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IndustryArena Forum > CAM Software > BobCad-Cam > OT I've been a bit busy with other things.
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  1. #1

    OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    I've had a lot going for the last couple of years including Sterno-Clavicular Joint failure, eventual repair surgery and recovery, losing my Father and dealing with his estate and some other distractions.
    I have spent very little time making things over the last year or two, but that's about to change.
    I'm getting to the end of installing and commissioning my new mill, I eventually settled on a Syil X7 as the largest thing which would fit in the space available to me.
    I went with the full enclosure Combo model, the Siemens 808d Advanced controller with Siemens axis servos, drivers & spindle servo, a 12 tool auto tool changer, 4th axis and flood coolant and 10000rpm spindle.
    The factory very kindly added to my order at no additional cost an air blast nozzle, laser mapping of the ball screws and 12000rpm spindle.
    I'm hoping to get back into the swing of things sometime next month,
    Regards,
    Nick

    I'm still running V25 BTW ;-)

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Posts
    3376

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    For fun or for money or both ?
    I am still running V28 and it is still great
    Sorry about your pa

  3. #3

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Thanks JR.
    Hopefully it's for both.

  4. #4

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    I find myself in a situation reminiscent of my days programming the Z80 processor and using a ZX Spectrum as the platform for this and also of the time when I manually analysed the data and coded a merge for two databases from two Rockwell telephony switches to give Dixons Stores Group the multi-site reporting for their new call centre operation in Sheffield.

    I'm sitting cross legged on my living room floor surrounded by reams of A4 print out trying to determine why BCC still make available Post Processors which don't work properly and which have never been fit for purpose.

    The Siemens Sinumetrik_ 802-840_OEM POST is a prime example of this, I'm working on the assumption that most of their offerings are the result of tasking a slipshod trainee who is being let go due to to lack of aptitude to write a Post Processor on their last Friday afternoon before they move on to designing the rear end of new cars on their Friday afternoons.

    I can see where some of the errors crept in, a quick shuftie of the Siemens documentation reveals that they too use reference_plane as a variable and if you went no further you might just bang in the nearest looking BobCAD variables in place and call the job done.
    Comparison of diagrams in the Siemens documents with BCC GUI screens and the BCC POST Parameter list, cross referenced with PP output for various sets of values reveals some interesting variance as follows;

    Siemens Term______BCC Gui Term______BCC Post Term
    Retraction Plane_____Clearance Plane_____initial_plane
    Safety Clearance____ Rapid Plane________reference_plane
    Reference Plane_____Top of Part_________Not Available (part_height is what I tried but this just yields a zero when it's not zero)

    BCC never published full advanced posting documentation for V25 although some of their later documentation suggests it did exist, it would seem that all I need to do is add a dialogue to the relevant wizard and pass a variable through to the POST but the documentation is alas secret, as far as I can determine

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Posts
    3376

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    don't know if this will help
    Attached Files Attached Files

  6. #6

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Thanks JR,
    I've got as far as getting an extra dialogue page at the end of the Drilling Wizard with a labelled box that's contents are defined as a Real Number but the documentation stops there and doesn't even hint at how the value is passed to the Post Processor, I've tried all variations on the box label with no luck, I honestly don't think I'm that thick, but I can't work it out from the documentation.

  7. #7

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    I've just found one of Al's early After Dark videos on exactly this, I had to turn off "Use Web Help" for the V25 built in help to show (I don't think I've ever seen it before!) and there's some info there, with that plus everything I now have I can add advanced posting tabs to V25 Wizards and Al's video fills in the gaps on the PP side for grabbing the information.
    We'll be millionaires by Christmas Rodders!

  8. #8

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    I've found the file extension list for the files used in the format PostName.Extension and can now create Advanced Posting tabs in the Wizards with the requisite input boxes and check boxes for data input, the input box is created with the following in a file named with PostName.CustomHole

    EDIT_BOX,1,REAL
    TEXT_LABEL,1,Drill Job Start Plane
    DEFAULT_REAL,1,0.0

    I've worked out how to call the custom posting Program Blocks using the variables program_block_1, program_block_2 etc.
    Can anyone suggest why this program block always yields a zero value?

    2007. Program Block 7.
    dim dtoh
    dtoh = Mill_GetUserEditRealVariable(1)
    msgbox(dtoh)
    Mill_SetReturnString(dtoh)

    The Message box pops up and confirms that dtoh is not being assigned the value entered in Edit Box 1

  9. #9

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    OK, I think I'm sorted now!
    Turns out the boxes run (1) to (25) but the numbers to call them run (0) to (24) and the documentation doesn't mention that!

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Aug 2006
    Posts
    56

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    magicniner;

    Per your post #4...

