Re: Troubleshooting a BTR

Vinny, a lot of the old controls read @ 300 baud. If your machine is
good otherwise, you might consider buying a new btr. There were a lot
of early BTR's that used proprietary software and basically won't
operate with a PC. They were sold to large companies that had
mainframes or minis and the $$ to network and DNC early on. I've got
a couple of fairly new BTR's from Advanced Digital Research, and they
work flawlessly. There are people around who kinda specialize in
BTR's on specific controls and have re-seller agreements with
manufacturers like ADR. You can buy from them for about the same
price as from ADR or similar companies, but they include installation
tips and instructions for your specific control and reader combo. On
one of mine, the guy included a special pre-made cable to allow hookup
of the BTR to an existing plug at the reader board instead of having
to do a bunch of wire splicing. The BTR and cable cost $1300, and the
list price of the BTR alone was $1295 at the time. When I called ADR
and told them what I had, they steered me to the guy who I ultimately
bought it from. Installation was a snap, and I had a guy I could call
with questions who was familiar with my specific setup. When the
alternative is beating on a keyboard and hoping you don't make that
one error that causes an unexpedted crash, a good BTR is the best
money you'll ever spend on an otherwise good machine. If you should
decide to purchase a new one, the minimum memory is plenty for any
lathe application, so there's no need to spend the $$ for larger
memory on the board.

--- In CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@yahoogroups.com, "vinnygenovese"
<superman@r...> wrote:

> --- In CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@yahoogroups.com, Jon Elson <elson@p...>
> wrote:
> > vinnygenovese wrote:
> >
> > >I am trying to bring an IKEGIA FX25-N / Fanuc 5T back to life.

There is a

> BTR
> > >that I am trying to bring online. Problem is I don't have any

instructions or

> dip
> > >switch settings. I uploaded a photo to http://radiantheat.com/UCM-
> BTR.jpg.
> > >The board has a single LED , which seems to 'blink' when i send

data, but

> it
> > >seems no signal gets through to the Fanuc 5T. (or I am sending

the wrong

> > >commands). I googled and googled. It seems they are out of

business. Any

> > >hints on the dip switch's or other hints would be very welcome.
> > >
> > >
> > Well, I think it can be deciphered. It looks like there is no
> > microprocessor there,
> > I think the big chip is a 40-pin UART. It also looks like the

markings

> > have been
> > sanded off that chip, but by tracing the power pins, you may be

able to

> > figure
> > out which if the several 40 pin uarts it is. It is socketed, so

pulling

> > it and
> > looking on the back may have some markings that at least identify the
> > manufacturer,
> > which may be all you need to narrow down the type of UART. Once you
> > know this,
> > you can see which dip switch is connected to which pin, and with the
> > crystal frequency,
> > you can figure out how to set the baud rate and transmission

characteristics

> > (# bits, even/odd/none parity, etc.)
> >
> > I could be off on this, but there is clearly no EPROM chip, and
> > something about
> > it just makes me think it predates one-chip micros. I note 1488 and
> > 1489 chips,
> > and wonder if it is getting the right power to those chips, as

they need

> > both
> > positive and negative voltages.
> >
> > I don't know Fanuc machines, but most systems need some switch

settings

> > and/or
> > commands or buttons to put them in the right mode to read a

program from

> > tape
> > or to go into DNC mode.
> >
> > In DNC mode, the computer becomes a file server for the CNC

control, and

> > doesn't send anything until the CNC control asks for it by file name.
> >
> > Jon
>
> Thanks for your insights. I have taken the board apart as per your

suggestions

> and found the UCM logo was painted over the first markings on the

large chip

> just like you guessed. The original markings are close to gone but I

can make

> out the lowest line GFSX904 5 or S. On the back it says Malasya. I

have

> found the trademark (tm) MICRO-BTR on the back, but they must have

gone

> under in the pre-internet days (nothing on google but one reference

to UCM

> in LA.).
>
> The dip switch settings on the top dip switch seem to control baud

rate, the

> traces for that chip go to one SN74LS165N. When I change these

settings the

> LED blinks out the new baud rate after a reset.
>
> I also learned that if I type into my terminal like a madman and

change comm

> settings on the fly, sometimes I can get it to lock up and the LED

blinks out a

> steady 0. The BTR dip switch's came set up for 1200 so I assume a 1979
> Faunc 5T defaults to that baud rate ? .
>
> FYI in order to set up my Fanuc 5T control to read the BTR I have

set my main

> mode switch to 'memory' and pressed the read button on the tape

reader. ( as

> stated in the Fanuc 5T book that came with the machine. The drive wheel
> spins in the reader full time. of course I would throw the BTR board

into the

> Atlantic if I could afford to replace it ! ! !
>
>
> Thanks everyone for your interest and suggestions.
>
>
>
> vinny