Retrofitting a 1986 Maho MH400E

1. The 7I84 will need field power to work ( the 7I73 just needs cable power )

2. When you add a 7I74 to a 7I77 config, this adds a second ssserial host port (port 1).
This port needs to be enabled with a sserial_port_1=00000000 token in the config
string ( the 00000000 sets all 8 channels of port_1 to mode 0, you may want to adjust this later )

I didn't feel like mucking around with that tool length sensor troubleshooting, so I finished the drag engraver. Pretty unusual feeling for me to actually finish a project, even if it is only a mini one.




Didn't get around to testing it yet.
Mark

PCW, are you saying that I should use PNCConf to make a hal file for the 7i77 and then add the 7i74 manually using that line?

I'm asking because I updated the 5i25 with a firmware that's named 7i77_7i74 (extracted from the 5i25.zip file, containing all the available standard firmware from Mesa), and after copying the files to the appropriate folders so that the wizard allows me to select them I can't seem to get a config going with that setup. In fact, any setup with a 7i74 causes PNCConf to parse multiple errors (e.g two 7i74s, or the reverse 7i74_7i77), I can't move on to the next step in the config.

This behaviour does not occur with any of the other firmwares, all of them populate their respecitve lists and allow me to continue with the configuration. I'm kind of confused.

So should I select a different firmware and then change the hal file manually to include the 7i74 (which connects to a 7i84 and 7i73 via patch cables)?

BTW, all the cards apart from the 5i25 are using field power from a PSU, all the diodes seem to work, and a multimeter confirms every card gets its required 5V. The show pin command now shows some 7i77 pins in addition to the 5i25 ones, but nothing from the 7i84. Please note that I haven't yet created a config with the wizard because of the problem described above.

Very nice work Mark! Don't go saying you never complete a project, I mean this retrofit is a massive project (and the control panel was another project in and of itself).

The great benefit of upgrading the machine over a long period of time like you did is that you could slowly put together all the required pieces of knowledge. I'm finding it very difficult, despite having your instructions and the manuals, to find the necessary bits of info that are needed to overcome each hurdle along the way. It all seems scattered across various files and forum posts.

Hi Glemigobles. Can you understand German? There is a german guy "talla83" who has done a set of very good set of MESA config you tube videos.
www.youtube.com/user/talla83/videos
I know how you feel about the difficulty of collecting necessary info. I must say how cool it was when I saw that PCW had answered your MESA config query with 13 minutes. This is an impressive help desk that is running here. You'll get there.

It is also interesting which parts of these projects sail by with ease, verses the stupid little details which can take considerable energy to overcome. Like I can't get the stupid tool height setter, or the encoders on my panel working, but otherwise got the thing running.

Hi Aulplastv. That is a cool feeling when you bring such a beast under your control. Good one.

Mark

Unfortunately, I only understand enough basic German to not get completely lost when I'm abroad, technical language is beyond me. I tried turning on subtitles with automatic translation to English, that went about as well as one could expect

I agree about PCW's quick reply, it's just sad that I don't understand what to do with it

In your instructions, you write about checking pins on cards with the hal command; did you have a configuration file by that point?

What's really my issue at this stage is that I don't quite understand the sequence of what has to be done next. The Mesa cards are connected to power and to each other, I removed the Philips control. Should I now make a config (and if so, do I have to set one up manually if PNCconf doesn't work with the 7i77_7i74 firmware?) and then connect the hardware?

That is to say, does one edit the configuration file when each hardware component is added and test it, starting from a barebones file that doesn't really have anyhting correctly configured? Or should the machine be connected to the Mesa cards first, to help the configuration utility do its job?

EDIT: Attached the error from PNCConf, it pops up after I click to accept the selected firmware (which was installed on the 5i25 and verified).

With just the 5i25/7i77/7i84, bought as a LinuxCNC plug npray kit from Mesa, I didn't have to flash any hardware.

So first I set up the pc with the MESA cards and a 24VDC PSU for field power. Once the MESA Cards talked to each other properly, I used PNCConf to set up the basics of the three axis mill, with servos and encoders, and a couple of other options from the PNCCoonf which sounded like I wanted them. I have never used PNCConf since, and I think all the options I added have since been edited or deleted/commented out.
After that it is all manual editing of the HAL and INI files, testing as you go.

My approach was:
1/ encoder feedback. Wiring the encoders into the 7i77, configuration of the INI for the correct sense and increments, pulling apart and cleaning sensor heads, replacing EXEs till they work reliably.
2/ servo interface and tuning. Getting the direction to match the encoders. Tuning using HALScope. Setting up the homing to the encoder reference indexs, setting accel and speeds in INI, etc.
3/ gearbox electrical interface and feedback. Wiring all the feedback switches, manually turning gearbox shafts and checking the switch states with HALSHOW. Wiring the gearbox and spindle motor control relays.
4/ gearbox comp testing. (I got really lucky here that my friend Sergei who is a real programmer stepped up to do this for me. We are aiming for a final improved version this summer, but it works as is.) Recompiling LinuxCNC with the Gearboc comp. Testing the directions (I believe the 500E and 600E have the input gear shaft running reversed to the 400E).

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At that point you should have a working machine, using a normal keyboard.

5/ user control panel and interface. You would think that by this time one should be good at HALfui and Ini Karate, but I still seem to have to stop and look up every single little step. I still need to get my feedrate override and jog speed encoders working. Then renet the spindle start buttons once we have the new gearbox comp.

6/ adding accessories. Currently the Tool height setter, and 3D Probe projects. In the future I am sure that a rotary axis project.
Mark

If PNCconf doesn't have a config for the 7i74, just do the basic 5i25 + 7i77 config in PNCConf. Then in the HAL manually edit that one line PCW indicated. Then restart the system with the 7i74 connected, and use HALShow to see if the 7i74 pins are now available to you.

Thanks a lot Mark! I edited my previous reply to include the error message from PNCConf.

Going to try your suggestion now.