Wiring a Corner finder and height control

[D-man]

OK after setting back to defaults (when the bit plunges) it says that the "Z axis is now Zeroed"

video uploading

[D-man]

Ok Setting back to defaults with 3mm clearance. still goes down.

http://youtu.be/dlAoPufx4ck

Second attempt, with clearance set to 20mm Goes up! but plunges too far when set to top of work piece.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jo4E...AUlD8w&index=2

Third attempt, works great with a 5.3 offset and same settings as above. go to zero and it just kisses the work piece

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wg7J...AUlD8w&index=1

i do have safe Z set in mach would that affect it (Back at home now)

[Ger21]

Sorry, I stepped out for a bit.

I will reset to default values and do another video for you Gerry with screen included

What had you changed? What you posted before were the defaults.

What is your Safe Z set to? Is it set to Machine Coordinates?

Third attempt, works great with a 5.3 offset and same settings as above. go to zero and it just kisses the work piece

Not great, as Z zero should be 5.3mm above the workpiece.

Leave the Material Offset unchecked until you get it to zero reliably without plunging. This just adds more complexity to the equation.

Second attempt, with clearance set to 20mm Goes up! but plunges too far when set to top of work piece.

Can you try this again, and tell me what the DRO says when it finishes? If your plate is 16mm, then it should finish 4mm above the plate, and the Z DRO should read +20.000

After probing, the macro sens a single G0 Z move to the clearance plane, which should be UP.

[Ger21]

After reading my manual and watching your videos a few more times, I've determined that the issue is operator error on your part.

Your plate thickness is 16mm. The bottom of the plate is Z = 0. Your clearance plane is Z=3, resulting in the tool plunging 13mm into the plate.

I'm still a bit confused about the time you had a material offset of 5.3mm, as Z zero should have been 5.3mm above the table???

[D-man]

Yeah its defiantly my fault. I just don't understand why after the second touch it goes down rather than up to clear.

You ain't even got time to quickly whip the plate from under it so it don't hit the plate.

[Ger21]

Yeah its defiantly my fault. I just don't understand why after the second touch it goes down rather than up to clear.

As I said:

Your plate thickness is 16mm. The bottom of the plate is Z = 0. Your clearance plane is Z=3, resulting in the tool plunging 13mm into the plate.

[D-man]

But shouldn't it rise 3 mm. To get the plate out and then drop 19 mm to Z 0 when goto zero is pressed or am I grasping this thing all wrong?

(16+3=19. Go to zero -19 in the positive direction)

And then for an example if an offset of say 5mm is set, then it would offset from Z zero 5mm

Is it possible that the plate is too thick for the settings/script? Reason i ask is when a clearance of 20mm is entered it then goes up. But then plunges too far

[Ger21]

Thanks firetrappe fpr helping to sort this out. I think we've got all our answers now.

But shouldn't it rise 3 mm. To get the plate out and then drop 19 mm to Z 0 when goto zero is pressed or am I grasping this thing all wrong?

(16+3=19. Go to zero -19 in the positive direction)

No, the Clearance Plane is not an offset amount. It's the Z level where all rapids are performed at, in Work Coordinates. The manual explains in a little more detail on what it should be set to (Page 11). It MUST be a larger value than the plate thickness. If your fixed plate is higher than your movable plate, the Clearance plane needs to be higher than that plate as well.

for starters my plate thickness is not 16mm! i cut a 5mm pocket where it sits on the corner of the workpiece!! so in actual fact it is 11mm!!

And now we know why the Material Offset was not set correctly.

Strangely enough that worked!

Not strange at all had you followed the instructions in the manual.

however, when i press "go to zero" the tool plunges into the material around 0.2mm

Because your plate is probably 10.8mm thick. Do you have a caliper or micrometer you can measure it with? Also, with such a large plate, it's important that it's perfectly flat, and is lying on a perfectly flat surface.

shall i use the "offset" to counter act that?

NO!!! If your plate thickness value is set correctly, your Z zero will be set correctly. Trust me, this works for thousands of other users.

Read the manual for an explanation of what the Material Offset can be used for.