Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Machine Options in CAM Software ?

aussiedude wrote:

>
> OK, so the reason posts are different, as you have already stated is
> different hardware. "bigger/professional/expensive" machines are not
> limited to the direction and step process.

Of course they are limited to the direction and step process. On
an XYZ movement machine, all you have is the direction and the
rate. What other movements could there possibly be?

> By utilizing proprietary
> hardware they can better / different things like interpolation etc.
> There are also a lot of hardware that was built so as to interface with
> the available electronics of the time.

Nevertheless, all position sensing, feedback, interpolation,
step, direction of any and all axis is still just direction and
step processes and has to be sent to the motor drivers. All the
information has to be contained in the G-code, however generated.

> So the program may not
> actually send pulses etc it may send a command to drill a circle with
> any number of parameters. Some machines may not understand all the
> parameters.

I guess that is what I am asking. Why don't the machines
understand all the parameters? Is this information located in
what we call a *post processor*? If this is the case, I don't
see why a post processor should cost so much or take so much time
to write. It seems to me that a rather generic *fill the blanks*
type of program could be written to encompass the characteristics
of the stepper motors, feedback counts/rate from position
indicators, spindle rotation, etc. But I have the idea, wrong or
right, that ultimately the G-code contains all the input
parameters needed to define the part, feed rate, cutter offset,
spindle RPM, etc.

It seems to me that the motor drivers just transmit to the motors
which direction and how many steps/second to move and make the
voltage and amperage available to do that.

Sorry for harping on this a little, but I'm trying to understand
this in depth. Thanks for considering my questions and comments.

Regards,

JerryK