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INTERFACE CNC Touch Controller

Discussion in 'Other Builds' started by OpenBuilds, Dec 15, 2020.

  1. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    Depends on what your Z Max rate in Grbl is. Setting the Grbl parameters appropriately greatly affects this as its a percentage of those values.
     
  2. Kenneth Henderick

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    Don't get me wrong, it works awesome, and at 1% and 5% the speed is actually slow, so I feel like it's a lot easier to accurately navigate around when for example you can't use the x/y probing. But setting the jog speed down to a safe 25% is the first thing I do :D.

    Aha, that's something I didn't know. I will for sure set this a tad lower in this case. Thanks :)
     
  3. Skip S.

    Skip S. Well-Known
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    So Peter, the interface only runs at 100% federate? it isn't adjustable?
    If that's the case, is there a plan to make that change available or is that possible?
     
  4. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    No, it has 1-100%, but to clarify how fast that is, if you for example set it to 25% it is 25% OF this value gnea/grbl for each axis individually. So if your Z feels uncontrollably fast, you can dial your max rate down to a more sane speed
     
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  5. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    Also watch: 3min20sec shows the adjustable feedrate

     
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  6. Skip S.

    Skip S. Well-Known
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    *Sigh* figures, last time I watched the videos for black box but didn't read docs - this time I scour the docs for interface, literally forget there are videos.

    Thank you Peter
     
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  7. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    :) This video is embedded in the docs hehe - bottom of docs:interface:usage-instructions [OpenBuilds Documentation]
     
  8. Skip S.

    Skip S. Well-Known
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    Oh that makes it even worse!!
     
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  9. JSuster

    JSuster New
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    To all those that are having issues with USB recognition. Ensure that it is in fact formatting to FAT32. This format is not supported by windows on drives over 32GB, since data storage is cheap many flash drives you may find are going to be larger than this. I found a tool online that will format larger drives to FAT32, can be found here.

    I had one 64GB drive that i tried formatting as exFAT and the Interface would not recognize it. Using the tool above, I was able to format it to FAT32 and add files through CONTROL. After plugging it in, the interface recognized it right away.

    Hope this helps!
     
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  10. Banjopete

    Banjopete New
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    Is it possible to update the firmware without having the interface plugged into the blackbox?
     
  11. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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  12. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    Attached a beta of firmware v1.44 - should resolve that bug - if you'd like to help test, you can flash it using method 2 or 3 (Select CUSTOM on the version dropdown, and use the attached file) - see docs:interface:firmware-update [OpenBuilds Documentation]
    Remember to extract the ZIP :)

    While testing just check that this didn't break anything else :)
     

    Attached Files:

    #132 Peter Van Der Walt, Jan 26, 2021
    Last edited: Jan 26, 2021
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  13. sharmstr

    sharmstr OpenBuilds Team
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    cancel/abort works as expected now. didnt really test beyond that.
     
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  14. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    Firmware v1.45 released

    Changelog:
    v1.45 - Moved Spindle Off to Spindle ON position to avoid accidents (As per INTERFACE CNC Touch Controller)
    v1.44 - Fixed bug with Pause button (as per INTERFACE CNC Touch Controller)
    Older entries: See complete Changelog: OpenBuilds/firmware


    If you are on v1.43 - you can update using the online method, or the alternatives.
    If you are on v1.24-1.41 - see docs:interface:firmware-error-partitions [OpenBuilds Documentation] first and use the CONTROL method to flash v1.45

    For more documentation on Updates, see docs:interface:firmware-update [OpenBuilds Documentation]

    If you are unsure which Firmware version you are running, click RESET and watch the text on the bottom of the Boot logo screen:


    upload_2021-1-27_20-52-37.png
     
    #134 Peter Van Der Walt, Jan 27, 2021
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2021
  15. Banjopete

    Banjopete New
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    Super support hooked me up with a replacement interface (in less than 24hrs to my door in Canada OMG!) and all seems to be working now. Much easier getting started after running through the process so many times. Here's hoping it's nothing but happy cutting ahead, thanks.
     
  16. grnch

    grnch New
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    Perfect! Thank you for the firmware update, that was pretty fast!
    Update went smoothly over wifi
     
    #136 grnch, Jan 27, 2021
    Last edited: Jan 27, 2021
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  17. Kevin R

    Kevin R New
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    Is there any plans to put the Incremental jog on the interface like Control has?
     
