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Amplifier Replacement Options

Grenade

Plastic
Joined
Mar 15, 2012
Location
Western USA
I just picked up a Sharp TMV-1 with an Anilam CNC retrofit. One of the three amplifiers is dead - I just got the news today that it's beyond economical repair. I can get a refurbished one (these drives are no longer produced) but it's ~$1,800. This is a garage/hobby machine so I'm trying to save money where possible.

I'm a bit of a newbie when it comes to drive systems so apologies if my questions are amateur. First and foremost, is it possible to swap the dead drive with something that's not a direct replacement? If yes, what do I need to look for? is it as simple as finding a drive that matches my servo motor specs?

I've attached a photo of the servo plaque for reference. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

IMG_20190909_093432.jpg
 
it says SEM right there on the motor. Seems like the place to start.

Servo motors and drives are usually a matched pair.
 
SEM may not have made the amp. Is the input power AC or DC? Are the input signals PWM or analog? + and - 10V? or is it 0 to 10V with direction? Maybe step and direction? The tag on the amp will answer most of them.

Ed.
 
....
I'm a bit of a newbie when it comes to drive systems so apologies if my questions are amateur. First and foremost, is it possible to swap the dead drive with something that's not a direct replacement? ....

This will be a hard task.
Unless you can find someone online that has already done it, at $5 per hour for your time you will likely spend more than the $1800 figuring it out and tuning it let alone buying the "other" hardware.
It is certainly doable with other brands of amps but so many details and you have to tune or adjust the pots and or jumpers.
Best hope is that someone has done that work on your machine model already and willing to explain the setup.
I'm sorry to be the party-pooper but this stuff is not plug and play.
Bob
 
I agree, you may have a hard time finding a cheap drive that will plug and play.

If you dont want to buy components for the Anilam control, and you have lots of time consider re-retrofitting to something that can work with any drive. Dynomotion Kflop controller would work really well for that. You could probably use it to control the 2 drives you have left and find something else for the other axis. But honestly by the time you buy a new controller, some other cheaper drive, and put a bunch of time into it you still might be close to that. At least you would have a more servicable machine in the future.

Id be nervous spending that kind of money on a control that is discontinued. What about you buy that drive for $1800 and then another goes next month? What happens if you cant even find one for that outrageous price?
 
Id be nervous spending that kind of money on a control that is discontinued. What about you buy that drive for $1800 and then another goes next month? What happens if you cant even find one for that outrageous price?

This is exactly my concern, and why I'm hoping I can find a replacement that's more readily available. Even if I have to spend some time figuring out an acceptable replacement and getting it dialed in it may pay dividends when another one inevitably goes out.

This will be a hard task.
Unless you can find someone online that has already done it, at $5 per hour for your time you will likely spend more than the $1800 figuring it out and tuning it let alone buying the "other" hardware.
It is certainly doable with other brands of amps but so many details and you have to tune or adjust the pots and or jumpers.
Bob

Say I did want to go this route, what's a good resource for understanding how to tune a drive? Per the manual the original drives were tuned by connecting a communication cable between the drive/control and then making adjustments from the control itself. Since I'm guessing this won't be possible with a non-OEM drive, what does this process look like?

Below are links to the drive specs. Can someone recommend a possible replacement drive, or maybe even a manufacturer that has good support and can help me through the process? I'll do some more Googling in the meantime.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1aQZqSzk3Jvo5f9wR5sWcUnHSsu3ghfBb
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1aZ8wlfVsBY7eN7PMSH-518nitpK6R8dg
https://drive.google.com/open?id=1ayb1R7EzHN1la99Nydh6ia8oi-jqQZVV
 
Are you sure that first link is the right drive? Says its like 160v and 15a, 30a peak. That is a lot of power for a knee mill! Those specs list supply voltage of 100-370. Thats a very big range, Id check and see what the power supply is actually putting out to drives and use that value when looking for new drive.

There are lots of surplus drives online. Have a look on ebay for Glentek, AMC, leadshine, copley, etc. I wouldnt spend too much at all on a random drive because I think the odds may be against you on this one unfortunatly, but good luck with it, and be careful.
 
Thanks, mmurray. The link is definitely correct. It matches the P/N on my drives.

I did some reading on Kflop. It looks like something that would be right up my alley. Unfortunately my goal right now is to get this thing running ASAP. It looks like Kflop would be a steep learning curve. Long term it's a definite possibility though.
 
Check with PM member Bug Robotics- I recall he assisted another member with board level repairs a while back. The drive should be repairable by a competent tech unless its totally roasted. Can you get schematics from Anilam? "Economical" repair from the OEM may just be their way of sayng "go away".
 
I just picked up a Sharp TMV-1 with an Anilam CNC retrofit. One of the three amplifiers is dead - I just got the news today that it's beyond economical repair. I can get a refurbished one (these drives are no longer produced) but it's ~$1,800. This is a garage/hobby machine so I'm trying to save money where possible.

I'm a bit of a newbie when it comes to drive systems so apologies if my questions are amateur. First and foremost, is it possible to swap the dead drive with something that's not a direct replacement? If yes, what do I need to look for? is it as simple as finding a drive that matches my servo motor specs?

I've attached a photo of the servo plaque for reference. Any advice is greatly appreciated!

View attachment 276026

Need the drive/amplifier information. Pics of the drive.
What kind of motor is it? 3 phase AC? Brushed DC? ...?
 
garage hobby machine? why not ask where the sharper members of the garage hobby machine forum(s) who have had to piddle diddle and fuck around to make unmatched items work with each other? not trying to be smartass, amongst those who try to make a drill press into a five axis workcenter are quite a few folk who have retro'd knee mills, bed mills, etc into very functional machines using "hobby" software and dealing with issues exactly like you are having.
 
Check with PM member Bug Robotics- I recall he assisted another member with board level repairs a while back. The drive should be repairable by a competent tech unless its totally roasted. Can you get schematics from Anilam? "Economical" repair from the OEM may just be their way of sayng "go away".


I tried to have the drive repaired by a company called Nyco Systems. I found out after the repair was attempted that this "company" is really a guy doing repairs out of his house. When he finally returned the drive a month and a half later I hooked it up and it immediately blew a fuse upstream. I then sent it to a legitimate company who determined it was damaged beyond economical repair due to the faulty fix. Of course the guy who attempted the first repair was non-communicative from day one so I had to challenge the CC payment.

The good news, however, is in a stroke of luck last night I found a direct replacement on eBay for $400. I went ahead and bought it since my goal is to get this thing running as soon as possible.

Thanks everyone for the pointers. Hopefully I can just plug this thing in, tune it per the OEM manual, and start making chips.
 








 
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