Dirk, Fortunately I just wanted to tell you regarding the stuff I have before acting. Thanks a lot for correcting me. I shall write to you if any error occurs.
Hi, thanks for your speedy response. I downloaded hp2xx about mid January so predates your mods. I will download your latest version and see what effect it has and let you know. Regards Bob
Rearly helpfull to see the full process from begining to end. Cant wait to see the next video.. Hopefully i will by the end of this understand how a picture becomes the code needed to make the pcb.. So far so good. Thanks a million times thank you... Keep the vids flowing.
Dirk, I finally managed to run my steppers with Arduino Nano+A4988 3 drivers+CNC shield v4. I used CNC controller software to run them. With CNC controller I was able to move all three steppers (x,y,z). I opened in CNC controller a gcode text graphic created in Inkscape and tried to run the steppers. Both X and Y steppers run according to the text and I can see it on the visualizer but the Z stepper does not where it should go up and down. I noticed in the program description shown while running the program some commands are removed such as "Removed unsupported M command 'M18' '" , "Removed unsupported M command 'M01' '" , "Removed unsupported M command 'M17' '" , "Removed unsupported M command 'M300' '" and "Removed unsupported M command P150''" I think this may be cause that the Z stepper does not move. Dirk, could you help me to solve this. I just need to run this CNC machine to plot some graphics.
Did you check you g-code if it actually has statements to move the Z-axis. You might have g-code for a laser engraver - they do not use G1 Z codes to turn the laser on and off. Sorry for the lateness, did not get a notification this time.
Wow You're awesome!! I'm subscribed to your channel already :D I'm watching carefully your videos to start my cnc prototype project. Thanks a lot for your sharing and good explaining of all thing!! I bought my first Arduino this week, so this is all a big adventure/challenge for me. Again, thank you and keep your goood work! Greetings
I uploaded an updated version of HP2XX, and I put the download link into the description of the video. The previous version was producing garbage g-code.
hello Dirk, i am using xp win32 but i am getting an error when i reach the 15 min it says the app is not compatible with win32, can you help me please ?
I suppose you are using the hp2xx I have in my repo ? If that one does not work for you, you can try the other available downloads of this tool. I am not the author/maintainer of this tool and only supply this version, which has a fix for Windows 7 and later versions.
Dirk i am using the one in the descriprion here under this video, can you share the link for other versions please ? i tried their website but i couldnt find the exact file like yours the .exe
Dirk, I followed the procedure given below and managed to upload Grbl to Arduino Nano. I just followed the procedure without any idea. I do not know whether I am right or wrong. Please let me know whether I am right or wrong, "How to upload the GRBL source code to Arduino Nano" Download by typing grbl in google search and select "GitHub-grbl/grbl:An open source embedded performance g.... You are prompted to a web page called grbl/grbl at the top. You shall find a "Clone or download" green colour label at the right hand side half way down. Select it and download the grbl master zip file to the download folder. Unzip it at the download folder and you get a folder named "grbl-master" Double click it and you get a folder called "grbl". Double click it and you get a folder called "examples". Double click it and you get a folder called "grblUpload". Double click it and you get a file called "grblUpload" having Arduino label. (OK now connect the Arduino Nano board to the PC.) Now double click "grblUpload" you shall come to Arduino program page with a heading "grblUpload". Now select under tools tab the correct Arduino board (Arduino Nano) and correct serial port(COM3) and correct processor (Atmega328P). Now hit the "Upload" circle in Arduino program. You will see the uploading is done at the bottom of the Arduino program page. Now the Arduino Nano board is with grbl uploaded.
Yes, you did everything right to install GRBL, but this board is not for GRBL, it is for: github.com/dherrendoerfer/uCNC_controller/tree/master/beta/uCNC_controller_v4 And you may need just a little programming skill to get that working.
Hello Dirk, maybe I missed it, but you may have a link to the schematic to this PCB? in the film you drew a small part of the schematic with a (1) ULN 2003 the piece of video where you drew the schematic with the blue marker was nice/clear and understandable later I want to make something like: or: A machiene that can draw the PCB (so you can then etching) or: that the PCB directly mills. (A small PCB mill) thank you for the nice video! And Friendly greetings from the Netherlands. (Sorry for bad translation) Rob.
+R. Rob. Hi, There is a link in the description of this video to my github repo. In the Extras directory you will find schematics to all the controllers I designed so far.
Hi, I seem to have gone backwards, I now get 'hp2xx' is not recognised as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file, so -m nc does nothing. Has the suffix changed or am I missing something. Bob
great video. I learned a lot. I am building the same style cnc that you built. just wondering is there anything you would change on your cnc if you built another version?
Joe B I've changed something each time I updated my devices - I went from reused parts to cheap new ones. I now (sometimes) use quality linear bearings, and now use bipolar Steppers for my 3D printer concept. It all depends where you want to go - I'm thinking about building something that is more in the line of a true CNC, with threaded rods, so it can do something with a little force to it, but first I want to get my own 3D printer stuff to work, that is really far right now, but may still need some thought.
I manage to make them move when powering the board but no luck yet with the artgcodewriter, I am thinking I might have them set wrong and that could be the reason why it freezes the software. I am using 28BYJ-48-5V servos. They seem very similar to the ones you are using on the latest version of yours. The datasheet says 32 steps per revolution (step angle) and 2048 steps per revolution (steps per output shaft) Should I replace "200" in the software with 32 or 2048??? my shafts circumference is 24.7 so divide which? (32 or 2048) / 24.7. Also according to this datasheet. arduino-info.wikispaces.com/SmallSteppers the correct order would be (stepsPerRevolution, 8,10,9,11) or is it (stepsPerRevolution, 11,9,10,8) ??? I really appreciate your help
If you are using those small steppers, you might want to use one of the firmwares from the beta directory. Your steps are 2048/24.7. Try to keep the stepper speed as low as possible in the beginning, so you can see it is working fine. To get the correct wire order some experimenting may be the best idea - I have seen several different configurations on seemingly similar motors.
Greetings, may i ask your help in python programming? i just need something like your code but to control rs-232, i've all the hardware, and i only need to move right, left, up and down with the mouse click or pressing the kb cursors, if you decided to help me with it i'll really appreciate it, thanks in advance
Hello Dirk, Thanks a lot for the videos and response on question we asked pertaining the plotter XY, I have replicated the plotter, the hardware and firmware functions well , except i havent figure out why i am getting wrong pads sizes that are joined . i have checked the step per mm settings and also simulate the gcode with g-code toolpath simulator , I aso checked the backlash , cant seem to get it right , I am eager to replicate this project , have I reach the end of the road ?
Have you tried generating some g-code yourself to find out if the issue is backlash or something else ? I usually do things like drawing two or three squares that intersect or meet at a certain point so you can judge if you have backlash. Also did you make sure that your pen cannot shift as it is dragged over the board ? Sorry for these short answers, I'm currently pretty loaded down by work.
Hi Dirk I have generated own g-code , no backlash , this may seem to be the problem , i measured the width and the length by vernier caliper as compared to the g- code , the width is 5 mm bigger, i guess it is because i am using two different stepper motor , the X axis step per mm is ok and Y maybe not be, i suppose
Hi Dirk , thanks a lot for the the tutorial , I have the plotter axis , XY and Servo working ok, the only challenge I have is hp2xx , when I apply -m nc controller.hpgl i get result `nc` unknown mode error, any idea how to resolve this
I am also having issues with generating hpgl , i am using Eagle Cadsoft Ver 7.7.0, I get a generated file without .hpgl extension even though I have selected HPGL as a device
This should help you: github.com/dherrendoerfer/uCNC_controller/blob/master/Extras/Hp2xx/hp2xx-3.4.4-win32.zip I keep this for reference, as the tool appears to be unmaintained now.
Hello Goodnight thanks for your help but I could not do I have a new bug "hp2xx" is not recognized as an internal or external command, program or batch file I think I'll give up what I could do thanks
do you have a schematic and BOM available for board prototyping? I'm attempting this project and it would be nice have a diagram to go about building the the lm7805 for the servo. I'm using somewhat of a similar setup but instead of building my uln2003 stepper motor drivers, I'm using the ones provided with the 5v 28byj-48 steppers, also, which controller Version would I go about using for unipolar steppers? Controller_1 or Controller_4? Nice project btw
justinp4235 Thanks! Schematics are in the github repos as well as the software you found already. I suppose using the v4 software will give you the best performance, but since it is the one with the most development it is more likely to contain bugs at some time. Hardware-wise I would go with the v1 board.
Dirk Herrendoerfer Thanks for the fast reply! I have to ask, how did you supply power to the two steppers? I know that the Arduino nano can output 5v but only at 500mA powered via usb, so did you use an external 5v power supply or 12v supply? And is the lm7805 for the servo, thanks in advance and keep up the great work
justinp4235 The Arduino runs on 5V from the PC, the controller board has 2 ULN2003 darlington drivers to drive the steppers - 5V or 12V - the power is supplied externally. Some 28byj48 kits come with ULN2003 driver boards. The 7805 is needed when driving the steppers with 12V, for the servo.
1st thing would be to clone the uCNC repo: github.com/dherrendoerfer/uCNC_controller/archive/master.zip Unpack that, go to the beta/uCNC_controller_v4 directory and open that in the Arduino IDE. Select the v4 board, compile and transfer. Then have a look at the settings in uCNC_Controller_v4.ino for the stepper settings. You'll need to adapt that to whatever you will build.
Dirk, As you know I am unaware how to generate a gcode for a sketch or for a text. Really what I did was I used Inkscape to generate some letters and saved as a gcode file. Then I used CNC controller software to open it and drive my X,Y and Z steppers. Then only I noticed the Z axis stepper does not move up or down according to the letter intervals. Really I do not know how to insert coding for Z axis movements in gcode. Normally when you generate a gcode in Inkscape to draw some letters, does not it insert gcode to move the Z axis at letters intervals?
Well, you can open the nc file in a text editor and search for lines that include the Z letter ? And, no. Depending on the target for your g-code there may be no z-axis statements in the code, because a laser engraver will turn on the laser with a M03 command and turn it off once it receives M05. So, you might need to investigate some more.
Hello Dirk, I have a few questions, 1) how to get the negative of that. you work with a pen to mask. I d like to mill the not needed PCB layer. Unfortunately it is not only to invert Z Direction. 2) Many layouts are available as pic for toner transfer. Is it possible to use that too? 3) Finaly what about drill? Vielen Dank und besten Gruß von der Alb!
+Tigrar Hi, Gruss aus dem Laendle, 1. What you want is isolation milling, a lot of Routing programs like Eagle can do that natively. 2. Yes, there are Windows and Linux plotter drivers for generic printing to files, these can be plotted. 3. I've never thought about drilling, since it requires a completely different setup and far more torque and holding force that these setups can supply. It would require a mill-like setup for that.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Hello Dirk, thank you for your hints, I will lookout for these informations in detail. Well I think for the isolation milling there will be as much torque as for the drilling of the pcb. Sorry for have forgotten to mention the PCB in this place. Mainly the drilling points schould be more or less available with the PCB information. But yes, my construction is planed to be much more stable (already to be more versaile). On the other hand I wonder if your magnet solution will then still work as I like the idea very much. Aller besten Gruß zurück und Danke.
