Light Machines proLIGHT 3000 Turning Center conversion

[brent]

Thought I'd share what I found through my machine conversion. Started with the previous posts from @agoodevans

(https://www.masso.com.au/forums/topic/prolight-m1000-mill-and-turning-center-retrofit/) and while his efforts helped to sort out most of my issues, I worked through a few more that might be helpful to someone else.

I maintained all of the default configuration and wiring of both the turning center and the default controller box (as detailed in the attached proLIGHT_3000_WIN_Manual.pdf) and was able to swap out the computer for the Masso G3 Touch directly. The original computer had a 16-bit ISA card that had a DB-25 and DB-9 connector that went to the lathe controller box. I used DB-25 and DB-9 breakout boards (from Amazon) to avoid having to cut into cables and trace wires individually, which proved to be very convenient (See IMG_1708.JPG). I've also attached the correct manual for the spindle motor driver that I have (Minarik PCM21000A) and the encoder that is on this machine (HEDS-9100), which I found to be helpful.

Here are the connections that I've made:

DB-25	Description	Masso G3	Note
1
2
3
4
5	Tool Turret Direction (Y-Axis)	Y-Axis D-	Using D- to inverse motor direction from Wabeco Tool Turret configuration
6	X-Axis Direction	X-Axis D+
7	Ground	GND
8
9
10
11	Door Sensors	Input 3 (configured for Door)	Inverse input on Masso
12
13	X & Z Hard Limits (-X and -Z direction)	Using soft limits off of home positions, so this is not connected
14
15
16
17	Micro-Stepping (Enable High, Disable Low)	GND	Haven't been able to get micro stepping (half stepping) to work correctly, with full steps it's still 4000 steps per inch, which seems fine (.00025" per step)
18	Z-Axis Direction	Z-Axis D+
19	Tool Turret Step (Y-Axis)	Y-Axis S+	200 steps per full stepper rotation, 30:1 gearing for the tool turret, 8 tool locations (evenly spaced) on the turret; so 6000 steps for a full rotation of the turret, and 750 steps per tool)
20	Z-Axis Step	Z-Axis S+	200 steps per full stepper rotation, 2:1 belt and pulleys between stepper and ball screw, 10 turns per inch for the ball screw; so 400 steps per rotation of ball screw and .100" travel
21	X-Axis Step	X-Axis S+	200 steps per full stepper rotation, 2:1 belt and pulleys between stepper and ball screw, 10 turns per inch for the ball screw; so 400 steps per rotation of ball screw and .100" travel
22	Spindle Enable / Disable	ES (TTL outputs)	Not using a relay here as it goes to an enable / disable logic function in controller and showed very low current draw when testing with the multimeter)
23	E-Stop	E-Stop 2	Lathe controller provides +5v signal that is looped through the E-stop on the machine and then through the e-stop on the Masso Touch assembly before connecting to E-Stop 2 (Lathe controller provided +5v ---> Lathe E-Stop ---> DB-25 Pin 23 ---> Touch E-Stop button ---> Masso E-Stop 2)
24	Home - X, Z, & Tool Turret (Y-Axis)	Inputs 4, 5, & 6 (configured as X - Home Sensor Input, Z - Home Sensor Input, & Tool Changer - Input 1)	All homes are on a single loop, which works as long as X and Z home separately (and the tool turret home is just past the tool 1 position, so that home is not signaled once tool 1 is locked) and all inputs inverted on the Masso
25

