What is so user-hostile? It seems about as well laid out as any control. Every one I have seen has Absolute, Relative, and Distance to Go coordinates on the main screen. You can also watch the graphics while the machine is running, to see where the tool is headed.
They all have a hand wheel and continuous jogging. How much more manual can it get? The conversational is OK, better than a Fanuc.
Tool length offsets are the only quirk I remember. The tool offsets were set relative to the active work offset. The work around was to set up a work offset the was only used to set tools.
It's been a while, but I remember Milltronics controls being pretty nice.
-Wes
Ok, I'll take that challenge.
#1
First of all, every machine I have ever seen does have a DRO that is independent of any workoffset. That is, you set your X and Y and Z coordinate to whatever you want and it does not in any way shape or form:
a: change your tool length offset or workoffset
b: depends on the current work/toolength offset.
On a Centurion, there is no such DRO function! Regardless of what mode you're in, whatever you do will affect either the toollength offset, modifies the active workoffset OR it will use the active workoffset to change the display
#2
Handwheel jogging on the Centurion is quite nice as you can use the feedrate-override to change the actual step amount for each "tick", but you will wear out the feedrate dial when you're switching back and forth from fast to slow motion.
#3
There is no continuous jogging. There is a "step-amount", which is incredibly dangerous because it is:
a: Sticky, meaning active until disabled. Just hit the wrong direction once and you'll know why.
b: The step amount is invisible once it is set. I.E: You don't know how much you're stepping.
#4
The tool length and workoffsets are wicked retarded. I know, in current models it is fixed, but on mine ( early 2000 ) it is always dependent on either the active workoffset or the active toollength. IOW if you set the toollength, it will depend on the current workoffset. Consequently, if you set the workoffset it will depend on the current tool in the spindle.
If you happened to set the tool to a different workoffset than the one you're in, you can and will fuck up both!
#5
The only way to set a spindle speed ( the quickest that I know of anyway) is:
1: MDI
2: MISC
3: Type: Snnnn
4: ENTER
5: STORE
6: CYCLE-START
7: Read modal display
Mind you, this is a Toolroom type machine! If you ever need to change the spindle speed ( for whatever it is ), you need to go through this hooplah again. ( yes, there is a spindle-override button but....)
#6
If you're in unlocked X/Y mode, you cannot set work coordinates. You have to re-enable X and Y servos to do so. Then go back through the steps of unlocking the servos again to do some manual work. Once again, this is a manual machine without a DRO.
#7
Conversational.........
Well, since as mentioned all of the coordinate settings depend on one another, shouldn't the STARTUP of the conversational ask you what coordinate system you want to use? Well it does not, and ask me how I know this is a really bad idea!
#8
This is a toolroom machine, therefore it is an SLS control. in SLS mode ( by default) there is NO DISTANCE TO GO or NEXT MOVE display! You have to go into Parameters and type in the secret code to be able to switch between Graphics and Coordinate display modes. In either case, you cannot have both at the same time!
#9
Once again, this is a toolroom machine! If you're at the edge of your part with an edgefinder, you cannot tell the control you're .100 away from the part. Not having a DRO, you cannot temporarily set a coordinate display and then jog .100 and set your workoffset. No! You have to 0 your workoffset when the edgefinder tells you to, then go the 3X ESC route, then another 4 button clicks to the Work Coord screen, then cursor down 3 or more times to the workoffset, then edit, down once or twice then type in .+.100 or .-.100 to add or subtract from the work coord.
If you fuck up and forget the . at the beginnig, you're welcome to start the whole kit and kaboodle all over again.
#10
There is no Do-Event, nor is there a Teach mode per se. IOW if you pick up a point and then want to mill or rapid to another point, you either have to set work coordinates and type a conversational program OR you set work coordinates and type a G-code program. Take your pick.
#11
There is no easy way to rapid to a point and wait until you hit START to move to another point. In many manual operations, all you want to do is drill a bunch of holes of various sizes. One would think that ( since there IS a 2 axis mode in the control ) you could just type in succesive X/Y coordinates into a list and then drill away with the quill at each stop. Well no! You have to type in a G-code program and separate each and every single coordinate with and M01 or M00 to tell it not to just rapid over to the next goddamm point!
#12
Along the lines of the previous point, you cannot change tools without actually CHANGING TOOLS!!!
What that means is you cannot just simply change the tool with the quill retracted and tell the control that you've just switched from Tool1 ( center drill) to Tool2 ( drill), you actually have to switch the miserable thing through MDI, which involves a bunch of ESC-s to get to MDI, type in a toolchange, move to the toolchange, change the tool, switch to HDW or JOG, move back to the coordinate you were in a second ( actually a minute by now ) ago and drill away.
Do this on a plate with 50+ holes of various depths and sizes and you will learn religion!
As I've said before. I believe the Centurion control has the underlying ability to eat Prototrack for breakfast, let alone for lunch!
It however looses all advantage when it comes to the User Interface, which is what the lonely one-off machinist is faced with each and every day.
For the record, I program, setup and run Haas, Fanuc and Brother machines each and every day. Lathe, mill, and Wire EDM. Believe me, I do read and write G-code for these machines just as it was plain English. To me writing a quick hand-written G-code fro 1,2 or 50 holes is faster and easier than any conversational system available out there.
Having to try to figure out the quirks in a CNC control and then trying to explain it to a user ( smart or not so smart ) is wicked time consuming and inefficient.
Rant out.
