Camtronics Driver Board Issues
Posted by
Max Vaughan
on 2001-01-17 15:05:45 UTC
Sorry if this is duplicate, put previouse post never showed up on my
end.
Problems with Camtronics Driver Board 5Amp boards.
I purchased the CNC "KIT" with my ShopTask Eldorado. With my
extensive knowledge of electronics and experinece with building other
electronic kits as well as homebrew designs I felt that the kit
should be well within my capabilities. Which turned out to be
pretty much the case. Though the documentation could be a little
better and the instructions a little more clear, I was able to follow
everything and figure it out as I went. Some quick questions to Dan
at Camtronics were cleared up. As a side note I WOULD NOT recommend
this for anyone who has not had experience in putting together
electronic kits in the past. If the instructions were clearer and
upto date, and some
basic principles of kit building were explained then this would not
be beyond someone who was familer with electronics and could do a
decent job with a soldering iron and can keep the heat down on the
components.
Anyway, after getting the components soldered onto the boards the
instructions have you run through some basic voltage tests, and
setting your VREF voltage for amp control. Any way Boards #1 and #2
checked out fine. My problems began with the last Board #3
Board #3 checks out as far as the VREF voltage operating correctly
when enabling and d isabling the input pins. However the Aa and Bb
lines don't do anything, no V+ or V- swings as is seen with the other
two boards. Instructions infer that a bad solder joint or MOSFET may
be at issue.
Dan suggested that I could have a blowen FET on the board. Checks
with a VOM showed that all the FETS on all three boards are the same.
The likely candidate was then the 3776 chip that drove the FET's. I
examined all solder joints one last time
everything looked fine.
In my desperation I took the 3776 out of #2 and put it into #3 (the
one with the problem) Took 3776 from #3 and put it into #2. Number #2
wouldn't work. Took the 3776 that
was orginally in #2 and put it back. NOW #2 board didn't work. ARGGGG!
This lead me to believe that something was missed on #3 and I had
just messed up #2's 3776. I removed the 3776 in #3 and checked the
validity of the circuit from
the solder side of the board to the contacts in the socket for 3776.
One socket pin was open. This was pin 13 of 3776, which connects to
the +5. Reheating the joint fixed the bad connection.
You can understand my reluctance with taking the good 3776 from #1
which works as expected and trying it in the #2 or #3 board.
At this point I am getting 3 new 3776 chips from Dan and giving it a
go. I am hoping that
either someone out there can shed some light on what may be going on
and may have some suggestions, about the next step or at least learn
from my mistakes.
CC: CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO
end.
Problems with Camtronics Driver Board 5Amp boards.
I purchased the CNC "KIT" with my ShopTask Eldorado. With my
extensive knowledge of electronics and experinece with building other
electronic kits as well as homebrew designs I felt that the kit
should be well within my capabilities. Which turned out to be
pretty much the case. Though the documentation could be a little
better and the instructions a little more clear, I was able to follow
everything and figure it out as I went. Some quick questions to Dan
at Camtronics were cleared up. As a side note I WOULD NOT recommend
this for anyone who has not had experience in putting together
electronic kits in the past. If the instructions were clearer and
upto date, and some
basic principles of kit building were explained then this would not
be beyond someone who was familer with electronics and could do a
decent job with a soldering iron and can keep the heat down on the
components.
Anyway, after getting the components soldered onto the boards the
instructions have you run through some basic voltage tests, and
setting your VREF voltage for amp control. Any way Boards #1 and #2
checked out fine. My problems began with the last Board #3
Board #3 checks out as far as the VREF voltage operating correctly
when enabling and d isabling the input pins. However the Aa and Bb
lines don't do anything, no V+ or V- swings as is seen with the other
two boards. Instructions infer that a bad solder joint or MOSFET may
be at issue.
Dan suggested that I could have a blowen FET on the board. Checks
with a VOM showed that all the FETS on all three boards are the same.
The likely candidate was then the 3776 chip that drove the FET's. I
examined all solder joints one last time
everything looked fine.
In my desperation I took the 3776 out of #2 and put it into #3 (the
one with the problem) Took 3776 from #3 and put it into #2. Number #2
wouldn't work. Took the 3776 that
was orginally in #2 and put it back. NOW #2 board didn't work. ARGGGG!
This lead me to believe that something was missed on #3 and I had
just messed up #2's 3776. I removed the 3776 in #3 and checked the
validity of the circuit from
the solder side of the board to the contacts in the socket for 3776.
One socket pin was open. This was pin 13 of 3776, which connects to
the +5. Reheating the joint fixed the bad connection.
You can understand my reluctance with taking the good 3776 from #1
which works as expected and trying it in the #2 or #3 board.
At this point I am getting 3 new 3776 chips from Dan and giving it a
go. I am hoping that
either someone out there can shed some light on what may be going on
and may have some suggestions, about the next step or at least learn
from my mistakes.
CC: CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO