Weird cuts, now controller has no power

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rscrawford
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Nov 05, 2010 7:17 am

Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by rscrawford »

I was roughing out a carving and the router suddenly started moving in a direction it wasn't programmed to go. This has happened several times before, and when I put in new wood and try the same loaded G-code, it mills it properly.

Anyway, this time it started cutting into a part of the wood over 1" thick, and bogged down in less than a second. Before I could hit the kill switch the controller shut down (but the router mount was bent at a weird angle from tension). I figured a fuse was blown in the controller, but the only fuse I could find (7.5A) looked fine. I was able to turn the lead screws by hand to 'unjam' the bit, but I still can't get the controller to turn back on.

Any suggestion as to why I get sudden anomolies in the toolpath, and what could be the cause of the controller having no power?

REG
Posts: 226
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2010 9:30 pm

Re: Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by REG »

rscrawford wrote: Any suggestion as to why I get sudden anomolies in the toolpath, and what could be the cause of the controller having no power?
I don't have much to offer on the behavior issue of the toolpath but I have to confess that I once embarrassed myself with my brother on a project we worked on and I bumped the E-switch unintentionally. We scratched our heads to 5 minutes or so when I realized that even the LEDs for the controller were out. I turned the E-switch button and it popped out and power was back on :roll:

acxsasx
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Joined: Tue Nov 02, 2010 10:04 am

Re: Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by acxsasx »

That sounds like a real scary and disheartening experience.

I would guess problems with the controller, but I too would be seeking guidance from those more knowledgeable than I.

rscrawford
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Nov 05, 2010 7:17 am

Re: Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by rscrawford »

No, the e-switch was the first thing I checked, and rechecked!! I'm going to change the fuse, even though it looks fine - I'm hoping the router started drawing too much current when it bogged down, and blew the fuse. That's all I can think of.

It was actually cutting out the profile of a circle, and was on the 8th pass around the circle when it suddenly took off perpendicular to the circle. It was almost a 1" thick cut, since it was cutting into the waste wood outside the profile cut.

REG
Posts: 226
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2010 9:30 pm

Re: Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by REG »

rscrawford wrote:No, the e-switch was the first thing I checked, and rechecked!! I'm going to change the fuse, even though it looks fine - I'm hoping the router started drawing too much current when it bogged down, and blew the fuse. That's all I can think of.
Sorry, was just trying to relay my expereince on missing the obvious.

Does the router power up plugged straight in? The E-Stop operates an solid state contactor. If fuse is OK, then the contactor might be the culprit. Do you have any LED's light up on front? Hoping your powerboard is OK. I never experienced a errant run but I have read on some around on the forum. Some list the cause to be anything from a cable to a faulty SD memory card.

rscrawford
Posts: 4
Joined: Fri Nov 05, 2010 7:17 am

Re: Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by rscrawford »

REG wrote: Does the router power up plugged straight in? The E-Stop operates an solid state contactor. If fuse is OK, then the contactor might be the culprit. Do you have any LED's light up on front? Hoping your powerboard is OK. I never experienced a errant run but I have read on some around on the forum. Some list the cause to be anything from a cable to a faulty SD memory card.
The router works when plugged straight to an outlet. The front LEDs do not turn on. Didn't have time yesterday to play around at all, but today we're going to trace with a meter and find where the power loss occurs.

rscrawford
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Joined: Fri Nov 05, 2010 7:17 am

Re: Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by rscrawford »

Got it working. Turned out it was the fuse in the switch that was blown. There was a replacement fuse stored beside the fuse in the switch, so I'm up and running again.

I'd still like to know where the glitch is that suddenly moves the X-Y axis off on a tangent. When I run the G-code again (without reloading it) it works fine the second time. . . Its ruined some expensive pieces of wood.

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Consultingwoodworker
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Re: Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by Consultingwoodworker »

First, be sure all the wires are tight. Especially around the axis plugs. In my Z axis, one pin had not aligned and pushed it's mate out of the back of the plug. Hard to see without close inspection. My Z axis only wanted to go down.

The other thought that comes to mind is to make sure that your USB cord is not crossing or touching the power cords anywhere. The fields generated by the power cords can send random signals to the controller. I've seen this on industrial machines.

Ralph

REG
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Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2010 9:30 pm

Re: Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by REG »

Consultingwoodworker wrote:The other thought that comes to mind is to make sure that your USB cord is not crossing or touching the power cords anywhere. The fields generated by the power cords can send random signals to the controller. I've seen this on industrial machines.

Ralph
Using a shielded USB cable like the Belkin model F3U133 is good for error free data transmissions. The included USB with the Shark controller is not data shielded, just ground shielded. I think those data wires are also smaller at around 28 ga. but considering most .tap files are small, I doubt a full 480 mbps will matter but the EMI and RFI shielding will matter. I never used my included cable and I never thought to bring it up here until I saw your post on it.

Bobby

nwflycaster
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Joined: Sun Nov 07, 2010 5:14 pm

Re: Weird cuts, now controller has no power

Post by nwflycaster »

I too am having the same issues. Not with the X or Y but with the Z and always when doing a profile cut. This last time I had the same problem as you did it bored deep through the wood and into the aluminum table binding everything before I could hit the kill switch. I too have a blacked out control box. Where is the fuse that you found? did you open up the control box?

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