[sortafast]

I am new to ownership of cnc equipment. Picked up a used Tree Journeyman 325 with a Dynapath Delta 20 control. Everything is in super nice shape on the mill, inside and out. But it has a DB25 RS232 port on the control. This is a bit dated and makes it difficult to find hardware and cables etc. So I have some options. First, I can get one of these. Its local, inexpensive and on paper, looks like it will work. Only concern is if the db29 to db9 adaptor is gtg, and that it won't add noise or cause other issues. Thoughts? Next idea would be to pull the db25 connector, fab up a new plate that could house a db9 connector, wire in a db9 plug and run a strait db9 cable. I would then have to get a db9 board for the desktop that I am going to dedicate to this machine. I don't think this would cause any issues but I am a little uncertain. I have the Control manual with the pin out for the cable so I am gtg there. Last option would be to make a new plate and jimmy rig some sort of USB jack into the side of the the control and just run a usb via some sort of to be determined adapter. I think this would be a nice option as I think it might add to the value if/when I sell the mill off. But it could also be the most potential to be problematic. Thoughts?

[wizard]

Successful RS232 connections require proper cables as you know. Two common cables are so called straight through and null modem. Which you will need I can't say. In fact machinery often ends up using weird connection for whatever reason. If you have a manual follow the directions.

[Al_The_Man]

I always use a 3 wire cable with the Hardware handshake pins jumpered at both ends.
It is very simple to buy the DB9/DB25 hardware and make one up.
Al.

[gblevy]

I don't know if this will help, but TabletKiosk today announced an all new Tablet PC that runs Windows7 with an integrated RS232 port.

Yes, of course we know that RS232 is an older technology. But we also know that some of our customers in various industries including laboratory automation, surveying and CNC manufacturing provide a continued demand for RS-232 I/O due to sustained use of very expensive but aging equipment.

Sahara Slate PC i500 Tablet PCs (2nd Generation) by TabletKiosk

As I am not too familiar with the CNC industry, I would be open to feedback from all forum members as to how they are currently solving RS232 challenges and if they have any issues using USB to serial converters.


Gail Levy
Director of Marketing
TabletKiosk

[The Swede]

What about this ? Highland DNC, LLC.. I think it looks interesting. Anyone with experiance ?

[sortafast]

I don't know if this will help, but TabletKiosk today announced an all new Tablet PC that runs Windows7 with an integrated RS232 port.

Yes, of course we know that RS232 is an older technology. But we also know that some of our customers in various industries including laboratory automation, surveying and CNC manufacturing provide a continued demand for RS-232 I/O due to sustained use of very expensive but aging equipment.

Sahara Slate PC i500 Tablet PCs (2nd Generation) by TabletKiosk

As I am not too familiar with the CNC industry, I would be open to feedback from all forum members as to how they are currently solving RS232 challenges and if they have any issues using USB to serial converters.


Gail Levy
Director of Marketing
TabletKiosk

While those are neat and all, they also cost about what I paid for my mill so its not a viable option. I can see it having its uses in the cnc realm though. I think a lot of folks with rs232 challenges just get a dedicated PC and throw a RS232 board into it or get some sort of usb adaptor, which is what I will be trying later today. So far between all my geek friends I have managed to get the dedicated computer going for $0 out of my pocket. I will just need an adaptor cable ($13 locally) or I will do some rewiring and put a DB9 RS232 port on the mill and get a db9 card for the pc and be done with it. For drip feeding or file transferring you need next to nothing computing power wise.

[Al_The_Man]

Pick up a small lap-top off ebay, such as IBM Thinkpad, can be picked up really cheap they have Floppy, RS232, PCMCI, CD, USB, RJ45, P.P. etc.
I picked one up like new for $50.00.
Takes up little room also.
Al.

[awander]

The 9-pin to 25-pin adapter will not cause any noise issues.

You could separate the "9-pin/25pin problem" from the "computer has no RS232 port problem".

A 9-pin (DE-9, NOT DB9) RS232 port installed in the computer could be used with an a adapter, just as the USB-to-serial product can.

[wizard]

Interestingly I was working on a communications problem at work today. That was USB to RS485/422 related so doesn't apply here. However there is a couple of things you can do in this situation that may make life easier. One is to work with good quality 9 pin to 9 pin cables. Air is a good idea to have both a straight through and a null modem cable in your repair kit. I have literally hundreds of different devices I need to connect to so I rely on a couple of cables and a whole bunch of adapters. The adapters are either purchased or fabricated by us.

In this case you will need a cable and a 9 pin to 25 pin adapter. The adapters can be purchased in a number of configurations but this leaves you with the problem of figuring out which one you need. Generally I make use of a breakout box so that I can see which pins transmit and receive are on. In the simplest of three wire interfaces, you want the transmit line (pin) of one port going to the receive pin of the other port and vis versa the common or signal ground goes to the opposite ground on the other device. Depending upon the interface you then may have to resolve hardware hand shaking issues. The hardware hand shaking may not be required or even implemented though, so you have to adapt to the hardware and software requirements.

A word or warning: in industrial situations it is possible for the commons at the computer and the machine controller to be at different potentials. This can be bad voodoo! Like in burn up a motherboard bad or just cause all sorts of communications grief bad. If you suspect this is an issue it is a very good idea to connect via an optically isolated device. Yes they cost more but are relatively cheap if you fry a motherboard.

Second prefer real UART based RS232 ports as opposed to many of the USB to RS-whatever adapters. Real RS232 ports are becoming very rare in today's marketplace but can be had in used computers or expansion cards. Many of the adapter chips for USB to RS-whatever are flaky as hell. If you are forced to go with a USB to RS-whatever adapter prefer adapters with FTDI chips inside.

Third make sure you are buying quality shielded cables.

Fourth when trying to work out a proper connection to a difficult port sometimes a soldering iron is needed. A breakout box can also be a big help.

Fifth if somebody has already worked out a connections scheme to a machine tool, save yourself some trouble and use that scheme. This is especially the case of the manufacture has done the work for you. Often your answer is a few clicks away these days on the web.