Electronic Lead Screw Project

[Dennis RParticipant @dennisr]

Dias

I made top hat buttons with slightly domed heads from a small piece of hard plastic found in my scrap box, they were all made circular. Where Clough42 has triangular buttons mine are a larger diameter, a bit fiddly to do, just make one and try for size then adjust as necessary.

Dennis

[Phil GrantParticipant @philgrant54580]

Dias,

I'm printing the top now , the measurements look the same as mine.

I'll print some buttons as well.

Phil

[dcostaParticipant @dcosta]

Hi Phil,

Phil: Here is the link to the box I bought, it is the 1590B version
Me: Thanks for the link to box 1590B.
I already ordered it.

Phil: I'm printing the top now, the measurements look the same as mine. I'll print some buttons as well.
Me: Thank you very much for this. I am embarrassed because I don't know how to thank you enough. Please read the PM.

Dias Costa

[dcostaParticipant @dcosta]

Hi Jason,

Thanks for the information.
Jason: I printed them in flexible material. The files are on the clough42’s thingiverse page.
Me: I had already found the files from a link in your nice video "Clough42 ELS electronics completed and working." on Youtube.
From your experience, the buttons made of flexible material do not have much friction with the walls of the holes?

best regards
Dias Costa

[dcostaParticipant @dcosta]

Hi Dennis,

Thank you for your attention and suggestion.
A few weeks ago, before Phil offered me the 3D printed box top, when thinking how I could make the buttons, one of the ways I considered a solution similar to the one you refer to: machining the buttons on the lathe. The other way was to look for buttons and cut them to fit the holes (see here for example: https://www.rubber-keypad.com/Rubber-Button-pl45996.html).
I could possibly find buttons with the appropriate dimensions, but I suspect that there would be serious friction problems with the hole walls.

Best regards
Dias Costa

[Jason CundallParticipant @jasoncundall54270]

Posted by dcosta on 22/01/2020 21:29:40:

Jason: I printed them in flexible material. The files are on the clough42’s thingiverse page.
Me: I had already found the files from a link in your nice video "Clough42 ELS electronics completed and working." on Youtube.
From your experience, the buttons made of flexible material do not have much friction with the walls of the holes?

None that I can discern. They’re not a tight fit in the holes.

[Roger ClarkParticipant @rogerclark]

So I wanted to 3d print the lid but wanted to customise it to my requirements, to this end I downloaded Fusion 360 as it's a product that I wanted to learn so I loaded up the STEP file for the lid and over yesterday pm and this evening I worked out that svg files were the way to go so downloaded Inkscape and learned how to create svg files from text and here is the result:

I'm happy with it but haven't tried printing it yet, not bad for a 68 year old!

Roger

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Rockingdodge on 27/01/2020 20:17:19:

So I wanted to 3d print the lid but wanted to customise it to my requirements, to this end I downloaded Fusion 360 as it's a product that I wanted to learn so I loaded up the STEP file for the lid and over yesterday pm and this evening I worked out that svg files were the way to go so downloaded Inkscape and learned how to create svg files from text and here is the result:

I'm happy with it but haven't tried printing it yet, not bad for a 68 year old!

Roger

Brilliant!!!

I've been struggling to do similar. Been getting mixed results from outputting STL from Inkscape and manipulating it with 3 or 4 different packages. I shall kick myself if the answer is to work directly from SVG.

Well done you!

Dave

[Phil GrantParticipant @philgrant54580]

Posted by Rockingdodge on 27/01/2020 20:17:19:

So I wanted to 3d print the lid but wanted to customise it to my requirements, to this end I downloaded Fusion 360 as it's a product that I wanted to learn so I loaded up the STEP file for the lid and over yesterday pm and this evening I worked out that svg files were the way to go so downloaded Inkscape and learned how to create svg files from text and here is the result:

I'm happy with it but haven't tried printing it yet, not bad for a 68 year old!

Roger

I did the same thing on my 3D printed lid in fusion 360 but when I printed it the text didn't come out to well, print it with the smallest layer height you can but it will take a lot longer to print.

[Roger ClarkParticipant @rogerclark]

Posted by Phil Grant on 27/01/2020 21:00:10:

Posted by Rockingdodge on 27/01/2020 20:17:19:

So I wanted to 3d print the lid but wanted to customise it to my requirements, to this end I downloaded Fusion 360 as it's a product that I wanted to learn so I loaded up the STEP file for the lid and over yesterday pm and this evening I worked out that svg files were the way to go so downloaded Inkscape and learned how to create svg files from text and here is the result:

I'm happy with it but haven't tried printing it yet, not bad for a 68 year old!

Roger

I did the same thing on my 3D printed lid in fusion 360 but when I printed it the text didn't come out to well, print it with the smallest layer height you can but it will take a lot longer to print.

Hi Phil,

I bought myself a resin printer so hoping that I can get good results on the fine detail.

