Re: OK - you convinced me - was "Automated "Manual CNC"

Ballendo

My response to your two caveats (whatever they are) is mixed into the
snipped post below.

You are absolutely correct that the zipslack install comes very close to
the BDI that we posted about a while back. Just don't try it on the old
16 bit win95 aka 3.1+ system or on one sporting the new ME upgrade.

> Message: 6
> Date: Fri, 06 Oct 2000 13:29:28 -0000
> From: ballendo@...

<s>

> D) Would EMC be a likely contender with this setup?
>
> -I would have to say, especially with the zipslack 10 minute CD's
> appearing to work for a number of people(see previous posts and
> http://www.linuxcnc.org ) that EMC is a likely contender for anybody
> with 2 caveats:
>
> -1. The lookahead currently does not work well for files of "lotsa
> short lines" although Jon Elson has said recently he's gotten some
> decent results from engraving(That WAS you,Jon, wasn't it?)FAST
> computer, I think.

I know of several who use the EMC for engraving and find that 25+ blocks
per second is enough for most homebrew setups. In fact you can watch it
engrave a virtual copy of the intelligent systems division logo by calling
up isd.ngc and run it with backplot showing. With sim or stepper
definitions you can set whatever engraving speed you think you want and see
just how well it does.

> -2. The gcode program is not pre-processed, so jumps forward and
> back, (broken tool)re-start, and subroutines, loops, and parametric
> programs are difficult to impossible.

a- The EMC will restart after a broken tool on any line that you choose.

b- I don't quite know what you mean by gcode being broken. It seems to
work for me just the way the handbook and the nist supplement says that it
should. If you mean that subroutines, loops, and parametric programs should be a
part of any gcode, I guess you're entitled to your opinion although you
ought to read the analysis of RS274 by Tom Kramer etal again.

c- As for subroutines and loops, both Burt Eding and I have written wrapper
programs that will get you some of those capabilities. Mine is under the
scripts menu of the standard tkemc. We are working on Burt's to give it a
friendlier front end.

I am not sure quite what you mean by parametric programming but 5000+
parameters can be defined, computed and used before and during the
execution of a gcode program. What is not currently directly implemented
is assigning the theoretical real value of one axis to a parameter and then
calculating another axis position from that based on any formula that you
might want to enter. EMC does not directly do complex interpolation.

Conditional part program execution using boolian operators is implemented.

Ray