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IndustryArena Forum > MetalWorking Machines > Tormach Personal CNC Mill > Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help
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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
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    84

    Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    I have a 1100M and thought tool offset setting would be easier if I bought one of those cheap ETS from China (photo attached). The instructions that came with it were written in chinese so no help whatsoever. I did some homework by researching threads on this forum and a couple of others and thought I had enough information to wire it up. Didn't work out for me so I'm asking the resident experts for help getting it to work.

    I've attached a picture of the ETS. It's a four wire type with two normally closed circuits: one is 12VDC and the other is 5VDC. I assumed the 5VDC circuit was the sensor input and the 12VDC circuit was overtravel. The red and black wires are one circuit and the yellow and green wires are the other circuit.

    The 1100M wiring diagram shows four wires feeding the Accessory Input #2. They are 5VDC+, 12VDC+, Input and COM (photo attached). I have the ETS red wire connected to the Accessory plug 12VDC pin, the ETS green wire connected to the 5VDC pin, the ETS Black wire connected to the COM pin, and the ETS yellow wire connected to the Input pin.

    I then selected the Passive Tool Setter for Accessory Input 2 and the green light is lit on the ETS Setup screen. When I click on the ETS Spindle Ref button the Z axis moves down but doesn't stop when the ETS plunger is pressed. I've obviously wired it wrong. Can someone tell me how to wire it correctly? Any help is appreciated.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
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    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Quote Originally Posted by pastaman View Post
    I've attached a picture of the ETS. It's a four wire type with two normally closed circuits: one is 12VDC and the other is 5VDC. I assumed the 5VDC circuit was the sensor input and the 12VDC circuit was overtravel. The red and black wires are one circuit and the yellow and green wires are the other circuit.

    The 1100M wiring diagram shows four wires feeding the Accessory Input #2. They are 5VDC+, 12VDC+, Input and COM (photo attached). I have the ETS red wire connected to the Accessory plug 12VDC pin, the ETS green wire connected to the 5VDC pin, the ETS Black wire connected to the COM pin, and the ETS yellow wire connected to the Input pin.

    I then selected the Passive Tool Setter for Accessory Input 2 and the green light is lit on the ETS Setup screen. When I click on the ETS Spindle Ref button the Z axis moves down but doesn't stop when the ETS plunger is pressed. I've obviously wired it wrong. Can someone tell me how to wire it correctly? Any help is appreciated.
    IIRC PP natively wants a Normally-Open switch (MACH can do either, but defaults to N/C), but that might be changeable in a config file somewhere. If you reach in and press it in the ETS setup screen, does the green light go off?

    Did you get any circuit diagram with the Chinese instructions? Most of these are an optical switch of some sort, so need power & ground to run the internal LED, then the switch contacts are a phototransistor or the like. The only one I have with overtravel has a mechanical switch for that and an additional set of contacts, so 6 wires from the setter. Without some hints from the documentation its going to be difficult to sort out, but even a circuit diagram labelled in Chinese will probably be enough.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Sep 2009
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    624

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    How about a little detective work? Something is obviously already kinda-sorta working. The mfr seems to be giving you a couple alternate pinouts. Run the changes. Put 5v on and ground common. See what "input" does (with respect to common) when pushed. Do the same with 12v, no 5. Might want to use an LED/resistor as a sensor in case this is mechanical, but I'd just start with a voltmeter. Once you know what's coming out and whether it's normally high or low you should be able to make it talk to PP. If it's the wrong logic level, maybe just a single transistor inverter if you don't want to mod PP forever. As noted these are usually pretty stupid devices so a little poking ought to make it clear. Diagram would be best, but, China.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jun 2018
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    84

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Quote Originally Posted by GLCarlson View Post
    How about a little detective work? Something is obviously already kinda-sorta working. The mfr seems to be giving you a couple alternate pinouts. Run the changes. Put 5v on and ground common. See what "input" does (with respect to common) when pushed. Do the same with 12v, no 5. Might want to use an LED/resistor as a sensor in case this is mechanical, but I'd just start with a voltmeter. Once you know what's coming out and whether it's normally high or low you should be able to make it talk to PP. If it's the wrong logic level, maybe just a single transistor inverter if you don't want to mod PP forever. As noted these are usually pretty stupid devices so a little poking ought to make it clear. Diagram would be best, but, China.
    Thanks for responding. The instructions that came with the ETS are attached. The instructions refer to "Z Max Travel" which is why I believe there is a over-travel circuit.

