how are you deciding what to put in the post and what to use camworks for?
you should be using the NC planes in camworks for stock clearance instead of putting it in the post, unless you have a very good reason to do so
Ok, more newb questions. I appreciate all the help you guys are providing.
I want the spindle to lift up 50mm when I hit start. At the moment I set the workpiece zero and hit start and then it moves dragging the bit across the workpiece.
I added this z50 to the "init tool change" section, however it lifts the Z to the limit rather than just 50mm - in G-code to lift the z 50mm I just write z50, but how do I write it in the UPG?
:T:<N><TOOL_COMMENT><EOL>
:T:<N><T><M:06><EOL>
:T:<N><G:00><Z50><EOL>
:T:<N><S!><M!:SPINDLE_DIR><EOL>
Next question, because I've added it here, I think it'll do it at every tool change, so where should I actually be adding it, I want it to lift at the beginning, just before the spindle starts.
Here is my default "start of tape", should I have it in here?
:T:O<"%4LT": program_number><EOL>
:T:<N><G:17><G!:ENGMET><G!:40><G!:80><EOL>
Next question, I've added this M:05 to the end of tape to turn the spindle off - at the moment when the workpiece is finished, the spindle lifts, moves to the machine zero and then the spindle turns off, I want the spindle to turn off before it returns to zero (safety first)
:T:<N><G:00><G:91><G:28> Z0<EOL>
:T:<N><M:05><G:28> X0 Y0<EOL>
:T:<N><M:30><EOL>
So why isn't this working? Or do I need to add it somewhere else? All the G-Code still looks cryptic to me.
Is there anything else I need to add that I haven't thought of yet that is just good machining practice or things that are advisable? I'm modifying a generic fanuc to run on Mach3.
Thanks in advance.
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how are you deciding what to put in the post and what to use camworks for?
you should be using the NC planes in camworks for stock clearance instead of putting it in the post, unless you have a very good reason to do so
Before switching to CamWorks I was using Aspire and the Post provided by Aspire worked well, unfortunately CamWorks doesn't provide one for Mach3, so I'm simply trying to get the CamWorks post to do what the Aspire one did.
For example, CamWorks lifts the tool in between movements, but it doesn't lift the tool at the commencement of the program, I would like it to. This I do not see as being a CamWorks option, it's a post processor program issue? Unless I missunderstand? Before CamWorks I've only used Aspire and it had its own post which worked flawlessly, so I've never had to edit this stuff (I'm obviously still very new to CNC)
Here is a video about editing camworks posts:
Forgive me, but the first question seems rather strange to me. Why would you want to hit cycle start at the beginning of your program with the tool contacting the workpiece? Seems to me that most folks would want to begin a program with the tool at a safe position (if not at home in Z). Not sure what your second question is. If you truly want to be safe, why don't you send the Z home at the start of the program, as you're doing at the end? We don't do that here, as operators know that the best practice is to have the tool clear of the work prior to hitting cycle start. As far as the third, try separating the two lines. Make it:
:T:<N><M:05>
:T:<N><G:00><G:91><G:28> Z0<EOL>
:T:<N><G:28> X0 Y0<EOL>
:T:<N><M:30><EOL>
I think that's what you want. Also, you may want to add a <G:90> prior to the end of the program so you don't remain in incremental mode.
I don't! That is what I'm trying to rectify
As for the end of tape you wrote, I'll try it, see if it fixes my problem.
Thanks
Whenever I turn on the machine, it will not allow me to move or do anything unless it has homed, so it is always at the machbine zero at the start, so theres no need for that to be incorporated into the code.
Then I'll move the machine over to my workpiece and zero all the axis on contact, where I will then usually hit start.
The post in Aspire which I was using before Camworks instantly raises the spindle from the zero before it starts the spindle, even though I've not been using cnc that long I've just become used to this so it was a shock when the Camworks post did not.
Last edited by demonx; 11-19-2014 at 10:12 PM.
Do you have to do this every day even if the same job is running? In other words, it does not remember work offsets? Or is everything you run one-off stuff? You could put it in the post if you like, but seems to me it would be just as easy to hit Z home return (or whatever it's called on this machine) and then hit cycle start. This is just me, but if I wanted the program to lift the tool off of the part, for safety's sake, I would go all the way up in Z to prevent any crashes on first move. Only moving up 50mm could cause a crash, depending upon your setup.
Adding a Z home move at the beginning would be easy. If that's what you want, let me know.
So far to date, everything has been one of, I'm never cutting the same piece twice in a row, however now moving to CNC operation I'm attempting to automate things a lot more for repeatability, but I'm new to this type of machinery, so there's that learning curve all you guys know so well.
As far as the post I attempted to use yesterday, I couldn't get it to work so I had to roll back to the older one that works, but trips out my reset limits at the start and finish.
Slightly Off Topic... I am a veteran Solidworks user, but new to their Free Cam add-in, powered by camworks. I have spent Hours going around and around with bugs with the Universal post generator. DAMMIT!!! with about the 2nd change I make to a source file, it throws up a "Runtime Error 521. Can't open Clipboard" and crashes. Anyone else have this trouble?
If you are trying to edit a .src file in UPG, don't. Edit in a text editor (recommend ECedit) and just compile in UPG.
I am trying to use UPG to create a postprocessor, but on Windows 10 64bit the installer crashes, and on Windows 7 (virtual machine) the compiler isn't able to find the source files that I create within UPG. Anyone else encountered these problems?
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