settings for the X-axis in my ".ini" file.

HOME_OFFSET = -0.1 HOME_SEARCH_VEL = -1.500 HOME_LATCH_VEL = 0.250 HOME_USE_INDEX = NO HOME_IGNORE_LIMITS = YES HOME_SEQUENCE = 1

This says that my home switch is -0.1" from X0, that I search for home in a negative direction at 90ipm, that once I hit home I back off and search again at 15ipm, that I don't use an index in addition to the switch, that I ignore limits when searching for home and finally that the X axis is the second axis to home. I have Z set to HOME_SEQUENCE = 0 and Y is also set to HOME_SEQUENCE = 1. So it homes Z first and then X and Y simultaneously. If I was sharing a switch loop between multiple axii, then I could not home two axii simultaneously. So if yours is homing in the wrong direction you would change the sign on the HOME_SEARCH_VEL (and probably the HOME_LATCH_VEL as well).

Alan

[cwebs]

You don't have to tell me to read the manual. I call it RTFM! I am reading EVERYTHING I can find and printing most of it out. At this time I have pins 10 11 12 for home limits and 15 for probe. I had set the X Y Z far limits to 13. Those three are connected in serial. and that was the problem setting them in Stepconfig. Soft limits are working OK so it is not that big a deal right now.
I am still learning to edit the .ini files but going at it slow so not to loose what I have. I will say that EMC rocks over Mock3 now that I am up and running. Thanks Carl