DB-9	Description	Masso G3	Note
1	Spindle Speed (0-10v)	Spindle Control 1	Spindle is single direction only, so only connecting Spindle Control 1 (Driver for the spindle is a Minarik PCM21000A)
2	Spindle Speed Ground	GND
3	Spindle Index	Encoder Z	sensor on spindle output, once single per rotation
4
5	Spindle Encoder A	Encoder A	Encoder (HEDS-9100) has a disk that has 512 signals per rotation (HEDS-5120-i), and the encoder is one belt / pulley set removed from the spindle with a 2:1 ratio, so 1024 encoder ticks per spindle rotation (true when in the 1200 RPM belt configuration, RPM LCD indicator does not report correctly when in the 3600 RPM belt configuration)
6	Encoder / Display Ground	GND	Ground is for the +5V side, but all grounds are common
7	Spindle Encoder B	Encoder B
8	Encoder / Display Power (Needs +5V)	+5V	Added a buck voltage regulator that provides +5V off of the +24V power supply that is connected to the Masso, this makes the LCD RPM display work, but also powers the encoder and index sensors, so is required
9

I haven't been able to turn anything yet, as I'm still working on getting my tool turret dialed in (I'm not sure how it ever worked, as it is .115" too tall to be able to have any tool hit the center of the work, and will need to be machined down to mount lower; it's possible that someone before me Frankensteined this machine together from a couple of different versions of the same make, as everything matches the manual diagrams). However, I have been able to run test gcode jobs and verify movement accuracy with calipers and gauges, so I'm getting really close to being done with the modifications and ready to start making parts!

Hope this helps someone save a bunch of time! (or if you see something that I could improve, let me know!)

-Brent

 

[Travis]

Hi Brent, thanks for all of the really helpful information...it has made my conversion much easier! I'm almost done, just have to set up the tool changer (I saw your other threat on that...also helpful!)

Did you get your machine finished? Regarding the HEDS-9100 encoder, when I tested the rpm reading in Masso vs using a separate digital tachometer they were not quite the same. So I was looking at the data sheet for it and saw that they make a 500 signals per rotation version disk as well. So I put in 1000 (instead of 1024) in the settings, and that fixed it, then both rpm readings were identical. I just wanted to pass along this info for anyone having this issue.

 

[brent]

Hi Brent, thanks for all of the really helpful information...it has made my conversion much easier! I'm almost done, just have to set up the tool changer (I saw your other threat on that...also helpful!)

Did you get your machine finished? Regarding the HEDS-9100 encoder, when I tested the rpm reading in Masso vs using a separate digital tachometer they were not quite the same. So I was looking at the data sheet for it and saw that they make a 500 signals per rotation version disk as well. So I put in 1000 (instead of 1024) in the settings, and that fixed it, then both rpm readings were identical. I just wanted to pass along this info for anyone having this issue.

Hi Travis,
Sorry for such a long delay in replying, didn't see this until now (I'm getting ready to do conversions on a couple more of the ProLight mills that use the same controller box as the turning center and was going back to my post for reference). I feel like I've gotten pretty deep in the Masso world since this first conversion on the turning center, and have now completed a conversion of a Laguna IQ router and built a Precision Matthews PM-728vt bench mill (with 4th axis and this just this week finished a custom power drawbar that I designed after looking at how the power drawbar on the Tormach 1100m and an old Bridgeport torc cut 22 worked). Getting ready for my 4th, 5th, and 6th

Glad this helped you! Yeah, I've had the turning center running pretty well and am really happy with the results. Since this first post, I've added probing using the G38.2 straight probing cycle for both tool off set (X using a known diameter piece of stock and Z to the face of the chuck) and then using it for Z touch off for stock location. On the turning center that I have the spindle and chuck are isolated from the chassis ground, so I'm able to just clip the probe wire to the chuck or the stock (provided that the stock is metallic). Note that I've been using the G38.1 command from either MDI or in my programs, as there isn't the same probing / tool touch functionality in the jogging / probing screen on the lathe software as the mill version has (although I'm due for an update, so it's possible that it's improved now).

I also rebuilt the tailstock to get rid of that annoying little anti-ergonomic knob that it comes with, and ended up putting a stepper controlled by an Arduino to do very minor automation (can set start and end measurements and IPM, but not processing any gcode on that).

