Re: EMC & Wire EDM?

--- In CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@yahoogroups.com, "inetd_conf" <benedict@h...>
wrote:

> I've been considering tackling a wire EDM. I'd prefer four axis
> control, but honestly I think I'd be doing good with two.
>
> My CAM software will handle wire EDM just fine (yeah, I'm using
> Vector). But I don't currently have control software that'll do

the job.

>
> I was planning on building a power supply similar to the one Robert
> Langlois described in his book published by Village Press. In
> particular, I liked that it had a signal line that would go high if
> the wire drew too much current (shorted), and another that would go
> high if it drew too little (stopped cutting). In his book, which
> described a ram EDM, these two lines controlled the ram.
>
> A wire EDM is a little more complicated. If the wire shorts, you
> don't just retract the ram, you have to stop or move the wire back
> along the toolpath.
>
> Ideally I'd like to use software that's designed with an EDM in

mind.

> I'd like it to be able to listen for high or low current draw, and
> act accordingly.
>
> If anyone here has made a wire EDM, I'd be curious what your
> experiences were. I'm not going to tackle this without a lot more
> thought on the matter, so the more you can tell me the merrier I'll

be.

>
> Thanks,
>
> Tom

I've been thinking on the same lines. what is needed is a software
that will accept the input from the voltage monitoring circuit of the
EDM to adjust cutting path speed. the math of where to go is done by
the software, but speed is dependant on the EDM curcuit.

Aanother feature you mention is cutting path reversal. on a sinker,
that is simple, one axis, but on a wire, it is 2 axis reversal.

Some high end packages look ahead 150 steps of code or so, in order
to maintain very smooth movements. this would need look ahead
and 'remember' the last "X" number of lines for that reverse path.

Master5/Mach1, has recently introduced the first step but it was
really designed for plasma cutting. ie: the plasma cutting circuit
moved the head up and down, but the software keeps tabs of the exact
location.

There is a need for this, and hopefully the answer is not in the high
dollar software packages.

Dave