[barchdesigns]

*paing* In my Arduino project I had to also use a 10th wire (works like CTS, Clear to Send) that is driven high and low from the NC side which the Arduino needs to listen to. It tells the Arduino when the NC is ready for data, and when to hold from sending data.

*mem* Thanks for sharing. wouldn't this equate to 4,800 baud then. 8 bits/wires for every character @ 600 characters per second? So I guess the tape reader has a baud rate of 4800

[ppaing126]

That's what I was wondering about know when the NC is ready for more data...
My plan was to check the schematic at home, but glad you xplained here.
Thank you!

[Redzilla]

Will this work for a yasnac 2000B?

[barchdesigns]

I'm not familiar with Yasnac controls, but I would guess it would be a similar process if the tape drives are similar technology. Basically all I did was look at how the reading head worked at the paper tape and then mimicked it electronically with an Arduino. Once I had that the rest was easy.

[Redzilla]

I'm not familiar with Yasnac controls, but I would guess it would be a similar process if the tape drives are similar technology. Basically all I did was look at how the reading head worked at the paper tape and then mimicked it electronically with an Arduino. Once I had that the rest was easy.

awesome! Did you send your gcode to the ardunio via USB or did you have to use a USB to rs232 serial adapter and send it through a max3232 chip mini board? Also on the output did you wire striat from the ardunio to the tape reader head or did you have to use a 74hc595 shift register? And can you email me the C++ program script? [email protected] I have no experience with the C++ programing, also I'm just using a ardunio uno V3

[barchdesigns]

Look closely at the pictures and you can see where I added an SD shield with Network on top of the Arduino. This allows the Arduino program to just read a text file right from the SD card. No need to "transfer" a program. It's completely independent from a computer. Just put your Gcode on the Sd card and pop it in. (Later we added an option to transfer a file over the network, but I actually find popping the SD card in and out is sometimes faster.)

Unfortunately my Arduino code is not open source at this time. For the prototype we wired straight (with resistors) between the Arduino and Fanuc 50 pin connector where we traced the read head wires back to. In the future I would recommend to opto isolate this. You'll have to check to see if your read head wires go straight to a connector or through some other circuitry first.

[Redzilla]

Look closely at the pictures and you can see where I added an SD shield with Network on top of the Arduino. This allows the Arduino program to just read a text file right from the SD card. No need to "transfer" a program. It's completely independent from a computer. Just put your Gcode on the Sd card and pop it in. (Later we added an option to transfer a file over the network, but I actually find popping the SD card in and out is sometimes faster.)

Unfortunately my Arduino code is not open source at this time. For the prototype we wired straight (with resistors) between the Arduino and Fanuc 50 pin connector where we traced the read head wires back to. In the future I would recommend to opto isolate this. You'll have to check to see if your read head wires go straight to a connector or through some other circuitry first.

OK cool, I'm going to try the rs232 route if I can't get it to work I'll go the SD card route, yeah mine doesn't go from the reader head to the main control boards it goes from the reader head to a small circuit board and then to the main control board, I was going to unhook the photoelectric sensors on the reader head and wire in 8 small relays just like the sensors are wired and let them open and close in the same way the photoelectric ones do, that is if I can't wire it direct, I've ordered enough stuff to try it several different ways this stuff is so cheap on eBay why not 😀 I can't wait to get it all here and start tinkering with it, I think writing the C++ code will be the hardest part for me, thanks for the info!

[barchdesigns]

My reader head went to some circuit boards too, but when following the traces along the circuit board, the reader head wires were just routed directly to the 50 pin on the circuit boards....look closely and you may find the same thing.

[Redzilla]

My reader head went to some circuit boards too, but when following the traces along the circuit board, the reader head wires were just routed directly to the 50 pin on the circuit boards....look closely and you may find the same thing.

OK I'll check it out and see, thanks for the information, I'll probably have a few more questions in a week or so.

[Redzilla]

Is your ardunio outputting EIA RS244-A or ISO Tape format?

[ppaing126]

Ok, I'm decided to build the interface.