Did you also have to mill .130" off the base of your tool changer turret to make it possible to center any of your tools without having to grind down every single tool holder??? That has really been in my bucket of unsolved mysteries for years now, wondering how this thing had ever worked before or if it was Frankensteined together from a couple of different versions of the machine by someone before me... reading the old documentation from ProLight just said to adjust the tool height with shims as needed, but I ended up needing negative shimming...

I'd love to hear if you've figured anything cool or useful out too, and would be happy to share details of what I've gotten since the previous post if you're interested in something specific.

-Brent

 

[Travis]

Hey Brent!...better late than never : )

Sounds like you've been busy! I've added the Masso to my lathe and Super Prolight mill (videos below) and I'm about to add it to my CNC router.

In regard to the tool centering...I didn't have to mill off the turret base. What I noticed is that there is some play in the 4 bolts that hold on the turret octagon-shaped piece, I had to loosen them and rotate it slightly to one side, then re-tighten, then the tools would hit the center line.

 

[brent]

In regard to the tool centering...I didn't have to mill off the turret base. What I noticed is that there is some play in the 4 bolts that hold on the turret octagon-shaped piece, I had to loosen them and rotate it slightly to one side, then re-tighten, then the tools would hit the center line.

If only I had been so lucky! I tried everything I could think of and milling the turret base was the most reasonable (it's aluminum on mine so was really easy). Your machine looks like a significantly newer version than the one I have (and not just because it seemed to have never been used previously), the logos and spindle controller box are quite a bit different too.

Great videos, thanks for sharing!

If you haven't already explored using the G38.2 straight line probing operation on the lathe, I highly recommended it, especially if you do any repetitive jobs that require doing a Z tool touchoff to locate the stock. I end up turning a lot of axle ends from 1/2" round or hex stock down to fit into 3/8" ID bearings and was able to automate all of the probing steps, so I can just insert the stock within +/- .500" and push go. It's also helpful when you make a mistake and break off the carbide insert and want to redo the tool X offset (and possibly Z depending on how big of a mistake was made).

 

[Jeffrey]

Hi Brent, I have a friend selling his Laguna IQ for 3000. Wondering if the conversion to the Masso touch was relatively simple?

 

[brent]

Hi Brent, I have a friend selling his Laguna IQ for 3000. Wondering if the conversion to the Masso touch was relatively simple?

Hey Jeffery,
The Laguna IQ conversion was pretty straight forward. Inside the big black (or tan if the machine is of a certain age) controller box from Laguna you will find some standard stepper motor drivers that you'll just need to connect up following the masso documentation for the step, direction, and ground for X, Y, and Z. (and make note of the microstepping settings on those drivers, because you'll need that when configuring the masso.

The VFD for the spindle was a delta MS300 on mine (and that seems to be pretty standard from Laguna's documentation), and that required a little bit more setup/configuration. The little handheld controller that came with the Laguna only turns the spindle on and of, but doesn't control the RPM, which you had to adjust directly on the VFD by adjusting the frequency to match your desired RPM... you could just connect up the spindle forward signal from the masso to the VFD and keep doing it that way, but I wanted to have it controlled by the MASSO, so you'd need to download the MS300 documentation and get to all the settings to enable the 0-10v spindle speed signal to be read. I also put in settings to block the VFD from trying to do RPMs that are below the range that the spindle is rated for, on mine it's 6000-24000RPM, so I configured it to do nothing if anything less than 6000 RPM is requested. Then to make it so I don't have to do mental math, I changed the configuration on the display on the VFD to display the RPMs rather than the frequency. The delta MS300 has about a million setting options, so read the manual and take it slow (and take notes of the original setting and what you changed it to), but it works great for me now!

The Z touch puck that comes with the laguna will work just fine, just need to send it to the masso and configure the input with a pullup resistor (all in the masso documentation).

I used DB-25 breakout boards and a DB-25 straight through cable (all from Amazon) to replace the original controller / cable / breakout box and it works great (I've done this type of configuration on 6 machines now, and it is pretty solid).

