HAAS VF1 retrofit

Thank You for that info.

I am starting to consider redesigning the tool carousel.
I am going to wait until Tkamsker uploads what he has done and see if I can adapt it to work for me.

Otherwise I am thinking about making the carousel do the tool change Z movements instead of the spindle.

Once I get the machine able to make parts it will be a piece of cake.
Going to be a fun weekend trying to decode the factory encoder harness.

Well I think I have my axis encoder wiring figured out. The spindle encoder is giving me trouble.
Installed the 7i77 , relay I/O panel I built also mounted the new VFD. and soldered new wire to the Axis cannon plugs.

Any recommendations on how to designate them in setup?

Encoder 0 = X axis
Encoder 1 = Y axis
Encoder 2 = Z axis

Encoder 3=Future A axis

Encoder 4= Spindle, for threading , hi/lo gearbox

I will also have a MPG wheel

Will be heading to the shop Sunday morning to hookup the encoders. Running motors off a car battery for now.

I have Advance Motion Amps, the enable circuit is 5v, ground is disabled. I need to figure that out also.

So a little progress made.

you dont need to configure them , as the pins are predefined
are you using pncconf to configure ?
just select to use but if you want a starter config use this extract to configs and use pncconf to edit to start with
but once you are past the basics then it's edit by hand

call or mail me off list and i'll help
attached has servos, spindle and encoders configured , i have also shown pins for limits ,home ,estop , as an example , but of course these pins are reconfigurable to other pins

all gpio are listed under the smart serial connection , make sure that the 7i77 has field power before pc start up
or these pins do not appear in the list
beware their is a hidden file in the root , but extracting the file under /home/<yourname>/linuxcnc/configs/
should put everything in the right place then select using pncconf to edit , should get you in the ballpark

I dont think ill get the machine moving today by linuxcnc, i really want to spin the motors with the computer
with them disconnected from the screws first, today will just be off a 12v battery just to
test the encoders, if i get one right then they should all be the same.

if i cant get them to work i'll be replacing all of them with some usdigital encoders.

between finding some old Renco diagrams and HAAS cable pinouts i think I got it.

renco are ok , you should not have any problems interfacing them
so long as you use the encoder 5v and the encoder gnd
even if the encoders are 12v , they do tend to work fine

call if you hit a stumbling block

Success!!

Worked on the first attempt... configured the counts and directions so everything moves as it should.
Only moved the motors with a 12v battery charger today, have to get brave enough to hook up the
amps and 160vdc

Also searched for hours tonight trying to find the most compact Micro ATX case
this is as close as I could get, so if anyone is looking for a small case here is a link.

BK623

I was going to just mount the motherboard to a panel and let it ride, but i think I will be better off
with everything in a case. It will just barely fit in its space.

andypugh wrote:

sspeed33317 wrote:

I was going to just mount the motherboard to a panel and let it ride, but i think I will be better off
with everything in a case. It will just barely fit in its space.

I see the PC motherboard as just another component in the motion control system (and quite a cheap one) so mine tend to live mounted on a panel with all the other cards.

Have to agree. My view is colored by having messed about in my own machines for decades and seeing OEM stuff in the same manner. Even when it was PC/Windows based. The PC side boards were always "just another board". Granted, they're usually some industrial version, but a PC none the less. Haas, Fadal, Mazak, Bridgeport, ProtoTRAK, and a number of others were all like this. The only thing I didn't know is if there were guidelines for how far away from certain other components the PC stuff needed to be for any kind of interference reasons.

well the reason i decided to put everything in a case was not to have to figure out how and where to
mount the dvd drive and flash drive, also the power supply i have has so many wires hanging out of it
it was going to be a big mess. i may still have to do a case hack but it will be a neater install.

Well got to go to work...looking forward to a three day weekend

Well, I ended up picking up a twin arm tool changer.
It is brand new , two motors and one air cylinder.
The arm mechanism is cam motion. An amazing machine to study. But so simple.

Due to my lack of programming skills I think this is the best bet instead of trying to get my carousel working.
For what I got it for I couldn't pass it up.

It should be here by the end of this coming week. Will have to make a mounting bracket and align it to the spindle.