CNCdrive UC300ETH Mach3 plugin is now available

[1Jumper10]

Im trying to think of all the equipment on my router that is not opto isolated that i have connected directly to my UC4400ETH. The servos are, as I recall the vfd is, so I believe the only thing that leaves is three sensors and a DAC. And I think I remember reading in the uc400 eth manual that's the inputs can sink a maximum of 20 milliamps? And I was careful to make sure that the power converter for the switches and the DAC all share a common ground with the uc400 eth. My point is, I didn't use a breakout board. The breakout board I used was simply an expansion of the connections on the uc400 eth. I could be wrong, but I don't think that a breakout board is absolutely necessary. At least mine's working fine without it right now.

[Ger21]

Still need BOB's or Isolation Lee they MB only provides headers which arent Optoisolated.

One thing that baffels me with this Company is they provide good hardware that is stable and with decent software/backup provide it on Motherboard with headers but then cripple it by not providing isolated I/O system that can handle 24V.

It wouldn't take much more effort or cost to add this and make it much more usable piece of hardware. I would use them in heart beat on machines I build if didn't require BOB and ran from 24V not 5V.

Shame.!!!

They designed and built a prototype two years ago, but had to shelf it at the time, as they were too busy working on their software and their ethernet boards. Hopefully at some point they'll get back to it.



If enough people ask them for it, maybe they'll get to it quicker.

[Ger21]

What's your hardware setup Gerry ?

I'm confused, so do you need to buy a motherboard or dose it come with the one in the pic and shown in the manual?

I think that it depends where you buy it from.
CNC4PC sells the motherboards separately. I think if you buy it from CNC Drive it comes with their 5 port motherboard.

Currently, it's sitting on my desk with a $5 chinese breakout board, plugged into the M44 motherboard. I'm just using it for testing and screen design work right now.

Not sure what breakout boards I'll use on my router, as it's still a year away. Maybe the C62, and an M23 for additional 24V inputs.
Or two C10's and an M23, which is a lot cheaper.

It's really flexible, and lets you do pretty much whatever you want.

I'll be running a mix of four DMM 400w AC servos and two steppers.

[JAZZCNC]

I thought 24v inputs was not about being "professional" but was about being far less susceptible to EM noise, thus yielding a more robust system?

100% correct and just how it should be done. 5V is ok running clocks.

[A_Camera]

I had a read through the manual as well. I would have liked to see little things like polarities on the analogue outputs and inputs. I don't expect to have to measure this kind of thing before wiring it into a system. This was the wiring manual, I think. I assumed that another doc would talk about configuration in Mach3, port and pin numbering, etc. This is the kind of thing that's obvious to someone who has used the device before but can be a real time-waster first time you meet one. Does look an interesting device, though, and if I weren't building in a CSMIO I might have considered one - plus the extra boards for opto-isolation, etc.

Did you miss to read page 18?

All output pins are TTL level with 0/5Volts output Voltage levels and an absolute maximum of +-20mAmps current per output channel. All inputs are TTL compatible and accept 0/5Volts Voltage levels.

Then on page 19:

The board also has an IDC16 analogue I/O port with 2 analog inputs and 2 analogue 0-10V outputs.

Isn't that clear enough? I am sure it is pretty obvious which polarities inputs/outputs are since they are referenced to GND, so what exactly are you missing? A "+" sign in front of every one of them? It

The Mach3 plugin is like two days old (officially)... the manual was written long BEFORE, but if you have questions, I am sure they can answer you, and tell you to have a look in the UC300USB manual. It is just a parallel port converter for crying out loud! What kind of help do you need? It is pretty well explained in the Mach3 manual how to configure it, and the Internet is full of information about it as well.

I can't understand this whining about the extra BOB needed. Is really £5 so much money, or what is the problem?

[JAZZCNC]

I could be wrong, but I don't think that a breakout board is absolutely necessary. At least mine's working fine without it right now.

No it's not absolutely necessary and it will work fine right upto the point what evers connected to it doesn't. Then it releases the magic smoke smoke.!

[A_Camera]

Im trying to think of all the equipment on my router that is not opto isolated that i have connected directly to my UC4400ETH. The servos are, as I recall the vfd is, so I believe the only thing that leaves is three sensors and a DAC. And I think I remember reading in the uc400 eth manual that's the inputs can sink a maximum of 20 milliamps? And I was careful to make sure that the power converter for the switches and the DAC all share a common ground with the uc400 eth. My point is, I didn't use a breakout board. The breakout board I used was simply an expansion of the connections on the uc400 eth. I could be wrong, but I don't think that a breakout board is absolutely necessary. At least mine's working fine without it right now.

...which is exactly why you need a BOB. The BOB will provide you with optically isolated inputs which you can drive with 24V and buffered outputs which can sinc more than 20mA.

[A_Camera]

I thought 24v inputs was not about being "professional" but was about being far less susceptible to EM noise, thus yielding a more robust system?

Again, that's taken care of by a £5 BOB.

[JAZZCNC]

I can't understand this whining about the extra BOB needed. Is really £5 so much money, or what is the problem?

It's not about the cost it's the fact it uses 5V and all the instabilty that comes with it.! Anyone who's had noise issues will know all too well why 5V I/O is best avoided for stable system.

[Ger21]

Here's a preview of my upcoming UCCNC Screenset.
Similar to the Mach3 2010 Screenset, but more modern, and more features and user control.