Replacing elderly Anilam 1100 control system on vertical mill

[Neale]

Had another look at the machine.

Spindle motor is driven by Mitsubishi VFD but not using variable speed as there is a continuously-variable pulley drive (plus back gear) on the mill. Still thinking about whether it's worth using electronic speed control as there's no tool changer so setting speed manually at the same time as manual tool change isn't a big deal. No big issue either way - it's only another cable.

Servo motors are badged Anilam (well, one of them has a barely-legible label). Brushed dc. Label has spec for tacho output but don't know if there is a resolver or encoder. I've seen an article about updating a similar system which used an encoder but I've no idea how standardised these systems are.

Need to update controller anyway but servo options are new dc drives (CNCdrive?) assuming that there are encoders fitted, costing around £300, or new ac servos plus drivers for around £750. Needs adaptor plate or similar to fit machine but all new technology, low technical risk, and if it all comes from SZGH, it's more-or-less pre-configured from the factory complete with cables.

To date, SZGH have been very quick with supplying manuals and quotation. Can't see from first look at manual if you can use limit switches as home switches but I can ask them. Only one upper limit and one lower limit switch input so all axes share these, which is why I'm not sure about home switches - there might be some other inputs for these but still decoding Chinglish for those...

It's not my machine or my money that's being spent although I would tend to favour the all-new setup. If it were my machine, I would probably spend a bit more time on investigation but this machine belongs to someone who wants to use it, not turn it into a project!

[JAZZCNC]

Servo motors are badged Anilam (well, one of them has a barely-legible label). Brushed dc. Label has spec for tacho output but don't know if there is a resolver or encoder. I've seen an article about updating a similar system which used an encoder but I've no idea how standardised these systems are.

The Anilim Motors I have used 10000ppr encoders with Tacho but single-ended. They connect to the rotor with a 1/4" shaft which screws into the end of the rotor, the encoder then clamps to the shaft fastened with a grub screw, they sit on little slotted spring steel upstands which fasten to the motor plate and allow it to be adjusted.
I've replaced the encoders with differential 2500ppr quadrature encoders but these came with 6mm hole so removed the pin and turned them down on lathe. Simple and easy upgrade.

To date, SZGH have been very quick with supplying manuals and quotation. Can't see from first look at manual if you can use limit switches as home switches but I can ask them. Only one upper limit and one lower limit switch input so all axes share these, which is why I'm not sure about home switches - there might be some other inputs for these but still decoding Chinglish for those...

No I believe you can only wire Limits in series which go to L+ and L-, the home switches go to the X0, Y0, Z0 inputs.

[Neale]

My friend has ordered a pallet-load of kit from SZGH. He has organised someone to make up adaptor plates for the new AC servos, to replace the SEM motors. It's a few hundred quid more than using the SZGH 1000mdb controller with new DC drives and existing motors but it should be simpler to put together - probably not the route I would have taken if it were my own machine but he wants to be up and running with minimum fuss and I don't want another project. I have my own mill to convert one day...

I've been through the SZGH manuals and while they are not exactly perfect English, to date they seem pretty good. You aren't going to learn how to build a CNC machine from scratch with them but if you know what you are doing it seems ok.

We'll have to sort out details like adding home switches, incoming mains switching, stuff like that, but nothing too complicated, I hope.

[JAZZCNC]

My friend has ordered a pallet-load of kit from SZGH. He has organised someone to make up adaptor plates for the new AC servos, to replace the SEM motors. It's a few hundred quid more than using the SZGH 1000mdb controller with new DC drives and existing motors but it should be simpler to put together - probably not the route I would have taken if it were my own machine but he wants to be up and running with minimum fuss and I don't want another project. I have my own mill to convert one day...

I've been through the SZGH manuals and while they are not exactly perfect English, to date they seem pretty good. You aren't going to learn how to build a CNC machine from scratch with them but if you know what you are doing it seems ok.

We'll have to sort out details like adding home switches, incoming mains switching, stuff like that, but nothing too complicated, I hope.

Well so far I'm very satisfied with SZGH and the manual isn't that bad after you have read it a few times. It also makes more sense when you have the controller in front of you.
Prep him that while the controller is set up to some degree by SZGH he will still have to play with some settings and he will 99% need to tune the servos to the drives when on the machine. This cannot be done off the machine.

[Neale]

Thanks, Dean - I was expecting to do that. As long as the default tuning parameters are near enough, I expect that I can muddle through that process. I do have a reasonable idea what P and I parameters do in a control system so as long as we don't make big changes and keep testing, we'll get there. This project is a bit simpler than yours anyway as we don't have tool changers or spindle servo drives to cope with.

