Cut Parameters

Is Pause At End Of Cut in a SheetCam tool file the equivalent of Torch Off Delay in Plasmac?

I would appreciate some advice from experienced users.

Because the materials file will change with the addition of RS485 comms, at the same time I will remove "Torch Off Delay" from the "Config Panel" and add it as a "Cut Parameter" to the "Run Panel". So it will then also appear in the "Material File". I think this needs to be done as this delay is material dependent.

The way "Torch Off Delay" works at the moment is when the M5 signal is received the delay timer starts if there is a valid delay specified. The torch turns off after the delay times out. Motion continues while this happens so the torch will be rising to the "Safe Height" position while the delay timer is counting.

Edit2: Is this "torch Off Delay" parameter required???

"Pause At End Of Cut" is a SheetCam thing so we don't need to concern ourselves with it...

I see in the SheetCam toolset parameters there is a "Pause At End Of Cut". My reading on this is that when the M5 signal is received motion stops and the delay timer starts if there is a valid delay specified. The torch turns off after the delay times out and then motion starts again allowing the torch to raise to the "Safe Height".
Edit: I just read a CommandCNC document and it says:
The time between when the TORCH OFF signal and the Z lift at the end of a cut. Most plasma arcs needs from .2 to .5 seconds to die out

I really don't know which option is the way to go:

1. Leave "Torch Off Delay" as it is and use the "Pause At End Of Cut" value from the toolset (if using SheetCam) as the delay time.
2. Change "Torch Off Delay" to behave the same as my interpretation of "Pause At End Of Cut".
3. Use both of the above.

Sorry but i can not recall any case that i would need that feature, mostly due to cutting 3 to 6mm plates, everything else is a rarity.
I can think of a situation where that would be useful, when cutting thinner sheets with high current on a fast machine, most probably that was the issue i encountered cutting 1.5mm plate with 70A @7600mm/m and was wondering why the end of the cut is left uncut. Now i know why.
On big machines with more amps and cutting thicker materials it would be nice to switch the torch off just before the end of the cut as that would lessen the divot made by the start and the end of the arc at the same place.
My recommendation: leave it as is, it got to be to much relied on sheetcam, and sheetcam absolutely deserves it, but i would like to leave the option of using it with Inkscape also without having to change anything.

Thanks Tom,

It is not dependent on SheetCam, it will be a Cut Parameter in the material file so it can be used by any method that does a material change or even by using the default parameters in the Run Panel.
I was concerned on how it should work and also whether the Materialverter could use that parameter when it converts a SheetCam toolset.

tommylight wrote:

On big machines with more amps and cutting thicker materials it would be nice to switch the torch off just before the end of the cut as that would lessen the divot made by the start and the end of the arc at the same place.

You could do that by setting motion.digital-out-03 just before the end of a cut. Check out "Overcut" in this section.
linuxcnc.org/docs/devel/html/plasma/plas...tting_gcode_commands

I meant to add in my earlier reply that if you leave the "Torch Off Delay" parameter in the material file at zero (the default) then it will have no effect.

Thank you Phill, already seen that but as i mentioned before i rarely cut, and all of my clients cut 3 to 6mm, and that is still under the divot problem area.

I would also be careful about Sheetcam parameters. Is the torch off delay a sheetcam default variable or is it something specific to CandCNC posts? Some users started with a modified version of the candcnc post and it defines quite a number of additional variables that appear in the Sheetcam GUI for a plasma cut. Some of those variables are not applicable for a Plasmac config.

"Torch Off Delay" is a Plasmac parameter.
"Pause At End Of Cut" is a SheetCam parameter.