Jansen KCara Yes. The regulator is a 7805 for the servo, if you really need more torque use a 7806. The caps are dependent on the voltages you use, 470uF for the primary input, and 220uF for the 7805 are usually sufficient.
Hi Dirk, I made a simple pen plotter with X,Y axis and servo but I don't have a software to arduino to run my plotter. I thought that your project will be perfect for my plotter but I used Nema 17 motors and stepsticks and I don't know how changed your program (is it posible?) to my project. If you know how changed your software, please help me. Regards Robert
You should be able to use the v4 firmware for those drivers without change. All you would need to do is figure out the wiring from the arduino to the driver boards. There is some documentation with the code that should help you.
Dirk, I downloaded Gcode Sender and installed it as you advised me before. I use Arduino Nano with V4 shield and A4988 drivers for NEMA 17 stepper motors. I installed Arduino software and did GbrlUpload too. Selected the correct serial COM port(3) and selected Baud as 115200. After connecting to the PC when I browse my Gcode file (it is a spiral sketch)created with Inkscape and hit the send button under Machine Status/Active State indicate "Idle". Time elapsed advances. When I opened Visualize tab I cannot see any movement or graphic. For your information I did not connect motors to the Arduino nano board. Is it the problem? Please reply me and advise me. Thank you. Brgds. Fernando
Well, yes - uCNC_Controller works at 9600 baud for a start, and position-feedback is a GRBL feature that uCNC does not have. What you should be seeing is the data transfer from the sender to the Arduino.
Hey Dirk. I was wondering about the conversion from a cad or Inkscape drawing of a circuit to a gcode file. When I do this the conversion only comes out as gcode commands for the outline of each pad. It doesn't fill in any large pads or pc board traces. Is there something more I can do to have a pc board drawing converted to gcode and have it fill in large pads? I am using the gcode conversion tools that one can add to inkscape.
I have the issues with the tools not filling in the pads completely too. I use eagle, fortunately the pads still work out. That is one of the reasons I started looking into the isolation manufacturing methods.
Hi Dirk have closely followed your project and I have taken on the task of putting together one like yours, but I have the following problem'm using bipolar motors 200 steps per revolution and transmission of nylon, as well you explain in the video, I calculated the distance to a full turn, the shaft of my engine has 4 mm in diameter, that gives 4 * 3.14 = 12.5mm, but here's the problem, not arduino engines use to move, I'm doing with Mach3, but never will and comes to the same place, for example if I say x10 moves 10mm approximately, now if I say x0 should return to the same point, but it does it moves to x-1 and every time you move x10 and you return it moves further back and if you move farther the error return is higher, I could help with this that already has me anxious, I do not know if using arduino solve the problem, in Section stepsPerMillimeter_X = 200 / 12.5 thank you very much from now, forgive the English is not my native language.
Two possibilities are: slip on the axis, or your motor speed is too high and the stepper is skipping steps. Put something onto the top of the stepper and see if the Zero position of the stepper is always the same.
ok, I'll try it tonight and tomorrow tell you whether or not match the zeros, about the speed, I do not think that is the problem, then move slowly. Thanks once again for your quick response. a greeting
Dirk Herrendoerfer Hi Dirk, did last night testing again, I did what you told me, one of the problems I have is q my engine is 1.8 degrees is 7.5 degrees, so the steps are 48 for a full turn, I tested at low speed and at the end always the case begins to move from zero, besides the absence of a suitable step or accurate for measurements, for example, I say x = 10 and reaches 9.6450, because the increase of steps does not give an exact number. finally decided to change the method step millimeter threaded rod to eliminate transmission losses and to be more precise, now I will replace the servo z axis by an electromagnet and a discrete circuitry to handle. if you have something like that out there, you could help me. greetings, Enrique
ok not worry, I'll try using a microservo with arduino nano when I buy it. Now as you do in Gcode to activate the Laser, and as you connect the arduino, thanks once again for everything. see you
Estoy utilizando 28byj-48. Si entendí lo del voltaje pero ¿Que función tiene el Python 2.7 en la programación? ¿Que le pusiste en la parte que gira del motor la que es como una tapita?
hi dirk, in command prompt part i am stuck up,completed PATH part,n next hp2xx -m nc controller.hpgl i get an error like not recognised batch file somrthin,kindly guide how to resolve it,also in ur video the nc hpgl file is created but mine says controller instead. regards
Hello again sir am having some trouble with the software am runing uln2003 steppers and in the documentation it says that Unused : A0,A1,A6,A7 (A6 and A7 cannot be used as output) so since the stepper driver has 5 pins and these settings define 4 pins will editing the code make it break because I need the z axis for 3d carving and maybe printing
My software already has support for 3 steppers. You just need to select the correct motor mode - also I have GRBL for this unipolar design ported and ready to go. Or do you need some sort of special configuration ?
@@dherrendoerfer thank you for your help av been going around down to simple hp-gl language in my research to understand how the code works..but I dont understand how the code is transformed into electrical signals like e.g move x .05 to a signal and can it process 3d printing g.code withouth runing it through the hp2xx converter? also how do you edit grbl to do what you want ?is it with c console or java?etc or just edit the main code in the instal directory
Dirk, Thanks for replying me. I tried as you instructed, but still I get the same pop up message. Is it possible to send an attachment of the message as well as the visio diagram I tried to covert to gcode for you to try? I do not have your email add.
I can't get the unicorn plugin to work either .... I have a setup that I set up from the information at eleksmaker.com, but I believe that produces g-code for engravers.
Hi Dirk! I need your help I alredy set up the python software but when I open the gCode file and try to run it, it doesn´t do anything it just responds when I use the X and Y buttons and I don´t know what to do please help me!
I wanted to know how to make the configuration of my cnc with steel cable my stepper motor and nema 23 and the axis has 6.35mm as do the micro step setting on 1/4 in Polulu a4988 have to divide the shaft diameter of the engine by canapes and 200 steps'm doubt I thank
I suppose you need to calculate the shaft circumference and use that value to divide the steps per revolution (like 200*4=800) by. So in the end you get the steps that are needed to move one millimeter.
Hi dirk, thanks for your explanations. I ve tried Hp2xx, but it seems the conversion of the hpgl files is done with some errors for the dimension. i mean all the files got 200 width and 180 height. and i dont know why, tried to use some option but didn t get it to work correctly. i used the same command as on the video, but nothing .... could you help me plz ?? :D
Great sir,, does the 3rd part, not out yet? (sending gcode to arduino with a firmware with it), or can you give instruction on hoow to do it? . Thank you
Hi, first let me thank you for generously giving your knowledge and expertise to us mere mortals. Second, I have made one of your machines and it works extremely well however I have one problem with the software that I hope you can help me with. When translating from EAGLE thro' hp2xx35 the G code generated contains some Z values (apparently random) that are greater than 1 which causes ardGcodeWriter to freeze. I can, and have, changed then in the G code script, this works but is time consuming. I am new to EAGLE so am probably doing something wrong there, can you offer any insights? Thanks again. Bob
When did you download hp2xx ? I fixed a couple of problems and updated the tool on 2015/02/10. I plan to implement some changes to hp2xx in the near future, but I thought the newest version was doing ok.
Hi Dirk, Do you have an idea, what could be wrong? I am following all of your steps, but when calling the hp2xx command, and hitting enter it opens the text that is in the document. And when i call the -m nc... all i get is more controls and options. I've checked the path, renamed the file for the hp2xx still no idea, what is wrong... Great videos by the way!
+Žan Kaštigar Try this one: github.com/dherrendoerfer/uCNC_controller/tree/master/Extras/Hp2xx . Other versions from the internet sometimes don't support NC mode.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Thank you, I downloaded it again, but it didnt work the first time. Than I just typed the whole command in one, so like this: hp2xx -m nc Controller.hpgl, and it worked! Maybe it will help someone. :)
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Is it possible to change the width and height from 200x149.4 to something smaller? Because everytime i generate the gcode they are adaptet and my cnc reaches its limit
It's simple actually - you need to know how many steps it takes for your stepper to complete one revolution. Lets say it's 200. Then you need to calculate the circumference of your drive shaft or drive pulley. We do that by multiplying the diameter of the shaft or pulley by 3.14 (PI). So if the diameter is 10mm, the circumference is 31.4mm. Then you divide the number of steps by the circumference. in this case 200/31.4 = 6.37 steps/mm.
Morning Dirk, I corrected the steps/mm setting in the ucnc file, i get the right image except the pads , they are oblog and bigger . if you have spare time I can send you the files i created on hp2xx to figure out what could be the issuue
these are the setting i put on the configuration , float stepsPerMillimeter_X = 200/ 12.73; int stepIssueFrequency_X = 400; int stepIssueFreqRamp_X = 4; int stepIssueFrequencyRampMax_X = 220; int stepDriveSlack_X = 60; float stepsPerMillimeter_Y = -200/ 12.73; int stepIssueFrequency_Y = 400; int stepIssueFreqRamp_Y = 4; int stepIssueFrequencyRampMax_Y = 220; int stepDriveSlack_Y = 60; My shaft is 5mm, revolution is 200 ,
You need to check if your machine has backlash, the most simple way to do this is to attach a rubber band to the X and Y carriages pulling them to one side, and trying a plot. If the situation improves you need to figure out how to minimize that.
Hi Dirk. So.. I have a problem with the Controller V4 - Beta Version. I was wondering to use this program on arduino so I could use the halfstep mode because in this moment I don't have any Step Motor with a tiny step angle. Just a unipolar 7.5 degrees/step. But I made my plotter based on yours, using nylon strings to move the pen and the paper base and Now, I need to enter some data like "stepIssueFrequency"; "stepIssueFreqRamp"; "stepIssueFrequencyRampMax"; "stepDriveSlack", and I don't know what to put in this variables.. Can you help with this?
Sure. put the slack settings to 0, they are for geared steppers stepIssueFreqency is the amount of steps your stepper can do per second, and safely start and stop. Start with a small value and work your way up (like 50) The ramp values control how much faster your stepper can go once it's started. The Ramp value is how steep the acceleration is, the Ramp max is how much will be added to the base frequency before acceleration stops. Start with both at zero, then put 20% of IssueFrequency into RampMax, and something like 5 into Ramp. Since we don't know the dynamics of your stepper this will take some experimentation. Cheers! Dirk
Hello I have a Prusa i2 with ramps 1.4 I wanted to change it to print my pcb. I have some questions: I can change my printer to print pcb? If yes where I can find the firmware to upload to Arduino Mega? I do not know if you've already answered in your videos to my questions but if you'll excuse me, but still do not understand English very well.