    BobCad's postprocesser download site/ page is something I would really like to see improved, and have asked BobC. about in the past. Downloaders have little idea what they are downloading, if it might work, what areas are most likely in need of tweaking. Using the software comes with a learning curve, but learning how to make intelligent mods to the postprocessor files is much harder to find documentation on, and fraught with potentially disastrous/ unforeseen consequences.

    Example: On BobCad's download page, clicking on "How to Edit a Post" takes me to a site that hasn't been edited since 23 January 2013.

    My 2 cents...

    Oh, best of health to you.

  11. #11

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Quote Originally Posted by ShortTrack View Post
    My 2 cents...

    Oh, best of health to you.
    All good points and thanks, the shoulder is now not perfect but is far more functional than pre-surgery and pain free, which is nice.

    I'm putting together an aide memoir for Advanced Posting and Scripting in which I hope to incorporate the hard to find nuggets of information with which everything seems to fall into place.

    I now have the basic drilling cycle finished and working nicely, understanding the terminology for Clearance, Rapid and Top of Part planes helps a lot so I drew myself a diagram.
    Siemens, BCC GUI and BCC POST variable terms all differ, with the one exception that Siemens use the variable reference_plane for Top of Part and in Posting BCC use reference_plane for Rapid Plane

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
    Posts
    4548
    Quote Originally Posted by magicniner View Post
    All good points and thanks, the shoulder is now not perfect but is far more functional than pre-surgery and pain free, which is nice.

    I'm putting together an aide memoir for Advanced Posting and Scripting in which I hope to incorporate the hard to find nuggets of information with which everything seems to fall into place.

    I now have the basic drilling cycle finished and working nicely, understanding the terminology for Clearance, Rapid and Top of Part planes helps a lot so I drew myself a diagram.
    Siemens, BCC GUI and BCC POST variable terms all differ, with the one exception that Siemens use the variable reference_plane for Top of Part and in Posting BCC use reference_plane for Rapid Plane
    Try to get "sbs cycle" "RTM ****" user on this with you. Havnt seen him around on this forum. May still be on other forum...

    You 2 may be helpful to each other!

  13. #13

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Quote Originally Posted by BurrMan View Post
    Try to get "sbs cycle" "RTM ****" user on this with you. Havnt seen him around on this forum. May still be on other forum...

    You 2 may be helpful to each other!
    Thanks Burr,
    Some of his old posts helped me along, plus some otherwise undocumented hints from old posts from Al DePaulo and I'm sorted.
    I'm just going through the Siemens peck drilling cycle variables in the post, correcting the ones which are wrong and adding any missing ones through Advanced Posting tabs in the GUI and then incorporating them through scripting,
    Regards & Thanks,
    Nick

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Posts
    1838

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Hi Nick

    Glad to see you back, your expertise with the coding has been missed

    Regards
    Rob

  15. #15

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Quote Originally Posted by The Engine Guy View Post
    Hi Nick

    Glad to see you back, your expertise with the coding has been missed

    Regards
    Rob
    Cheers Rob!
    Good to be back.
    I've just made my first cuts on 6082 with the Syil X7, it sounds relaxed but the speed of the moves is still putting the wind up me, especially the Z rapids after a tool change!
    ATB,
    Nick

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Posts
    3376

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Quote Originally Posted by magicniner View Post
    Cheers Rob!
    Good to be back.
    I've just made my first cuts on 6082 with the Syil X7, it sounds relaxed but the speed of the moves is still putting the wind up me, especially the Z rapids after a tool change!
    ATB,
    Nick
    Z rapids after tool change I have to set to 20 because Haas's coolant takes its sweet ass time to turn on again and reposition,,you must not have that problem,,,that's great

  17. #17
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Posts
    3376

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Be Super nice to have an option for Z Rapids after the 1st initial Rapid that I have to set low so the Coolant catches up.In other words each rapid after that point balls to the wall.Is that out of the realm of Scripting ?

  18. #18

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    No non-return valve or anti-siphon valve in the coolant line so yes, I do, until I fit suitable valves.
    I've put a pause in after the tool change for the time being but that's a good idea on slower Z rapids!

  19. #19

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Quote Originally Posted by jrmach View Post
    Be Super nice to have an option for Z Rapids after the 1st initial Rapid that I have to set low so the Coolant catches up.In other words each rapid after that point balls to the wall.Is that out of the realm of Scripting ?
    I have a bunch of manual turning to do but I'm looking at that option, a pause only after the 1st tool change or a pause that's near zero after the first tool change, let me see what I can come up with.

  20. #20
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Posts
    3376

    Re: OT I've been a bit busy with other things.

    Quote Originally Posted by magicniner View Post
    I have a bunch of manual turning to do but I'm looking at that option, a pause only after the 1st tool change or a pause that's near zero after the first tool change, let me see what I can come up with.
    Yeah,I imagine it to be a common problem for most machines,if you get an Einstein moment,please share

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