Archive for the 'Software' Category
August 21st, 2010 by bdring
Full Spectrum Engineering is about to release it’s new Retna Engrave laser engraving controller. It is initially targeted at the hobby and DIY market. There are Chinese controllers available, but most people are quickly underwhelmed by the software that comes with them. The Moshisoft and Newlydraw interfaces are quite quirky. Note: The image above is probably an old version.
Henry Liu, the head of Full Spectrum, and I have been chatting back and forth since the beginning of my laser project. He is very sharp and seems to have good pulse on the low end laser and DIY laser community. We hashed out most of the controller options out there from DSP to FPGA and both decided that the XMOS chip might be the perfect device for the job. Once he decided to go full force with the XMOS, I stopped working on mine, knowing that he could do a better job. He is sending me one of his controllers to try out next week.
Currently the controller runs as a printer driver for Windows. This means that basically any program can use it to cut or engrave. He also has a Mach3 plug-in coming soon and eventually an open API where others can create new applications for it. It falls short of full open source, but it is a good option for many of us. The controller hangs off an existing DB25 parallel connector, so it is an easy upgrade for anyone currently using Mach3 or EMC2. The firmware is also upgradeable over the USB connection.
Continue reading ‘New Laser Engraver Controller’
July 28th, 2010 by bdring
Reza Naima has been working on an Arduino G-Code Interpreter. There have been a few other projects like the grbl projects and the rerap type machines have some g-code history to them. Most of the project is being documented over at the rStep Google Group.
It is nice to see more and more open source G-Code interpreters for micro controllers out there. In some projects this can free up the PC or at least reduce the need for expensive and or complicated CAM controllers like Mach3. A quick look at the firmware shows it handles a decent sub set of G-Code commands including arcs.
To see the video…. Continue reading ‘Arduino G-Code Stepper Controller’
July 24th, 2010 by bdring
I decided to give the MachStdMill Mach3 screen set a try. This is the new look and feel that the yet to be released Mach4 will have. They decided to make a version available for Mach3 to get some early feedback and to lower the learning curve when Mach4 is released.
You need to upgrade to development release Mach3 R3.042.040 before you are able to run the new screen set. There is a a good installation “readme” PDF that walk you through the install. There is also a forum dedicated to support of it.
My First Impressions.
The screens have a much more work flow feel to them. Things are consistently arranged and are on the correct page when you need them. I have tried a bunch of the screen sets on the Mach forums in the past. Typically, I just scratch the surface of what Mach3 can do for my routing and laser requirements so, just about any screen set is going to work for me. I often changed just to get a new look for a while. This, though, has a totally different feel to it. I like it and it should definitely make a usability and productivity improvement.
Continue reading ‘MachStdMill – A Taste of Mach4′
July 22nd, 2010 by bdring
My latest phone is an Android HTC Incredible. I really love what I can do with it. I have had it for about 6 weeks and have been dying to write a program for it. It is programmed in Java and I know Java quite well, so I knew it would not be a big deal. I just needed an idea.
On my router I use a Shuttle Pro to remotely control Mach3. I love the ability to jog the machine and zero the axes remotely. I don’t have anything like this on my Mach3 controlled laser yet and have been toying with the options like another Shuttle Pro or a Xbox Controller. Then it hit me, my phone would be perfect.
Continue reading ‘Android Mach3 Remote Control’
July 19th, 2010 by bdring
I am just amazed, and I am not easily amazed. I saw this SketchChair application at the Ponoko Blog. This is just plain amazing. I love Flat-pack and this is like Flat-pack crack. This program is a collaboration between Greg Saul and the JST ERATO Design UI Project in Tokyo. This is a Processing based program that allows anyone to simply sketch a chair and the program generates the parts required to build it in real time. The parts are ready to be cut on a CNC router or laser cutter.
You really need to watch the video. It is really fun to watch. The program even allows real world physics to be applied to the chair, to see how well it will stand up on it’s own and when a human sits in it.
Continue reading ‘SketchChair’
July 8th, 2010 by bdring
Many DIY laser builders come from a CNC background. They have built a CNC mill or router and gained the confidence to try a laser build. They love Mach3 for the CNC, so they want to use it for their laser cutting. There are some inherent problems, but in most cases it will work fine for laser cutting.
The method I am going to describe here uses the E1P0/E1P1 method of laser control. This allows fast turn on/off of the beam without the delays Mach3 adds with spindle based beam control. I have tried many other methods, but this is my favorite for laser cutting. I use manual control of the beam power using a potentiometer with this method.
When Mach3 sees E1P1 in G-Code, it immediately turns output #1 on and will immediately turn it off when it sees E1P0. Therefore, you just need to have a E1P1 before your first feed move and an E1P0 after your last feed move. There is one catch. It appears there must be some actual movement after each E1Px command. If your last feed move ends at your “home”, you won’t be able to turn off the beam unless you move away from home then back. You should be able to setup a post processor for your favorite CAM software to do this. I will detail that in a later blog post.
Continue reading ‘Mach3 Laser Cutter Setup’
