[omnimodo]

Hi all, A friend of mine has acquired a Fanuc 10 connected to a drill (numerically controlled general purpose drilling machine from Roku Roku Sangyo Ltd, Tokyo). There was a very old PC connected to it but the hard drive got destroyed and I was unable to retrieve any information from it. The PC was connected to the Fanuc by a serial cable by the look of it. As I am a computer guy I said I'd have a look around to see if we could get the system running via PC again. My question therefore is what software do I need to send instructions to the drill? I am happy to build a PC and install your recommended OS (UNIX/linux, DOS, Windows etc). This guy is a wizard with the drill and it would be great if we could automate some of the tasks to free some time for him. I have photos of some of the parts if that helps. Please note that he can control the drill manually. Kind regards, Michael.

[Al_The_Man]

If the Fanuc 10 is still the controller, then it is not PC controlled, probabally PC used for RS232 program upload/download, if so then any PC will do with a serial port.
If you need free software and details on hook up and parameters, go to the Cadem site, the Fanuc 10 is listed there.
You will also need the G/M code instruction set for the Drill.
Al.

[omnimodo]

Hi Al, Many thanks for the prompt reply. Sounds like we could be able to help this guy. What's the URL for the software please? I'll have a look for the codes you mentioned for the drill. Much appreciated. Michael.

[Al_The_Man]

I would suggest the 3 wire RS232 cable.
You can download a copy of CNCLite for one machine.
Does it say Fanuc 10m anywhere? if so this is a Mill controller.
When you get the RS232 working, you want to download all the parameters to disk, including the 9000 option paramters, or you will be dead in the water if the batteries go, unless he has a copy.
http://www.cadem.com/ncnet/ncnet_dncdetails-41.htm
Al.

[omnimodo]

Hi Al,

The panel just has 'FANUC 10' and has XYZ motor excitation LEDs, power switch, feed rates control knobs, 3 warning LEDs, reset button etc.

The drill is a Roku Roku model RND 1505/3AX if that helps.

I got the software from the site you mentioned, thanks for that.

Any idea what programming language we need to learn about to operate this drill via the computer?

Many thanks for the tips, you are a great help.
Michael.

[Al_The_Man]

If it is a basic Fanuc 10 system, then you should be able to program in standard G code, I would assume it is also a Mill package and you have an XY table and Z to feed the drill head(s).
You need to get hold of a operator manual for the 10, but there may be some M codes you need to know, these are written by whoever made the machine, Roku Roku, Do you have any documentation of any kind on the machine?
Al.

[omnimodo]

Hi Al,

There is a big table under the drill alright. There are controls for the drill to operate it manually and that is what my friend is doing now. It can also be used for milling.

Before he moved the machines I took some photos and put them online here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/osullm/F...dToSteveSDrill

The drill attached is a Roku Roku model RND 1505/3AX.

I'll try to get more details on the drill.

Hope this helps, Michael.

[Al_The_Man]

Wow thats an oldy, It is not the Fanuc 10 I am thinking of, what is the date on the motor, looks like 1973?
I wonder even if it is CNC or just point to point positioning?
Maybe Dan Fritz can cast some light on it. Or email him if he doesnt see this.
Al.
I see it is made in 1974, it says Numerical Control, Probabally all descrete logic for that age.

[omnimodo]

Hi Al,

The year on the Fujitsu Fanuc electric pulse motor is 1993 and the year of the drill is 1974.

[Al_The_Man]

I wonder if it is even capable of interpolated moves?
NC machines of this era, usually had a punched tape reader to input data, sometimes line by line.
This one may have just had a simple memory data entry by thumb wheel.
I can't think of what the PC hooked up was for?
Al.

[Dan Fritz]

Yep. That's an oldie all right. It's probably one of the first Fanuc controls ever made, and it's certainly NOT the Fanuc 10 that most of this forum's members are familiar with. The model 10T and 10M didn't come out until the early 1980s. This is a early 70's control (or maybe even older).

Back in the very early days of NC, Fanuc made some pulse-motor "open-loop" controls like this for lathes and mills also. I've seen a few similar Fanuc 20 controls on the first Mazak lathes to come into the US. That model 20 had pulse motors and some primitive functions for turning, and it was the ancestor of the 2000C control, which was the first true "CNC" that Fanuc made. This model 10 is probably just a 2-axis (X-Y positioning) control that would move the table to a programmed postion, then trigger a mechanical or hydraulic drill head (or quill) to drill a hole. This would be similar to using the newer mill controls with a G81 canned cycle, only the control is probably limited to this one drilling function. I would guess that it just has some simple circuits to read a block of data from a paper tape, then count pulses in X and Y until it got to position.

I'm sure that this control originally came with a paper tape reader, which may have been removed in favor of a BTR interface of some kind. If there's a PC attached, the PC probably needs to send data to the CNC using the old EIA RS244 tape code. This is the same code that the old Frieden Flexowriters used to punch on paper tapes.

If there is a paper tape reader still on the machine, you should be able to tap into the signals between the tape reader and the NC control (this is NOT CNC, but "NC". There is no microprocessor here). A BTR interface would make the control easier to program, and you would not need to punch paper tapes or maintain a cranky tape reader.

We have BTR systems for the other early model Fanucs, but making the BTR cable might be a bit of a project. I'm sure that those old connectors are no longer available.

[Dan Fritz]

On examining the photos a bit closer, I can see that there are motor excitation lamps on the panel for 3 axes (X, Y, and Z), and that there is an old Fanuc tape reader just below the operator's panel.

That makes this a 3-axis NC control with pulse motors, but it's impossible to tell if it can make interpolated moves or not. A drilling machine wouldn't need to interpolate, but a 3-axis mill would.

I would be interested to see what the backside of the tape reader looks like. There should be a circuit board with a bundle of wires going back to one of the main boards. That cable may have some kind of BTR interface already installed, which can be connected to a PC.

It may be possible to install a BTR board like the one made by Advanced Digital Research (the AMI, or "Advanced Machine Interface"). That board has memory and an RS232 serial port that can be connected to a PC with almost any kind of DNC software.

[omnimodo]

Hi Dan,

Sorry for not getting back to you sooner. Steve has moved the machine up the country a bit. I just spoke with him and he is going to take some photos around the tape reader and I will post them to the same web page as before.

All going well he will bring the photos to me tomorrow and I will upload them same day.

Many thanks again, Michael.

[omnimodo]

Hi all,

As promised I have uploaded today's photos with captions to the usual address:

http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/osullm...dToSteveSDrill

Hope this helps, Michael.

[Al_The_Man]

I like the adjustable stop mod. on the Jog Feed Knob, it sort of goes with the machine.
Al.

[omnimodo]

Thanks for the reply Al, hope the new photos are helpful.

[Al_The_Man]

Dan may be able to recognize the TR, it is very similar to later Fanuc versions, If the serial plug is in fact serial info, the plug looks original so they may have had a parallel to serial convertor original eguipment, later Fanuc readers had a parallel interface board.
Usually all the reader has is the data read head and the brake, for stopping the so the control can hold up the reader for temporary hold of the data out, you will notice it has a three position switch for auto off and manual for the brake just to one side of the reader.
If there is no elaborate USART fitted to the reader to convert the parallel to serial, all that may be coming out of the serial port is serial data out and using the RTS going in to operate the reader brake.
If so I would look at the back of the 25D plug and see how many pins are actually populated.
It would be nice to have a break-out box to see what is actually happening when you run a tape through the reader to see what comes out on the pins on the T.R. 25D.
Al.