Low cost digital scope
- Thread starter xstamp
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Rickharris
Senior Member
Nope I am going mechanical and asking for a lathe, around £365 <A href='http://www.chesteruk.net/store/conquest_lathe.htm' Target=_Blank>External Web Link</a> walking robots here we come!
As a passing thought we have fairly good CNC facilities at school and it supprises me that no one has ( As far as I know) attacked a CNC Picaxe project.
I have in the back of my mind a simple approach where you draw your outline, on a CAD system or by hand, print out full size and have a follower system where you pass a pointer over the drawing following the lines, a suitable interface drives a router/dremel/X-Y table via stepper motors or similar to provide the CAM side and cut the material.
This removes the "complex software" needed to generate G code and the subsequent interpretation so should bring it within a Picaxe range.
I suppose if you wanted to make multi copies you could cut a shallow groove rather than all the way through and then us that as a guide for your pointer to make many more identical copies.
Cheap CAD/CAM and could apply to a number of machine types - Kind of a universal copy lathe.
there is quite a lot of open source ideas around at present - fabricator type rapid prototyping and CAD/CAM perhaps members of this forum would like to cooperate on a Picaxe CAM project. (got to do something with my new lathe (Santa!)
Edited by - rickharris on 25/11/2006 13:27:52
Edited by - rickharris on 25/11/2006 13:29:22
As a passing thought we have fairly good CNC facilities at school and it supprises me that no one has ( As far as I know) attacked a CNC Picaxe project.
I have in the back of my mind a simple approach where you draw your outline, on a CAD system or by hand, print out full size and have a follower system where you pass a pointer over the drawing following the lines, a suitable interface drives a router/dremel/X-Y table via stepper motors or similar to provide the CAM side and cut the material.
This removes the "complex software" needed to generate G code and the subsequent interpretation so should bring it within a Picaxe range.
I suppose if you wanted to make multi copies you could cut a shallow groove rather than all the way through and then us that as a guide for your pointer to make many more identical copies.
Cheap CAD/CAM and could apply to a number of machine types - Kind of a universal copy lathe.
there is quite a lot of open source ideas around at present - fabricator type rapid prototyping and CAD/CAM perhaps members of this forum would like to cooperate on a Picaxe CAM project. (got to do something with my new lathe (Santa!)
Edited by - rickharris on 25/11/2006 13:27:52
Edited by - rickharris on 25/11/2006 13:29:22
Nice. Hey, save up a few more pennies and get a second hand Myford. And while you're at it get an old Bridgeport too!
CNC. I think this did get a mention a while ago when I'd asked about one of those kits from Milford for pcb drilling.
Needless to say, the thread went off at a lot of tangents - just like this eh?
I think the summary was that it would be a helluva lot of hardwork to get something good and tough and reliable and reproducible etc etc. The industrial stuff tends to be a bit tougher than a ten quid Chinese stepper.
Edited by - Dippy on 25/11/2006 13:37:46
CNC. I think this did get a mention a while ago when I'd asked about one of those kits from Milford for pcb drilling.
Needless to say, the thread went off at a lot of tangents - just like this eh?
I think the summary was that it would be a helluva lot of hardwork to get something good and tough and reliable and reproducible etc etc. The industrial stuff tends to be a bit tougher than a ten quid Chinese stepper.
Edited by - Dippy on 25/11/2006 13:37:46
If you want an oscilliscope, and don't mind being tied to a laptop to use it, you can get one even cheaper at Parallax.com
http://www.parallax.com/detail.asp?product_id=28014
For about 10 quid more, you can get a training course and test bits. That's $139.95 USD for the unit, or $159.95 USD for the Understanding Signals Parts and Text (Includes the Parallax USB Oscilloscope).
Wreno
http://www.parallax.com/detail.asp?product_id=28014
For about 10 quid more, you can get a training course and test bits. That's $139.95 USD for the unit, or $159.95 USD for the Understanding Signals Parts and Text (Includes the Parallax USB Oscilloscope).
Wreno
Rickharris
Senior Member
Dippy - Actually the 2 Boxford Routers we have at school use fairly small steppers geared down by belt drive to ball screws.
Several sites show fairly basic setup that they claim to be workable especially with wood or plastics.
Several sites show fairly basic setup that they claim to be workable especially with wood or plastics.
Come on gents, what do you expect for that money?
I use Tektronix myself. An 'entry level' Tektronix will cost £800*.
I was just 'asking' for others as it seems a reasonable 'entry level' scope. Though as it is Beijings Best I would wait for others to try it first. And, needless to say, I would be paranoid about warranty on personal imports (i.e. warranty? forget it.)
You ought to become UK distributor.
*Yes, you've probably seen them for £500 but I haven't.
