Zenbot CNC User s guide

Transcription

1 Zenbot CNC User s guide Note: If at any point you are unsure what to do or would like assistance, don t hesitate to [email protected], or call Customer satisfaction is very important to us. Please call between 8 AM, and 5PM pacific standard time. Safety IMPORTANT! This manual is intended to help with setup and operation of the Zenbot CNC router. The information included is not intended to replace a thorough knowledge and understanding of CNC programming and safe operation. CNC is a very complex endeavor with too many variables to be included in this user s guide. It is up to the user to be proficient in his/her chosen software packages, and to be proficient in the safe operation of CNC machines. Proper safety procedures must be followed at all times. User assumes all liability for his/her own safety and the safety of those around them while operating the machine. Safety Tips- Always wear proper personal protective equipment, including but not limited to: Safety glasses/ Face shield Ear protection/ muffs Never put hands on or near machine while machine is in operation Always be sure to adequately tighten the cutting bit into the spindle Always use the proper feed rate, depth of cut, and chip load for the machine, chosen material, and cutting bit Never leave the machine unattended Always be sure the work piece is properly fastened Replace chipped or dull cutting bits Always follow the safety recommendations of the cutting tool manufacturer (Dremel, etc.)!! Do not unplug the motors from the drive box while the power is on or you will destroy the driver!! Machine setup 1) Unbox the machine base and set it on a stable, flat surface. 2) Position the gantry so the spindle mount faces the front of the machine (the end with the motor) 3) Spread the gantry uprights over the gantry under portion and position the tabs into the slots in the gantry uprights

2 4) Insert and tighten the 8 bolts that attach the gantry upper to the gantry lower. 5) Unpack the control box and connect the control box cables to the motor cables. A) Y axis is toward you and away from you, x axis is left to right, z axis is up and down B) On the 4848, there are 2 motors on the front of the machine. The one on the left (while looking at the front of the machine plugs into the y axis connector on the driver box. The one on the right plugs into the a axis connector 6) Connect parallel cable (printer cable) from the control box to the computer 7) Connect the power supply to the control box 8) Download mach 3 from 9) Download the mach 3 configuration file attached to my and paste it into the mach 3 program folder. local disk c: mach 3 folder. 10) Use the mach 3 loader on the desktop to open the g540 profile. 11) Turn on the control box. 12) Use the arrow keys to jog the machine in the x and y directions, and use page up, page down) to jog the z axis up and down. 13) See basic CNC process guide When you unpack your machine you are going to be anxious to get started, but there are a few things you need to know so you don t damage your machine. Configuration This table is for your knowledge. The wiring has already been done for you on the ready-to-run model. Motor wire color red blue green black Stepper driver connection A A# B B# Configuring the steps/inch in Mach-3 The drive pulley diameter on this machine is.458 inches. The circumference of the drive pulley is This means that the motor rotates.695 turns per inch (1/1.439). The stepper motors on this machine are.9 degree per step motor, which means that there are 400 steps per revolution. Now you just need to know the micro-step settings on your drivers. The formula for calculating the steps per inch is.695 x 400 x micro-steps/step. For a 1/10 micro-step driver, the formula would be.695 x 400 x 10 = 2780 steps per inch.

