VistaCNC P4-SE velocity mode stopped working after update to 2.8

I've recently been working on a scratch install of the current 2.8 iso on my 2.7 CNC gantry router, starting with pncconf and re-introducing my various additions from there. I have basic motion (jogging from axis) working and just finished re-installing the VistaCNC P4-SE USB pendant. The pendant works (for jogging at least) while in "step" mode - one step per mpg detent on all axis, but the "velocity" mode does nothing. Maybe I'm the only one that uses it, but I've come to use it almost exclusively. 

I am running the 64 bit vc-p4s driver and the pendant has been flashed to v200. Everything installed without drama except the HAL file, which I recall was the case when I first installed it. I am using the "vc-p4s HAL for 2.8 pre and 2.9 pre" file as the starting point for vc-p4s HAL. There are a few signals the LCNC doesn't like:
  # net jog.0.cont-plus  vc-p4s.jog.0.plus  => halui.axis.x.plus halui.joint.0.plus
  # net jog.0.cont-minus vc-p4s.jog.0.minus => halui.axis.x.minus halui.joint.0.minus
  # net jog.1.cont-plus  vc-p4s.jog.1.plus  => halui.axis.y.plus  halui.joint.1.plus
  # net jog.1.cont-minus vc-p4s.jog.1.minus => halui.axis.y.minus halui.joint.1.minus
  # net jog.2.cont-plus  vc-p4s.jog.2.plus  => halui.axis.z.plus halui.joint.2.plus
  # net jog.2.cont-mimus vc-p4s.jog.2.minus => halui.axis.z.minus halui.joint.2.minus

  ... because the pin halui.axis.x.plus etc was already being driven by jog-x-pos (etc)
I note that in my 2.7 config (and the standard vc-p4s HAL) the halui.axis.x.plus pin is not referenced here, however editing it out has no impact.

I'm receiving no errors - just nothing happens - and am at a loss as to how to further debug. Sure would appreciate some suggestions.

Ron

 

The good news is it will work. Mine is working fine under 2.8. Attached are my hal and ini files that you can look at.  Maybe they will help you out.

John

Thanks John, I’m sure this will help. Will reply once I figure it out.

Ron

Thanks for the files John, but I'm afraid our machines are different enough that I'm still stuck. I'm running a gantry machine (XYYZ) with closed-loop steppers from a 5i25/7i76 setup while your Sieg is XYZ running servos (guessing here). You/pncconf aren't using the same halui pins that are giving me trouble. I now am thinking that I have bigger issues with the vista-supplied vc-p4s.hal file.
specifically:

• # net jog.1.cont-plus  vc-p4s.jog.1.plus  => halui.axis.y.plus  halui.joint.1.plus

The complaint from LCNC was that halui.axis.y.plus (an input) was already driven by a signal. [this is true - it is connected to jog-y-plus by the "misc HAL connections" generated by pncconf. I'm guessing this is used by Axis?]

My bigger problem is now this:
  # net jog.1.cont-plus  vc-p4s.jog.1.plus  => halui.axis.y.plus  halui.joint.1.plus
  # net jog.1.cont-minus vc-p4s.jog.1.minus => halui.axis.y.minus halui.joint.1.minus
  # net jog.2.cont-plus  vc-p4s.jog.2.plus  => halui.axis.z.plus halui.joint.2.plus
  # net jog.2.cont-mimus vc-p4s.jog.2.minus => halui.axis.z.minus halui.joint.2.minus
I don't know why vista is trying to connect to both the axis AND the joint, but my gantry machine is set up as XYYZ and joint 2 is the Y slave motor not the z motor. It occurs to me that the sim gantry configuration of XYZY may have accidentally(??) worked as z would have remained joint 2. I'm XYYZ because that's the way gantry was set up in 2.7. ((or I'm completely out to sea as to how joints and axis are set up in 2.8 )

I think I'm going to re-post this as a new question; seems my issue may not be a vistaCNC problem as much as a gantry configuration question.

Thanks for the files though, John. It was what I needed to get moving again

Ron

I haven't pncconf since I first setup my machine under 2.7. When I upgraded to 2.8 I manually changed my .ini and .hal files. I know I am running the latest from VistaCNC. I found some errors in the files they provided for 2.8 and sent them the corrections.

John

Yeah, I get it. I decided to go back to pncconf thinking my hand edits over the years might be growing a bit to much "hair" I don't think what I have here is so much an error as something that may not work for a gantry configuration and probably not for a vanilla configuration from pncconf. I'll figure it out eventually

So, all fixed. I found:

• In going back to PNCconf, I'd inadvertantly re-acquired HALUI signals in the "Miscellaneous" section of my hal file (halui.axis.L.plus, etc.). They don't seem to be used anywhere but they conflicted with the "jog.J.cont-plus" nets in the vista-supplied vc-p4s.hal. The "cont-plus" pins run the velocity mode on the pendant. I removed the HALUI misc pins from my hal
• the Vista-supplied hal nets "net jog.0.cont-plus  vc-p4s.jog.0.plus  => halui.axis.x.plus halui.joint.0.plus" connect to both axis and joint pins. I only need the axes for jogging so I removed the joint pin connection
• As an aside, I discovered that both the PNCconf hal HALUI signals and the vc-p4s signals implicitly referenced joint 2 as = axis Z. This works on XYZ systems and gantry systems configured as XYZYs but not for gantry's configured as XYYsZ where joint 2 would = Ys instead of Z. I edited the hal files

And finally in the trivia bonus category:

• vc-p4s.hal net "net jog.2.cont-mimus vc-p4s.jog.2.minus => halui.axis.z.minus" typo seemingly has been around for ever ) It was in my original from 2017, it was in JohnyCNC's file; I expect its been there since day 1. Of course with the short travel of most z-axes, how would you notice the pendant's velocity mode wasn't working?

So, all in all, tempest in a teapot. Edited Vista vc-p4s file attached for posterity.

Thanks for the help and encouragement JohnyCNC,
Ron

Glad you got it working.

John

Hi,
Got an strage error with homing Z axis.
Im using same setup XYYZ, modifed vc-p4s.hal file same as dokwine.

I can home y tandem axis, but when pressing to home Z. Button just freezes and nothing happens, motor doesn't turn.

When disabling vc-4ps.hal file in .ini config everything works. I can home Z axis. 
So the problem seems in vc-4ps.hal, just dont know where to look.

cheburs wrote:

Hi,
Got an strage error with homing Z axis.
Im using same setup XYYZ, modifed vc-p4s.hal file same as dokwine.

I can home y tandem axis, but when pressing to home Z. Button just freezes and nothing happens, motor doesn't turn.

When disabling vc-4ps.hal file in .ini config everything works. I can home Z axis. 
So the problem seems in vc-4ps.hal, just dont know where to look.

File Attachment:

File Name: vc-p4s.hal
File Size:6 KB

I think you need to say what the error was.

Or start the config from a terminal then you should see the errors