The only thing that took me some extra time was figuring out the ball screw pitch for the x, y, and z axis. Which ended up being 5mm of travel per rotation on all 3.

Once I had all the parts ordered sort of assembled (I put a slim 24vdc powersupply in the masso, and CNCed an aluminum cable plate for the back of the masso to hold the power plug and the DB-25 (I used a small db-25 m to f ribbon cable to make everything fit... I'll look for pictures), the the actual conversion only took about 3 hours (but I had some practice from other machines too).

$3000 is a great price for a laguna, so if you do get it and have questions, I can try to help.

-Brent

 

[Jeffrey]

Thanks so much. Going to check it out this Sunday. Will let you know how it goes.

 

[Jeffrey]

Hey Jeffery,
The Laguna IQ conversion was pretty straight forward. Inside the big black (or tan if the machine is of a certain age) controller box from Laguna you will find some standard stepper motor drivers that you'll just need to connect up following the masso documentation for the step, direction, and ground for X, Y, and Z. (and make note of the microstepping settings on those drivers, because you'll need that when configuring the masso.

The VFD for the spindle was a delta MS300 on mine (and that seems to be pretty standard from Laguna's documentation), and that required a little bit more setup/configuration. The little handheld controller that came with the Laguna only turns the spindle on and of, but doesn't control the RPM, which you had to adjust directly on the VFD by adjusting the frequency to match your desired RPM... you could just connect up the spindle forward signal from the masso to the VFD and keep doing it that way, but I wanted to have it controlled by the MASSO, so you'd need to download the MS300 documentation and get to all the settings to enable the 0-10v spindle speed signal to be read. I also put in settings to block the VFD from trying to do RPMs that are below the range that the spindle is rated for, on mine it's 6000-24000RPM, so I configured it to do nothing if anything less than 6000 RPM is requested. Then to make it so I don't have to do mental math, I changed the configuration on the display on the VFD to display the RPMs rather than the frequency. The delta MS300 has about a million setting options, so read the manual and take it slow (and take notes of the original setting and what you changed it to), but it works great for me now!

The Z touch puck that comes with the laguna will work just fine, just need to send it to the masso and configure the input with a pullup resistor (all in the masso documentation).

I used DB-25 breakout boards and a DB-25 straight through cable (all from Amazon) to replace the original controller / cable / breakout box and it works great (I've done this type of configuration on 6 machines now, and it is pretty solid).

The only thing that took me some extra time was figuring out the ball screw pitch for the x, y, and z axis. Which ended up being 5mm of travel per rotation on all 3.

Once I had all the parts ordered sort of assembled (I put a slim 24vdc powersupply in the masso, and CNCed an aluminum cable plate for the back of the masso to hold the power plug and the DB-25 (I used a small db-25 m to f ribbon cable to make everything fit... I'll look for pictures), the the actual conversion only took about 3 hours (but I had some practice from other machines too).

$3000 is a great price for a laguna, so if you do get it and have questions, I can try to help.

-Brent

Picking up the Laguna tomorrow morning.

 

[Jeffrey]

Hey Jeffery,
The Laguna IQ conversion was pretty straight forward. Inside the big black (or tan if the machine is of a certain age) controller box from Laguna you will find some standard stepper motor drivers that you'll just need to connect up following the masso documentation for the step, direction, and ground for X, Y, and Z. (and make note of the microstepping settings on those drivers, because you'll need that when configuring the masso.

