Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Re: Problems, cnc/electronic idiot...More DUMB questions

kadeshan wrote:

>I think i am worse off than yesterday. Still struggling, i think the
>software is fine. If i touch a common on the gecko 320 drives with
>one end of the voltmeter, and take the other end and touch the pins
>on the db 25 break out board from camtronics what should it read? If
>i did the same thing while I was jogging the axis what would it
>read. I now have two motors that arm, one of them takes off when I
>hit the engage switch
>

This almost certainly means that you have the motor polarity backwards.
Revers the motor wires, and both of them should hold position.

> the other holds torque twitching back and
>forth.
>

This is normal.

> Neither one of the respond to the controller, does anybody
>have any ideas of what to check next. Be specific please, as you can
>tell i am green as grass. thanks
>
>

This is harder to diagnose. You need to connect the common terminal to
a source of + 5 V from the computer. This can be from a hard drive power
connector, or pin 1 of the 15-pin game port connector. Depending on
the program, the step pulse output should be around 4 V or below 1 V.
When you are sending step pulses at a high rate, a voltmeter might show
some change in the voltage. But, the step pulses are short, so they don't
show up easily on a voltmeter. The direction signal should flip back and
forth between roughly 1 and 4 V when you change direction.

You might rig up a test device, consisting of an LED in series with a
510 Ohm resistor (anything between 150 and 1000 Ohms will actually
work) and test it in place of the Gecko. You can check the LED for the
right polarity by connecting it between +5 V and ground. When it lights
up, leave the wire that is hooked to the +5 there, and move the grounded
wire to the pin you want to test.

Jon