Makino sp43

Hey all.

I have a Makino sp43, have been running it for several years, purchased used.

I have had little problems when it comes to machining with this machine until now. Two problems:

1.) Tapers have suddenly become slightly inaccurate. Seems like I need to adjust the "Z" of the machine or something similar. I have no idea how to adjust z axis or table height in this machine. I do not have a jig and the machine has been extremely accurate up until now. I can only relate to Charmilles which I have been running for 25 years where the machine Z is automatically picked up in a jig by the machine doing a routine of touches at a specified angle/taper. Anything like this for my sp43?

2.) Well, slow. Can't get the machine to cut at an appropriate speed. In the past as contacts wear, I rotate and clean and that pretty much takes care of it. Now, wire breaks occur on the most conservative of push and speeds are probably in the 50% range. Wondering if power cables need to be looked at or?

TIA
'

Matt

Hi mignoffo:
You have a fairly long diagnostic road ahead of you to get to the bottom of what's wrong.
The way forward is to methodically evaluate and correct all of the things that are easy to address so you c an take them off the table immediately.

So start with the simple things first.
Are your power contacts good?
Is your water good?
Are your discharge cables good?
etc etc.

Once you've eliminated all that really basic maintenance stuff, you can get deeper into diagnostic stuff if it's still not working correctly.
If you like electronic diagnosis and are good at it, you can take a stab at it, but without schematics, you'll have a hard road, so I personally would bite the bitter pill and bring in a factory tech, pay what it costs and get it solved.

But do all the basic maintenance first so you can be sure it's not something super simple.

With regard to your taper inaccuracy issue: again it's multifactorial, and without a disciplined diagnostic plan you'll be shooting in the dark.
First find out if the wire is leaning...you say you have no squaring jig or block...how are you squaring the wire currently?
Next you need to find out if it's consistent over different heights and right to left and front to back.

Check some basic things next:
See if your diamond guides are in good shape.
Are you using the proper wire at the correct tension.
How are you calibrating it...do you know the procedure for YOUR machine?
Do you know what was supplied by the manufacturer for this model.
Every machine will have something... every machine operator has to deal with this sooner or later so unless it's been lost it should be around

Check to see if the U and V axes are moving correctly when you command them...if they're not the same in both directions and the same on both axes there's a problem in the UV motion system.

As before, once you've satisfied yourself that all the obvious things are checked; call your tech and get it sorted.

Saying"it won't cut tapers accurately," and" it's breaking the wire" and "it's cutting slow" is impossible to advise you from.
You've got to be a lot more specific than that before anyone can even take a guess at what might be going on.

Cheers

Marcus
Implant Mechanix • Design & Innovation > HOME
Vancouver Wire EDM -- Wire EDM Machining

I appreciate the response. You are unfamiliar with this machine though, I guess I'm looking for someone with experience with this particular machine. Forget the 2nd I'll take care of the cutting condition issue. Mostly I'm trying to tackle the first issue as that is the easiest problem. I just want to know how the Makino knows where table zero is and where the upper guide is....and how to calibrate this. I align guides with fixtures I made (or on workpiece itself if need be) by touching top and bottom and manually zeroing u/v which is how I align the wire for all my machines (Agie/Charmilles/Makino).

Mignoffo,

My name is Brian Pfluger, and I am the EDM Product Manager at Makino. As Marcus has stated, there is a process of elimination and a number of different areas to look at to ensure everything on the machine is in proper mechanical working order. It does sound like you have a few issues going on, but below are a few items to check. Could you also please verify that you have the Training Workbook and Maintenance Training manuals with your machine, and these manuals contain a lot of helpful information and maintenance instruction procedures. I hope this helps!


1)Taper Accuracy:

a. You can control the Taper Planes using a G95 command in your program, or you can go to the SETUP page – NC Settings - Taper Data screen and enter this information in manually. If you prefer the G-Code method, the command will be  G95 P_____ Q_____ Z#5015 - the "P is your Program Plane and relates everything back to the Table Height (Zero Line Table). The Program Plane tells the machine where in the Z-Axis you have programmed your part and where you need to hold the program size. The "Q" value is the Sub-Plane, and this tells the machine the height and (+ or -) direction of your taper from the Program Plane. The "Z" value is the actual height of the Z-Axis, which uses this data to compensate for the true fulcrum point of the wire against the Wire Guides. The Z#5015 is a Macro callout that automatically records and loads the actual Z-Axis position once you hit CYCLE START.

b. You should also verify that both the Upper and Lower Heads of the machine are square and in proper alignment. You can do this by removing the Flush Cup Cover (5 Phillips screws) and indicating across the top or bottom surface of the ceramic head body.

c. You should also verify that the V-Guides are installed correctly. You will want to use an indicator and verify the verticality of both the V-Guide and Presser Guide (guide need to be open to do this). You also want to verify the step level between the V-Guide and Presser in the closed position and make sure that their hi-points are in-line with each other. Both these measurements need to be done for the Upper and Lower Heads.

d. You can also perform Taper Calibration, which requires making and measuring a few test cuts. This method is a bit old-school, but it does work very well but can be time consuming. The new Makino Wire EDM’s now come with a new Jig that automatically performs both Vertical Alignment and Taper Calibration.



