Looking for a freelancer to assist in drawing schematics for cnc plasma table

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16 Nov 2025 20:48 #338536 by tcbmetalworks
Hello. I am looking for a free lancer who would be interested in drawing schematics for a cnc plasma table i am building and assisting in choosing the correct parts etc. My goals for the table is for it to be reliable against tough environments and have strength against interference. If someone is interested I can get them up to speed on the project. If someone is interested please reply here and we can exchange information. 

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16 Nov 2025 20:59 #338537 by tommylight
Does it include an NDA?

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18 Nov 2025 01:28 #338596 by tcbmetalworks
If you want me to sign a nda I can. Im not building tables to make money. I just want the one im retrofitting for myself to be safe and reliable. I dont expect any nda from anyone. Im open to sharing all work on the forum. Or keeping it secret if you dont want to give out ur secrets. I dont really think its super crazy complex or anything to put this together but I would like to have the components properly sized and interference to be accounted for. Just need some help finishing my project. Its alot of planning and to have someone more exp who can reference me in the right direction would save me many hours of planning and potential down time.

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18 Nov 2025 01:39 #338597 by tcbmetalworks
I really want to have it documented with a print so 10 yesrs down the line its easy to fix. Correct components selected. I can work alongside you tell you what components I already have. You make a wiring diagram that is easy to follow that includes the components and wire size/grade. Make suggestions for bulk head connectors etc that are high qaulity for a reasonable price. I know you were watching my build on the forum. I make a list of the parts I have at my disposal. Anything I missing tell me what to buy. I build it and help me with trouble shooting if I need any, but shouldn't need much help with that. I got linux cnc to work on my band saw project so im not a absolute beginner, but im not a electrical engineer either. The machine will never need to pass any sort of code inspection or be sold to the public.
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18 Nov 2025 02:12 #338598 by tommylight
I asked because i do not do NDA, ever.
Make a list of what you need and post it here, i am pretty sure someone somehow will help with it.

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18 Nov 2025 23:44 #338670 by tcbmetalworks
I wrote this up in chat gpt pretty quickly I think it just about covers all of the bases here of the project.

CNC Plasma Table – Electrical & Wiring Requirements

Project: Remote design of electrical system + wiring documentation for LinuxCNC plasma table
Client: TCB Metal Works

1. Project Overview

You will remotely design the complete electrical and control system for a custom CNC plasma cutting table powered by LinuxCNC.

You will create:

Complete wiring diagram set (schematic + physical routing)

Full Bill of Materials (BOM) with real part numbers

Wire gauge, shielding, grounding, and EMI mitigation plan

Bulkhead connector list + panel layout

Mesa board selection + full LinuxCNC I/O map

Integration notes for all components

Testing & commissioning checklist

This is a 100% remote engineering job — no physical inspection of hardware is required.

2. Available Power Sources

Near the machine:

220 VAC available

460 VAC available

No dedicated 110/120 VAC, which must be generated using a control transformer if needed

Engineer must design the incoming power strategy and transformer selection.

3. Motion Hardware
3.1 X & Y Axis – AC Servos (Provided)

3× A6 Series 1000W RS485 AC Servo Motor Kits

3000 rpm

3.18 Nm

17-bit absolute encoder

IP67 motors

Axis layout:

Y axis: 2 servos (dual-drive gantry)

X axis: 1 servo

Notes:

Motor-to-drive cables are already supplied by the manufacturer.

You do not need to design or evaluate those cables.

Engineer must:

Design AC mains wiring to each servo drive

Design control, enable, alarm, and ESTOP signal wiring between drives and Mesa

Include needed fuses, breakers, filters, and terminals

Provide cabinet layout and routing plan

Include proper grounding and shielding recommendations

3.2 Z Axis – Stepper Motor (Needs Driver + Cable)

PV267-D2.8AA stepper motor — Oriental Motor

Stepper driver not provided

Stepper motor cable not provided

Engineer must:

Select a compatible stepper driver suitable for PV267-D2.8AA + LinuxCNC step/dir

Define driver voltage supply requirements

Design:

Step/Dir wiring from Mesa

Motor wiring from driver to Z motor

Required cable shielding, gauge, and insulation

Connector type and strain relief

4. Control Electronics (Mesa + Power)

Engineer must select Mesa hardware capable of supporting:

3× servo axes

1× stepper axis

THC-AD

Ohmic sensing

All limit/floating switches

Plasma start / Arc OK

E-stop & safety I/O

Deliverables:

Recommended Mesa board combination (e.g., 7i76E, 7i96S, 7i85, THCAD, etc.)