+Matteo piras You do not need to change the software on your printer. Use the tool hp2xx to generate some g-code for you that uses positive Z positions and make yourself a pen holder.
thanks for answering my English is not very good the error that appears to me is this: 'nc' Unknown mode! supported are: cad, dxf, em, emf, emp, epic, eps, fig, gpt, HPGL, img, mf, PBM, pcl, PCX, pre, rgip, svg thanks
hi Dirk i watched this video and redo the process, but i fund the nc file,which i produced by your steps isn't the same as yours in the document, and then when i look over this video carefully, i fund the nc file(which u produced in this video) isn't the same as the one in the document too. can u check that? here is some details: the original one begins like this: M06 T 2 ; Tool Up G01 Z1 G00 X 0.20025 Y 0.05025 ; Tool Down G01 Z-1 G01 X 0.20025 Y 0.05025 G01 X 0.2 Y ......... the new one: M06 T 2 ; Tool Up G01 Z1 G00 X 0.532269 Y 0.133067 ; Tool Down G01 Z-1 G01 X 0.532269 Y 0.133067zi G01 X 0.399202 Y 0 G01 X 0.133067 Y 0 they are different why? regards!
Hello friend, please help me in this project I'm in doubt which pin put the servo motor where: Stepper myStepper1 (stepsPerRevolution, 8,9,10,11); Stepper myStepper2 (stepsPerRevolution, 4,5,6,7); Stepper myStepper3 (stepsPerRevolution, 17,16,19,18); I thank you! greeting from Brazil
Hi Dirk I am stuck with my project. Whenever I send a command trough the artgcodewriter it only takes the first click and then it hangs, I get the hour glass as if it was processing but is actually freezing. Using the arduino serial monitor I do get the "READY OK". I have tried with two steppers plugged except the servo which I dont have yet and also without any stepper thinking I might have soilder something wrong but either way the .py freezes. Any Ideas? I am thinking it might be my computer (win xp) or the arduino it self. I appreciate your advice. thanks
Hi Dirk, me again. I was using the HP2XX, and I was asking me how do you setup the pen size? And the speed of the drawing? Becouse when you convert the file to GCode, it says Warning: pen size ignored. Thanks!
Roberto Sale Hi Roberto, the hp2xx tool ignores the pen width, it needs to be correctly set in Eagle - mainly for the reason that Eagle already renders all surfaces into line segments. So you should put the correct line with into Eagle when creating the hpgl export.
Dirk, I face another problem with the stepper motors. I use Arduino Nano with A4988 drivers on CNC shield V4. First I tested the steppers separately with Arduino Nano and A4988 drivers one by one on a breadboard using a Arduino test program and the steppers ran smoothly back and forth. I did the current limit adjustment on all A4988 boards too. I used GrblGru gcode sender software and selected a test program on it called square20 and when I hit the start button I can see the program running well on the controller window nicely. At the same time I can feel the heat sinks on A4988 board too get heated up. But the steppers do not run. Instead time to time I can hear they turn about one step and keep silent. Could you advice me how to overcome this problem? Fernando
So, that can be a lot of things, I assume that you have a version of grbl that is preconfigured for the grbl shield you are using ? In any case, I'd start off issuing very simple commands, just to make sure that the speeds and timings are configured correctly. Start of with something like 'G1 X10 F10' that should spin the stepper very slowy. Repeat the the command for every axis. Then look at what's configured in the settings of the controller ( command $$ I believe ) and go from there.
Dirk, I tried as you instructed the simple code and still the same. I can see the program running but not the stepper. I did not connect MS0,MS1 & MS2 jumpers and they are kept open. I should tell you another matter regarding my CNC shield V4 which I bought from ebay It has errors in the print. I found it when I was trying through youtube to overcome these problems. If you could go through the links below you would understand. Almost every CNC shield V4 in ebay has these problems. ruclips.net/video/1UKY1_hOipQ/видео.html ruclips.net/video/ZX3t-2s3XUo/видео.html forum.arduino.cc/index.php?topic=406110.0 I changed the in grbl, cpu_map file according to the above 1st video instructions too. Regarding the speed and timing you said what parameters in the GrblGru I should change? Could you name them and what values do you recommend? I am sorry for troubling you so much.
Dirk, Sorry I was troubling you all these days. Really I am now clueless. I think I better try to run this CNC machine with Arduino Uno with a shield V3. I hope at least that would work for me. Thanks for replying and help me so much.
Eu queria saber como fazer a configuração do meu cnc com cabo de aço meu motor de passo e NEMA 23 e o eixo tem 6,35 milímetros como fazer o micro etapa configuração de 1/4 in a4988 Polulu tem que dividir o diâmetro do eixo do motor, canapés e 200 steps'm duvidar agradeço
Hey dirk i dont understand of your logic behind calculation of steps per millimetre. You give formula C=d.pie if you considering C and D=1 then how you get 17.1 value for steps per millimetre ?
steps per mm is 200 divided by 17.1 . 200 Steps is the number of steps per revolution of a 1.8 degree stepper. 17.1 is the circumference of a 5mm stepper shaft plus half the width of the nylon, which is 1mm thick. 5.5mm * PI = 17.1mm. So I let the compiler do the math, and just use the constants of 200 divided by 17.1 *... = ( 200/ 17.1 )
Question your video my documents file size folder hp2xx is 1.96 mb and files are hp2xx, jpeg62.dll, libpng14-14.dll, libpng-LICENCE ..... and when I download the file you sent me only it appears like this: size 271kb files: copyning, hp2xx there is no more
Wish you a Happy New year to your whole family. I imported a Visio drawing to Inkscape and managed to copy files from Inkscape-unicorn-master to get the g-code extension when hit the Save as. But at the end a message pops up and say could not be saved. Could you help me solve this problem?
Have you tried launching Inkscape with Administrator privileges ? (Assuming you use Windows) Sometimes it's just the issue that you do not have write permissions where you are trying to store the file.
Dirk, I am confused with it since I am a beginner. Really where can I change the baud to 9600? I do not see a place in SourceRabit Could you please guide me to solve this problems? I am really desperate.
Hello , I have a problem converting hpgl files to NC the fact is that when I convert the files and I print my pcb the measurements are not correct, ie the tracks and the components do not have real but bigger measurements. Do you know what my problem is due to?
+ยุทธพงษ์ พ Please refer to the eagle howtos and its documentation. The hpgl export is done via the 'CAM processor' function in eagle. There are a lot of examples on the net, and they explain it much better than I ever could.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer , I found this website www.diyouware.com/use Configure the following parameters:Device: HPGLScale: 1Offset: zero (x and y)Pen diameter: 0.1mmVelocity: 10 but the print result was not the same as the value you provided in the Controller.hpgl file.What is the value you set.Thank you very much
+Fernando Nunes Which parameters ? You probably want to define the ports for the V1 board, your StepsPerMillimeter are the circumference of the spindle divided by your steps per revolution of the stepper.
Hello Dirk, I am using win 10 64bit,when I convert hpgl file whith hp2xx35 ,i getting this mistakes :'hp2xx-m' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file. What do you thing ,where is the problem. Thank you!
Hello,just finished CNC still need to get the software running.In which mode do I run the code if I use the stepper on Z axis so it moves the pen up/down? Cheers! PS OK I think that's its supposed to be run in mode 0.
Dirk Herrendoerfer Thanks, I'm probably going to have to use servo like you.Small stepper motor from floppy drive can't lift the pen and keeps stalling even when there no load.You got any ideas what it could be?I was supplying 5V from USB gonna try from PSU today.Maybe the frequency is wrong?
Apologies, mode 0 was correct - maybe it is the speed, I once use one go the small linear steppers from the 3.5 inch floppies and found it to be rather strong. But USB power is probably not enough ... Try a beta (v1) firmware, you can set different speeds for each stepper there.
Im using 28bjy motor. When I change steps per revolution from 200 to 4048. it doesn't work, it just makes more pulses during same time. What numbers I should enter for steps per revolution and steps per mm if I'm using 28BYJ-48 and GT2 belt 20t pulley (diameter I believe is 12.7mm)?
With the small motor you also need to turn the speed down. Use a very low speed and go up from there. The arduino is not able to issue so many steps per second.
I have 5V ones and I think I'm going to use that regulator, because on 5V it does not have enough power to spin, when using 12V it gets really hot quite fast, but spins with higher torque. With regulator you could adjust optimal voltage for motors. Of course you can use something like L780X if you already know optimal voltage or don't use at all if supply provides such voltage.
Hi, I am 14 and also from germany and I am thinking about also building myself a plotter like this. In an oter video you have shown a controller design based on the Arduino Nana and the Polulu drivers, which have to be wired differntly and I would like to know if there is any code from you online, becouse I still have not decidet whether i would go bi- ore unipolar. And it is a big point of my decision that there is some working code avalebil coused by the fact that I am not so goot in writing code for the arduino.
Deather King Hi, in allen meinen Videos findest du in der Beschreibung einen Link auf mein github repo. Darin findest du alle Informationen, Software, Platinenlayouts usw. Die software/hardware Versionen sind V1 fuer unipolar und V4 fuer bipolare Schrittmotoren.
Ich habe da keinen klaren Favoriten, beide haben ihre Vorteile. Wenn es einfach und billig sein soll, dann unipolar - wenn es genau und schnell sein soll dann besser bipolar. Ebenfalls koennte man mit der bipolar- Steuerung einfach einen kleinen 3D Drucker bauen. Da passen dann die verwendeten Teile schon.
Ich habe ein Tutorial im Internet gesehen wie man die billigen ebay 5V Stepper zu bipolaren umbaut, sodass man sie dann auch mit dem Polulu Treibern ansteuern kann, ich kann den link gerade nicht hier einfügen allerdings würde ich das zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt tun, wenn sie interessiert sind.
Please, can you do a video tutorial on this topic? I can only generate files that isolate the paths. I generate the files using Run ULP and mill-outlines.ulp. Where am I wrong? You generate HPGL directly. Can you detail the process?
Dirk, I tried to install Universal Gcode sender after successfully installing Java 8. But when I downloaded the zip file of UGS and unzip it I cannot find a file called UniversalGcodeSender.jar to create a shortcut of UGS. Could you help me to solve this?
Really ? As soon as it looses focus ? I'll check, but I never had that issue, only when two programs are competing for the COM port I had unexpected things happening. I'm using Windows 7 for my plotters.
Yeah, I'm using Windows 10 Pro. I'm trying to turn the writefile function into another thread class for multithreading but I can't seem to get it. I'm not really good at python. Oh btw, I'm using Spyder with python 2.7
+pedro rodriguez I tried it out yesterday, it worked for me on Win 7 Pro 64-bit. I unpacked the repo zip into 'My Documents' and issued the commands in the created directories without modifying the PATH environment variable.
+pedro rodriguez It is. you need to use the command prompt to use hp2xx, but if you move the files you want to transcode into the hp2xx directory you can forego the path setting steps
Was fuer eine Version benutzt du denn ? In meinem Repo (link in der Beschreibung des Videos) gibt es eine Aktuelle als zip fuer Windows. Die Linux und OSX Versionen im Netz sind teilweise ohne NC Unterstuetzung gebaut worden.
