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Classic haass save/edit dnc rs-232 drip feed program

ANDERSON250

Plastic
Joined
Feb 12, 2012
Location
ALASKA
Hello,
I have a new to me 1995 Haas VF-2 and I am having trouble saving my DNC drip feed program to the control memory. I have read several forums and found information on how to save a file from MDI but I dont want to manually enter the whole program. A little background info:


I'm using Fusion 360 to post a .nc file using HAAS pre new gen control post processor.
Using a Dell Laptop to transfer the program to the HAAS
I have downloaded a free trial of both DNC4U and CIMCO dnc software to communicate with the HAAS. DNC4U seems to work the best but may be better software out there????
Baud Rate set to 600, even parity, xon,xoff, 1 stop bit and 7 data bits. I believe the pin out for the wiring is correct because it worked fine for previous owner. and it does transfer data back and forth for me as well.
I have been able to send a simple G code program from the HAAS controller to my pc.
I have been able to recieve a .nc program from my PC to the DNC mode on the HAAS controller. This is extremely painful more on that below.
I have successfully ran the program (cycle start) after some edits to remove G94 and then M30 at the end. More on the M30 problem below.
I can write a program in MDI mode and save to the HAAS memory using a "O" 4digit program name.

My questions are:

1. Can I save the program to the HAAS memory from the PC using the DNC rs-232?? If so, How? So far when the program is loaded in DNC mode I cannot type in a program name and push "Alter" or "Write" to save it. If I push MEM, PROG LIST, or MDI It switches screens loses program and then have to go back into DNC mode "waiting" and re-send the program. Of which half the time it only sends a partial program or nothing at all..... After several attempts/re-starts I may be lucky enough to get the whole program. Painfull to say the least. Interference on the cable could be a possibility but the main question here is how to save the program to memory. I have tried several different Baud Rates making sure to match on the Haas and the Pc. no real luck...

2. After cycle start and the program runs to the the end... the control alarms on M30. I fixed the alarm in the PC editor with an M02. However I would like the program to end on an M30 so it will stop and rewind the program so I can push cycle start when I'm ready.

3. What would be required to replace the floppy and convert and just use a thumb drive. Is my Control even capable of working with thumb drive unit? Would this be an advantage?

4. Next Gen control would be nice from mid 2000 era but that sounds like a $5k plus idea.... What do I need for that... A couple i/o boards for the controller and a new operator pendant?

Thank you for your time in advance and I can send G code or pictures if you like.

Josh
 
Punch "list prog", type the program number in the control and push "recv rs232" button. You should have a % symbol at the beginning and end of the program. Next line after % should be a matching "OXXXXX" number in your program. It should drop right into memory.
 
The only Haas machine I have that we load with RS232 is at 115.2k. Keep the cable short and you can run much faster baud rates.
 
pmack,

Wow!!! that was easy worked like a champ. I searched Hi and Low for that answer and could not find it. Thank you so much and I will build a shorter cable ad try that as well. Thank you.

Josh
 
What's the alarm when the program reaches M30? The old controllers don't like certain codes (like G94 as you found out) but M30 should be fine.

About converting to USB, there's a lot of floppy-to-USB converters available on ebay that may work. However from my understanding they still limit you to a filesize limit of 1.44 MB on your USB flashdrive regardless of the machine's memory. I don't have any firsthand experience with them though, so I'm just going off what I read online. Also there's a LOT of converters out there so they not all work the same. You'll have to research it..
 
Glad you got it working. As far as speed goes, look at/change settings 11-14 and 37(computer settings need to match). Most likely it was alarming on M30 due to no % symbol at end of program?
 
Pmack and YdnaD,
I did have the % symbol at the beginning and end. It alarmed on M30 when it was in drip feed for whatever reason. After You taught me how to save it to memory I ran the program successfully and all was good. So I decided to edit the program in MDI and put M30 back in...... Worked like it should and returned to the beginning of the program ready to go again. Baby steps I guess.... maybe I had an extra character in there I don't know I literally sent the file well over 50 times yesterday with varying success having to restart the machine, PC and software trying to find the sweet combination of baud rates and restarts. Today, I did not change anything from where I left off. It loaded perfect the first time after I received your suggestion and I was able to save. I have turned things on and off randomly through out the day and it has all worked great every time....... One of those deals I guess. Figured Id sleep on it and post on the forum in the morning and see what a new day brings and sure enough everything fell into place today. Thank you again for helping out. That was a big step for me to just cut some air today I have some more cosmetic things I want to get done on the machine and hopefully sling some chips soon. I guess ill stick with rs-232 for now and see what kind of consistency I get before I pursue USB or other options.

Josh
 
ahh good to hear. Those weird errors may depend on the exact computer program being used to save the file, since some word processor programs will add "invisible" characters inside text documents.

I'll say this, floppy drive is a last resort, but RS232 is definitely easier than floppy disks. The USB conversions may be convenient but it's probably up to you whether it's easier than just uploading it through the RS232.
 
Punch "list prog", type the program number in the control and push "recv rs232" button. You should have a % symbol at the beginning and end of the program. Next line after % should be a matching "OXXXXX" number in your program. It should drop right into memory.

Or, you can just highlight "ALL" in the list of programs and hit RECV-RS232
The O number on top of your program will register it under that number.

One thing to watch out with that though is the O# will overwrite any program which is already registered under that #.
 
I run a baud rate of 9600 over a 50’ RS232 cable for communications on my ‘94 VF2. A 600 baud rate seems painfully sloooww. It could also be causing trouble with your control “timing out” in the middle of sending and receiving programs.
 
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