2)Slow Cutting:
a. It sounds like the Lower Head Brass Energizing Block is toast! Please fully remove the Lower Energizer and inspect it for wear. Does it look like the Energizer Plate has a large area that has been EDM’ed and damaged by the locking mechanism? If yes, then the machine was run with the Lower Energizer Block not locked down (it was run loose), which would result in this type of damage.

b. If my assumption above is correct, the Lower Energizer is not providing proper contact and power to the wire due to the damaged Lower Head Energizing Block. When this occurs, the bulk of the machining power will be coming from the Upper Energizer, and this will over tax the Upper Energizer and you will see heavy wear on it within 10-20 hours of machining. If you do see damage on the Lower Energizer, the Brass Energizing Block inside the Lower Head (on the left side) will need to be replaced. It is probably best to contact Makino Technical Support (1-888-625-4664), and they can help you with the part and procedure to replace this on your own.

- Brian

I typed a response and it disappeared into limbo....

Thanx for the response, programming and wire alignment are no problem. I've been running this machine for several years with no accuracy problems, including tapers over 10^ with tight tolerances...So the new problem is I just want to calibrate machine zero/table zero....



My sp43 has round guides, is that a retrofit? because parameters are much different than manual states they should be...for example.

My machine parameter #670 (table zero) currently reads .64703 including decimal point whereas manual states not to use decimal point. my current depth from table to top of lower guide is .51700" if I remove the decimal and add 03543 as the manual states I come out to .55243 which is off by way too much for me to change ~0.095" in z depth?

Parameter 5065 is currently at 0.0067", measured distance was 0.0162" sounds a bit more legit.


We have had the machine run with loose energizer and caused problems may be contributing to machining issue, but really this problem is secondary at the mooment, I just want my taper accuracy back!

Thanx!

Matt

Matt,

I don't know your back ground, but if it were me I would figure
out the charmilles jig and squareness method and simulate it
on your Makino - it's just a simple matter of geometry.

I would think your makino has a method of storing measured values,
so make all of the required geometric measurements and then just
calculate the resulting axis coordinates. The jigs are not expensive.

You should be able to get started by looking at the values used by
your Charmilles to figure out the geometry. Once you understand
the Geometry you can generalize it for different situations (like
the Charmilles does).

Draw out in CAD or on a piece of paper, all the coordinates for all
of the components (top and bottom heads, wire, and the Jig). You only
need to do it for the X axis as the process and geometry is the
same for the Y axis. Once you do this it will become clear what's
going on and what the process is.

Paul Hoffman

toolnuts said:

Matt,

I don't know your back ground, but if it were me I would figure
out the charmilles jig and squareness method and simulate it
on your Makino - it's just a simple matter of geometry.

I would think your makino has a method of storing measured values,
so make all of the required geometric measurements and then just
calculate the resulting axis coordinates. The jigs are not expensive.

You should be able to get started by looking at the values used by
your Charmilles to figure out the geometry. Once you understand
the Geometry you can generalize it for different situations (like
the Charmilles does).

Draw out in CAD or on a piece of paper, all the coordinates for all
of the components (top and bottom heads, wire, and the Jig). You only
need to do it for the X axis as the process and geometry is the
same for the Y axis. Once you do this it will become clear what's
going on and what the process is.

Paul Hoffman

Click to expand...

I like the way you think. I was locked into doing it the "right" way. Which seems impossible on this particular machine. Stored measurements for z/table make no sense whatsoever and do not correspond to any actual measurements on the machine. I suspect because this machine has round guides whereas the control for this machine is setup for v guides.

So I sort of took your advice, except just used trig/cad and a series of small test cuts at 5^. It did take me a few hours of dicking around because adjusting table height affected adjustment for Z height, but a little fine tuning back and forth and I am now cutting 5 degrees within roughly .00015" over a height of 1.875" That is fantastic AFAIC. I build molds so that is well within anything expected of me.

Thanx for the tip, it really got me moving in a different and correct direction.

Mignoffo,

It appears that you have identified a process to get you where you need to be, which is great!

The PICO Round Guide were a retrofit option for the SP43 machines, and as you have noted, the Parameters are a bit different from a machine configured with the split V-Guides. Parameters #670, 671, 674, and 5065 are used for the Guide Heights. Parameter 670 is for the Lower Guide Height, 671 is for the Upper Guide Height, 674 should be set to the same as 670 (used for the Vertical Alignment Jig), and 5065 is used as an adjustment parameter for 671.

There is a specific process for establishing the Guide Heights for the Round Guides, but this requires a simple Jig to make measurements from the Zero Line Table.

Have you ever contacted Makino Technical Support (1-888-625-4664)? They can provide the Guide Height procedure to you for your machine.

- Brian