Losing Control Box Connection

[AntonyB (Unregistered Guest)]

Every so often I appear to be losing connection to the control box - sometimes it can go for hours between dropping connection, sometimes just a couple of minutes.

The PC is Windows 98 with only the Shopbot Control software running (version 3)

At the moment when the tool stops and the yellow box appears I try to retry the connection, but then it says '4 in buffer' and hangs there until I press OK and exit the program (file > exit) - rarely it does regain connection and then I can continue.

If I have to exit, when I restart the co-ordinates have been reset to 0,0,25mm and I have to enter the co-ordinates it had prior to crashing manually and continue the program from the line number it was on.

Its driving me mad!


Any suggestions?

[AntonyB (Unregistered Guest)]

Figured it out.. I think.

We recently installed some new machinery, this new machinery was not being used at all today because the man who runs them had the day off - the bot ran flawlessly.

Somehow the new machines are interfering with the CNC? Is there any way of ensuring a clean power supply is going to the control box?

[AntonyB (Unregistered Guest)]

More speculation...........

I recently got another control board in an attempt to clear up a finish issue as I felt the machine was vibrating to the extent that the edge finish on parts was not satisfactory, but this control board always lost connection and I went back to the original (which is now having problems) - Is it possible that the power supply is not clean and causes these vibrations/dropped connection?

Perhaps the voltage occasionally surges or 'sags' and the power oscillation varies from its standard therefore causing these problems? Seems to me as though I may need a continuous Un-Interruptable Power Supply to supply clean power to the box.

[evan]

I'm not an electrician but you might want to make sure the loads in your breaker box are balanced, that is that each leg has approxamitly equal amp. draw across them. Also make sure power lines aren't touching control lines.

[cabindoors (Unregistered Guest)]

I recently had a "ser-1" connection problem cutting HDU (which incidently produces alot of static charge) and was advised by Scott at Shopbot to put a ground wire through my vacumn line. I installed the ground wire and have not had a problem since.