Fix Mitsubishi controller or start another retrofit?

[Hytek]

I have recently purchased an Ecoca EL4610-E lathe. It's in good condition, good enough to justify the work needed to get it going again.
It has a KWS980-A Heidenhain control panel, Mitsubishi Meldas 64 controller & Mitsubishi AC servos and drives that run absolute encoders.

The problem: After finally getting past the NC communications issue I managed to get the actual MeldaMagic program to run. Now I seem to be halted by a #37 driver error (parameter issue). This error has been persistent so far as I can't alter the parameters. A few of the screens throughout the installed software show in gibberish. I don't have the software discs to reload, though I do have all the manuals including the book of parameters. At this stage I'm not sure if I should persist trying to get the factory controller working, don't want to feed a money pit. Or should I retrofit and be done with it. Though wanting to maintain most of it's current features like the apron MPG's, constant cutting speed mode. servo drive link etc. seem to limit my controller options. I read somewhere 64 I/O are needed.

Any help or advice would be much appreciated

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[MrMetric]

I know nothing about your particular control, but I can tell you that Mitsubishi support (MEAU.com) can be extremely helpful. They may have an Aussie support center you can call, or you can bite the bullet and call the guys in the US. The alternative is to try to contact them through email; they generally are pretty good at responding with surprisingly useful information. The one caveat here is if the questions start to get into the integration side of the system (parameter specific information would be in that area). They cannot help with that at all.... Oh, check out their documentation in their support area too (you'll have to register, but that is free). The search is simply horrible, so keep your search criteria pretty vague. Yes, you'll get 20 pages of results that you will need to slog through, but you can often benefit from nuggets you would not otherwise have found.

[dm17ry]

if you consider going the retrofit way - i have an interface card which can talk to mitsubishi MDS drives under LinuxCNC control. MPGs, threading, constant cutting speed etc. - all are perfectly doable. http://yurtaev.com/yssc2p.html

[Hytek]

I know nothing about your particular control, but I can tell you that Mitsubishi support (MEAU.com) can be extremely helpful. They may have an Aussie support center you can call, or you can bite the bullet and call the guys in the US. The alternative is to try to contact them through email; they generally are pretty good at responding with surprisingly useful information. The one caveat here is if the questions start to get into the integration side of the system (parameter specific information would be in that area). They cannot help with that at all.... Oh, check out their documentation in their support area too (you'll have to register, but that is free). The search is simply horrible, so keep your search criteria pretty vague. Yes, you'll get 20 pages of results that you will need to slog through, but you can often benefit from nuggets you would not otherwise have found.

Thanks for the reply. I have registered and am in the process of navigating my way through the site to find the most appropriate area to ask my questions. I now see what you mean about the site navigation....

[Hytek]

if you consider going the retrofit way - i have an interface card which can talk to mitsubishi MDS drives under LinuxCNC control. MPGs, threading, constant cutting speed etc. - all are perfectly doable. http://yurtaev.com/yssc2p.html

Thanks for the reply. I did consider the option of using your card, I looked at it before I bought the lathe. In fact it was pivotal in my decision to go ahead and purchase the machine. I am still very interested in this option but have put it on the back burner due to current world events. I believe you are in Moscow and this poses a shipping problem.

At this stage I'd be happy to get the axis and spindle operating to assess the motors and drives etc. That way I'll have a better idea of where I am heading with this.

[Hytek]

Contacted Mitsubishi America who unfortunately suggested I contact Mitsubishi Australia who don't seem to have CNC tech support.

[MrMetric]

That is kind of what I was worried about.... You might want to put on your masquerade mask and play Phantom of the Opera. In today's world of the internet, it is often hard to determine exactly where a person is located.... As for the MEAU site. Yes, it is kind of a mess where perseverance is key. There really are some good nuggets there, though, if you stick with it. I should add that this "sticking with it" applies to the their manuals too. Although they are nowhere near as bad as a lot of manuals coming out of China today, it still can be quite a challenge to figure out what the MEAU manuals sometimes mean. At times the documentation isn't even correct. That is my running belief on the serial communications parameters that they publish for the M3. I believe this is one of the reasons so many people experience problems with comms. Serial is problematic to start with, but when you add in the vagaries of manuals, that just makes things soooo much worse!

[MrMetric]

I believe you are in Moscow and this poses a shipping problem.

I've heard this impact more than a few people. A friend of mine flies competitive radio control and there is a gentleman outside of Moscow that makes a very nice plane. My friend has had a plane on order for a long time, but the delivery now is very questionable. Small businesses suffer from the machinations of government politics. I understand how and why this is the case, but it is always sad to see the little guy pushed around like a chess piece.

Ironically, on the other side of the fray.... I am trying to figure out how to update my older Meldas M3 memory. It turns out that there is a guy in Ukraine that accomplished this a few years ago. I have tried to reach out to him, but with the clear messaging that I fully understand why he might not answer. If he is in the west and wants to take a brief respite to divorce himself from what is happening in the east, he may respond. But, honestly, I don't know if that is going to happen. He clearly has more important things to worry about right now than helping me. For all I know, he may not have survived. Even in the best of scenarios, his machine might have been bombed out of existence. Best scenario because a machine is just a thing....

Anyhow, chess pieces...

[Hytek]

I noticed while going through Mitsubishi's site there was an upgrade kit available for M64 machines. I did enquire about it at the end of my first message to MEAU, but that got pushed aside with the 'contact Mits AU' reply. I was a little surprised, my previous dealings with American companies have proven to be very helpful. Company policies?...

The Russia thing kicked off 2 days before I was due go interstate to pick the lathe up. At this stage I was already too invested to back out. Very typical of my luck! As you said, my problems are minor in the grand scheme of things.