The VFD for the spindle was a delta MS300 on mine (and that seems to be pretty standard from Laguna's documentation), and that required a little bit more setup/configuration. The little handheld controller that came with the Laguna only turns the spindle on and of, but doesn't control the RPM, which you had to adjust directly on the VFD by adjusting the frequency to match your desired RPM... you could just connect up the spindle forward signal from the masso to the VFD and keep doing it that way, but I wanted to have it controlled by the MASSO, so you'd need to download the MS300 documentation and get to all the settings to enable the 0-10v spindle speed signal to be read. I also put in settings to block the VFD from trying to do RPMs that are below the range that the spindle is rated for, on mine it's 6000-24000RPM, so I configured it to do nothing if anything less than 6000 RPM is requested. Then to make it so I don't have to do mental math, I changed the configuration on the display on the VFD to display the RPMs rather than the frequency. The delta MS300 has about a million setting options, so read the manual and take it slow (and take notes of the original setting and what you changed it to), but it works great for me now!

The Z touch puck that comes with the laguna will work just fine, just need to send it to the masso and configure the input with a pullup resistor (all in the masso documentation).

I used DB-25 breakout boards and a DB-25 straight through cable (all from Amazon) to replace the original controller / cable / breakout box and it works great (I've done this type of configuration on 6 machines now, and it is pretty solid).

The only thing that took me some extra time was figuring out the ball screw pitch for the x, y, and z axis. Which ended up being 5mm of travel per rotation on all 3.

Once I had all the parts ordered sort of assembled (I put a slim 24vdc powersupply in the masso, and CNCed an aluminum cable plate for the back of the masso to hold the power plug and the DB-25 (I used a small db-25 m to f ribbon cable to make everything fit... I'll look for pictures), the the actual conversion only took about 3 hours (but I had some practice from other machines too).

$3000 is a great price for a laguna, so if you do get it and have questions, I can try to help.

-Brent

Got the Laguna and machined my first project. Took three tries, but got ut. Hate the rich auto a11 controller. Could you take some pictures of your set up . Would appreciate it.

 

[brent]

Hey Jeffery,

Yeah, I hated the rich auto a11 and immediately wanted to replace it, but ended up using it for 3 years until it died in the middle of an urgent set of machining projects. I had to borrow a Masso from one of my other machines to get it going urgently, while waiting for the new Masso to arrive. Once I swapped it over, I was kicking myself for not doing the conversion sooner.

My Laguna is in the robotics lab at the high school where I run a robotics program, so I'll be a little limited on being able to take specific pictures until school starts again in September. But, I do have 2 machines at home with Masso controllers and spreadsheets (somewhere) with the Masso to Laguna connection mappings, so I should be able to walk you through it / troubleshoot in the mean time. I've attached one picture of the machine in action (but it doesn't really show anything that you'd be looking for.) I have the Masso mounted off of a VESA monitor arm that is attached to the table that the the Laguna sits on, which is really handy, and the touch already has VESA spaced holes in the back. (I also removed the t-track/spoil board and built a vacuum table for the surface of this machine because we mainly use it for cutting sheet goods, wood, plastic, and aluminum, it's fantastic!)

For the conversion:

The rich auto controller has the external handheld unit and on the other end of that 50-pin cable is an interface board (inside the big laguna controller box) which both will be removed for the conversion (but take note of where things are connected to the interface board, because this will map directly to what you want to connect to the Masso controller.) See pages 10 and 11 in this PDF for the interface board pins: https://forsuncnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/DSP-A11-User’s-Manual.pdf

To connect between the Laguna controller box and the Masso (I use the touch for all of my machines) I use a set of DB25 breakout boards (example: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07435ZTM9) and a DB25 straight through cable (example: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B092QTYQK2).

If you're using the touch and are interested I'd be happy to share CAD models of the CNC'd aluminum back panel for the DB25 (to the Laguna controller), a DB15 (for the Masso MPG), and power connector, along with 3D printed plates that I used to mount a slim power supply (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077B9QX32) and the DB25 breakout board inside the touch using the existing threaded studs and the DB25 in the Laguna controller using the bolt holes from the removed rich auto interface board. Pictures from CAD attached.

