mesa setup 7i98 with 7i88, 7i89, 7i74, 7i70, 7i72 & 7i73

Hello,

I am building a big cnc machine and could need some help with the selection of mesa cards.

As an overview:
- 5 axis VMC (3axis + 2axis optional connectable trunnion table)
- main spindle is belt driven by servo and has separate spindle encoder
- complicated (but still trivial) atc unit. Basically constists of a two-floor carousel with 2x16 tools and a loading robot. The carousel is a servo rotary axis and the loading robot has a servo lifting axis with pneumatic rotary & pneumatic extension axis.

After watching a video from talla83 it is quite clear to me how to program the tool change in linuxcnc. Those devices are just Joints & Inputs/Outputs that can be programmed as subroutine.


But which cards to use to connect all those parts to linuxcnc?

JT and others were helping me in irc chat already - Thanks!!! There are still open questions...

Alltogether I need 8 Stepgen outputs and 6+1 encoder inputs (3x XYZ + 2x AB + 2x ATC + 1x Main Spindle).
- All Servos should be controlled by RS422 quadrature pulses (Stepgen with A/B Signals)
- All 5 feed axis have separate feedback system for closed loop (3x Linear Encoder + 2 optional high-res encoders for the trunnion, Spindle encoder) all with index. Mpg wheel also exists -> 6+1 Encoder inputs (6 with index).
I also attached an overview of necessary modules.
(I know servos are often controlled by +-10V speed but I'd prefer digital quadrature output for noise immunity, dynamic range and error detection and position mode).

JT was suggesting those mesa ethernet cards but wasn't sure if it can handle the number of daughter cards. 7i98 would fit fine but the configuration file for 7i88+7i89 does not exist yet and it might be too much data for 100mbit ethernet...?
I like the ethernet interface because it is a small & robust interface and includes galvanic isolation to my computer which is mandatory.

I was checking the available cards now and attached my favourite configuration as pdf. A big question is - is my card selection possible or do I need to change it? PCW seems to know this - could you please...

In case it is not possible - could I use two lan cards (dual pci - lan adapter) with two 7I94 (one connects 7i68, the other one connects 7i89, 7i72, 7i70 & 7i73)?

(I have a spare 5i20 where I was thinking about connecting an encoder card but I'd actually highly prefer ethernet cards to prevent cable length issues from computer to electric cabine. But just for reference - is it possible to use a 7i98 or 7I94 and 5i20 with ethernet-card compatible kernel?).

Thanks in advance & best regards,
Alex

A 7I98 does not have the FPGA capacity for 8 stepgens, and 8 encoders +sserial
I would suggest a 7I80DB-16 or 7I80DB-25 as the base FPGA card for a 7I88+7I89+7I74 setup

100BT is not a limitation at a 1 KHz servo thread

Hi, Thanks - this was fast!
7i80DB seems to be a easy & great solution, didn't see this before!

I'm now googling and reading for a while but still unsure how this finally is going to be configured. I cannot find a bitfile for 7i88/7i89... I thought I'd need a bitfile for the combinations of daughter cards but this only seems to apply for 50pin cards or similar?
So 7i80DB-xx is preprogrammed for any card and doesn't need a bitfile at all (like 5i25)?
Is PNCconf all I need to configure the amount of modules I need in the 7i80DB-xx?

Where can I find maximum modules capabilites for 7i80DB-16/25 or can I only check this in PNCconf?

Sorry if those are stupid questions but I still don't get it after some hours of google .

Greetings,
Alex

I would have to make a bitfile for that combination.

I dont think pncconf will help too much except for making a
skeleton configuration that will need hand editing

I can check if a 8 stepgen, 8 encoder, 8 sserial config will fit in a -16 part, but I'm pretty sure it will (the only way to determine this for sure is to to compile a bitfile for that hardware set)

Ok would be great to get the file. I will check which accessory I need and then place my order.
But I'll buy a -25 if available so I'll be safe for any future wish.

That firmware fits in a 7I80DB-16



(That has bitfiles for both the 7I80DB-16 and 7I80DB-25)

Thank you very much! Cards are ordered -big step for my macihne is done

Hello,
It took me some time to start with the electronic part...
Now I am having it connected on a desktop-test-environment but I am getting strange errors where I don't know how to continue. I added the output and an image of my test-setup.

Maybe someone can check the output and tell me what could be wrong?
I loaded the board several times with "loadrt hm2_eth ..." and get different outputs each time. Looks like some sserial communication problem, but I don't really know what is going on.
Could my short flat cables between 7i80 and other cards cause this problem?

Thanks in advance & best regards,
Alex

Looks like something global like dropped Ethernet packets
or really poor real time performance.

What do you get when you ping the 7I80?