Dirk Herrendoerfer Vielen Dank. Habe den Fehler gefunden. Jetzt fehlt nur noch die Hardware ;) Übrigens: Mit Inkscape kann sich mit einer kleinen Modifikation auch gcodes direkt von jpg Dateien erzeugen lassen.
No idea what would make it do that - you might want to check if you configured it correctly and built it for the correct Arduino board - but apart from that it should not go into a reset loop.
Hello, I do not sell these machines as kits, but all information is available online. There is a link to my github repo in the description of the video, you may find everything I have published there.
Steppers with six wires have two wired for the mid-connection of each coil. These should both be connected to the positive source. The other four wires go to the driver ICs.
Hi Dirk, I am in the process of copying one of your controllers from an EASYEDA link but am a little confused. The controller is on link easyeda.com/dherrend/uController-11dbaeb7e3f046408e67acb03aba75f2 My confusion is, there are three 100k resistors (R4, R5, R6) on pin 2 of the A4899 chips that appear to be doing nothing. My confusion is, should the 100k be connected to just pin 2 giving a Mode of 2Phase or should they not be there at all and the all three Mode pins connected to +5v giving a Mode of 1/126th step 4 wire 2 phase. Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this but I could not find any other way to contact you and EASYEDA were unable to help. Regards John
Hi - you're completely right, if you want to use 1/16 mode the resistors do nothing, but if you intend to cut the tracks to get less than 1/16th, that resistor becomes necessary.
Hi Dirk, What does your software do, does it work in 1/16 or full steps? I want it to work as you designed it, I am not clever enough to make software/firmware modifications.
It does not matter - 1/16th is better. The software only needs to know how many steps it needs to issue to draw one millimeter. You need to edit that into the firmware source file, no programming skills are required.
Hi Dirk. Sorry to bother you again, I built the Version 1.5 as above onto an Arduino Robot shell in order to use an old Duemilanove I have lying around. When I try to run a nc program (from your links) either in GRBL ot ArdGcode Writer, it ques about 8 instructions and then nothing. This happens also if I just run the Arduino on its own both the Nano and Duemilanove. I am wondering if I am loading the incorrect program into the Arduino. I have tried various ones from your links with no improvment. Can you send me a link to the correct controller program for the Version 1.5 board (the one with A4899 chips) Regards John
Hi Dirk Herrendoerfer, Thanks for your video and your hard work to complete this. I have done the prototype for this. But at the first try, I get stuck like this (i'm using TowerPro MG90S micro servo): - Firstly, I don't know how to test servo (stpper motors are tested OK via software by clicking Y+/Y-/X+/X-) - Secondly, After executing file "controller.hpgl.nc", it stuck at below command and make my servo vibrate forever. After that i need to press reset button of arduino, then the system back to normal. M06 T 2 ; Tool Up G01 Z1 The datasheet of servo: www.electronicoscaldas.com/datasheet/MG90S_Tower-Pro.pdf please help me on this. Thanks for your time.
+Phan Tan Mong If the Software gets stuck at the point where it was supposed to move the servo, it is usually a configuration issue. Make sure that there is a positive value at steps per millimeter for the Z axis. If the Servo is oscillating, it may be an issue with too little current available.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Thanks for your quick reply. Finally i got it working by changing motorMode to 1 ( default is 0) and then change the servoPosMax and servoPosMin to suitabe with my servo. Thanks again for your stuffs.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer I got problem with wrong size after drawing the pcb. I have changed stepsPerMillimeter_X,Y,Z to so many number but the size is still bigger than the real one. I'm using 5V stepper motors (1.8 degree/step) with 14.6mm diameter pulleys attached to motors, nilon strings as belt driver. Please show me how to calculate stepsPerMillimeter in my case. One more thing: why do you use stepsPerMillimeter_Y in minus value? (-200/17.1) Thanks so much for your help.
+Phan Tan Mong So, you have 200 Steps per revolution of the stepper; The circumference of you pulley is 14.6mm*P, that's 45.844. So you would have 4.3626 Steps per millimeter, or 8.7252 half-steps. If your stepper is turning the wrong way on any axis you can use a negative steps per millimeter value to compensate.
+guillermo garcia Básicamente está abriendo desde la terminal un software que importa un archivo .hpgl que es un archivo para ploters y lo convierte en codigo G que ya puede leer el software que está en el siguiente vídeo, este ya envía las cordenadas y comandos de movimientos al cnc.
Hello I can not export to eagle the HPGL files and I also tried converting with hp2xx the HPGL files I download ..... I followed the video but when the point of type hp2xx and click send out me this: "Hp2xx is free software and you are welcome to distribute copies of it under certain conditions. There is absolutely no warranty for hp2xx! For full details, read COPYING file (shipped along with this package), or write to: Free Software Foundation, Inc. 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA HP2xx: A HPGL converter (xx = mf, eps, pcl, pcx, img ...) V 3.4.4 (06/03/22) (c) 1991 to 1994 (V3.20) Heinz W. Werntges (C) 1999-2003 Martin Kroeker Usage: hp2xx [options] [file1 [file2 ...]] Unix: Filter usage (.. | hp2xx q -f- [options] | ..) ok Press to continue ... " things I need to do ?? thanks in advance for the answers.
+Matteo piras Eagle creates HPGL files using the CAM processor, you need to select the format there, once you have a file ( lets call it 'myfile.hpgl' ) you need to feed it to hp2xx using 'hp2xx -m nc -t myfile.hpgl' and hp2xx will generate a 'myfile.hpgl.nc' for you.
Mr.DIRK yOU PL. CONSIDER ME AS A LAYMAN NOT HAVING INDEPTH KNOWLEDGE. Any way I put my question here. How you creating hpgl file and stroring in the GITHUB.I understand to some extent your video.I get stuck up at point where you convert the hpgl file to G .code.And how you creating the files? Pl. explain.I think you would not ask me to see the video. vkp
Dirk, Thank you very much for your kind help. I shall do it so.
Dirk, Fortunately I just wanted to tell you regarding the stuff I have before acting. Thanks a lot for correcting me. I shall write to you if any error occurs.
Hi, thanks for your speedy response. I downloaded hp2xx about mid January so predates your mods. I will download your latest version and see what effect it has and let you know. Regards Bob
Hello Dirk
Beta Ver 4 solved it , I am plotting nice , thanks a million for this project and your support , keep up the good work ..
Congratulations ! I hope it helps you build more things .
I plan to donate 25 of them to 25 Local schools , Hope high school learners will find good use of them , thanks a million
I have done the 3D printed version of them
Dirk , You are the King of the 3 Axis :)
Impressive :) I think I will start a project and follow your guideline :)
Rearly helpfull to see the full process from begining to end. Cant wait to see the next video..
Hopefully i will by the end of this understand how a picture becomes the code needed to make the pcb.. So far so good. Thanks a million times thank you... Keep the vids flowing.
Awesome stuff man! I just ordered my steppers. Will try and build this somtime next week!
New sub
My error, I did not expand the path fully - I stopped at hp2xx3.4.4 and not hp2xx-3.4.4-win32. Now works 100%. Many thanks. Bob
Great !
Dirk, I finally managed to run my steppers with Arduino Nano+A4988 3 drivers+CNC shield v4. I used CNC controller software to run them. With CNC controller I was able to move all three steppers (x,y,z). I opened in CNC controller a gcode text graphic created in Inkscape and tried to run the steppers. Both X and Y steppers run according to the text and I can see it on the visualizer but the Z stepper does not where it should go up and down. I noticed in the program description shown while running the program some commands are removed such as "Removed unsupported M command 'M18' '" , "Removed unsupported M command 'M01' '" , "Removed unsupported M command 'M17' '" , "Removed unsupported M command 'M300' '" and "Removed unsupported M command P150''"
I think this may be cause that the Z stepper does not move.
Dirk, could you help me to solve this. I just need to run this CNC machine to plot some graphics.
Did you check you g-code if it actually has statements to move the Z-axis.
You might have g-code for a laser engraver - they do not use G1 Z codes to turn the laser on and off.
Sorry for the lateness, did not get a notification this time.
Wow You're awesome!!
I'm subscribed to your channel already :D
I'm watching carefully your videos to start my cnc prototype project.
Thanks a lot for your sharing and good explaining of all thing!!
I bought my first Arduino this week, so this is all a big adventure/challenge for me.
Again, thank you and keep your goood work!
Greetings
thanks a lot.... u cleared many of my confusions
I uploaded an updated version of HP2XX, and I put the download link into the description of the video.
The previous version was producing garbage g-code.
hello Dirk,
i am using xp win32 but i am getting an error when i reach the 15 min it says the app is not compatible with win32, can you help me please ?
I suppose you are using the hp2xx I have in my repo ? If that one does not work for you, you can try the other available downloads of this tool. I am not the author/maintainer of this tool and only supply this version, which has a fix for Windows 7 and later versions.
Dirk i am using the one in the descriprion here under this video, can you share the link for other versions please ? i tried their website but i couldnt find the exact file like yours the .exe
Sorry, I don't have any download links for that -
Very useful information, thank you......
Great job man!!
I just deleted a stupid question I posted here, sorry. I found the answer myself.
Keep up the good work!
Thanks !
Dirk, I followed the procedure given below and managed to upload Grbl to Arduino Nano. I just followed the procedure without any idea. I do not know whether I am right or wrong. Please let me know whether I am right or wrong,
"How to upload the GRBL source code to Arduino Nano"
Download by typing grbl in google search and select "GitHub-grbl/grbl:An open source embedded performance g....
You are prompted to a web page called grbl/grbl at the top.
You shall find a "Clone or download" green colour label at the right hand side half way down.
Select it and download the grbl master zip file to the download folder.
Unzip it at the download folder and you get a folder named "grbl-master"
Double click it and you get a folder called "grbl".
Double click it and you get a folder called "examples".
Double click it and you get a folder called "grblUpload".
Double click it and you get a file called "grblUpload" having Arduino label.
(OK now connect the Arduino Nano board to the PC.)
Now double click "grblUpload" you shall come to Arduino program page with a heading "grblUpload".
Now select under tools tab the correct Arduino board (Arduino Nano) and correct serial port(COM3) and correct processor (Atmega328P).
Now hit the "Upload" circle in Arduino program.
You will see the uploading is done at the bottom of the Arduino program page.
Now the Arduino Nano board is with grbl uploaded.
Yes, you did everything right to install GRBL, but this board is not for GRBL, it is for: github.com/dherrendoerfer/uCNC_controller/tree/master/beta/uCNC_controller_v4
And you may need just a little programming skill to get that working.
Excellent tutorial !!!
Hello Dirk,
maybe I missed it,
but you may have a link to the schematic to this PCB?
in the film you drew a small part of the schematic with a (1) ULN 2003
the piece of video where you drew the schematic with the blue marker was nice/clear and understandable
later I want to make something like:
or: A machiene that can draw the PCB (so you can then etching)
or: that the PCB directly mills. (A small PCB mill)
thank you for the nice video!
And Friendly greetings from the Netherlands.
(Sorry for bad translation)
Rob.