PS. Boxford is great stuff (well it certainly was years ago at least) - I'll bet the steppers cost a bit more than a tenner. Our Bridgeport mill uses chuffing great stuff.
Edited by - Dippy on 25/11/2006 17:04:59
I use Tektronix myself. An 'entry level' Tektronix will cost £800*.
I was just 'asking' for others as it seems a reasonable 'entry level' scope. Though as it is Beijings Best I would wait for others to try it first. And, needless to say, I would be paranoid about warranty on personal imports (i.e. warranty? forget it.)
You ought to become UK distributor.
*Yes, you've probably seen them for £500 but I haven't.
PS. Boxford is great stuff (well it certainly was years ago at least) - I'll bet the steppers cost a bit more than a tenner. Our Bridgeport mill uses chuffing great stuff.
Edited by - Dippy on 25/11/2006 17:04:59
Rickharris
Senior Member
Everything costs - we just replace the router spindle motor at £240 - I can get one in B&Q for £30. - But then again it wouldn't fit.
I still think there is some milage in the concept.
I still think there is some milage in the concept.
modeng2000
Member
A good use for Picaxe would be to interface between the digital vernier calipers which are quite cheap these days and can be fitted to X,Y miling machine tables or a lathe and a dedicated display rather than having to use a computer.
John
John
modeng2000
Member
Yes, it could be that the display would not change quick enough to show the true reading. By the time it did, the wanted dimension could have been passed. I don't have an unmachining option in my workshop!
John
John
Exactly John. However, if you designed a PICAXE interface that could directly read the X-Y-Z displacement transducer then you'd have a better chance.
Someone, some years ago, designed a thing which was basically a multi-turn rotary pot with a pulley and string for displacement - it never caught on. (I'm sure there's a pun somewhere).
This would be a lovely project if you could get it to work. BUT its a darned tough project to get to work such that you would TRUST it. And (just to pre-empt another digression) relying on steppers with no displacement feedback for a project like this would be asking for trouble.
If you can get a chance, look at the proper machines - some are (I hate to say it ) awesome. At a cost of course!
Anyway, as this has now gone completely OT thats the last I'll aay.
Someone, some years ago, designed a thing which was basically a multi-turn rotary pot with a pulley and string for displacement - it never caught on. (I'm sure there's a pun somewhere).
This would be a lovely project if you could get it to work. BUT its a darned tough project to get to work such that you would TRUST it. And (just to pre-empt another digression) relying on steppers with no displacement feedback for a project like this would be asking for trouble.
If you can get a chance, look at the proper machines - some are (I hate to say it ) awesome. At a cost of course!
Anyway, as this has now gone completely OT thats the last I'll aay.
Anyone wanting to interface to digital verniers and chinese scales (for lathes and mills) should check out the following sites...
http://www.shumatech.com
This bloke offers a kit to build a full blown DRO and all the schematics and code are available free.
Check out this page for a discussion on the protocol used in chinese scales...
http://www.shumatech.com/support/chinese_scales.htm
Also, this one offers an interface to connect the scales to a normal PC such as a laptop (again free schematics and code)...
http://www.yadro.de/index.html
I personally don't think the PICAXE will be fast enough for the job but if someone has done it I'd be very intereseted myself.
Chris.
http://www.shumatech.com
This bloke offers a kit to build a full blown DRO and all the schematics and code are available free.
Check out this page for a discussion on the protocol used in chinese scales...
http://www.shumatech.com/support/chinese_scales.htm
Also, this one offers an interface to connect the scales to a normal PC such as a laptop (again free schematics and code)...
http://www.yadro.de/index.html
I personally don't think the PICAXE will be fast enough for the job but if someone has done it I'd be very intereseted myself.
Chris.
inglewoodpete
Senior Member
I still want Santa to bring me a DSO of some sort. Does anyone have his address?
I fear it will be socks and jocks again this year...
I fear it will be socks and jocks again this year...
flyingnunrt
Senior Member
North Pole I think Mate.
modeng2000
Member
Cruiser,
Many thanks for the link to Shumatec.
This could be just what I have been looking for.
John
Many thanks for the link to Shumatec.
This could be just what I have been looking for.
John
modeng2000
Member
Cruiser,
I thought you might like to know that the link for Shuma Tech DRO readouts was just the thing. I have ordered a system for my milling machine.
John
I thought you might like to know that the link for Shuma Tech DRO readouts was just the thing. I have ordered a system for my milling machine.
John
Sounds excellent John. I think the Shuma Tech DRO looks great and has all the features you could ever need. I want to put one on my lathe but the cost of the scales is putting me off at the moment particularly the long 36" scale for bed.
Good luck with that project.
Chris
Brisbane Australia.
Good luck with that project.
Chris
Brisbane Australia.