I expect that fitting and wiring home switches shouldn't be a major exercise, but the existing machine has single limit switches on each axis with operating ramps (it uses roller-operated microswitches) at each end. I need to check if the controller is going to be happy with connecting the string of limit switches to both + and - inputs - might confuse it to get simultaneous max and min limit inputs. I'm going to be reading manuals for the next few weeks, I guess.

Muzzer - thanks also for your comments which have given useful background info. If I were doing this for myself I might well have looked into reusing the existing motors with those CNCdrive drivers, at least after checking that the motors did have encoders fitted. Given that there is already a suitable DC power supply in there, this might not have been a major exercise. However, the machine is in someone else's workshop 10 miles away so keeping it simple is key here.

We might end up with a pile of bits for eBay to sell as spares, so there is a chance to recoup some of the money spent.

[Neale]

The kit from SZGH has arrived and I have set it all up, spread thinly across the floor, and it all seems to work as expected. Can run gcode, motors turn, etc. All seems quite well put together, cables well-labeled, and the only gotcha when first switched on was that the polarity of the estop signal from the MPG was wrong - you had to hit the estop button to make the machine work! Soon fixed, and I think I even have the "steps per" settings cracked for the 5TPI ballscrews (no, not quite 5mm!) and 2:1 reduction. Now waiting for someone else to get the mechanicals sorted (new control box to be mounted, etc) and servos installed. They need a mounting plate and probably existing pulleys rebored to suit but that bit's not my job!

In the meantime, I contacted SZGH about servo tuning software and I was sent - very promptly - the appropriate code. Installs and runs OK, I think - but it's all in Chinese and there's no English version, according to Mike-the-engineer. Any thoughts?

[Duha]

I have just finished somethink almost identical. Replacing old Anilam Crusader with the same controls. New motors new drivers and the SZGH 1000CNC MDb controler.

[Neale]

Do you have it up and running? We are still waiting for the guy making the motor mounting plates before we start assembling everything in its new control cabinet (the old one, modified a bit). By coincidence, I had a video-conference with the owner of this machine this afternoon, running through things like how to load gcode, checking that we were using a suitable post-processor in Fusion 360, how to set work coordinates, things like that. He is not that familiar with using CNC yet as he had not really been able to run the machine with the old Anilam controller as he never found a PP that generated valid gcode for it - there were always some odd gcode lines that it did not like - so he was reassured that we could take output from F360 and actually get it to turn the servos! Not a lot more we can do until the electronics is fitted in the cabinet and the motors are in place.

I'm still wondering about servo tuning as I only have this Chinese language version. Occasionally just running the servos on the bench they trip out with a "position exceeded" error but this seems likely to be because they are unloaded at the moment and the tuning is probably wrong. Have you been able (or needed) to do any servo tuning?

[Duha]

Do you have it up and running? We are still waiting for the guy making the motor mounting plates before we start assembling everything in its new control cabinet (the old one, modified a bit). By coincidence, I had a video-conference with the owner of this machine this afternoon, running through things like how to load gcode, checking that we were using a suitable post-processor in Fusion 360, how to set work coordinates, things like that. He is not that familiar with using CNC yet as he had not really been able to run the machine with the old Anilam controller as he never found a PP that generated valid gcode for it - there were always some odd gcode lines that it did not like - so he was reassured that we could take output from F360 and actually get it to turn the servos! Not a lot more we can do until the electronics is fitted in the cabinet and the motors are in place.

I'm still wondering about servo tuning as I only have this Chinese language version. Occasionally just running the servos on the bench they trip out with a "position exceeded" error but this seems likely to be because they are unloaded at the moment and the tuning is probably wrong. Have you been able (or needed) to do any servo tuning?

Yes all up and runnig.
I had to change the max speed for G00 movement as it was set way to high in the controler and also the acceleration/deceleration. Than slight adjustment on steps per/mm values.
But all that took no longer than 1hour.
The programing/control is very easy mind you i have a 20 years of experience with many many controlers. At the moment i program it at the panel. Very shortly i will need to use CAM so iam going to have to find a post processor that suit or find one close enough and adjust acordingly to suit this controller.
If you need any help just let me know and i ll try my best to help with what i learned upto now.

How can i upload any photos or videos?
I would show you the way i have made the mounts.
Cheers Petr

[Muzzer]

I made a Fusion 360 post processor for my Newker 990 which is likely to be close to what you need. If you don't have anything else, you could try that out. These Newker / Newkye / SZGH controllers seem to share a lot of DNA including the G codes.