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Open Source Controller with internal THC

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7 years 11 months ago - 7 years 11 months ago #120022 by Grotius
Replied by Grotius on topic Open Source Controller with internal THC
@Rodw,

I called the technical service desk from Beckhoff about 3 weeks ago. What they say is, you can use it with linuxcnc, no problem.
But you may not change the source code of Ethercat. In the document's of Etherlab, there is a point where they talk about coding.
Warning: Spoiler!


So they say. Don't change the source code. Don't make a mix between Ethernet and Ethercat, what we could do in theory. B)

This week i get my Ethercat test box. I will try to integrate it with current Linuxcnc version. It will take a few weeks i think.
But if you do nothing, you will get nothing to work.

So for Australian marked. Ethercat with Linuxcnc plasma is a master piece of a product.
Switcut is nothing with mach3, unless they sold 500 tables this year, including Australia.
Last edit: 7 years 11 months ago by Grotius.

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7 years 11 months ago #120037 by rodw
Replied by rodw on topic Open Source Controller with internal THC
Yes, but they are applying a restriction on GPL software licenses.

From the Developers email list

Our policy is that any code added to LinuxCNC has to be compatible with
the license terms "GPL version 2 or any later version".
www.gnu.org/licenses/license-list.html#GPLCompatibleLicenses

Anything that imposes a restriction on how the software can be used (for
example, if it is claimed that using the software requires an additional
license, as Beckhoff Automation GmbH reportedly does) cannot be
incorporated.


There is no problem using it, its just it can't be incorporated into the core source distribution because of this legal restriction.

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7 years 11 months ago - 7 years 11 months ago #120039 by Grotius
Replied by Grotius on topic Open Source Controller with internal THC
Rod,

They cannot restrict to GPL if published before.
Hmm. The German's where the provider of world war 2. more then 2 milion peolple into the gas chamber. I am not forgotten. Now they think they can restrict us for the second time?
Fuck the moffen zou me opa zeggen. ( In English : Fuck the moffen should my grandfather say. )

Their password is heil hitler. But beckhoff can not restrict any document's to open source. In other way. Provide a brand new source code and get rid of this malifide automation company.

We have modbuss on lower level, on higher level, devicenet, profibus and ethercat.
I will try to make a brand new code. I think when i start from zero it's brand new code or not?
Last edit: 7 years 11 months ago by Grotius.

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7 years 11 months ago #120042 by rodw
Replied by rodw on topic Open Source Controller with internal THC
There is nothing stopping you as a manufacturer from using LinuxCNC and Ethercat together. Its just that the Ethercat library can't go into an official distribution of LinuxCNC. You do need to be mindful of your responsibility of providing source for a derived work though.
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7 years 11 months ago - 7 years 11 months ago #120232 by thefabricator03
Replied by thefabricator03 on topic Open Source Controller with internal THC
So what does Hypertherm, Dynatorch, Advanced Robotic Technology and all of the other large plasma manufactures know in regards to having there THC build into the software?

Why isnt this common among all plasma manufactures nowdays?
Last edit: 7 years 11 months ago by thefabricator03.

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7 years 11 months ago #120233 by rodw
Replied by rodw on topic Open Source Controller with internal THC
I think they have the cash resources to build their own. Plasma is a very specialist field for CNC controllers. Pretty sure ART
you mentioned have rebranded a commercial controller.

To really do it well, you have to have the THC tightly integrated with the CNC controller otherwise you have no idea of the current velocity and a host of other plasma related parameters. The external THC's can't do this.

Don't get me wrong, plasma has been done in Linuxcnc for quite a few years but its only the last couple of years that a few of us have really pushed the limit and tried to get that level of sophistication internal to LinuxCNC. Now all of the experimental features and development branches are almost migrated into master branch, including fixes to a few bugs in the trajectory planner we've found along the way. I personally think that external THC's that were necessary in Mach3 will become obsolete technology as the LinuxCNC plasma feature set matures.

Already users like Islander261 and a couple of others are achieving better performance and cut quality than what can be achieved with any external THC or commercial table.
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