I have experience with a couple of stepper motor projects, but I’ve never done a thing with servo motors. Now I have to do something with servo motors.
I have a Gerber Sabre 404 CNC woodworking router. It’s got a proprietary drive controller, but off-the-shelf servo motors and motor drives.
The motors are brushed DC motors - GEC Alsthom Parvex Model Number: RX32ER1026
The motor drives are Elmo Model Number: SSA-8/100
Here is the link for the motor drive:
http://www.elmomc.com/support/manual...UG_EN_0698.pdf
So here’s the problem: the motor drive controller has issues now and it’s an old machine, so I’m looking at retrofitting the drive controller board. I’m pretty confident that the motors and drives are working, so I want to keep as much as possible.
As I see it, I have the following options:
1) Install a drive controller board that can run the old drives and motors (my preferred option).
2) Install Masso drive controller board and replace drives. There is a user here (@ned_seven) who is doing exactly this project.
3) Install some other brand [what brand?] drive controller board along with new motor drives.
Where I’m unsure is what kind/brand of driver controller board to use to drive the existing motor drives. These old Elmo drives (from the 90’s) have some additional/unknown (to me) interface positions on their terminal blocks. (Link above).
So I think that with servos, there’s something a little more complex than just a stepper motor breakout board between the PC and the motor drives. I’m just not sure what that [black box] can be. I have seen servo motor breakout boards all the way up to the Masso motor drive controller and I assume that there are all sorts of offerings in between.
If I can get this machine running with just a servo motor breakout board (I see online that @machdrives has a servo motor breakout board), I’d be happy as a clam. If that’s possible, I would have to beg for some guidance as to how to make that controller run my existing Elmo motor drives.
Any thoughts?
Thanks!