3 s Steps/ inch chart Micro-step setting Steps per inch 1/ / / /2 556 whole step 278 Motor Tuning Final acceleration and speed settings will be found through experimentation, but a good starting point is 800 Inches/minute Maximum for the speed, and inches/sec./sec. for the acceleration. We recommend setting the max speed slower (200 inches per minute or lower) until you become more familiar with the machine. The Mach-3 web site ( has a great deal of information regarding the setup and operation of their software so I won t go into specifics here. Speed Acceleration Recommended tuning starting points 500 Inches/minute Max inches/sec/sec Note: We recommend tuning to 200 inches per minute, or slower, until you are familiar with the machine. Machine Operation All CNC machines require that you operate them within their limits. Your Zenbot router is medium duty, and you must consider this when programming. The best strategy for this machine is to take many medium cuts at higher speeds. How light of cuts to take depends on the material and cutting bit and will come with some experimentation and experience. If cuts are attempted that are too aggressive, the machine may miss steps and the spindle will rattle and chatter, ruining your work piece, and possibly creating a dangerous situation. Its best to follow the cutting bit manufacturers rpm and federate suggestions, and starting with a light depth of cut. Maintenance Your Zenbot router should require very little maintenance. All bearings are sealed and the rails are electro zinc plated and do not require any lubrication. After some use, wear marks will begin to appear on the rails. This is a normal part of machine run-in and does not affect the operation of the machine. Eventually the bearings and the rail will be matched and the wear will stop.

4 Maintenance procedures: Belt tensioning. Periodically check the tension of the belts. They should be snug, but not overly tight. You will get no performance advantage from over-tightening the belts, and could cause premature motor wear. The motors are rated for 12 pounds of radial force. -To tighten the belts, loosen the motor bolts and pull the motor away from the machine while retightening the bolts. Cleaning the rails. You will need to clean the rails periodically to remove build-up. This is done with a plain rag or a rag with some non-etching cleaner on it. Some materials (such as wax, or oily woods) will cause the build-up to form faster and the machine should be inspected more frequently when cutting these materials. It is best to inspect the rails before and after each use. Adjusting squareness There are holes in the table top at the front of the machine that provide access to the gantry plating bolts to adjust the squareness of the gantry. First, loosen the gantry plating bolts on the bottom of the gantry. Then, move the gantry forward so those holes line up with the upper gantry plating bolts and loosen those bolts. Then, you will notice 2 extra bolts on the front of the under portion of the gantry. There is a rocker mechanism inside that adjusts the squareness when you tighten one and loosen the other. once it is square, retighten the bolts from the top. The bolts on your machine have been installed with the ends of the bolts being threaded into an un-threaded portion of the hole which has the same effect as a lock nut, so they should not come loose. However, it is best to check them for looseness periodically. DO NOT OVER TIGHTEN THE BOLTS OR THE THREADS WILL STRIP. They won t come loose so there is no need to over tighten them. If you need further assistance, feel free to ask for help at [email protected].

5 Basic CNC process Create design create Toolpaths setup and run machine 1)create CAD (Computer Aided Design) drawing and save as.dxf file (standard cad format) Affordable (or free) CAD programs. Let me know if you have any CAD recommendations. Draftsight (free) ViaCad ($39) Bobcad CAD/CAM Autocad 2)Open.DXF file in CAM (Computer Aided Machining) software and creat toolpath from.dxf drawing. -a toolpath is simply you telling the machine how to cut the part. You choose the cutting bit you will use, the speed you want to cut, how deep you want to cut per pass, etc. you will choose these parameters based on the material you are cutting. Post (save) toolpath as g-code (cnc programming language). Affordable CAM software: (basic cut 2-d is $149) Cut 3-d is $299 Click here for Vectric cut -2d tutorials 3) Set up machine and run g-code with mach-3 (pc-based machine control Software)

6 Mach 3 Download : A) Home the machine 1) Choose a location you would like to call Home (where the machine will go when it is done cutting, or for tool changes. 2) Jog the machine to this spot and hit ref all home B) Zero the axes on the part origin 1) Remember the origin as programmed in your CAM program. If you programmed the origin at the bottom left corner of the part, then jog the machine to the bottom left corner of your workpiece and jog the z axis to where the tip of the bit is almost touching the top of your work piece. Zero each axis (zero x, zero y, zero z). Jog the z axis up and out of the way C) Make sure your work piece is secure and you bit is tight in your router. Make sure to wear all proper safety equipment (safety glasses/face shield, ear muffs). Make sure any observers are also wearing protection and are clear of the machine. At this point you can Turn the router head on and hit cycle start.