[Fastrip]

We have a 160i-M that has a failing monitor. I assume its the monitor as it is getting darker and darker. Just to be clear, yes I am getting old and yes I probably don't see as well as I used to, the eagle eyed young guys agree with me so I am not just slipping away or blowing smoke.

I would like to know if we "HAVE TO" use a Fanuc monitor for such a replacement or can we use a commercially available monitor? You know an energy efficient LED model of such size it would make my old eyes feel even a little younger.

Just to be clear, this control is of 2006 vintage and does not (not even inside the cabinet) have any USB capabilities.

Now if an aftermarket monitor is out of the question, can anyone recommend a good provider for a Fanuc monitor or whatever parts might be needed?

Again just to be clear, we are in east central Wisconsin.


We would appreciate any relevant advise, thanks.


Former Eagle eyed old guy,
Fastrip

[underthetire]

Look inside, get the part number off the display and call Fanuc. I'll bet its just like all the other fanuc color displays and you can simply order a new backlight and install it. Last one i did was ~70.00 for the tube.

[ifixcnc]

Try FANUC World.com : Tennessee Industrial Electronics, Inc.

[fordav11]

a commercial monitor, even from places like the above will be a lot more expensive than doing it yourself. but you need some level of knowledge to retro-fit an LCD screen.
the people doing replacement LCD monitors (like the above) know this and make the price more expensive than doing it yourself (about 3-4 times more) but the end result can be the same if you know what you are doing.

I have retro-fitted a few LCD to various CNC machines.

You need.....
1. the correct size LCD Panel (older machines need to be 4:3 ratio)
2. LCD control board and cables (usually comes with the panel)
3. sync converter if the previous screen is not outputting VGA sync rate. I think the 160i does 31.5kHz so you probably dont need this
4. cable wired from the fanuc video connector to a VGA plug which connects the LCD control board to the fanuc controller.
5. 12v power pack

the cable wiring info is in the maintenance manual it's pretty easy to do. just join red, green, blue, horizontal and vertical sync and ground to the correct place.

even with a new monitor your eyes wont get better ;-)

[bulld101]

If your not electronically minded , whip the monitor out and bring it to a local TV repair shop, they can fix it 95% of the time

[fordav11]

I doubt it.
the main problem with those monitors is the flyback is going bad (not just capacitors as most newbies think). that's why the screen appears dull and dim. the only way to fix it is to replace the flyback. but flybacks are not being made by any company now. you might be lucky and find a company with some old stock but otherwise the only fix is to replace it with an LCD and sync converter. those retrofit sellers know that. there are literally millions of machines out there with CRTs so the market for retrofitted LCD screens is potentially huge.
if you dont know anything about repairing electronics just go with one of the pre-packaged retro-fit LCDs. but do shop around. there's a big variation in price, sometimes up to 20X the do-it-yourself cost, with the end result being practially the same.

[underthetire]

NO way there is a flyback on a 160iM. All the ones i ran in to were already LCD, just a florescent backlight tube that starts to burn on the ends. Remember, i series had the control as part of the display unit.

[memoryman]

Correct, underthetire. All i-series controls have lcd displays. Probably the backlight is going bad. Buy one from eBay for ~$100 (I did).

[motionman]

I have seen this issue on a 15 control with the LCD. There is an aluminum foil reflector for the back light tube that is glued to the backlight housing. The glue separates and allows the foil to wrap around the tube blocking half the light. Carefully remove display and check for this. I have removed this foil on 2 machines, and the display brightness came right back.

[fordav11]

ah yes I missed the *i*. the original post says the screen was getting darker and darker so I had assumed it was a CRT.
ok, well if it's already an LCD it's a lot easier to repair. I've fixed many laptops in the past and a dark screen can be the backlight or inverter or the entire screen assembly going bad.
I'd start with the inverter. Either way it's a whole lot easier to fix than a machine that has a CRT.

[underthetire]

Seriously, all of you are making it harder than it has to be. Unscrew entire control from the panel (don't unhook anything) slide out about 3 inches. Lower side will have a pink and purple cable with connector. Unplug that, remove the screw holding the backlight tube in, slide out, slide new one in.
here is a new one on amazon
Fanuc A61L-0001-0168#BL 10.4" LCD Backlight: Pc Board Relays: Amazon.com: Industrial & Scientific

[monitorexperts]

Upgrade LCD CCFL backlight to LED any size kits CNC Industrial monitor repair service