Justification for chosen hardware

Complete LinuxCNC I/O mapping

Required DC power supplies (24V / 5V / others)

Proper AC distribution, fuses, breakers, and protection devices

5. Torch Height & Ohmic Sensing
5.1 THC-AD Integration

Engineer must design:

Raw arc voltage wiring from Hypertherm HT2000 to THC-AD

THC-AD signal wiring to Mesa

Required shielding and filtering

Scaling notes for LinuxCNC

5.2 Ohmic Sensing (Planned)

Engineer must:

Recommend a compatible ohmic board

Provide wiring diagram for torch → ohmic board → Mesa

Specify cable type and shielding

Document signal polarity & behavior

6. Hypertherm HT2000 Integration

Engineer must design wiring for:

Required signals

Torch start / trigger

Arc OK

Raw arc voltage (+/–) into THC-AD

Required protection

Isolation (if needed)

Surge suppression

Filtering

EMI protection

Routing rules

Arc voltage wiring must be kept separate from low-voltage control wiring

7. Limit Switches & Floating Head
X Axis

2 limit switches:

X-min

X-max

Y Axis (Dual Gantry Drive)

2 limit switches:

Y-min

Y-max

Engineer must propose a reliable gantry squaring / homing method for the two Y motors.

Z Axis

2 end-of-travel limit switches:

Z-min

Z-max

1 floating-head switch (touch-off)

Engineer must:

Select appropriate switch type (mechanical or prox)

Provide wiring diagrams to Mesa

Specify wire gauge, shielding, and cable routing

Provide LinuxCNC input mapping

Include any debouncing/filtering requirements

8. Wiring, Shielding, & EMI

Engineer must specify:

Wire gauges for:

AC mains

Servo drive feeds

Stepper driver feeds

Stepper motor wiring

Limit/floating/ohmic wires

Plasma signals

DC supply lines

Shielding requirements for:

Step/dir

Limits/floating/ohmic

Arc voltage

THC-AD lines

EMI considerations

Cable separation

Ferrite locations

Filtering recommendations

9. Grounding & Bonding

The engineer must design the grounding/bonding approach.

Important physical detail:

The water table, gantry, and control cabinet are three separate physical assemblies.

The engineer must account for this when designing:

Grounding/bonding layout

EMC/EMI mitigation

Plasma return path considerations

Ohmic sensing grounding

No grounding method (star, bus, single-point, etc.) is mandated — the engineer chooses the correct approach.

10. Control Cabinet & Bulkheads

Engineer must design:

Cabinet Layout

AC distribution, transformers, PSUs

Mesa boards

Servo drives

Stepper driver

Fuses, breakers, contactors

DIN rail layout

Ventilation/fans

Bulkhead Connectors

Used wherever practical for:

Servo cables (using glands or pass-throughs)

Z stepper cable

Limit/floating switches

Ohmic sensing

Plasma start / Arc OK

E-stop / operator controls

Ethernet access

Engineer must specify:

Connector type

Pinout

Panel cutout style

Labeling

11. Documentation Package

Engineer must deliver:

11.1 Wiring Diagram Set

Full schematic

Cabinet wiring

Field wiring

Power distribution

Grounding/bonding

Bulkhead connector pinouts

11.2 BOM

Complete list of:

Mesa hardware

Stepper driver

Transformers / PSUs

Switches

Connectors

Wire/cable

Protection devices

Cabinet hardware

11.3 I/O Map

All LinuxCNC inputs/outputs

Axis definitions

THC/ohmic mappings

E-stop & safety signals

11.4 Commissioning Checklist

Power-up verification

Servo enable/jog

Stepper test

Homing / gantry squaring

Z floating-head test

Plasma start / Arc OK

THC test

Ohmic test

EMI/noise checks

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18 Nov 2025 23:57 #338674 by tommylight
That is a looooong list ! :)
Yet no machine dimensions, weight of moving parts, drive train, reduction, materials used, etc...
And just putting it out there, 1KW servo motors for a plasma machine is utter overkill, no matter how big or heavy. The biggest i have seen on old industrial machines were 400W, with reduction two of those could fling a probably 200KG heavy gantry at 18m/m!

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19 Nov 2025 03:37 #338698 by tcbmetalworks
Here is a link to the thread of me documenting the process of building the table to get to where it is right now. Yes the motors are overkill but they are not really too big of a form factor and the gantry estimated weight is 400-800lbs. I have the machine geared to run 700ipm rapid if I remember correctly. Alot of force required to rapidly change directions at fast cut speeds on a gantry this large. And yes the list is long. Really I need help documenting and planning this project to speed things up. Draw a wiring diagram and point me in the right direction for parts. I want a diagram so its easy to fix for the next guy, and I can make sure then that everything is properly grounded/bonded and resistant to interfearence. The only thing I forgot on that list is a circuit for e stop maybe using a saftey relay and I may add in a lube pump to pump oil into the tracks and rollers.

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06 Dec 2025 08:17 #339788 by tommylight
Anyone? :)
Probably got terrified of the long (and not very useful) list.
The list should be something like:
-e-stop chain
-limit and home switches (with sensor input relays for full isolation)
-extreme limit switches for DC brushed motor machines (to prevent mayhem in case of runaway)
-Mesa boards wiring to drives, input relays, output relays, and maybe MPG
-power section
-list of connectors and pinouts
-...
Thing is, we can not make a schematics for you without having every exact detail about your machine setup and wiring, that is something you have to provide.
Or do you want us to come up with the wiring and base your machine on that?
-
Personally, i write things on paper and take pictures of those papers for archiving, while the papers go with the machine.

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