  18. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    Not really no, if you have a probe its just overall such a nicer experience compared to trying to jog it perfectly. That said, dial the Jog Speed down and you'll see how fine movements you can get :) instead of changing the step distance, changing the speed gives you perfect control over rough positioning and dialing in the last 0.03mm (;
     
  19. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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  20. pilotjunky

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    Has anyone got the INTERFACE device to work with XPro v4 board?

    Got it working on my Blackbox v2.5 with the mod as instructed. I’ve update the firmware... all good. What’s the trick to getting the Interface device working with XPro v4? Anyone had success... it just seems to keep rebooting when connected to v5, GND, Tx and Rx in the XPro v4. Thanks Rich.
     
  21. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    5V regulator on xPro may be insufficient, try powering Interface off USB-C as well (spare old phone charger, and included USB-C Power cable)
     
  22. Jeremy McGlade

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    Try powering it through the USB C port with a computer or a portable usb battery pack.
     
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  23. pilotjunky

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    I think the power supply issue is resolved per the suggestions... but I cannot seem to consistently get the RX/TX to work... I have had it working but now it won't connect to GRBL... Using the two pins highlighted below on the board. I have tried all the simple "restart" debugging no luck. It's 100% consistently working with OpenBuilds Control.... appreciate any debug suggestions (aside from buy a BlackBox :) )

    upload_2021-1-31_18-32-52.png
     
  24. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    Only those two? You need three: GND to reference the RX TX voltages against :)
     
  25. pilotjunky

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    No, I've also put the 5v through it... something is missing here and I can't figure it out... can't get GRBL communication... must be a trick to getting that header to work which then allows serial data to flow.

    upload_2021-2-1_9-51-49.png
     
  26. Peter Van Der Walt

    Peter Van Der Walt OpenBuilds Team
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    Maybe the switch on the right near the USB port?
     
  27. pilotjunky

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    xPro v4 with INTERFACE - I got this working and thought I'd report back to the community on how. Mike from Spark Concepts helped me out.

    1.) Jumper CTS (UART) to the Digital Ground pin next to it. (Mike wrote: For the external RX and TX signal, you will need to pull the CS pin low on that header - the easiest way to do that is to jumper pins 8 and 10 on the shrouded header..These are the two rear pins, closest to the GRBL logo on the board)
    2.) Digital +5v pin to the INTERFACE 5v pin
    3.) Rx (UART) pin to the Tx pin on the INTERFACE (Remember it's Rx to Tx because the natural instinct for the layman is Rx to Rx which is incorrect!)
    4.) Tx (UART) pin to the Rx pin on the INTERFACE (Remember it's Tx to Rx, because the natural instinct for the layman is Tx to Tx which is incorrect!)
    5.) Connect Ground a pin from xPro to INTERFACE Ground.
    5.) Flip the Little switch beside the USB port to get 5V to the board without USB.
    6.) Use supplied USB-C Power cable to external 5V source such as Laptop USB, or Battery, or Plug to power the INTERFACE because there isn't enough from the xPro v4 alone.

    upload_2021-2-2_7-23-22.png
     
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  28. TommyTT

    TommyTT New
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    image.jpg Hi there I wondering if anybody knows how to fix this issue my interface will not connect or let me set it up. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
     
  29. sharmstr

    sharmstr OpenBuilds Team
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    Are you trying to connect to the blackbox or a computer? If a BB then make sure the USB is unplugged from the BB. If to a computer, make sure to use a usb data cable. The usb cable provided with the Interface is power only. Also refer to the documentation. Has everything you need to know: docs:interface:start [OpenBuilds Documentation]
     
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  30. pilotjunky

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    I've been playing with the INTERFACE a fair bit today to try and develop a workflow for myself and an understanding of it's capability. I'm just a user, but I'll give you my learnings in hopes of helping.

    To get a file to the INTERFACE you can connect to INTERFACE from a Web Browser and do an upload. http://192.168.86.51 would be an example URL. This assumes you've set up WiFi on the device of course. It's the only way I can see to "transfer a job directly from a PC to INTERFACE without a USB"


    I ran a couple small jobs today with just the INTERFACE plugged in. It works as advertised, but it takes some getting used to. Don't give up.

    Rich.
     
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