Connections that you'll need to make are:
- GND to be shared between the Laguna and the Masso
- The e-stop on the Laguna should be looped in (because if an emergency stop button exists, it really needs to actually work!), to do that I extended the e-stop loop down to run through the e-stop on the Laguna. Note that e-stop really needs to be held high (+24v) using normally closed switches, so that the absence of the signal is going to stop the machine, by either a broken wire or the press of any of the e-stops that are present in the loop. On the Laguna controller box that I have, the e-stop had two momentary press switches behind it, one goes to the VFD directly, which I left alone, and the other connected to X07 on the rich auto interface board, which I took over to include in the Masso e-stop loop. The switch looks like this: https://www.cloudraylaser.com/products/cloudray-chnt-np2-nc-emergency-stop-switch, and I inserted this between the +24v from the Masso and the the e-stop switch that is included in the touch (make sure that the switch module says NC on it (should have a red center, and not NO with a green center, if your configuration has a NO module then you'll need to order a NC one.) Before you move on to any of the other steps or connections, make sure all of your e-stops work!
- X, Y, and Z Pulse and Direction pins that you remove from the rich auto interface board will need to connect to the respective S+ and D+ pins on the Masso (the Laguna isn't wired for differential with the rich auto, so on the stepper drivers, the step- and direction- are already connected to GND, which works fine for me as the runs are not very long). Do have a look at the stepper driver DIP switch settings for microstepping/pulses per revolution while you're in there, as you'll need that later when configuring the Masso.
- The pins that were connected to X01, X02, and X03 on the original rich auto breakout board will need to connect to inputs on the Masso for X, Y, and Z home respectively (https://docs.masso.com.au/wiring-and-setup/setup-and-calibration/homing-home-inputs)
- The wire that was connected to X04 on the original rich auto breakout board will need to connect to an input on the Masso for the probe (hockey puck) and will need a pull up resistor (https://docs.masso.com.au/wiring-and-setup/probe-touch-plate)
- The spindle (without changing the Delta MS300 configuration from how it came) will allow you to turn it on and off in the CW direction from the Masso by connecting Masso spindle pins 4 + 6 to DCM on the VFD (GND) and Masso spindle pin 5 (FWD) to MI1 on the VFD (see https://docs.masso.com.au/wiring-an...ibration/spindle-vfd-examples/delta-ms300-vfd). With the rich auto, the RPMs of the spindle are controlled by adjusting the VFD frequency directly on the MS300 LED display... to get the Masso to control it, you'll need to mess with the Delta MS300 configuration and make the connections to ACM and AVI as detailed in the link... I am not a VFD expert and had to dig through other threads here and read the manual for the VFD (which is a lot: https://downloadcenter.deltaww.com/downloadCenterCounter.aspx?DID=44925&DocPath=1&hl=en-US), but I did get it to work and it wasn't that bad, just take it slow and take notes of the original setting before changing anything! I have not configured my spindle to spin CCW (haven't found a need for this in my use and with the tools that I have).

 

[Jeffrey]

Hey Jeffery,

Yeah, I hated the rich auto a11 and immediately wanted to replace it, but ended up using it for 3 years until it died in the middle of an urgent set of machining projects. I had to borrow a Masso from one of my other machines to get it going urgently, while waiting for the new Masso to arrive. Once I swapped it over, I was kicking myself for not doing the conversion sooner.

My Laguna is in the robotics lab at the high school where I run a robotics program, so I'll be a little limited on being able to take specific pictures until school starts again in September. But, I do have 2 machines at home with Masso controllers and spreadsheets (somewhere) with the Masso to Laguna connection mappings, so I should be able to walk you through it / troubleshoot in the mean time. I've attached one picture of the machine in action (but it doesn't really show anything that you'd be looking for.) I have the Masso mounted off of a VESA monitor arm that is attached to the table that the the Laguna sits on, which is really handy, and the touch already has VESA spaced holes in the back. (I also removed the t-track/spoil board and built a vacuum table for the surface of this machine because we mainly use it for cutting sheet goods, wood, plastic, and aluminum, it's fantastic!)