Got priorities at the moment like re-assembling my mini lathe after stripping the teeth on the drive pulley, I also decided as it's in bits I'll fit dro as well so got that to do before anything else.

Roger

[Roger ClarkParticipant @rogerclark]

Posted by SillyOldDuffer on 27/01/2020 20:44:57:

Posted by Rockingdodge on 27/01/2020 20:17:19:

So I wanted to 3d print the lid but wanted to customise it to my requirements, to this end I downloaded Fusion 360 as it's a product that I wanted to learn so I loaded up the STEP file for the lid and over yesterday pm and this evening I worked out that svg files were the way to go so downloaded Inkscape and learned how to create svg files from text and here is the result:

I'm happy with it but haven't tried printing it yet, not bad for a 68 year old!

Roger

Brilliant!!!

I've been struggling to do similar. Been getting mixed results from outputting STL from Inkscape and manipulating it with 3 or 4 different packages. I shall kick myself if the answer is to work directly from SVG.

Well done you!

Dave

Hi Dave,

If you use Fusion 360 you can 'INSERT' svg file and then 'Extrude' either up for emboss or down '-' as I did.

This was the first time I'd used CAD, simples , just had to deal with sky high frustration levels

Roger

[Phil GrantParticipant @philgrant54580]

Posted by Rockingdodge on 27/01/2020 21:27:35:

Hi Dave,

If you use Fusion 360 you can 'INSERT' svg file and then 'Extrude' either up for emboss or down '-' as I did.

This was the first time I'd used CAD, simples , just had to deal with sky high frustration levels

Roger

Roger,

I've been using Fusion360 for a couple of years and I never new you could do that every day is a school day thanks for the tip.

I spent ages inserting and placing the text on the front surface .

Phil

[Phil GrantParticipant @philgrant54580]

Posted by Rockingdodge on 27/01/2020 21:23:11:

Hi Phil,

I bought myself a resin printer so hoping that I can get good results on the fine detail.

Got priorities at the moment like re-assembling my mini lathe after stripping the teeth on the drive pulley, I also decided as it's in bits I'll fit dro as well so got that to do before anything else.

Roger

Roger,

You should be fine with a resin printer the resolution should be more than enough, my Ender3 struggled with the small text above the LEDs.

Phil

[Roger ClarkParticipant @rogerclark]

Just found this Adafruit tutorial on creating a box, I found it easier to pick up than some of the others, lots of ways of stringing dimensions together to make adjusting easier. Adafruit snap fit cases

Roger

[SillyOldDufferModerator @sillyoldduffer]

Posted by Phil Grant on 27/01/2020 22:29:13:

Posted by Rockingdodge on 27/01/2020 21:27:35:

Hi Dave,

If you use Fusion 360 you can 'INSERT' svg file and then 'Extrude' either up for emboss or down '-' as I did.

This was the first time I'd used CAD, simples , just had to deal with sky high frustration levels

Roger

Roger,

I've been using Fusion360 for a couple of years and I never new you could do that every day is a school day thanks for the tip.

I spent ages inserting and placing the text on the front surface .

Phil

Me neither; I'm moderately fluent in both Inkscape and Fusion and hadn't spotted that, despite looking! (I must have wasted a full week investigating alternatives that don't quite fly. Arghh!)

Ideally Fusion would be as good at text as Inkscape, but it only does the basics. Inkscape has many excellent features, but it's not a CAD tool. Nice to know there's a way of getting the two to work together!

Ta

Dave

[dcostaParticipant @dcosta]

Hi Phil,

I thank you very much for the great favor of printing for me, in 3D, the cover and the buttons for the control box of the "Electronic Lead Screw".
I've already done a temporary assembly of the cover with the Led & Key Display (L&KD) and the adjustment between the L&KD and the cover is good and the buttons work very well.
To complete this part of the project, I still need to receive the metal box, which comes from China with an estimated arrival between 11 and 20 February, but, probably given the current circumstances, it will take longer to arrive. For this reason, I looked better here, in Portugal, and found the Hammond 1590B box and already ordered it.

Questions:
1 – the first button from the left (PWR) at this moment has no function. Do you know if there is any future goal for him in the project?
2 – How did you write the text FWR FWD / REV FEED / THR MM / IN / TPI given the scarcity of space above the LEDs? Any suggestions, please …
3 – I already have the stepper motor (Nema 23, double shaft purchased from ArcEuroTrade a few years ago) and I want to use it in this project for my EMCO Compact 8 lathe.
But I still haven't bought the driver for the stepper motor and, not being interested in the closed loop stepper driver, I'm not sure to choose another controller. As previously reported I tried the TB6560 driver and somehow damaged the TI board and I don't want to repeat …
Any suggestion, please?

