E-stop, remote stop

[gerald_d]

Skipp, my cheeky remark at the top of this thread wasn't supposed to give you such bad luck! Sorry


I am nowhere near to our ShopBot, and I can't go and check the accuracy of anything that follows here:

Because I also had problems finding the right terminal, I took a 12" length of scrap wire, connected one end to the ground terminal on the back of the box, then touched the other end briefly to each one of the input terminals until the screen gave the message that the E-stop had been hit. (you should see the inputs lighting up on the top left of your screen as you ground the terminals - if I recall correctly, when input 4 lights up, it also says something about the e-stop?)

The next step was to find out which pair of wires from the E-Stop were connected to a NO (normally open) switch. The easiest way to do this was to open the E-Stop housing and look at the wire colors and the NO / NC markings on the switch. You want the pair from the NO section of the switch. (The switch marking may be a symbolic open contact, rather than the abbreviation "NO")

Now this part may sound completely silly, but you must realise that the E-stop locks itself "in" mechanically once it has been pushed. The knob must be twisted to let it "out" again. I have known people to be confronted by a locked in E-Stop and then they claim that it is broken, because it is not working at all!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

[Ted Hall, ShopBot]

Okay Skip,

I'm thinking that things have gotten pretty confusing here. But let's try and simplify this a bit.

On your PR style control box. The #4 Input (the stop input) is activated by making the connection between P1.7 and ground. We call this, "pulling it low".

Just check with a little wire, with the ShopBot software running and at the blinking Command Line cursor, make the connection between P1.7 and ground. The #4 indicator on the switch display of the software should become activated ... and you can compare to P1.6, P1.5, and P1.4 which should activate inputs 3, 2, & 1. [The drawing in your manual indicates these input switch numbers, it does not indicate a STOP input because initially, these were not included with PR tools ... but the STOP goes to #4.]

Once you have the inputs working right (and it is possible to blow them out and have other things still work), then have a look at the STOP switch wires. We put two switches in the boxes so that you could use one for an external relay. But to control the ShopBot you use the "normally open" one which is the green and black wire (or it should be the green and black!). Green will then go to ground (for electronic wire color consistency) and black will go to P1.7 (data).

If this does not get you going ... time for a phone call to world headquarters ...

Happy Holidays,

[Skipp Turner]

Thanks guys, turned out to be a poor connection in the contacts. Allen Bradley even, who ever heard of such a thing? Anyways, I think sawdust was a contributor, I hear that wood is a poor conductor, who'd a thunk it, burns good though. thanks everyone !! I love this forum!!

[geobre@aol.com]

Just built a remote and am trying to hook it up. Solved most of the problems, but now I am stuck. My input 3 (1.6) does not work. I tested with ground wire. 1,2 and 4 work fine.
Thankyou for any help.
George