For the conversion:

The rich auto controller has the external handheld unit and on the other end of that 50-pin cable is an interface board (inside the big laguna controller box) which both will be removed for the conversion (but take note of where things are connected to the interface board, because this will map directly to what you want to connect to the Masso controller.) See pages 10 and 11 in this PDF for the interface board pins: https://forsuncnc.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/DSP-A11-User’s-Manual.pdf

To connect between the Laguna controller box and the Masso (I use the touch for all of my machines) I use a set of DB25 breakout boards (example: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07435ZTM9) and a DB25 straight through cable (example: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B092QTYQK2).

If you're using the touch and are interested I'd be happy to share CAD models of the CNC'd aluminum back panel for the DB25 (to the Laguna controller), a DB15 (for the Masso MPG), and power connector, along with 3D printed plates that I used to mount a slim power supply (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077B9QX32) and the DB25 breakout board inside the touch using the existing threaded studs and the DB25 in the Laguna controller using the bolt holes from the removed rich auto interface board. Pictures from CAD attached.

Connections that you'll need to make are:
- GND to be shared between the Laguna and the Masso
- The e-stop on the Laguna should be looped in (because if an emergency stop button exists, it really needs to actually work!), to do that I extended the e-stop loop down to run through the e-stop on the Laguna. Note that e-stop really needs to be held high (+24v) using normally closed switches, so that the absence of the signal is going to stop the machine, by either a broken wire or the press of any of the e-stops that are present in the loop. On the Laguna controller box that I have, the e-stop had two momentary press switches behind it, one goes to the VFD directly, which I left alone, and the other connected to X07 on the rich auto interface board, which I took over to include in the Masso e-stop loop. The switch looks like this: https://www.cloudraylaser.com/products/cloudray-chnt-np2-nc-emergency-stop-switch, and I inserted this between the +24v from the Masso and the the e-stop switch that is included in the touch (make sure that the switch module says NC on it (should have a red center, and not NO with a green center, if your configuration has a NO module then you'll need to order a NC one.) Before you move on to any of the other steps or connections, make sure all of your e-stops work!
- X, Y, and Z Pulse and Direction pins that you remove from the rich auto interface board will need to connect to the respective S+ and D+ pins on the Masso (the Laguna isn't wired for differential with the rich auto, so on the stepper drivers, the step- and direction- are already connected to GND, which works fine for me as the runs are not very long). Do have a look at the stepper driver DIP switch settings for microstepping/pulses per revolution while you're in there, as you'll need that later when configuring the Masso.
- The pins that were connected to X01, X02, and X03 on the original rich auto breakout board will need to connect to inputs on the Masso for X, Y, and Z home respectively (https://docs.masso.com.au/wiring-and-setup/setup-and-calibration/homing-home-inputs)
- The wire that was connected to X04 on the original rich auto breakout board will need to connect to an input on the Masso for the probe (hockey puck) and will need a pull up resistor (https://docs.masso.com.au/wiring-and-setup/probe-touch-plate)
- The spindle (without changing the Delta MS300 configuration from how it came) will allow you to turn it on and off in the CW direction from the Masso by connecting Masso spindle pins 4 + 6 to DCM on the VFD (GND) and Masso spindle pin 5 (FWD) to MI1 on the VFD (see https://docs.masso.com.au/wiring-an...ibration/spindle-vfd-examples/delta-ms300-vfd). With the rich auto, the RPMs of the spindle are controlled by adjusting the VFD frequency directly on the MS300 LED display... to get the Masso to control it, you'll need to mess with the Delta MS300 configuration and make the connections to ACM and AVI as detailed in the link... I am not a VFD expert and had to dig through other threads here and read the manual for the VFD (which is a lot: https://downloadcenter.deltaww.com/downloadCenterCounter.aspx?DID=44925&DocPath=1&hl=en-US), but I did get it to work and it wasn't that bad, just take it slow and take notes of the original setting before changing anything! I have not configured my spindle to spin CCW (haven't found a need for this in my use and with the tools that I have).

