Fanuc OT to DC_CNC conversion.
We picked up a Hardinge Conquest 42 CNC lathe. 10 tool turret with live tooling. It has a Fanuc OT controller, about a 1988 vintage.
Built a rotary phase converter for it, got the machine running and made a few parts. It lacks a lot of capabilities that we would like, has some odd quirks, and the biggest problem is the lack of memory for loading G code programs from modern CAM software. Also we are not able to work on CAD/CAM on the machine computer.
So the logical answer is to just simply upgrade the computer system to something more modern. So we will be installing a Core i7 computer, a Galil motion controller, a 27 inch monitor, and my CNC software. If one were to buy all of the hardware new, the total cost would be ~$5000 for the upgrade. The good news is that I have the parts on the shelf that I normally paid very little for so the total out-of-pocket will be <$1000
The machine is a 3 axis, X, Z, and Spindle, plus the live tooling drive and the 10 position tool turret. So that means a total of 5 axes to control. I was surprised to find the the turret is also servo controlled, I thought it was hydraulic rotated. The hydraulics only operates the locking mechanism.
With minimal documentation this is going to be a bit of a challenge, but doable. The first order of business is to identify all of the I/O points that are needed to run the machine and create an I/O map to be able to determine the requirements of the I/O.
We expect that we'll be making chips again by mid next week. (These pictures were taken on a Tuesday)
So here are the before pictures.
Computer
Cable connector block
A little wider view
Existing operator panel
The main electrical cabinet
And the I/O blocks on the door
So the challenge is to figure out what each I/O point is connected to and decide what is actually needed and what needs to connect back to the new computer. Most of the controlled devices (contactors, valves, etc.) are 100VAC (yes, 100VAC) and are switched by the relays. The other board is the inputs from limit switches and sensors that are 24VDC. For the most part I'm going to be probing wires to trace them. The documentation that I have is not complete.
The interconnect terminal unit has been removed. A lot of cables hanging out there, and most of them are not needed. I sometimes think that manufactures add additional hardware just to make it look complicated. In reality, there are only about 50 or 60 connections total that have to be made, it just doesn't require a couple dozen 50 and 25 conductor cables.
Continued in next post............
Jim Dawson
Sandy, Oregon, USA