+R. Rob. Hi, There is a link in the description of this video to my github repo. In the Extras directory you will find schematics to all the controllers I designed so far.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer
okee Dirk I will look at it!
once again thank you for the nice AND, educational videos.
Regards
Rob.
Thanks¡¡¡ :) I liked your idea, very creative¡¡ and very good explication¡.. congratulations¡¡
Hi, I seem to have gone backwards, I now get 'hp2xx' is not recognised as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file, so -m nc does nothing. Has the suffix changed or am I missing something. Bob
Hey extract that zip file present into the Hp2xx folder to C directory
thank you very much,
great video. I learned a lot. I am building the same style cnc that you built. just wondering is there anything you would change on your cnc if you built another version?
Joe B I've changed something each time I updated my devices - I went from reused parts to cheap new ones. I now (sometimes) use quality linear bearings, and now use bipolar Steppers for my 3D printer concept.
It all depends where you want to go - I'm thinking about building something that is more in the line of a true CNC, with threaded rods, so it can do something with a little force to it, but first I want to get my own 3D printer stuff to work, that is really far right now, but may still need some thought.
I manage to make them move when powering the board but no luck yet with the artgcodewriter, I am thinking I might have them set wrong and that could be the reason why it freezes the software. I am using 28BYJ-48-5V servos. They seem very similar to the ones you are using on the latest version of yours. The datasheet says 32 steps per revolution (step angle) and 2048 steps per revolution (steps per output shaft) Should I replace "200" in the software with 32 or 2048??? my shafts circumference is 24.7 so divide which? (32 or 2048) / 24.7.
Also according to this datasheet. arduino-info.wikispaces.com/SmallSteppers the correct order would be (stepsPerRevolution, 8,10,9,11) or is it (stepsPerRevolution, 11,9,10,8) ???
I really appreciate your help
If you are using those small steppers, you might want to use one of the firmwares from the beta directory. Your steps are 2048/24.7. Try to keep the stepper speed as low as possible in the beginning, so you can see it is working fine. To get the correct wire order some experimenting may be the best idea - I have seen several different configurations on seemingly similar motors.
Hi Bucita , did you get it right , I am having same issue
Greetings, may i ask your help in python programming? i just need something like your code but to control rs-232, i've all the hardware, and i only need to move right, left, up and down with the mouse click or pressing the kb cursors, if you decided to help me with it i'll really appreciate it, thanks in advance
I don't think I'm any help there - I'm not a python programmer.
thanks anyway :)
Hello Dirk, Thanks a lot for the videos and response on question we asked pertaining the plotter XY, I have replicated the plotter, the hardware and firmware functions well , except i havent figure out why i am getting wrong pads sizes that are joined . i have checked the step per mm settings and also simulate the gcode with g-code toolpath simulator , I aso checked the backlash , cant seem to get it right , I am eager to replicate this project , have I reach the end of the road ?
I am using stepper motors kh42jm2500 and kh42jm2b
Have you tried generating some g-code yourself to find out if the issue is backlash or something else ?
I usually do things like drawing two or three squares that intersect or meet at a certain point so you can judge if you have backlash.
Also did you make sure that your pen cannot shift as it is dragged over the board ?
Sorry for these short answers, I'm currently pretty loaded down by work.
I understand
Hi Dirk
I have generated own g-code , no backlash , this may seem to be the problem , i measured the width and the length by vernier caliper as compared to the g- code , the width is 5 mm bigger, i guess it is because i am using two different stepper motor , the X axis step per mm is ok and Y maybe not be, i suppose
Are you already using the v4 beta firmware ? It's a bit more difficult to set up, but that may help to solve these problems.
Hi Dirk , thanks a lot for the the tutorial , I have the plotter axis , XY and Servo working ok, the only challenge I have is hp2xx , when I apply -m nc controller.hpgl i get result `nc` unknown mode error, any idea how to resolve this
What operating system are you using with hp2xx ?
Windows 7 ,
I am also having issues with generating hpgl , i am using Eagle Cadsoft Ver 7.7.0, I get a generated file without .hpgl extension even though I have selected HPGL as a device
This should help you:
github.com/dherrendoerfer/uCNC_controller/blob/master/Extras/Hp2xx/hp2xx-3.4.4-win32.zip
I keep this for reference, as the tool appears to be unmaintained now.
I am using the same tool ,
Hello Goodnight
thanks for your help
but I could not do
I have a new bug
"hp2xx" is not recognized as an internal or external command,
program or batch file
I think I'll give up what I could do
thanks
Great job man!!
do you have a schematic and BOM available for board prototyping? I'm attempting this project and it would be nice have a diagram to go about building the the lm7805 for the servo. I'm using somewhat of a similar setup but instead of building my uln2003 stepper motor drivers, I'm using the ones provided with the 5v 28byj-48 steppers, also, which controller Version would I go about using for unipolar steppers? Controller_1 or Controller_4? Nice project btw
justinp4235 Thanks! Schematics are in the github repos as well as the software you found already. I suppose using the v4 software will give you the best performance, but since it is the one with the most development it is more likely to contain bugs at some time. Hardware-wise I would go with the v1 board.
Dirk Herrendoerfer Thanks for the fast reply! I have to ask, how did you supply power to the two steppers? I know that the Arduino nano can output 5v but only at 500mA powered via usb, so did you use an external 5v power supply or 12v supply? And is the lm7805 for the servo, thanks in advance and keep up the great work
justinp4235 The Arduino runs on 5V from the PC, the controller board has 2 ULN2003 darlington drivers to drive the steppers - 5V or 12V - the power is supplied externally. Some 28byj48 kits come with ULN2003 driver boards.
The 7805 is needed when driving the steppers with 12V, for the servo.
Dirk, Thanks for the advice. Could you help me to do the correct way.
1st thing would be to clone the uCNC repo: github.com/dherrendoerfer/uCNC_controller/archive/master.zip
Unpack that, go to the beta/uCNC_controller_v4 directory and open that in the Arduino IDE.
Select the v4 board, compile and transfer.
Then have a look at the settings in uCNC_Controller_v4.ino for the stepper settings. You'll need to adapt that to whatever you will build.
Dirk, As you know I am unaware how to generate a gcode for a sketch or for a text. Really what I did was I used Inkscape to generate some letters and saved as a gcode file. Then I used CNC controller software to open it and drive my X,Y and Z steppers. Then only I noticed the Z axis stepper does not move up or down according to the letter intervals. Really I do not know how to insert coding for Z axis movements in gcode.
Normally when you generate a gcode in Inkscape to draw some letters, does not it insert gcode to move the Z axis at letters intervals?
Well, you can open the nc file in a text editor and search for lines that include the Z letter ?
And, no. Depending on the target for your g-code there may be no z-axis statements in the code, because a laser engraver
will turn on the laser with a M03 command and turn it off once it receives M05.
So, you might need to investigate some more.
Hello Dirk, I have a few questions,
1) how to get the negative of that. you work with a pen to mask. I d like to mill the not needed PCB layer. Unfortunately it is not only to invert Z Direction.
2) Many layouts are available as pic for toner transfer. Is it possible to use that too?
3) Finaly what about drill?
Vielen Dank und besten Gruß
von der Alb!
+Tigrar Hi, Gruss aus dem Laendle,
1. What you want is isolation milling, a lot of Routing programs like Eagle can do that natively.
2. Yes, there are Windows and Linux plotter drivers for generic printing to files, these can be plotted.
3. I've never thought about drilling, since it requires a completely different setup and far more torque and
holding force that these setups can supply. It would require a mill-like setup for that.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Hello Dirk, thank you for your hints, I will lookout for these informations in detail.
Well I think for the isolation milling there will be as much torque as for the drilling of the pcb. Sorry for have forgotten to mention the PCB in this place. Mainly the drilling points schould be more or less available with the PCB information. But yes, my construction is planed to be much more stable (already to be more versaile). On the other hand I wonder if your magnet solution will then still work as I like the idea very much. Aller besten Gruß zurück und Danke.
schould... lol! should of course...
Please, you can specify what type of electrolytic capacitors, example (16v 1000U) and the transistor may be a 7805?
Jansen KCara Yes. The regulator is a 7805 for the servo, if you really need more torque use a 7806. The caps are dependent on the voltages you use, 470uF for the primary input, and 220uF for the 7805 are usually sufficient.
Hi Dirk,
I made a simple pen plotter with X,Y axis and servo but I don't have a software to arduino to run my plotter.
I thought that your project will be perfect for my plotter but I used Nema 17 motors and stepsticks and I don't know how changed your program (is it posible?) to my project.
If you know how changed your software, please help me.
Regards
Robert
Hi Robert.
That should be possible, but - what is a stepstick ? Is it a controller that simply takes step and direction as input ?
Dirk Herrendoerfer
I used www.schmalzhaus.com/EasyDriver/ version 4.4. It only needs stepper and direction.
You should be able to use the v4 firmware for those drivers without change. All you would need to do is figure out the wiring from the arduino to the driver boards.
There is some documentation with the code that should help you.
Dirk Herrendoerfer
Thank you very much Dirk :) I'll try.
Dirk, I downloaded Gcode Sender and installed it as you advised me before. I use Arduino Nano with V4 shield and A4988 drivers for NEMA 17 stepper motors. I installed Arduino software and did GbrlUpload too. Selected the correct serial COM port(3) and selected Baud as 115200. After connecting to the PC when I browse my Gcode file (it is a spiral sketch)created with Inkscape and hit the send button under Machine Status/Active State indicate "Idle". Time elapsed advances. When I opened Visualize tab I cannot see any movement or graphic. For your information I did not connect motors to the Arduino nano board. Is it the problem? Please reply me and advise me. Thank you. Brgds. Fernando
Well, yes - uCNC_Controller works at 9600 baud for a start, and position-feedback is a GRBL feature that uCNC does not have. What you should be seeing is the data transfer from the sender to the Arduino.
Hey Dirk. I was wondering about the conversion from a cad or Inkscape drawing of a circuit to a gcode file. When I do this the conversion only comes out as gcode commands for the outline of each pad. It doesn't fill in any large pads or pc board traces. Is there something more I can do to have a pc board drawing converted to gcode and have it fill in large pads? I am using the gcode conversion tools that one can add to inkscape.
I have the issues with the tools not filling in the pads completely too. I use eagle, fortunately the pads still work out. That is one of the reasons I started looking into the isolation manufacturing methods.
Hi Dirk have closely followed your project and I have taken on the task of putting together one like yours, but I have the following problem'm using bipolar motors 200 steps per revolution and transmission of nylon, as well you explain in the video, I calculated the distance to a full turn, the shaft of my engine has 4 mm in diameter, that gives 4 * 3.14 = 12.5mm, but here's the problem, not arduino engines use to move, I'm doing with Mach3, but never will and comes to the same place, for example if I say x10 moves 10mm approximately, now if I say x0 should return to the same point, but it does it moves to x-1 and every time you move x10 and you return it moves further back and if you move farther the error return is higher, I could help with this that already has me anxious, I do not know if using arduino solve the problem, in Section stepsPerMillimeter_X = 200 / 12.5
thank you very much from now, forgive the English is not my native language.