Best Regards
Dias Costa

Edited By dcosta on 08/02/2020 18:56:59

[Phil GrantParticipant @philgrant54580]

Dias,

You're Welcome.

Answers o your questions: –

1. I'm not sure, other than power everything up on the bench I've not yet had it connected to my lathe properly, I would suggest a visit to Clough42s GIT page and ask the question there.

2. I haven't yet see answer No. 1. I was thinking of using a Dymo type printer and varnish over the top of the label.

3. I also have a NEMA23 double shaft I bought from steppersonline, I also bought a DM542T controller Digital Controller I believe they are smoother than the cheaper Chinese non DSP controllers.

I hope that helps, I know it's probably the answers you were hoping for.

Phil

[dcostaParticipant @dcosta]

Hi Phil,
I have already assembled the cover you offered on the box I bought from England. It fits well but only after cutting the small curved edge at the corners. My box is therefore different from yours. Interestingly, the day after the assembly of the lid you offered me, the box ordered from China arrived and I could verify that the lid is exactly the same as the one I bought here in Portugal.
So, I have this part of the project almost ready.

I didn't find on the WWW anyone who sold the driver DM542T to Portugal and that's why I bought the DM542. Whatever the differences, I'm not sure, but I read that basically, for my purpose, they are the same. Later, eventually, when the COVID-19 crisis is over, I can buy the DM542T.
I want to go ahead and make the connections to the PCB interface you made.
I now need help with the following: The interface you manufactured, has connections that are visually different from those of the Clough interface and also the driver that I have has different connection point designations than the driver that Clough uses. So I can't use the diagram he makes available to support the connections.
Could you please show me the point-to-point connections between the interface board and the DM542T driver?

Can you tell me, please, what does ALM mean? I looked in acronym finder but I didn't find an answer that fit.

Thanks in advance
Dias Costa

[LimpetParticipant @limpet]

Hi Dias

I can answer one of your questions ALM would be for Alarm both + and –

Lionel

[Phil GrantParticipant @philgrant54580]

Hi Dias,

There is a pinout diagram in the other thread and a link to a document I put together tho show how it is assembled, does this pinout help?

As far as I know the ALM (Alarm) is a signal that comes from t and if you use a stepper it's not used anyway.he servo controller when there is something wrong like missed steps etc. the last I read it wasn't implemented yet.

I hope that helps.

Phil

[dcostaParticipant @dcosta]

Hello Limpet.

I really appreciate your help.
For someone like me who is a "turnip" in electronics and does not have English as his native language, it is sometimes difficult to discover the meaning of some words, especially if contained in idiomatic expressions, let alone acronyms!

Best regards
Dias Costa

[dcostaParticipant @dcosta]

Hi Phil,

I really appreciate your quick help.
Please consider the wiring diagram for the DM542 interface driver, ***HERE*** .
Which interface pin do I connect to VCC? It seems to me that it should be the positive 5V output. Am I right?
I assume that Pulse should be connected to Step, Direction should be connected to DIR and Enable should be connected to EN.
What about the negative pole? Can I understand that it is passed by each of the STEP, DIR and EN? And so, in addition to ALM, do I also ignore GND?

Thanks and regards
Dias Costa

[Roy VaughnParticipant @royvaughn26060]

Dias, connect +5V to the + terminals of each signal as shown in the wiring diagram. Yes, ignore GND from the interface board. Hope this helps. Roy

[Phil GrantParticipant @philgrant54580]

Posted by dcosta on 15/02/2020 21:58:06:

Hi Phil,

I really appreciate your quick help.
Please consider the wiring diagram for the DM542 interface driver, ***HERE*** .
Which interface pin do I connect to VCC? It seems to me that it should be the positive 5V output. Am I right?
I assume that Pulse should be connected to Step, Direction should be connected to DIR and Enable should be connected to EN.
What about the negative pole? Can I understand that it is passed by each of the STEP, DIR and EN? And so, in addition to ALM, do I also ignore GND?

Thanks and regards
Dias Costa

Dias,

As Roy says, VCC == +5V, the others are as you said. Clough42 recommends that the power for the stepper driver and the electronics remain seperate so do not connect the grounds together, the 5V and GND from the PCB should only be used to power the optocouplers in the driver.

Phil

[dcostaParticipant @dcosta]

Hi Phil,
Hi Limpet,

I really appreciate your quick help.
There was a "disgrace" …
Is there a way to test the integrity of the TI LaunchXL F280049C?
I think I just burned one more, the second.
I connected the DM542 driver to the interface, as suggested, and when I powered on the interface, the display showed nothing. The DM542 driver was not connected.
As it is the second I burn in similar circumstances, I must have made some mistake in the interface.
The two serial ports that the "Code Composer Studio" software uses to communicate with the F280049C are no longer present in device management as they did when I burned the first board.

Thanks and regards
Dias Costa

Edited By dcosta on 15/02/2020 23:25:06

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