    On the PP ETS Setup screen for Accessory Input 2 there are two choices: Tormach's #31875 ETS which is NO and Passive Tool Setter which I assume is a generic NC device. I chose the passive tool setter. I also looked at Tormach's passive XYZ probe and it is NC. All this leads me to believe that a NO or NC device is selectable.

    I was thinking along the same lines as you in regards to swapping wires to see what happens. I wanted to get some feedback before trying this because I didn't want to damage any of the circuits, primarily the PP control board.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2017
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    12

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Get google translate app for your phone. While not perfect, generally can determine close to what is said. Technical translations can be more challenging. Worth a try....it’s free

    you can use the camera to get the translation.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
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    740

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Quote Originally Posted by pastaman View Post
    Thanks for responding. The instructions that came with the ETS are attached. The instructions refer to "Z Max Travel" which is why I believe there is a over-travel circuit.

    On the PP ETS Setup screen for Accessory Input 2 there are two choices: Tormach's #31875 ETS which is NO and Passive Tool Setter which I assume is a generic NC device. I chose the passive tool setter. I also looked at Tormach's passive XYZ probe and it is NC. All this leads me to believe that a NO or NC device is selectable.

    I was thinking along the same lines as you in regards to swapping wires to see what happens. I wanted to get some feedback before trying this because I didn't want to damage any of the circuits, primarily the PP control board.
    First of all the diagram is appalling! As you only have 4 wires the upper of the two diagrams would appear to apply.
    As 2nd_Floor says the Google App can be very useful (especially living in a country the size of Switzerland with 4 official languages!). This is quite an amazing App which produced the following result:

    Attachment 461350

    The upper circuit is labeled "Tool Setting Signal" but it doesn't appear have a switch! The lower circuit is labeled "Overtravel protection signal" so either there an error in the upper circuit or is this just a connection for the LED (is this an LED or just a diode)?
    I'm assuming the upper circuit must be the normal tool setter output and the lower circuit for the over-travel output. If this is the case, as the Tormach has only one input for each device you will only be able to use the upper two connections.
    I wouldn't recommend just swapping the connections around because 5V and 12V are not inputs to the Tormach but power outputs. Shorting these through the tool setter contacts is probably not a very good idea, although I assume they will be protected to some degree on the 1100M (as they are on the earlier models).
    IF the diagram can be trusted AT ALL, the green wire should be connected to common and the yellow to input. Do not connect anything to the 5V or 12V pins.
    PathPilot should be set for a "Passive Tool Setter". These names are not particularly well chosen, they could at least have added NC and NO to the text.
    Good luck
    Step

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Mar 2020
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    218

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    I made the mistake of buying that same tool setter. Screwed around with it for a couple hours without ever making it work so it's in a bin somewhere now and my machine is just waiting for me to pick up one of the 6 wire versions that people have previously had success with. The switch in that tool setter appears to be purely mechanical, at least based on my tests with a DMM but I still couldn't find a way to make the machine recognize that it had been pressed. Unless I hooked up something wrong from the start and fried the input on my control board which I suppose is possible.

  8. #8
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    Jun 2018
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    84

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Thanks everyone for your replies. I tried the Google translation app as 2nd_Floor suggested and had zero luck. It wouldn't translate.

