Control panel hardware buttons

 

  
We all have different views on valuation. Some could say they're near free considering what they can pack and enable (professional grade hmi). Ol'style analog buttons floating over a pcb ain't dust and fluid proof my friend (hazardous). That was accepted back in the 1960's when membrane weren't optional, but not anymore. 
 

Not sure what you mean by "analog" buttons. How many LinuxCNC users use a normal PC keyboard next to their machine? Tormach doesn't supply anything special with a $30k machine.

I'm gonna put the matrix buttons on an easily removeable panel like spumco's. Personally I don't spray my mill with paint thinner so if they hold up reasonably well to some WD40 or water soluble coolant for a while I'm happy. If not I can whip something else up that will fit in it's spot.

unless the 7i73 firmware can be modified I'm thinking of using ArduinoConnector

I was under the assumption that a few/many was planned, as in a commercial unit. Speed-reading habit, apologies. If your project is a one-off (for personal use) then all/anything goes really... a.k.a  no warranty claims, injuries, legal, claims, etc etc.  

Mecanix wrote:

I was under the assumption that a few/many was planned, as in a commercial unit. Speed-reading habit, apologies. If your project is a one-off (for personal use) then all/anything goes really... a.k.a  no warranty claims, injuries, legal, claims, etc etc.  
 

Lol you get a bit dramatic sometimes.

Nah. I was genuinely trying to help you out. Let's hope the given contact and facilitation to professional grade interfacing helps someone else!

Mecanix wrote:

Nah. I was genuinely trying to help you out. Let's hope the given contact and facilitation to professional grade interfacing helps someone else!
 

I do appreciate  the suggestion, just not what I have in mind for this specific purpose.

I have one and a half similar panels, also with Gmoccapy. For a  Maho mill: 
 

and for a Schaublin Lathe:


Some of my thoughts...
I duplicated the bezel soft keys with hardware. I much prefer using hardware keys rather than the touch screen for all those important functions like cycle start, pause, etc. So important that I am even adding a dedicated set of stop, pause, single line buttons directly below the feed override encoder.

It has taken me too many crashes to learn (and relearn) the safe workflow of using feed override and pause to approach work. So a feed override encoder is something I would consider essential.

As you add more complex functionality to a machine (ATC, spindle gearing, touch probe, collet closer, Pneumatic tailstock, bar feeder), you need more buttons. I broke up my monitor panel from the button sub panel on the Schaublin's panel, as I could possibly replace one, at a later date without affecting the other. I have some extra buttons on this panel, which I am not really sure yet how I will use.

I really like having USB ports on the control panel. I tend to have my machines disconnected from the network, and use the sneaker net to transfer files.
 

Aparrently I've already watched that video according to YouTube. Turned out pretty good. What gauge steel did you use? it looks pretty thick. I was thinking 18gauge for mine but I'm not sure. I literally make almost everything else out of 1/8" aluminum cuz I can TIG weld it all day. No idea why people thing welding aluminum is hard, welding sheet steel is what scares me. Most of this is bends so hopefully some chill blocks and some practice will get me through it. The way I plan to mount it won't put much stress on the enclosure, I just want the steel thick enough so if feels sturdy without weighing 100 lbs.

I agree with you about the feed override and pause, I tend to have my finger right next to the UI pause button everytime I think something might go wrong.

I made the first of  3mm steel, and the second from 2.5mm I think, as that is the thinnest I can weld without blowing a lot of holes. I also like a nice solid feel in machine parts.

Look forward to seeing how your panel comes out.
Cheers,
Mark

3mm? Holy smokes....that's 11 gauge. Ford Rangers used 10-11 gauge in their frames lol, I know I built one.

Yeah but at least if you're having a bad and throw something at it, it wont hurt any thing. Not that I have ever done that.