Have dismounted the tape reader, in my case is a A13B-0070-B001 unit, and have in the workbench.
Noticed it have the PCB A20B-0007-0750/078

I'm currently looking for the A20B-0007-0750/078 board schematic, it will make easier for me to understand how this thing deliver the output (active low or high) and all signaling. Anyway, started to desolder all the chips to make it easier to draw the schematic by hand,.

The only part I can't find the specs is the resistor network chips 40-1-98, SIP 6 pin.
It couples the light detectors with the LM339 comparators. The ohm readings are odd, not the usual resistor chips. looks it has 2 independent sections: pins 5 & 6 is a single 17k resistor while the pins 1,2,3,4 form some sort of bridge circuit or something else as the ohm readings are not easy to understand...

[ppaing126]

*paing* In my Arduino project I had to also use a 10th wire (works like CTS, Clear to Send) that is driven high and low from the NC side which the Arduino needs to listen to. It tells the Arduino when the NC is ready for data, and when to hold from sending data.

barch, wich one signal from the 50 pin cable use you to listen from the NC to hold/send data (as your 10th wire)...?


I will use the next pins:

IDC#     NCconn     Function
1           A1            D0
3           A2            D1
5           A3            D2
7           A4            D3
9           A5            D4
11          A6            D5
13          A7            D6
15          A8            D7
17          A9            Sprocket


Other Available pins (from NC)

IDC#     NCconn     Function
19        A10            /Error 
21        A11            Ready or RDT
23        A12            *RWT
25        A13            Feed or FDT
27        A14            OPT
29        A15            *RWDT
31        A16            *CLT
33        A17            *RVT

Fanuc number the 50 pin ribbon pins as A1, A2, A3 where actual connector numbers are 1, 3, 5 etc. B1, B2, B3 are actually 2, 4, 8.

* From an old interface I have (broken), it uses D0..D7, SP and Feed.
* From the real Tape Reader I can see it uses D0..D7, SP, Feed, Ready.

So, wich one signal did use you to know when the NC wants or not wants more data (/Error, Ready, Feed)....?

[ppaing126]

Ok, everything is ready now. First test with the DIY interface did not work. I overlooked the ASCII chars must be converted to 7 bits + 1 parity bit for the D1-D8 so the NC can understand it.
I also readjusted the Sprocket timings and the character separation. Have done simulation from 50 pin end, full circuit test and now everything goes fine. Tape feed pin is pin#25.
Comments are also stripped out.

Will test this weekend on the real 6M controller.

[Metrologist]

This tape drive emulator could be used by any machine that uses this kind of tape reader. I feel like this hardware/software solution should be shared outside of just FANUC 6

[hfk]

I see a lot of potention in a microcontroller as a tape emulator. It also makes convenient MDI-typing possible on older controls. By using a Raspberry a screen and keyboard can be easily attached and also resuming from 'tape' (starting with last toolchange for example) can be easily done.

Is opto-isolation needed of some kind?

[ppaing126]

This thing works! Drip feed is now possible.
Ran a large program thru own software, using the micro as translator.

[smolly]

Could barchdesigns or someone else share this work with me as I need the same solution with FANUC SYSTEM 5 with no memory at all.

[smolly]

This thing works! Drip feed is now possible.
Ran a large program thru own software, using the micro as translator.

paing
Could you please let me know 9th and 10th pins from NC side you used.

[rootboy]

Hi guys,

So a friend of mine bought a Takamatsu with a Yasnac 2000G and a dead West Controls BTR.

I took the BTR home and took it apart as much as I needed to replace the ICs and socket them. While I was working on it any way, I made a schematic in Kicad of the board. It's a work in progress, and I still have the board layout to do. You are welcome to read it, use it, and poke fun at it (and me). Just not complain about it if you are silly enough to create PCB boards off of it without breadboarding it first.

The files that I have included should be all that you need, but I included a PDF for you as well. If I missed anything please let me know.


Enjoy!

[rootboy]

So I fixed Thurston's board. Which consisted of removing all of the chips, installing sockets, fixing two blown traces, and putting in new chips. By all appearances it works.

However this "working" lathe that he bought, had the blown BTR as well as the serial cable for it has the common/ground connected to pin 5 rather than pin 7. So I can't imagine how it was supposedly working...

I re-did the schematic (and corrected a slew of errors on my part) as well as created a connection cross reference. Enjoy!