    I hope I didn't fry the control board. I did get a circuit tripped warning when I first plugged in the ETS. The green Accessory Input #2 light is lit so maybe that's telling me the circuit is still Ok. I'll rewire the ETS using the input leads only and see what happens.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jun 2005
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    656

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Quote Originally Posted by pastaman View Post
    Thanks everyone for your replies. I tried the Google translation app as 2nd_Floor suggested and had zero luck. It wouldn't translate.

    I hope I didn't fry the control board. I did get a circuit tripped warning when I first plugged in the ETS. The green Accessory Input #2 light is lit so maybe that's telling me the circuit is still Ok. I'll rewire the ETS using the input leads only and see what happens.
    If you have a green light in the interface, press the setter by hand to switch it and see if that light changes. For wiring, your options are probably going to be Input to Com or Input to +5, since the control board is looking for a logic signal.
    Input to COM is the less-risky first try.

    I'm wondering if this isn't more of a touch-plate without a switch in the circuit diagram wherin grounding the plate through the tool triggers the LED and input.

  10. #10
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    Jun 2018
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    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Quote Originally Posted by shred View Post
    If you have a green light in the interface, press the setter by hand to switch it and see if that light changes. For wiring, your options are probably going to be Input to Com or Input to +5, since the control board is looking for a logic signal.
    Input to COM is the less-risky first try.

    I'm wondering if this isn't more of a touch-plate without a switch in the circuit diagram wherin grounding the plate through the tool triggers the LED and input.
    I wasn't able to get to it yesterday. I'm going to give it a try this morning.

  11. #11
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    Jun 2018
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    84

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    I wired the ETS using the Input and COM pins with yellow to input and green to COM as TurboStep suggested. The Accessory #2 LED is off. When I press the ETS plunger the LED lights up. When I press the ETS Spindle Ref or the Move & Set ETS Height buttons the Z axis moves down, as it should. I press the ETS plunger and the Z axis stops but I get an error message on the Status screen that reads, "Tool Setter is already tripped when starting G38.2 or G38.3 move". The height in the Move & Set ETS Height DRO does not change.

    I also wired the ETS to the Input and 5VDC pins and when I plugged in the ETS I got a ETS tripped error message.

    Not sure where to go from here. Is the control board accessory input circuit fried?

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Dec 2008
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    740

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Quote Originally Posted by pastaman View Post
    I wired the ETS using the Input and COM pins with yellow to input and green to COM as TurboStep suggested. The Accessory #2 LED is off. When I press the ETS plunger the LED lights up. When I press the ETS Spindle Ref or the Move & Set ETS Height buttons the Z axis moves down, as it should. I press the ETS plunger and the Z axis stops but I get an error message on the Status screen that reads, "Tool Setter is already tripped when starting G38.2 or G38.3 move". The height in the Move & Set ETS Height DRO does not change.
    Your tool setter is working correctly. Try just tapping the plunger quickly so it returns to the normal position as fast as possible. Pathpilot will then continue with the "fine" measurement. Tap it again when the head starts to go down again and the measurement will complete.
    Step

  13. #13
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    Jun 2018
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    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Quote Originally Posted by TurboStep View Post
    Your tool setter is working correctly. Try just tapping the plunger quickly so it returns to the normal position as fast as possible. Pathpilot will then continue with the "fine" measurement. Tap it again when the head starts to go down again and the measurement will complete.
    Step
    That seems to have worked. :banana: It reacted as you described. Next step is to actually set some tool offsets and see how that works out.

  14. #14
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    Jun 2005
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    656

    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Quote Originally Posted by pastaman View Post
    That seems to have worked. :banana: It reacted as you described. Next step is to actually set some tool offsets and see how that works out.
    Cool beans!

    One other thing to keep in the back of your head is I've seen with cheap toolsetters introduce electrical noise, so if you start to see mystery gremlins in the mill anywhere, try unplugging the setter. I tore into a MX spindle thinking the spindle encoder had gone bad when it was really the toolsetter interfering with it just by being plugged in.

  15. #15
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    Re: Made in China ETS - Need Wiring Help

    Thanks for the heads up. I'll unplug it when not in use.

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