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Now I've done it - Hey, anyone out there know about Parker Compumotor AT6400 control?

J. Elliott

Hot Rolled
Joined
May 18, 2002
Location
Boonville, NC 27011
Everyone,

Well, I've finally gone and chosen the guts to my home CNC mill. By accident, naturally, with a li'l help from eBay.

Strangely, a local guy had a Parker Compumotor 4-axis, AT6400 indexing controller card w/software up for $475. Ouch, but a far cry from the $2600 in the Parker Webstore. I spent a half-hour grilling the Parker tech, and he seems sure that whatever I might throw at this controller, it'll take it. It sure looks a lot more robust than the StepperWorld SP/3HT kit I have in the backroom. (Anyone care for a good price on an SP3/HT kit, never even fully removed from the box?) I think I stumbled across a good chance to upgrade to some pro-level equipment tonight.

15 minutes after I snagged the card on a 'Buy it Now' feature I was high bidder on a Parker Zeta4 drive and two Parker NEMA 23 motors too. Must be my night.... Now, onto the hard part. What the hell have I just bought? Anyone ever used this stuff?

I sold a neat old BMW motorcycle two weeks ago to raise $$$ for all those goodies coming out of the Bridgeport auction last month. I've asembled an awesome set of Rexroth-Star roller bearing rails for the movements, new NSK ballscrews, and now this on the computer end. Surely, all these parts are stout enough to not be a waste of time building the beast. I'm not looking for speed, just capability and sufficient accuracy.

So - any thoughts on Compumotor parts out here in cyberspace? Have any of you ever programmed in the Parker 6000 series language? Seems I'm in for learning some real programming here, as well.
 
Compumotor "Compucam" AT6400 need help!

Hi:
Does anyone have any ideas on how to run Compucam?. Problem is that Compucam will only convert 2 axis to their proprietary "X" language for an AT6400 controller. I retrofitted my 1J 9x48 Bridgeport to 4 axis. 4th axis being a rotary indexing table. Need to figure out a way to run "Compucan" as a 4 axis program or at least be able to run the program 2X while clocking off the same source. When I try to import a DXF file into Compucam, the fact that it only runs 2 axis has caused a major problem.The AT6400 will handle a full 4 axis.
I am NOT a computer genius and any help would be greatly appreciated. I live in a remote portion of N/W California and we are in a technological vac here.
Help!!

Thanks,
Ryan

[email protected]
 
Throw the AT6400 away!
Get a copy of MACH3 ( $150) it wil do everything you want/need.
It can drive the parrallel ports directly to drive the Zeta drive with step and direction pulses.

The AT6400 is just a massive speed bump to what you are really trying to do.
Another excellent drive, beside the Zeta, is the Compumotor S6. ! NOT the SX6 !
The SX6 takes commands over RS232, not step and direction.
The S6 tekes step and direction.

I don't know how tiny your machine is.. But a size 23 motor is really small.
 
Compumotor Compucan Help

Hi:
The stepper drivers are S6's and S8's. The motors are M106-178's and M106-250's de-rated to 75% (per compumotor's suggestion) so they will run correctly with the S drivers. Feedback is on closed loop 1000 ppr encoders.
Thanks!
Ryan
 
Sounds like a great setup!
Mach 3 should do everything you need to do, no possible need for the AT6400.
A fine unit on it's own, but Mach 3 is already written and checked out, and does what you want it to do.

It should be able to drive the S6 and S8 drivers with step and direction pulses. Those are nice drivers boxes! Add inthe fedback, and it sounds like a nice setup.

Good luck!
Someobody out there knows way more than me about setting up Mach 3.

Let us know how it is going.
 
Zeta 8 or S8

Hi,

I bought 2 Zeta and and wonder how different are they from the S8 drives? The S8 seems to have 2 ac power connector, why does it need an additional power source?
 
The S8 have a powered fan as a seperate unit. I just moved the fan unit from a bead S8 to an S6 just for a place to put it ;-)

Im in the midst or gathering a complement of S drives to run with EMC2

Step to pin 1, Direction to pin 2, Pins 14 and 15 go to common!

Great drives for the mid sized steppers.

By the way, does anyone have a source for the motor wire connectors?

CalG
 
Compumotor AT6400 and Compucam

First, the AT6400 controller needs a full slot ISA bus computer to plug into. you will also need to buy or make cables for the drives to the break out board if it didn't come with.

Compucam will generate 2-d dxf files to 6000 language and I hear you can clock a third axis somehow but no way a fourth unless you edit it in manually into the code.

6000 language is a lot like basic, avd go, but there is a lot to it if you have the time it's pretty cool. Compumotor's tech support is free and very good, at least as I remember it.
 








 
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