HAL -> Arduino Breakout
04 Mar 2013 23:57 - 04 Mar 2013 23:58 #30852
by dewy721
Replied by dewy721 on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
Oh, I see what you mean. Your referring to tweaking G-Code data at the machine. That is technically possible.
Method A:
An LCD monitor/Arduino-based custom keyboard as the console.
Method B:
Heavy python coding on the PC-side to relay the selected line of code to the console, edit it at the console and ship back to the PC to be saved.
(If I did decide to implement it I would need a lot of people asking for it first.) Lots of hard work on my end.
Method A:
An LCD monitor/Arduino-based custom keyboard as the console.
Method B:
Heavy python coding on the PC-side to relay the selected line of code to the console, edit it at the console and ship back to the PC to be saved.
(If I did decide to implement it I would need a lot of people asking for it first.) Lots of hard work on my end.
Last edit: 04 Mar 2013 23:58 by dewy721.
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05 Mar 2013 00:02 #30853
by dewy721
Replied by dewy721 on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
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05 Mar 2013 00:46 #30860
by emcPT
Yes that is what I want.
If with the mesa it is implemented, then it is the mesa, if not must dig further.
Replied by emcPT on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
Oh, I see what you mean. Your referring to tweaking G-Code data at the machine. That is technically possible.
Yes that is what I want.
If with the mesa it is implemented, then it is the mesa, if not must dig further.
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05 Mar 2013 00:59 #30861
by andypugh
It is not currently implemented with the Mesa 7i73 as far as I know.
It is actually quite an interesting puzzle.
The 7i73 keypresses end up as bit-type pins in HAL, which is in the kernel layer.
Text entry, MDI, etc happen in the Userspace layer, in the GUI.
Input devices such as keyboards by default connect at the User level, and are used by the GUI.
The hal_input and related HAL components "hijack" these devices and direct their input to the kernel / HAL layer.
Finding a way to convert a HAL "bit" pin into a GUI keypress is likely to be ineresting. I can see ways in which it might be achieved (a Userspace HAL component with an input pin for every letter of the alphabet, for example, emulating keystrokes in Userspace) but I am not sure if there is a "right" way to do it.
Replied by andypugh on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
Yes that is what I want.Oh, I see what you mean. Your referring to tweaking G-Code data at the machine. That is technically possible.
If with the mesa it is implemented, then it is the mesa, if not must dig further.
It is not currently implemented with the Mesa 7i73 as far as I know.
It is actually quite an interesting puzzle.
The 7i73 keypresses end up as bit-type pins in HAL, which is in the kernel layer.
Text entry, MDI, etc happen in the Userspace layer, in the GUI.
Input devices such as keyboards by default connect at the User level, and are used by the GUI.
The hal_input and related HAL components "hijack" these devices and direct their input to the kernel / HAL layer.
Finding a way to convert a HAL "bit" pin into a GUI keypress is likely to be ineresting. I can see ways in which it might be achieved (a Userspace HAL component with an input pin for every letter of the alphabet, for example, emulating keystrokes in Userspace) but I am not sure if there is a "right" way to do it.
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05 Mar 2013 01:10 #30863
by emcPT
Replied by emcPT on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
Way to complicated.
A standard industrial keyboard then. I already have a touchscreen, so no mouse is needed. With a standard keyboard I will get things done the easy working way and as no mouse will be present I can put the keyboard vertically.
Thank you both for the good discussion.
Filipe
A standard industrial keyboard then. I already have a touchscreen, so no mouse is needed. With a standard keyboard I will get things done the easy working way and as no mouse will be present I can put the keyboard vertically.
Thank you both for the good discussion.
Filipe
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05 Mar 2013 01:23 - 05 Mar 2013 01:28 #30865
by dewy721
Replied by dewy721 on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
An FPGA based card is hard to beat, and there is a lot of pre-built CNC-centric hardware out there for the product line.
Whats the fastest mesa card out there right now? The fastest Arduino DUE is based on a 84mhz ARM Cortex-M3 CPU.
I know I'm at a disadvantage for code development for CNC integration. The mesa platform has been around for a long time. HOWEVER, in a broader sense of building custom electronics/easy to learn/general project howtos. The Arduino community beats it hands down.
As far as pin count goes, any model of Arduino can be expanded beyond what is comes with, just attach an $1 dollar i2c IO expansion chip and grow it up 16pins per chip. The Mega2560 and the DUE models both have over 70 IO pins stock.
But in all fairness, as trivial as it is for the Arduino (AVR) platform to grow extra pins. I imagine the Mesa (FPGA) product line can probably do that just as well.
Whats the fastest mesa card out there right now? The fastest Arduino DUE is based on a 84mhz ARM Cortex-M3 CPU.
