Drag chain and switch type.

Hi everyone.

I have just finally got my machine cutting.

Though it is working very nicely, I feel that i will need to add some drag chains to the gantry (Y in my case) and Z axis. I have been looking at some on ebay and am not sure which to get (some look a bit crap).
At this point I don`t want to re-wire everything so need to be able to open the chain and slide in the wires and coolant tubes. The Z axis has quite a lot of wiring and tubes so it needs to be quite fat as well.
Currently I have controlled the wires with a length of bungee from the ceiling and some zippy ties.

Just wondering if there is a go-to brand or type for these chains, or any other recommendations or experience with them ?

Similar question with the switches really.
When i bought the machine it had one switch on the Z and one on the Y axis, oddly these were wired into one port on the BOB along with the E stop switch. I have removed the switches from the BOB for now and just left the E stop functioning.

I plan to use a spare breakout board and wire 5 limit switches to it then into the UC300 eth. So one each end of the X and Y and one at the top of the Z. Then set up homing on the same switches.

The old Switches are roller lever micro switches. However i went on RS components to look for `limit switches` and found an enormous range of types and prices. Any recommendations?
I am cutting wood mostly so no coolant splashing about but obviously dust.


Thanks

Ollie

Hi,

I don't think there is a go-to for this (energy chain) and people just source it from wherever, you can get it all over ebay but keep an eye out as some don't allow you to get the cables in like your after without threading it in, this version has quite good feedback: 15x30mm Black Semi Enclosed Towline Cable Chain Drag Carrier Track

Igus make a very nice one with quite a few options: Energy Chains Overview e2.1

and I know a few of our members have used the one available from Motedis a UK company: https://www.motedis.co.uk/shop/table...hp?table_id=52, if you let them know your coming from mycncuk you may also get a discount :wink:

Re Switches:
Most are using proximity switches/sensors rather than micro switches now days, below is a video showing some differences so you can get a better idea on how they work and how you can use them, 1 at each end of an axis with a moving "target" to trigger...simple's !

https://youtu.be/O1kOh_opZzA

and a demo showing 2 wired in parallel:

https://youtu.be/ahsjIgD5AWY

Hi Ollie
Try These, Boyan seems to think there the mutt's nut's
http://www.cable-tracks.com/
Regards
Mike

Cheers for the replies.

I have further questions....


It looks like proximity sensors are a good way to go, no moving parts to go wrong. from what I gather though I will need an extra 24v power supply for these. Why so high a voltage ? I think the switches on my machine were just powered off the 5v BOB

.
Can you get 5v ones? Seems a bit of a pain to have to step down the signal to 5v with resistors etc.

I am also a bit puzzled by the purpose of wiring them in parallel. I guess for just stopping the machine in an emergency it doesn`t matter but if I want to use them for homing won`t I need to tell which one is which. I have 5 inputs on the spare
BOB so one each should be ok.

Is normally closed better so if something breaks they trigger ?

Are this type Ok https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TL-Q5MC2-...frcectupt=true
They look easier to mount than the round threaded ones.

As for the energy chains those ARKO ones do look posh, and a good price too. I will investigate the postage / customs implications and see how they compare to the others. I like the little separator bits to guide the cables within the chain, very neat.

Thanks

Ollie

Hi Ollie,

The best way to go is using both switches wired in series with the estop and sensors for homing/soft limits. 24V is the industrial standard as it is more resistant to noise/interference/contact oxidation/etc.

You do not need to step down the signal if using NPN sensors and your controller allows you to use NPN.

Having the sensors wired to separate inputs allows you to home all axes simultaneously. No other major benefits.

The safety limit switches need to be wired NC, for the sensors it doesn't matter.

I have no experience with the no-name sensors as I was using only expensive ones. You can use one sensor for each axis if you mount them on the moving part while having two end-targets.

I have used only Igus cable chains. They are not the cheapest but very good industrial quality.