BP Mill Quill Lock and Z inhibit

Hi,

My Anilam BP mill conversion is almost done. I modified the Z ballscrew drive to allow for uncoupling so manual function can be retained. I'm adding a switch to the quill lock so when clamped the z motion is electronically inhibited. What hal pin/ config can I use to accomplish this? I would like to retain the ability to jog X and Y and execute G code without moving the Z. Ideally the Z should remain energized as all my drives share the same enable.

I think you are going to need to separate the enabling of the Z from the X and Y.

Is there no other way? Id like to keep the motor energized to prevent the ballscrew from moving during uncoupling/coupling to keep position.

The motor will have to be de-energized to be able to turn it by hand.

Unless you are open to using other powered means of manually moving it, such as an MPG wheel. That might actually be a better option anyway.

Sorry I wasn't too clear on my intentions. This is for a hybrid mode of operation for the rare case of keeping the x and y powered and operating the z manually. Such as a quick drill operation or power tap. I don't have a vfd on this machine yet so for now no tapping through linuxcnc.
For manual use, I probably will run a separate config that reads in the scales and doesn't enable the motors. This leads to another question. Is there a clean way of switching configs within running linuxcnc? Or a way to not throw a following error before the drives are powered on?
The idea behind the quill lock switch is also to prevent z motion in the event it is left clamped after a manual op.

Have you ever used or know what a MPG (Manual Pulse Generator) is?

It is a wheel with an encoder that is used a lot like the hand cranks on a manual feed machine to move an axis.

I appreciate the suggestion of adding an MPG. I do know what it is and have used them on VMCs and on my linuxcnc controlled Hardinge lathe. A nice hand held pendant is in the works for my BP. It however will not solve my desire to have a hybrid setup.

To turn the motor manually it will have to be disabled. The only way to have one motor disabled and the others enabled is to separate the drive disables. It seems like a simple solution. I don't see any other practical way. What are the reasons you can't use separate enable signals?

I'm not turning the motor manually. I want the motor to remain energized so the screw and nut on the Z do not move and lose position. I physically decouple the nut from the quill and use the quill handle to move the quill manually. I want to be able to jog the X, Y and execute g code in that mode just not move the Z motor. Does that make sense? 2D mode with Z paused.

If the only option is to disable the drive, I'll have to re-wire and that's doable. The possibility of back driving the screw during coupling/uncoupling may or may not be a big deal. Wiring the Z enable through he quill lock switch is an option but I was hoping for a software solution.

So you are looking for a way to mechanical decouple the motor from the screw, or a way to decouple the screw from the quill. Doesn't sound like a Linuxcnc question.

Is you Z motor a stepper or servo? Is there Feedback for your DRO and Linuxcnc? Is that feedback an encoder on the motor/screw or is it something like a linear scale and independent of the motor turning?