New Project
28 Mar 2011 17:22 #8207
by HTRasmus
Replied by HTRasmus on topic Re:New Project
Thanks for the feedback..
I Have done dozens of different advanced software programming but never something like this.. regarding the over spec of pc I was thinking that money should not be an issue. when it comes to the pc since that is really not the most expensive part.
should you avoid pci graphic cards?
what about pci express and pci 2.0/2.1
if you look at many German and Swiss built machinery you have a better precision by having your glass ruler as a reference and encoder for positioning. as far as I know, this is to gain precision. (but correct me if i am wrong.
I just cant wait to get started with this project. I really love linux and I really love machinery
:D
I Have done dozens of different advanced software programming but never something like this.. regarding the over spec of pc I was thinking that money should not be an issue. when it comes to the pc since that is really not the most expensive part.
should you avoid pci graphic cards?
what about pci express and pci 2.0/2.1
if you look at many German and Swiss built machinery you have a better precision by having your glass ruler as a reference and encoder for positioning. as far as I know, this is to gain precision. (but correct me if i am wrong.
I just cant wait to get started with this project. I really love linux and I really love machinery
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31 Mar 2011 09:18 #8316
by andypugh
Replied by andypugh on topic Re:New Project
HTRasmus wrote:
You can make a perfectly good CNC machine with only the parallel port (EMC2 supports at least 4 parallel-port connected interfaces the best are probably the Pico PPMC: www.pico-systems.com/PPMC.html (I wish he had a prettier card cage in that picture) and the Mesa 7i43 (www.mesanet.com/ and follow the "Anything IO FPGA cards" link).
I run a combination lathe/mill with a 7i43 and have 12 or so unused lines even with 4 axes, 2 spindles and all the interlocks.
Mesa also make PCI cards. The 5i22, for example, gives you 96 IO lines from a single PCI slot (most people use the cheaper 72 IO 5i20 or 5i23). If that is not enough IO then each header on the boards can control 8x 7i64 cards, which would max you out at 768 outputs and 768 inputs plus 64 analogue inputs with a 5i22. Pete has talked of making splitters to bypass this limitation.
How much IO do you need?
That is not to say that some people don't end up using multiple 5i23 cards, but I think that is because they want to use more than 3 different daughter card variants. (You can do this, incidentally, with a single card if you don't need all the channels of each board and are willing to make up a special ribbon cable)
how do you guys do it with only 1 PCI Slot?
You can make a perfectly good CNC machine with only the parallel port (EMC2 supports at least 4 parallel-port connected interfaces the best are probably the Pico PPMC: www.pico-systems.com/PPMC.html (I wish he had a prettier card cage in that picture) and the Mesa 7i43 (www.mesanet.com/ and follow the "Anything IO FPGA cards" link).
I run a combination lathe/mill with a 7i43 and have 12 or so unused lines even with 4 axes, 2 spindles and all the interlocks.
Mesa also make PCI cards. The 5i22, for example, gives you 96 IO lines from a single PCI slot (most people use the cheaper 72 IO 5i20 or 5i23). If that is not enough IO then each header on the boards can control 8x 7i64 cards, which would max you out at 768 outputs and 768 inputs plus 64 analogue inputs with a 5i22. Pete has talked of making splitters to bypass this limitation.
How much IO do you need?
That is not to say that some people don't end up using multiple 5i23 cards, but I think that is because they want to use more than 3 different daughter card variants. (You can do this, incidentally, with a single card if you don't need all the channels of each board and are willing to make up a special ribbon cable)
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