Two possibilities are: slip on the axis, or your motor speed is too high and the stepper is skipping steps. Put something onto the top of the stepper and see if the Zero position of the stepper is always the same.
ok, I'll try it tonight and tomorrow tell you whether or not match the zeros, about the speed, I do not think that is the problem, then move slowly.
Thanks once again for your quick response. a greeting
Dirk Herrendoerfer Hi Dirk, did last night testing again, I did what you told me, one of the problems I have is q my engine is 1.8 degrees is 7.5 degrees, so the steps are 48 for a full turn, I tested at low speed and at the end always the case begins to move from zero, besides the absence of a suitable step or accurate for measurements, for example, I say x = 10 and reaches 9.6450, because the increase of steps does not give an exact number. finally decided to change the method step millimeter threaded rod to eliminate transmission losses and to be more precise, now I will replace the servo z axis by an electromagnet and a discrete circuitry to handle. if you have something like that out there, you could help me.
greetings, Enrique
No, sorry I have never tried a magnetic pen construction.
ok not worry, I'll try using a microservo with arduino nano when I buy it. Now as you do in Gcode to activate the Laser, and as you connect the arduino, thanks once again for everything.
see you
Estoy utilizando 28byj-48. Si entendí lo del voltaje pero ¿Que función tiene el Python 2.7 en la programación? ¿Que le pusiste en la parte que gira del motor la que es como una tapita?
Dirk, is ti the bootloader you are referring? It was already loaded at the time of purchase from ebay.
No, the software that is supposed to interpret your gcode and spin the motors.
hi dirk, in command prompt part i am stuck up,completed PATH part,n next hp2xx -m nc controller.hpgl i get an error like not recognised batch file somrthin,kindly guide how to resolve it,also in ur video the nc hpgl file is created but mine says controller instead.
regards
Hello again sir am having some trouble with the software am runing uln2003 steppers and in the documentation it says that Unused : A0,A1,A6,A7 (A6 and A7 cannot be used as output)
so since the stepper driver has 5 pins and these settings define 4 pins will editing the code make it break because I need the z axis for 3d carving and maybe printing
My software already has support for 3 steppers. You just need to select the correct motor mode - also I have GRBL for this unipolar design ported and ready to go. Or do you need some sort of special configuration ?
@@dherrendoerfer thank you for your help av been going around down to simple hp-gl language in my research to understand how the code works..but I dont understand how the code is transformed into electrical signals like e.g move x .05 to a signal and can it process 3d printing g.code withouth runing it through the hp2xx converter? also how do you edit grbl to do what you want ?is it with c console or java?etc or just edit the main code in the instal directory
Dirk, Thanks for replying me. I tried as you instructed, but still I get the same pop up message. Is it possible to send an attachment of the message as well as the visio diagram I tried to covert to gcode for you to try? I do not have your email add.
I can't get the unicorn plugin to work either .... I have a setup that I set up from the information at eleksmaker.com, but I believe that produces g-code for engravers.
Hi Dirk! I need your help I alredy set up the python software but when I open the gCode file and try to run it, it doesn´t do anything it just responds when I use the X and Y buttons and I don´t know what to do please help me!
I wanted to know how to make the configuration of my cnc with steel cable my stepper motor and nema 23 and the axis has 6.35mm as do the micro step setting on 1/4 in Polulu a4988 have to divide the shaft diameter of the engine by canapes and 200 steps'm doubt I thank
I suppose you need to calculate the shaft circumference and use that value to divide the steps per revolution (like 200*4=800) by. So in the end you get the steps that are needed to move one millimeter.
Hi dirk,
thanks for your explanations.
I ve tried Hp2xx, but it seems the conversion of the hpgl files is done with some errors for the dimension. i mean all the files got 200 width and 180 height. and i dont know why, tried to use some option but didn t get it to work correctly.
i used the same command as on the video, but nothing ....
could you help me plz ?? :D
Dz Xnor You should use '-t' to make it true size and -m nc for nc output. That is what I use.
Dude turn on the subtitle options for all vids pls :[
Great sir,, does the 3rd part, not out yet? (sending gcode to arduino with a firmware with it), or can you give instruction on hoow to do it? . Thank you
Yes it is:
look here: ruclips.net/video/aCtMlm7U5UY/видео.html .
Best regards,
Dirk
Hi, first let me thank you for generously giving your knowledge and expertise to us mere mortals. Second, I have made one of your machines and it works extremely well however I have one problem with the software that I hope you can help me with. When translating from EAGLE thro' hp2xx35 the G code generated contains some Z values (apparently random) that are greater than 1 which causes ardGcodeWriter to freeze. I can, and have, changed then in the G code script, this works but is time consuming. I am new to EAGLE so am probably doing something wrong there, can you offer any insights? Thanks again. Bob
When did you download hp2xx ? I fixed a couple of problems and updated the tool on 2015/02/10.
I plan to implement some changes to hp2xx in the near future, but I thought the newest version was doing ok.
Hi Dirk,
Do you have an idea, what could be wrong? I am following all of your steps, but when calling the hp2xx command, and hitting enter it opens the text that is in the document. And when i call the -m nc... all i get is more controls and options. I've checked the path, renamed the file for the hp2xx still no idea, what is wrong...
Great videos by the way!
+Žan Kaštigar Try this one: github.com/dherrendoerfer/uCNC_controller/tree/master/Extras/Hp2xx . Other versions from the internet sometimes don't support NC mode.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Thank you, I downloaded it again, but it didnt work the first time. Than I just typed the whole command in one, so like this: hp2xx -m nc Controller.hpgl, and it worked! Maybe it will help someone. :)
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Is it possible to change the width and height from 200x149.4 to something smaller? Because everytime i generate the gcode they are adaptet and my cnc reaches its limit
***** Sure, just add the -t flag to the hp2xx call. This will then plot in truesize,
Thank you!
Hi Dirk , how possible to go into a bit of detail in step per mm setting on unc controller .. thats a bit of challenge for me
It's simple actually - you need to know how many steps it takes for your stepper to complete one revolution.
Lets say it's 200. Then you need to calculate the circumference of your drive shaft or drive pulley. We do that by
multiplying the diameter of the shaft or pulley by 3.14 (PI). So if the diameter is 10mm, the circumference is 31.4mm.
Then you divide the number of steps by the circumference. in this case 200/31.4 = 6.37 steps/mm.
Thanks a million .
Morning Dirk, I corrected the steps/mm setting in the ucnc file, i get the right image except the pads , they are oblog and bigger . if you have spare time I can send you the files i created on hp2xx to figure out what could be the issuue
these are the setting i put on the configuration ,
float stepsPerMillimeter_X = 200/ 12.73;
int stepIssueFrequency_X = 400;
int stepIssueFreqRamp_X = 4;
int stepIssueFrequencyRampMax_X = 220;
int stepDriveSlack_X = 60;
float stepsPerMillimeter_Y = -200/ 12.73;
int stepIssueFrequency_Y = 400;
int stepIssueFreqRamp_Y = 4;
int stepIssueFrequencyRampMax_Y = 220;
int stepDriveSlack_Y = 60;
My shaft is 5mm, revolution is 200 ,
You need to check if your machine has backlash, the most simple way to do this is to attach a rubber band to the X and Y carriages pulling them to one side, and trying a plot. If the situation improves you need to figure out how to minimize that.
Hi Dirk.
So.. I have a problem with the Controller V4 - Beta Version.
I was wondering to use this program on arduino so I could use the halfstep mode because in this moment I don't have any Step Motor with a tiny step angle. Just a unipolar 7.5 degrees/step.
But I made my plotter based on yours, using nylon strings to move the pen and the paper base and Now, I need to enter some data like "stepIssueFrequency"; "stepIssueFreqRamp"; "stepIssueFrequencyRampMax"; "stepDriveSlack", and I don't know what to put in this variables..
Can you help with this?
Sure.
put the slack settings to 0, they are for geared steppers
stepIssueFreqency is the amount of steps your stepper can do per second, and safely start and stop. Start with a small value and work your way up (like 50)
The ramp values control how much faster your stepper can go once it's started. The Ramp value is how steep the acceleration is, the Ramp max is how much will be added to the base frequency before acceleration stops.
Start with both at zero, then put 20% of IssueFrequency into RampMax, and something like 5 into Ramp.
Since we don't know the dynamics of your stepper this will take some experimentation.
Cheers!
Dirk
Hello
I have a Prusa i2 with ramps 1.4 I wanted to change it to print my pcb.
I have some questions:
I can change my printer to print pcb?
If yes where I can find the firmware to upload to Arduino Mega?
I do not know if you've already answered in your videos to my questions but if you'll excuse me, but still do not understand English very well.
+Matteo piras You do not need to change the software on your printer.
Use the tool hp2xx to generate some g-code for you that uses positive Z positions and make
yourself a pen holder.
+ Dirk Herrendoerfer thanks a lot for explanations
thanks for answering
my English is not very good
the error that appears to me is this:
'nc' Unknown mode!
supported are:
cad, dxf, em, emf, emp, epic, eps, fig, gpt, HPGL, img, mf, PBM, pcl, PCX, pre, rgip, svg
thanks
+pedro rodriguez Are you using the hp2xx version from the download link in the description of this video ?
hi Dirk i watched this video and redo the process, but i fund the nc file,which i produced by your steps isn't the same as yours in the document, and then when i look over this video carefully, i fund the nc file(which u produced in this video) isn't the same as the one in the document too. can u check that?
here is some details:
the original one begins like this:
M06 T 2
; Tool Up
G01 Z1
G00 X 0.20025 Y 0.05025
; Tool Down
G01 Z-1
G01 X 0.20025 Y 0.05025
G01 X 0.2 Y
.........
the new one:
M06 T 2
; Tool Up
G01 Z1
G00 X 0.532269 Y 0.133067
; Tool Down
G01 Z-1
G01 X 0.532269 Y 0.133067zi
G01 X 0.399202 Y 0
G01 X 0.133067 Y 0
they are different why?
regards!
Hello friend, please help me in this project
I'm in doubt which pin put the servo motor
where:
Stepper myStepper1 (stepsPerRevolution, 8,9,10,11);
Stepper myStepper2 (stepsPerRevolution, 4,5,6,7);
Stepper myStepper3 (stepsPerRevolution, 17,16,19,18);
I thank you!
greeting from Brazil
From the documentation:
Connector IO-Ports on Arduino nano w. ATMEGA328P
------------>--------------------------------------------
Stepper 1: 8,9,10,11
Stepper 2: 4,5,6,7
Stepper 3: A5,A4,A3,A2 (digital out 19,18,17,16)
12V out 1: 2
12V out 2: 3
Laser out: 13
Servo out: 12
Greetings !
Hi Dirk I am stuck with my project. Whenever I send a command trough the artgcodewriter it only takes the first click and then it hangs, I get the hour glass as if it was processing but is actually freezing. Using the arduino serial monitor I do get the "READY OK". I have tried with two steppers plugged except the servo which I dont have yet and also without any stepper thinking I might have soilder something wrong but either way the .py freezes. Any Ideas? I am thinking it might be my computer (win xp) or the arduino it self. I appreciate your advice. thanks
I noticed this myself just now - but it is the python app, I will look into this (Now that I have windows too) as soon as I get the time.
