Step/Direction signals out VGA port?
- AssassinXCV
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29 Aug 2011 17:41 - 29 Aug 2011 20:06 #12820
by AssassinXCV
Step/Direction signals out VGA port? was created by AssassinXCV
I've got EMC2 running great on one of the old desktops with low latency, but lugging it around outside everytime i want to cut something is getting to become a hassle.
I'm using the HobbyCNC Pro driver board, and to get the signals for the step/directiong/emergency stop, i only need 10pins. The 15pin VGA ports on most computers would suffice. You could custom make a cable that connects the 15-pin to a 25-pin, to then plug into the driver board; using only the neccesary pins.
In EMC stepconfig, you can change the Address of the parallel port (mine is x378). i was wondering, if it would be possible to re-route the output to the VGA port by just changing the address of which port to output to.
Would this be feasable? I'm guessing this has been asked before but nothing came up in the forum search. For people with a max of 4axis, plus people with HobbyCNCPRO (which only go up to pin 15 anyways), this would help alot of people having trouble finding computers suitable for EMC2 use.
Also, being able to plug the machine into a small netbook or laptop would be so much better than lugging around a desktop, monitor, mouse and keyboard.
Thanks.
I'm using the HobbyCNC Pro driver board, and to get the signals for the step/directiong/emergency stop, i only need 10pins. The 15pin VGA ports on most computers would suffice. You could custom make a cable that connects the 15-pin to a 25-pin, to then plug into the driver board; using only the neccesary pins.
In EMC stepconfig, you can change the Address of the parallel port (mine is x378). i was wondering, if it would be possible to re-route the output to the VGA port by just changing the address of which port to output to.
Would this be feasable? I'm guessing this has been asked before but nothing came up in the forum search. For people with a max of 4axis, plus people with HobbyCNCPRO (which only go up to pin 15 anyways), this would help alot of people having trouble finding computers suitable for EMC2 use.
Also, being able to plug the machine into a small netbook or laptop would be so much better than lugging around a desktop, monitor, mouse and keyboard.
Thanks.
Last edit: 29 Aug 2011 20:06 by AssassinXCV.
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29 Aug 2011 19:45 #12831
by andypugh
Replied by andypugh on topic Re:Step/Direction signals out VGA port?
Basically, I think it would be difficult, if not impossible.
The pin values are not directly controlled by the software, but by the graphics hardware. In the simplest graphics modes the card is sent text, which are rasterised in hardware to create signals on the pins.
You could, conceivably, output red, blue and green dotted lines to the hardware, which would become three channels of step data. However, your steppers would stop at the beginning of each blanking interval.
A much simpler plan is to get a cheap old computer and leave that connected to the CNC machine.
The pin values are not directly controlled by the software, but by the graphics hardware. In the simplest graphics modes the card is sent text, which are rasterised in hardware to create signals on the pins.
You could, conceivably, output red, blue and green dotted lines to the hardware, which would become three channels of step data. However, your steppers would stop at the beginning of each blanking interval.
A much simpler plan is to get a cheap old computer and leave that connected to the CNC machine.
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