I know I'm at a disadvantage for code development for CNC integration. The mesa platform has been around for a long time. HOWEVER, in a broader sense of building custom electronics/easy to learn/general project howtos. The Arduino community beats it hands down.
As far as pin count goes, any model of Arduino can be expanded beyond what is comes with, just attach an $1 dollar i2c IO expansion chip and grow it up 16pins per chip. The Mega2560 and the DUE models both have over 70 IO pins stock.
But in all fairness, as trivial as it is for the Arduino (AVR) platform to grow extra pins. I imagine the Mesa (FPGA) product line can probably do that just as well.
Last edit: 05 Mar 2013 01:28 by dewy721. Reason: typos
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05 Mar 2013 01:25 #30866
by andypugh
The 7i73 matrix keyboard inputs appear as a byte stream of scancodes.
This doesn't make things any easier, but does suggest that some form of HAL component would be needed.
Note that the 7i73 also has many GPIO inputs which could be used for the "command" buttons if a way can be found to use the matrix keys as generic HMI buttons.
Replied by andypugh on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
This isn't actually true, looking at it in more detail.The 7i73 keypresses end up as bit-type pins in HAL.
The 7i73 matrix keyboard inputs appear as a byte stream of scancodes.
This doesn't make things any easier, but does suggest that some form of HAL component would be needed.
Note that the 7i73 also has many GPIO inputs which could be used for the "command" buttons if a way can be found to use the matrix keys as generic HMI buttons.
The following user(s) said Thank You: dewy721
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05 Mar 2013 01:26 #30867
by dewy721
Replied by dewy721 on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
No problem. Thank you for the challenging topic. From it I learned some things too. 
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05 Mar 2013 01:37 #30868
by andypugh
This means that the Arduino typically communicates in the Userspace layer, and is only really applicable to User-intarface and non-motion-related tasks such as temperature sensing.
It is possible to have a realtime link to an Arduino, and I have even done it. I set up a 1Mbps serial link between an Arduino and a serial uart on a Mesa card. it worked pretty well.
It is less easy to do this on a "bare" PC. It might be possible to do it with an 8-bit interface on the parallel port. I can imagine sending data relatively effectively that way. (rather like an Arduino-version of the 7i43)
That would be realtime, and would only need a relatively simple HAL driver.
Replied by andypugh on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
I am not sure if it is a relevant question, but the Mesa cards can count quadrature pulses at 10MHz.Whats the fastest mesa card out there right now?
I am a great fan of the Arduino. However in the LinuxCNC context an Arduino and a Mesa (or Pico, or any PCI card) are very different things. The differrence is in the nature of the interface with LinuxCNC and HAL. PCI cards (and parallel-port connected FPGA cards like the 7i43 and the Pico PPMC) have a seterministic realtime link to LinuxCNC. The Arduino normally has a USB non-realtime link.Are far as pin count goes, any model of Arduino can be expanded beyond what is comes with, just attach an $1 dollar i2c IO expansion chip and grow it up 16pins per chip. .
This means that the Arduino typically communicates in the Userspace layer, and is only really applicable to User-intarface and non-motion-related tasks such as temperature sensing.
It is possible to have a realtime link to an Arduino, and I have even done it. I set up a 1Mbps serial link between an Arduino and a serial uart on a Mesa card. it worked pretty well.
It is less easy to do this on a "bare" PC. It might be possible to do it with an 8-bit interface on the parallel port. I can imagine sending data relatively effectively that way. (rather like an Arduino-version of the 7i43)
That would be realtime, and would only need a relatively simple HAL driver.
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05 Mar 2013 02:05 #30869
by dewy721
Replied by dewy721 on topic HAL -> Arduino Breakout
I don't doubt the speed interface advantages of a card slot interface.
Please don't get me mistaken as a fanboy, attempting to pit one platform against another. Motion control would be much better suited to a Mesa setup.
But for the hobbyists looking to get their feet wet or even a simple add-on like a tool changer. Adding a feature or two to your rig for under $40 bucks is hard to beat.
If the user interface is easy to learn (as your already an Arduino fan, you know it is) then, they may have some fun tinkering with an old clunker they have collecting dust.
I do think it would be interesting to apply some 'other tech' to the CNC field, and vice verse. Heck I'm eccentric, I'd cobble together a 3-axis coffee pot if the wife wouldn't object.
Please don't get me mistaken as a fanboy, attempting to pit one platform against another. Motion control would be much better suited to a Mesa setup.
But for the hobbyists looking to get their feet wet or even a simple add-on like a tool changer. Adding a feature or two to your rig for under $40 bucks is hard to beat.
If the user interface is easy to learn (as your already an Arduino fan, you know it is) then, they may have some fun tinkering with an old clunker they have collecting dust.
I do think it would be interesting to apply some 'other tech' to the CNC field, and vice verse. Heck I'm eccentric, I'd cobble together a 3-axis coffee pot if the wife wouldn't object.
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