Hi Dirk, me again. I was using the HP2XX, and I was asking me how do you setup the pen size? And the speed of the drawing? Becouse when you convert the file to GCode, it says Warning: pen size ignored.
Thanks!
Roberto Sale Hi Roberto, the hp2xx tool ignores the pen width, it needs to be correctly set in Eagle - mainly for the reason that Eagle already renders all surfaces into line segments. So you should put the correct line with into Eagle when creating the hpgl export.
Dirk, I face another problem with the stepper motors. I use Arduino Nano with A4988 drivers on CNC shield V4.
First I tested the steppers separately with Arduino Nano and A4988 drivers one by one on a breadboard using a Arduino test program and the steppers ran smoothly back and forth. I did the current limit adjustment on all A4988 boards too.
I used GrblGru gcode sender software and selected a test program on it called square20 and when I hit the start button I can see the program running well on the controller window nicely. At the same time I can feel the heat sinks on A4988 board too get heated up. But the steppers do not run. Instead time to time I can hear they turn about one step and keep silent.
Could you advice me how to overcome this problem?
Fernando
So, that can be a lot of things, I assume that you have a version of grbl that is preconfigured for the grbl shield you are using ?
In any case, I'd start off issuing very simple commands, just to make sure that the speeds and timings are configured correctly.
Start of with something like 'G1 X10 F10' that should spin the stepper very slowy. Repeat the the command for every axis.
Then look at what's configured in the settings of the controller ( command $$ I believe ) and go from there.
Dirk, Thanks for the quick reply. I shall do so.
Dirk, I tried as you instructed the simple code and still the same. I can see the program running but not the stepper. I did not connect MS0,MS1 & MS2 jumpers and they are kept open.
I should tell you another matter regarding my CNC shield V4 which I bought from ebay It has errors in the print. I found it when I was trying through youtube to overcome these problems.
If you could go through the links below you would understand. Almost every CNC shield V4 in ebay has these problems.
ruclips.net/video/1UKY1_hOipQ/видео.html
ruclips.net/video/ZX3t-2s3XUo/видео.html
forum.arduino.cc/index.php?topic=406110.0
I changed the in grbl, cpu_map file according to the above 1st video instructions too.
Regarding the speed and timing you said what parameters in the GrblGru I should change? Could you name them and what values do you recommend?
I am sorry for troubling you so much.
I don't know about that hardware issue, but if a test program can spin your stepper, then it's probably not the hardware that's wrong.
Dirk, Sorry I was troubling you all these days. Really I am now clueless.
I think I better try to run this CNC machine with Arduino Uno with a shield V3. I hope at least that would work for me. Thanks for replying and help me so much.
Eu queria saber como fazer a configuração do meu cnc com cabo de aço meu motor de passo e NEMA 23 e o eixo tem 6,35 milímetros como fazer o micro etapa configuração de 1/4 in a4988 Polulu tem que dividir o diâmetro do eixo do motor, canapés e 200 steps'm duvidar agradeço
Hi.
At the same time uCNC Plotter v4 belt, pulleys and Nylon string?
It's a youtube video Plotter v4?
Thank you
Oh ! No, v4 is belt only. I need to fix that in the description. Good find, thanks !
HI Dirk! Do u have problems when u use G-code Writer on windows?
Hey dirk i dont understand of your logic behind calculation of steps per millimetre.
You give formula C=d.pie if you considering C and D=1 then how you get 17.1 value for steps per millimetre
?
steps per mm is 200 divided by 17.1 .
200 Steps is the number of steps per revolution of a 1.8 degree stepper.
17.1 is the circumference of a 5mm stepper shaft plus half the width of the nylon, which is 1mm thick. 5.5mm * PI = 17.1mm.
So I let the compiler do the math, and just use the constants of 200 divided by 17.1 *... = ( 200/ 17.1 )
hi what the software are you using to stream G-code to arduino?
Question
your video
my documents file size folder hp2xx is 1.96 mb
and files are hp2xx, jpeg62.dll, libpng14-14.dll, libpng-LICENCE .....
and when I download the file you sent me only it appears like this:
size 271kb
files: copyning, hp2xx
there is no more
+pedro rodriguez What operating system are you using ?
Wish you a Happy New year to your whole family. I imported a Visio drawing to Inkscape and managed to copy files from Inkscape-unicorn-master to get the g-code extension when hit the Save as. But at the end a message pops up and say could not be saved. Could you help me solve this problem?
Have you tried launching Inkscape with Administrator privileges ? (Assuming you use Windows) Sometimes it's just the issue that you do not have write permissions where you are trying to store the file.
Thanks for your prompt reply. I am the Administrator of my Windows based PC. Is there any other suggestions to overcome this problem?
No, I meant launching Inkscape by right-clicking, and then selecting 'Run with Administrator priveleges'
Dirk, I just tried as you instructed with administrator privilege. Still I get the same pop up message , could not be saved.
Hi,
wenn ich hp2xx benutze bekomme ich immer falsche Maße heraus.
Es wird immer alles auf 200mm hochskaliert.
Wie kann ich das Problem beheben?
Have another question. Can you plot images (black and white)? What software to use to convert for example from .jpg image to .nc file?
No - I'm looking into that too. Nothing I find works out the way I want it to.
I found RasVector software but I need licence or smth, it can convert image to nc, but I didn't got it to work.
Dirk, Still I am eagerly waiting for a reply from you.
Dirk, I am confused with it since I am a beginner. Really where can I change the baud to 9600? I do not see a place in SourceRabit Could you please guide me to solve this problems? I am really desperate.
What firmware are you using on the Arduino ?
Hello ,
I have a problem converting hpgl files to NC the fact is that when I convert the files and I print my pcb the measurements are not correct, ie the tracks and the components do not have real but bigger measurements.
Do you know what my problem is due to?
Did you use the -t (true_size) parameter with hp2xx ?
Hi Dirk Herrendoerfer. What is version of EAGLE can export hpgl
Thank you very much
+ยุทธพงษ์ พ All current versions can do that.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Please explain the procedure to EAGLE export hpgl step by step , because I never use this application. Thank you very much
+ยุทธพงษ์ พ Please refer to the eagle howtos and its documentation. The hpgl export is done via the 'CAM processor' function in eagle.
There are a lot of examples on the net, and they explain it much better than I ever could.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer , I found this website www.diyouware.com/use
Configure the following parameters:Device: HPGLScale: 1Offset: zero (x and y)Pen diameter: 0.1mmVelocity: 10
but the print result was not the same as the value you provided in the Controller.hpgl file.What is the value you set.Thank you very much
I use 28BYJ-48 with ULN2003, shaft diameter of 5.5mm.
What configuration uCNC controller v4?
+Fernando Nunes Which parameters ?
You probably want to define the ports for the V1 board, your StepsPerMillimeter are the circumference of the spindle divided by your steps per revolution of the stepper.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Thank you for your help.
Fernando Nunes Glad to be of help !
Hello Dirk,
I am using win 10 64bit,when I convert hpgl file whith hp2xx35 ,i getting this mistakes :'hp2xx-m' is not recognized as an internal or external command,
operable program or batch file.
What do you thing ,where is the problem.
Thank you!
It's hp2xx -t -m nc filename. If you have the program in the local directory, then it should work.
Hello,just finished CNC still need to get the software running.In which mode do I run the code if I use the stepper on Z axis so it moves the pen up/down?
Cheers!
PS
OK I think that's its supposed to be run in mode 0.
mode=1
Mode 1: Stepper 1 is X
Stepper 2 is Y
Stepper 3 is Y
Servo is Z (down for Z
Dirk Herrendoerfer Thanks, I'm probably going to have to use servo like you.Small stepper motor from floppy drive can't lift the pen and keeps stalling even when there no load.You got any ideas what it could be?I was supplying 5V from USB gonna try from PSU today.Maybe the frequency is wrong?
Apologies, mode 0 was correct - maybe it is the speed, I once use one go the small linear steppers from the 3.5 inch floppies and found it to be rather strong. But USB power is probably not enough ... Try a beta (v1) firmware, you can set different speeds for each stepper there.
what type and model of motor has chosed?
Nema17 unipolar (6 wires).
can I use a 28byj-48 5v motor?
Yes. That works too. I use them with 6.5V and they work fine.
Im using 28bjy motor. When I change steps per revolution from 200 to 4048. it doesn't work, it just makes more pulses during same time. What numbers I should enter for steps per revolution and steps per mm if I'm using 28BYJ-48 and GT2 belt 20t pulley (diameter I believe is 12.7mm)?
With the small motor you also need to turn the speed down. Use a very low speed and go up from there. The arduino is not able to issue so many steps per second.
nwm, just found maxspeed variable in motor file, set it from 60 to 10. Set 2046 / 39.89 for steps per mm
Also my suggestion is to use lm310 or lm350 variable voltage regulator for 28byj stepper drivers
The 28byi Steppers are available in 5V and 12V. In normal operation I don't regulate their supply.
I have 5V ones and I think I'm going to use that regulator, because on 5V it does not have enough power to spin, when using 12V it gets really hot quite fast, but spins with higher torque. With regulator you could adjust optimal voltage for motors. Of course you can use something like L780X if you already know optimal voltage or don't use at all if supply provides such voltage.
Hi,
I am 14 and also from germany and I am thinking about also building myself a plotter like this. In an oter video you have shown a controller design based on the Arduino Nana and the Polulu drivers, which have to be wired differntly and I would like to know if there is any code from you online, becouse I still have not decidet whether i would go bi- ore unipolar. And it is a big point of my decision that there is some working code avalebil coused by the fact that I am not so goot in writing code for the arduino.
Deather King Hi, in allen meinen Videos findest du in der Beschreibung einen Link auf mein github repo. Darin findest du alle Informationen, Software, Platinenlayouts usw. Die software/hardware Versionen sind V1 fuer unipolar und V4 fuer bipolare Schrittmotoren.
Danke schön, ich habe gerade dort geschaut, was würden Sie denn für einen solchen Plotter empfehlen Uni- oder Bipolar?
Ich habe da keinen klaren Favoriten, beide haben ihre Vorteile. Wenn es einfach und billig sein soll, dann unipolar - wenn es genau und schnell sein soll dann besser bipolar. Ebenfalls koennte man mit der bipolar- Steuerung einfach einen kleinen 3D Drucker bauen. Da passen dann die verwendeten Teile schon.
Ich habe ein Tutorial im Internet gesehen wie man die billigen ebay 5V Stepper zu bipolaren umbaut, sodass man sie dann auch mit dem Polulu Treibern ansteuern kann, ich kann den link gerade nicht hier einfügen allerdings würde ich das zu einem späteren Zeitpunkt tun, wenn sie interessiert sind.
Bipolar zu unipolar geht immer, solange die Mittelabgriffe der Spulen nicht im Motor verbunden sind.
