[Dem1]

Hi all again
I have brought a esab combirex table,
It is in great condition and very heavy and strong, it's 12ft X 30ft running on older servo motors through gear reduction
The controller is too old to work with now-a-days, it runs on floppy disc.
So question is could this be updated to modern software and still use the original motors

[Jim Dawson]

Hi all again
I have brought a esab combirex table,
It is in great condition and very heavy and strong, it's 12ft X 30ft running on older servo motors through gear reduction
The controller is too old to work with now-a-days, it runs on floppy disc.
So question is could this be updated to modern software and still use the original motors

Most likely. Depends on the servos, but for the most part the older ones are easy to interface with. I have 30 year old servos and drives on 2 machines in my shop, running on modern software and controls.

[asuratman]

Hi Jim,
Centroid sell servo drive for old fanuc ac/dc motor but the price is expensive. Is there any cheaper solution for the diy ?

[Jim Dawson]

Hi Jim,
Centroid sell servo drive for old fanuc ac/dc motor but the price is expensive. Is there any cheaper solution for the diy ?

On my lathe, I replaced all of the Fanuc servo motors and drives with DMM servo motors and drives. https://store.dmm-tech.com/

Have been very happy with them. They can be controlled by step & direction or analog.

[Dem1]

Ok super,
Anyone suggest a modern controller with THC built in
To it,
I would like to be able to give the guys on the workshop
Floor a USB stick with whatever drawings to be cut
On it, so they just plug it in, set on desired sheet
Size and start cutting,

Basically something that is kinda dummy proof.

I have Mach 3 at minute, but no THC,
So I have to sit at machine and run it,

I could

[Jim Dawson]

Ok super,
Anyone suggest a modern controller with THC built in
To it,
I would like to be able to give the guys on the workshop
Floor a USB stick with whatever drawings to be cut
On it, so they just plug it in, set on desired sheet
Size and start cutting,

Basically something that is kinda dummy proof.

I have Mach 3 at minute, but no THC,
So I have to sit at machine and run it,

I could

I assume you are using Mach3 on another machine, other than your Esab 12x30. There are THCs available that are compatible with Mach3, and since you are familiar with Mach3, it might be a good option to run your Esab. The problem is that Mach3 may not directly compatible with the Esab servos, may require a Galil or Kflop/Kanalog interface board to be able to generate the analog command signal. Not really a problem, but another layer of complexity.

It is possible that Centroid makes a compatible system also. The Chinese CNC plasma controllers on EBay are not going to work for you without changing out your existing servos and drives. It might be worth changing out the old servos and drives anyway. This might be the more simple way to go, easier to integrate with modern software. Also depends on your budget for the project.

If you have the experience to integrate all of the needed hardware/software then this is not a major project. But If you don't have the experience, then this would be a bit complex.

I might be able to offer some advice if I knew what servos & drives are on the machine now.

[Dem1]

Ya, I was checking out centroid website they have slot of gear
I had though of finding out if the original controller would maybe work if there was some way to convert from a floppy disc to a USB stick but maybe that is impossible
I haven't looked into it yet
Am still trying to get the ht2000 hypertherm up and going
That come with the table

I am quite familiar with mach3 etc, but I have been told THE HF from the ht2000 will kill mach3 or any standard pc computer

[Jim Dawson]

Maybe something like this would work. GoTek Floppy Drive to USB Emulator,USB Floppy Drive Emulator,Floppy Drive to USB Converter,Floppy Disk Reader,External Floppy Disk Drive - GoTek USB Floppy Emulator Manufacturer Factory

[Stewey]

Yours is a great question!
We have an Esab that was born in 1989, so it's 30 years old. Not quite as big as yours- 16 ft rails, and it can rout around a 2 metre wide piece.
It was retrofitted in 2001 with Aussie Tekcel controller, and has Electrocraft servos and encoders on X & Y, connected via timing belts, to the little gearboxes adainst the rack, and a ballnut screw for Z, with a Pittman servo & encoder.
It's been great, except when somethng goes wrong, and I've had to solve it alone...

I'd like to get a chinese controller for it, much like the Ruida laser conrtrollers, (RD6442G) where there is a LCD control panel mounted on the machine, and you send the files to the machine via your choice of a USB lead, or a network LAN lead,

But I do not know the best option for a good chinese controller and software. Plus servo drives that the encoders can plug into. I'd like recommendations...
We use an old version of Enroute, so toolpath software is fine-I'll keep using that.

Good luck with yours!

[maxspongebob]

Lots of good suggestions here. However, I would like to add, that for a commercial machine, you might think of using hardware and software that has some paid support. Using Chinese hardware and hobby software for a machine that people rely on for income may not be the wisest thing. You or someone else in your company should be able to call for help if the system ever goes down, especially if you are not available.

If you like Mach 3, I would recommend using Mach 4 instead. If you want to take a simple route, you could use an Ethernet Smooth Stepper and Teknic ClearPath SD servos. All of these have excellent LOCAL support. It's just my thought, I don't have a lot of experience with other hardware, so others ideas may be just as valid.

LOL, lets hope the guys on the floor missed that "Dummy" comment.

[maxspongebob]

Do you know what kind of feedback signals the torch provides for height control? If you are planning on replacing the controller as well, you will want to make sure that you put together something that is compatible.

[Dem1]

Do you know what kind of feedback signals the torch provides for height control? If you are planning on replacing the controller as well, you will want to make sure that you put together something that is compatible.

Ya the THC LOOKS ancient too
The only stick on it says ATAS THC SERVO 2
But would like to get the controller up an going
Just to see if it still works the THC and the
IHS

[Dem1]

The only thing I hate about commercial about here is that most guys won't do any help over the phone, there looking for the big call out charge,????

I would like something that is workable

It's like before I had a thermal dynamics 120amp
Great machine but if anything have up I had to send it away
Last time it took 3 months to Come back

I like stuff like the ht2000 hypertherm
Nothing but fuses and wires

[Black Forest]

If you are using a HyperTherm plasma on a commercial table have you contacted HyperTherm and talked to them about a control? Would not be the cheapest route but for sure would be the best route.