Dedicated CNC computers (was RE: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Re: Can I make a XYZ CNC?)

I agree that separate PCs are the way to go.

My CNC machine and computer are in my shop room in a definitely
non-ergonomic location. That computer is also not particularly fast.

I have two servers, a CNC computer, my computer, my wife's computer and my
work laptop all networked together. I'll be adding another to control my
trains. It's all very convenient and specialized. My servers don't have
client apps installed, and my CNC computer has almost nothing except the
bare minimum required to run the CNC software. That makes it faster, more
stable and more secure.

The CNC computer is my wife's old 500mhz Gateway Celeron. That computer is
not good for much of anything else, but it is perfect for a CNC controller
PC.
<http://www.irritatedVowel.com/Railroad/Workshop/SherlineCNC.aspx>

My main PC is out here in the main room. It is far more powerful than my CNC
computer (3ghz with 2 gig RAM, and extremely fast S-IDE drives), and has a
much larger monitor (HP 2335 running at 1900x1200). I do all my CAD/CAM work
here, and just copy the gcode across the network to the CNC computer. I also
use this computer for everything else including my programming projects and
the occasional game.

I use wireless on my work laptop as I use it out on the covered deck during
the spring/summer/fall, but everything else is cat5e:
<http://www.irritatedVowel.com/HomeImprovement/StructuredWiring.aspx>

Anyway, I think that if you have an office with better heat and more
comfortable chairs, you might find it more convenient to do your design work
there and just ship your gcode over to a dedicated computer. That also keeps
your normal space clean of chips and oil.

Several of the older PCs I have hanging around were given to me for free by
relatives or my office. Even the really crappy ones had some things that
could be salvaged (memory being one) and put in slightly better machines.
That's how the CNC computer got bumped from 128mb to 192mb memory.

Pete

_____________________________________________________
 Pete Brown - Gambrills, MD (Near Annapolis)
 Visit my personal site : http://www.irritatedVowel.com
 (wallpaper, western maryland ry, .net, photography, model rr)

-----Original Message-----
From: R Rogers [mailto:rogersmach@...]
Sent: Sunday, February 27, 2005 6:29 PM
To: CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [CAD_CAM_EDM_DRO] Re: Can I make a XYZ CNC?


Ultimately like I mentioned at the begining the choice is yours. Do
not be surprised to find that having multiple computers and networking
them together might be the ideal option.

Thanks
Dave

///Sounds complicated and definitely unneccesary. I use one machine with XP
to run the Cad/cam and CNC control. Just minimize Mach2, open cad software,
throw down some lines, post the code to desktop, close the cad software and
load the program. It's easy and works flawlessly. Why have two different
computers and run back and forth? Often times its easier to generate a new
code in the cam than it is to try and edit the G-code manually. It's much
faster.

Ron