Hi Dirk why hp2xx generates large sizes?,i mean when your axis Y=75.15 mine=200?Thank You in advance
you should use hp2xx -t (t for truesize) otherwise it fills the whole page.
Dirk Herrendoerfer hmmm... hp2xx -t m nc enter? thank You so much
Dirk Herrendoerfer Super hp2xx -m nc -t Thanks Dirk:)
Please tell me, how do you generate hpgl files? With what program do these files?
I use the Eagle function to export to HPGL directly.
Please, can you do a video tutorial on this topic?
I can only generate files that isolate the paths.
I generate the files using Run ULP and mill-outlines.ulp.
Where am I wrong?
You generate HPGL directly. Can you detail the process?
Use the CAM Processor and select HPGL. Configure the pen size to yours. When you transcode to nc make sure to use the truesize (-t) flag.
OK, work.
Thank You very much.
DUDE, you born to teach is natural in you. Also share your Bitcoin address for help you in your projects
Dirk, I tried to install Universal Gcode sender after successfully installing Java 8. But when I downloaded the zip file of UGS and unzip it I cannot find a file called UniversalGcodeSender.jar to create a shortcut of UGS. Could you help me to solve this?
Yes. Use gcode-sender (without universal) it's a very small program to do just what it's name says.
Thank you very much for your speedy reply. I shall do so.
The Arduino G Code Sender stops responding after I switched to another program. Any thoughts?
Really ? As soon as it looses focus ? I'll check, but I never had that issue, only when two programs are competing for the COM port I had unexpected things happening. I'm using Windows 7 for my plotters.
Yeah, I'm using Windows 10 Pro. I'm trying to turn the writefile function into another thread class for multithreading but I can't seem to get it. I'm not really good at python. Oh btw, I'm using Spyder with python 2.7
Hola dos preguntas ¿para que sirve el Python? y ¿cuanto voltaje se alimenta el circuito? Por favor contesta.
+Tobi Vaz Python 2.7 in 32 bit is what I use, with pythonSerial. Supply Voltage is dependent on the steppers you use - I go with 6 or 12 Volts.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer. Thanks.
Yes sir
I run it as administrator
+pedro rodriguez I tried it out yesterday, it worked for me on Win 7 Pro 64-bit. I unpacked the repo zip into 'My Documents' and issued the commands in the created directories without modifying the PATH environment variable.
It is not necessary, make part of command prompt ?
+pedro rodriguez It is. you need to use the command prompt to use hp2xx, but if you move the files you want to transcode into the hp2xx directory you can forego the path setting steps
Die Funktion "hp2xx -m nc" scheint bei mir leider nicht zu funktionieren. :(
Was fuer eine Version benutzt du denn ? In meinem Repo (link in der Beschreibung des Videos) gibt es eine Aktuelle als zip fuer Windows. Die Linux und OSX Versionen im Netz sind teilweise ohne NC Unterstuetzung gebaut worden.
Dirk Herrendoerfer Vielen Dank. Habe den Fehler gefunden. Jetzt fehlt nur noch die Hardware ;) Übrigens: Mit Inkscape kann sich mit einer kleinen Modifikation auch gcodes direkt von jpg Dateien erzeugen lassen.
when i start serial monitoring it keep on displaying ucncbeta.......without an end ...why is it so? help me please
No idea what would make it do that - you might want to check if you configured it correctly and built it for the correct Arduino board - but apart from that it should not go into a reset loop.
Dirk Herrendoerfer what did u mean by configuring it correctly I din get u??
I'm using arduino nano 328p with the exact same control board v1....
Check if your power source is stable enough.
Dirk Herrendoerfer let me check once again....thanks for reply...I'm halfway doing this
olá, onde encontro uma desta? vende este kit?
Hello, I do not sell these machines as kits, but all information is available online. There is a link to my github repo in the description of the video, you may find everything I have published there.
obrigado meu amigo! e cm ligo motores com seis fios no arduino?
Steppers with six wires have two wired for the mid-connection of each coil. These should both be connected to the positive source. The other four wires go to the driver ICs.
obrigado meu amigo! fica com Deus!
Hi dirk. Will this code work with bipolar steppers
Yes, especially the newer versions work with a number of stepper types and drivers.
Thank you
muito bom
Hi Dirk, I am in the process of copying one of your controllers from an EASYEDA link but am a little confused.
The controller is on link easyeda.com/dherrend/uController-11dbaeb7e3f046408e67acb03aba75f2
My confusion is, there are three 100k resistors (R4, R5, R6) on pin 2 of the A4899 chips that appear to be doing nothing. My confusion is, should the 100k be connected to just pin 2 giving a Mode of 2Phase or should they not be there at all and the all three Mode pins connected to +5v giving a Mode of 1/126th step 4 wire 2 phase.
Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this but I could not find any other way to contact you and EASYEDA were unable to help.
Regards John
Hi - you're completely right, if you want to use 1/16 mode the resistors do nothing, but if you intend to cut the tracks to get less than 1/16th, that resistor becomes necessary.
Hi Dirk,
What does your software do, does it work in 1/16 or full steps? I want it to work as you designed it, I am not clever enough to make software/firmware modifications.
It does not matter - 1/16th is better. The software only needs to know how many steps it needs to issue to draw one millimeter. You need to edit that into the firmware source file, no programming skills are required.
Brillient, I was hoping you would say that. 1/16th it is then. Thank you..
Hi Dirk.
Sorry to bother you again, I built the Version 1.5 as above onto an Arduino Robot shell in order to use an old Duemilanove I have lying around.
When I try to run a nc program (from your links) either in GRBL ot ArdGcode Writer, it ques about 8 instructions and then nothing.
This happens also if I just run the Arduino on its own both the Nano and Duemilanove. I am wondering if I am loading the incorrect program into the Arduino. I have tried various ones from your links with no improvment.
Can you send me a link to the correct controller program for the Version 1.5 board (the one with A4899 chips)
Regards John
Dirk, its Grbl.
Where did you get that from ? I don't think I ever released GRBL for the v4 boards.
Hi, Dirk! Have u see my previous comment? I still can not solve the problem. ;(
Thank you !
Buy cnc framework where?
Which framework ? The machine, or the the software ?
Hi Dirk Herrendoerfer,
Thanks for your video and your hard work to complete this. I have done the prototype for this. But at the first try, I get stuck like this (i'm using TowerPro MG90S micro servo):
- Firstly, I don't know how to test servo (stpper motors are tested OK via software by clicking Y+/Y-/X+/X-)
- Secondly, After executing file "controller.hpgl.nc", it stuck at below command and make my servo vibrate forever. After that i need to press reset button of arduino, then the system back to normal.
M06 T 2
; Tool Up
G01 Z1
The datasheet of servo:
www.electronicoscaldas.com/datasheet/MG90S_Tower-Pro.pdf
please help me on this.
Thanks for your time.
+Phan Tan Mong If the Software gets stuck at the point where it was supposed to move the servo, it is usually a configuration issue. Make sure that there is a positive value at steps per millimeter for the Z axis. If the Servo is oscillating, it may be an issue with too little current available.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer Thanks for your quick reply. Finally i got it working by changing motorMode to 1 ( default is 0) and then change the servoPosMax and servoPosMin to suitabe with my servo.
Thanks again for your stuffs.
+Phan Tan Mong Congratulations ! I'm happy to hear that there is another working unit out there. Greetings, Dirk.
+Dirk Herrendoerfer I got problem with wrong size after drawing the pcb. I have changed stepsPerMillimeter_X,Y,Z to so many number but the size is still bigger than the real one.
I'm using 5V stepper motors (1.8 degree/step) with 14.6mm diameter pulleys attached to motors, nilon strings as belt driver.
Please show me how to calculate stepsPerMillimeter in my case.
One more thing: why do you use stepsPerMillimeter_Y in minus value? (-200/17.1)
Thanks so much for your help.
+Phan Tan Mong So, you have 200 Steps per revolution of the stepper; The circumference of you pulley is 14.6mm*P, that's 45.844. So you would have 4.3626 Steps per millimeter, or 8.7252 half-steps.
If your stepper is turning the wrong way on any axis you can use a negative steps per millimeter value to compensate.
alguien que me explique en español lo que esta haciendo en verdad me interesa mucho el saber como se controla la maquina cnc
+guillermo garcia Básicamente está abriendo desde la terminal un software que importa un archivo .hpgl que es un archivo para ploters y lo convierte en codigo G que ya puede leer el software que está en el siguiente vídeo, este ya envía las cordenadas y comandos de movimientos al cnc.
+Raúl Thank you!
Hello
I can not export to eagle the HPGL files and I also tried converting with hp2xx
the HPGL files I download ..... I followed the video but when the point of type hp2xx and click send out me this:
"Hp2xx is free software and you are welcome to distribute copies of it
under certain conditions. There is absolutely no warranty for hp2xx!
For full details, read COPYING file (shipped along with this package),
or write to: Free Software Foundation, Inc.
675 Mass Ave, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
HP2xx: A HPGL converter (xx = mf, eps, pcl, pcx, img ...)
V 3.4.4 (06/03/22) (c) 1991 to 1994 (V3.20) Heinz W. Werntges
(C) 1999-2003 Martin Kroeker
Usage: hp2xx [options] [file1 [file2 ...]]
Unix: Filter usage (.. | hp2xx q -f- [options] | ..) ok
Press to continue ... "
things I need to do ??
thanks in advance for the answers.
+Matteo piras Eagle creates HPGL files using the CAM processor, you need to select the format there, once you have a file ( lets call it 'myfile.hpgl' ) you need to feed it to hp2xx using 'hp2xx -m nc -t myfile.hpgl' and hp2xx will generate a 'myfile.hpgl.nc' for you.
Mr.DIRK
yOU PL. CONSIDER ME AS A LAYMAN NOT HAVING INDEPTH KNOWLEDGE.
Any way I put my question here.
How you creating hpgl file and stroring in the GITHUB.I understand to some extent your video.I get stuck up at point where you convert the hpgl file to G .code.And how you creating the files?
Pl. explain.I think you would not ask me to see the video.
vkp
+Kalyanapasupathy Venkatraman
Wich video you mean,Sir
vkp
+Kalyanapasupathy Venkatraman
Which video you mean?
Can you explain in writing
+Kalyanapasupathy Venkatraman Have you been able to download and install the hp2xx utility ? What operating system are you using ?
+Kalyanapasupathy Venkatraman
I am using windows8
vkp
+Kalyanapasupathy Venkatraman Have you been able to download and install the hp2xx utility ?
please pcb driver board motor and code soft
The link to my repo is at the bottom of the description of the video.
Yes sir
I download and unzip on disk c
+pedro rodriguez I am very certain that this version supports 'nc' as an output format.
+pedro rodriguez Try this: github.com/dherrendoerfer/uCNC_controller/blob/master/Extras/Hp2xx/hp2xx-3.4.4-win32.zip
windows 7 ultimate
Service Pack 1
64bits
+pedro rodriguez And you are using a Command prompt with admin privileges ?