Thanks so much. Will really help to g
et me started. Tired of my touch setting in my closet while I tried to find time to assemble my PrintNC project. I'm sure to have more questions, specifically about the resistors. Thanks again.

 

[brent]

If you're using a 24v power supply for the Masso, you want to use 5K6 ohm resistors (example: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08QRHLSV3) for any pull up inputs (see the Masso documentation for the resistor value if you're using 12v power supply, but also it has a really easy diagram.)

Pull up inputs are used when you want to signal when grounded, like the probe, where the probe plate is connected to the input on the masso and held to high (+24v) via the resistor path until the grounded tool in the spindle (Laguna already has the spindle grounded because it was already using the probe plate) touches the plate and pulls the input to low. (In the F1 screen on the Masso, you will need to inverse that input, so it's normally high and active when low, also covered in the Masso documentation.)

Basically, think of electricity as being lazy (in this analogy only, don't think it's lazy if you're about to touch something that is high voltage/high current) and only taking the easiest path (least resistance), so If you connect a resistor from +24v on the Masso to the input configured for the probe, it will hold that input high. The signal will stay high until a wire also connected to the input configured for the probe (shared with the resistor) is connected to ground (i.e., the spindle) which would pull it low (and the resistor stops you from having a hard short and killing everything). This is because the input port on the Masso (through a replaceable optocoupler) has a very high resistance to measure the presence of a voltage signal (similar to how your multimeter in voltage mode has a very high resistance between common and V+), so when there is no direct path to ground (when the probe plate isn't touching the tool in the spindle), the lowest resistance path (only path) is through the sensor, but as soon as there's a better (lower resistance) path it will go that way and sensor will not see any voltage...

Please ask and post pictures before trying it if you're unsure... Hard shorting voltage through the Masso will most likely result in getting to buy a new Masso, especially if you don't put the suggested fuse between the power supply and the Masso (but even then, it would be best to not hard short)!

 

[Jeffrey]

If you're using a 24v power supply for the Masso, you want to use 5K6 ohm resistors (example: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08QRHLSV3) for any pull up inputs (see the Masso documentation for the resistor value if you're using 12v power supply, but also it has a really easy diagram.)

Pull up inputs are used when you want to signal when grounded, like the probe, where the probe plate is connected to the input on the masso and held to high (+24v) via the resistor path until the grounded tool in the spindle (Laguna already has the spindle grounded because it was already using the probe plate) touches the plate and pulls the input to low. (In the F1 screen on the Masso, you will need to inverse that input, so it's normally high and active when low, also covered in the Masso documentation.)

Basically, think of electricity as being lazy (in this analogy only, don't think it's lazy if you're about to touch something that is high voltage/high current) and only taking the easiest path (least resistance), so If you connect a resistor from +24v on the Masso to the input configured for the probe, it will hold that input high. The signal will stay high until a wire also connected to the input configured for the probe (shared with the resistor) is connected to ground (i.e., the spindle) which would pull it low (and the resistor stops you from having a hard short and killing everything). This is because the input port on the Masso (through a replaceable optocoupler) has a very high resistance to measure the presence of a voltage signal (similar to how your multimeter in voltage mode has a very high resistance between common and V+), so when there is no direct path to ground (when the probe plate isn't touching the tool in the spindle), the lowest resistance path (only path) is through the sensor, but as soon as there's a better (lower resistance) path it will go that way and sensor will not see any voltage...

Please ask and post pictures before trying it if you're unsure... Hard shorting voltage through the Masso will most likely result in getting to buy a new Masso, especially if you don't put the suggested fuse between the power supply and the Masso (but even then, it would be best to not hard short)!

Thanks so much. Will go slow and triple check every thing. Thanks again.