Info required on programming arcs & circles, & software

[sopysnipe01]

Hi
When I have my Triac back up & running I intend to make a number of parts out of 16 & 14g mild steel sheet, the drawings for these parts show the arc/circle centre co-ordinates & radii but not the start or end points of the arcs, on a number of parts 2 or more arcs of different radii blend into each other whilst on others a line goes from one arc to another, but at an angle which is not stated on the drawing, I have read the programming manual but this has no info on how "or even if it is possible" to do this, I have used more modern equipment/software in the past which used what I refer to as the point, circle, line type of software, where all I needed to do was input the various co-ordinates for the centre of the circles etc & the radii, once I had done this all I had to do was write in say L1 = C1 to C2 & it automatically worked out the info it needed.
Can any one please advise me on either how I would go about this with the standard programming software, or what suitable software I can use without having to modify the electronics ?.
Cheer's.
Bob.

[Denford Admin]

You should be able to use a free 2D CAD package to redraw the shapes from what you have been given (just type "free 2d cad" into google!)
Then you will be able to find out information about arc start point, end point, radius, centre etc.. from the CAD system quite easily.
It's also worth mentioning now, that this vintage of control will probably only accept arcs within a 90 degree quadrant (see image)

[sopysnipe01]

You should be able to use a free 2D CAD package to redraw the shapes from what you have been given (just type "free 2d cad" into google!)
Then you will be able to find out information about arc start point, end point, radius, centre etc.. from the CAD system quite easily.
It's also worth mentioning now, that this vintage of control will probably only accept arcs within a 90 degree quadrant (see image)

Cheer's for your advice regarding the 2D CAD.
I have looked through the manual that came with the machine & it says that the triac will cope with any kind of line to arc or arc to arc intersection except where no intersection is possible, it does not say anything about needing to split the arc whilst programming it.
Is there any available/compatable software that I can acquire for off line programming & down loading programmes to the triac, if I am able to obtain a suitable RS232 cable & a compatible computer ?.
Cheer's.
Bob.

[Matt]

Hi Bob

I have a Triac 1988 and have been reading most of your posts. You can programme at the machine and save it to tape,but if you can find a tape that fits, the player will probably be broken. Much better to connect an old PC (older the better!) with the cable.

The most reliable programme to get information to the Triac is the "Industrial Text Editor" with the correct settings.See viewtopic.php?f=15&t=2056 ("Mr Magoo" is very helpful as he used to work at Denford's in the 80's and knows the machines well.) This only transfers code to the Triac. You need to write the code in a Notepad file and change the file extension to ".pnc".

I draw with AutoCAD then import it into Denford QuickCAM to produce this code. Denford Admin very kindly wrote a postprocessor for us and is now included with the programme. Works very well but isn't very economical with the amount of code it produces so can give you problems with the small Triac memory. I think it limited to about 700 lines but you can load it up many different times to cut a part, but you can normally work around it with one. The spit arcs admin mentioned earlier really eat up memory. Or you can drip feed it, didn't work on my machine but looked like it would be slow.

You should be looking at converting it to work with Mach3 in the future, but it should work fine for simpler stuff as it is. Using it like it is now will also get you used to the machine. I would make the cable and start playing around with it. It will be much easier to understand then.

Matt

[sopysnipe01]

Hi Bob

I have a Triac 1988 and have been reading most of your posts. You can programme at the machine and save it to tape,but if you can find a tape that fits, the player will probably be broken. Much better to connect an old PC (older the better!) with the cable.

The most reliable programme to get information to the Triac is the "Industrial Text Editor" with the correct settings.See viewtopic.php?f=15&t=2056 ("Mr Magoo" is very helpful as he used to work at Denford's in the 80's and knows the machines well.) This only transfers code to the Triac. You need to write the code in a Notepad file and change the file extension to ".pnc".

I draw with AutoCAD then import it into Denford QuickCAM to produce this code. Denford Admin very kindly wrote a postprocessor for us and is now included with the programme. Works very well but isn't very economical with the amount of code it produces so can give you problems with the small Triac memory. I think it limited to about 700 lines but you can load it up many different times to cut a part, but you can normally work around it with one. The spit arcs admin mentioned earlier really eat up memory. Or you can drip feed it, didn't work on my machine but looked like it would be slow.

You should be looking at converting it to work with Mach3 in the future, but it should work fine for simpler stuff as it is. Using it like it is now will also get you used to the machine. I would make the cable and start playing around with it. It will be much easier to understand then.

Matt

Hi Matt
Thank you for your advice, I have been offered an RS232 cable which I hope will fit.
Could you please tell me what computer you use & if all the software is available from Denford ?.
I would much rather use this method than upgrading to Mach 3 at the moment, as the cost & hastle involved with the conversion make it unfesable at present.
All the best.
Bob.

[Matt]

Hi Bob

I would say any PC will work for the Industrial Text Editor. I had it working on a 486, now its on a Pentium 2. I would just try and get the cheapest one you can to sit with the Triac all the time for transferring the files. By modern standards the Industrial Text Editor is such a tiny, tiny program. The program can be downloaded for free on the Denford site. Follow the link I gave you. Remember to make the changes for the Triac as Mr Magoo says.

This will mean you can type up code at any computer using MS Notepad, rather then standing at the Triac. When the code is ready to machine take the file to the computer connected to the Triac and use the Industrial Text Editor to transfer to the machine.

That is the easy cheap bit. If you want to draw in a CAD programme and then cut the part to the drawing it gets more expensive. You will need the CAD programme and then I use Denfords QuickCAM 2D to convert my CAD drawing to machine code. This I think was about £150. This sounds expensive, but for me it really brought the Triac to life.

So I draw up the part to machine in the office using AutoCAD ,I then prepare the code with QuickCAM. I then send the file across the network to the computer at the Triac. Then using the Industrial Text Editor transfer this file to the Triac itself.

Matt