NEW Router / Plasma / Laser / Vision System Design - Which Mesa Combination?

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05 Feb 2017 15:23 #87342 by cyrut2
I have designed the table to be able to use all these different tools.I have started welding the table and getting all the mechanical components together. While i wait for all that to come in i have three types of motion controls im considering. Not likely the tried old stepper, BLDC with encoders 1000ppr, DC servo disc with 2000ppr. Id perfer using the DC servo disc since i have the drivers and higher resolution. The drivers run on PWM and DIR(high low). The closed loop system will improve my accuracy and reduce costs.

Room for growth - I was hoping to implement later this project into a 5 axis router with a z 3 axis spindle. So this is a side note for consideration.

Which mesa combination will get me at least up and runnning with a 3 axis setup ?

I considered the 5i20 with 7I52S i am not a EE so be kind. I am a hobbiest learning.

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05 Feb 2017 16:43 #87345 by PCW
If you want to use Mesa card with a plasma system, I would suggest a Ethernet connected card like a 7I80HD
( It is also much less expensive than the 5I20 which is a older card mainly sold for replacement purposes )

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05 Feb 2017 23:32 - 05 Feb 2017 23:37 #87373 by BigJohnT
Some options are the 5i25 or 6i25 with a 7i76 for steppers and a THCAD for torch height control.

My plasma build with configuration files.

JT
Last edit: 05 Feb 2017 23:37 by BigJohnT.

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07 Feb 2017 07:03 #87438 by cyrut2
Thanks for the replies. Is the Ethernet 7i80hd hard to setup. Do you need to upload firmware (is that hard)? I was going to go the easy route since it seems the 5i cards are pretty straight forward to get up and running. This is why im asking for you opinion to see what is the best route overall.

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07 Feb 2017 07:06 #87439 by cyrut2
As im looking at the 7i80 how do you setup the ethernet card im not great although i have alittle dummies for linux know how on linux. I suppose that you set an ip and then some protocol from cpu to ethernet. So there is nothing else between the ethernet card (normal in case) and the ethernet anything card correct? Best bet would be to have two internet cards one for internet and the other for motion control.

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07 Feb 2017 07:19 #87440 by cyrut2
Quick reading on the 7i is some what non-real time control? Is it better to go with a 7I76-6I25 PLUG-N-GO KIT which is a more real time system or am i not reading correctly? I like the idea of having a single wire to equipment but do not want to get into trouble with real time issues of the PID and closed loop system because of latency. Maybe not an issue either way?

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07 Feb 2017 17:21 #87474 by tommylight
You are correct, the 5i25/7i76 combo or 7i76E are easier to set up, normaly you have to wire it and power it, nothing more. They are perfect for most machines. You have only one cable with the combo, but thicker and shorter, ethernet can go quite far with a cat6 cable.
If you plan on using stepper motors and drives, that is the best solution.

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08 Feb 2017 01:54 #87501 by cyrut2
I want flexibility incase I run into problems. I have on my desk bldc with quad encoders with ano log drivers 0-5v. Also available is DC servo disk with also similar quad encoders with pwm driver. I am building a high precision high count system which of the two gives more headroom for speed and precision.

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08 Feb 2017 13:05 - 08 Feb 2017 13:05 #87536 by andypugh
For PWM/DIR control the 7i52 probably is the daughter card you want. It can alternatively be configured for step/dir control.
The 7i76 is, as far as I know, pretty much only used for step/dir and does not have encoder inputs.

PCW is suggesting the 7i80 because the ethernet-connected cards have better noise-immunity, which is good for a plasma.

Configuring the 7i80 is a little more difficult than configuring a PCI card, but the flip-side is that the Linux (rather than LinuxCNC) setup is somewhat easier. You basically install a normal version of Linux and then change to the preempt-rt kernel. This might have large advantages for PC hardware support, the Live-CD (and all RTAI version) kernels are rather old now.

Follow the instructions here to get a version of LinuxCNC that can work with all Mesa cards (the LiveCD RTAI kernel can not work with ethernet cards). linuxcnc.org/docs/2.7/html/getting-start...th_preempt_rt_kernel
Last edit: 08 Feb 2017 13:05 by andypugh.

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