Tech support for Javascript Macros in CONTROL

I've just added a macro to generate LASER engraving power / speed test patterns:

Getting started with Javascript Macros in CONTROL / Library of Macros created by the community

Please ask any questions here

(Feedback also appreciated)

 

I have updated the test pattern macro above to include some over-travel so that the speeds of the right hand patches are accurate.
It calculates the travel needed from a machine X acceleration value (entered as x_acceleration). Entering this as zero disables the over-travel calculation.

I've also added a Focus / Depth Of Field test pattern generator:

Getting started with Javascript Macros in CONTROL / Library of Macros created by the community

 

By deleting the Macro. Right click on the Macro Button on the Macros tab

 

You need to completely re-start OpenbuildsControl (without running the macro) to get rid of the extra toolbar button - on a Windows machine, this means closing the main OpenbuildsControl window and also right-clicking on the small OpenbuildsControl icon in the control tray(?) and selecting 'Quit Openbuilds Control...'

When you re-start OpenbuildsControl, the extra toolbar icon will be gone. (Make sure that the macro isn't set to run on startup, or the button will be put back again!)

 

the other way is to send a long jog command while the key/joystick is pressed and a 'stop jog' when it is released.
This is how CONTROL does it in the jog command section.

 

Hi - did this happen when you clicked 'Proceed' to return to the original position?

It may be that, with the new offset applied, trying to put the tool tip back at the same height of the previous tool has exceeded the Z travel of your machine*. (What is the maximum Z travel of your machine? ).

As a diagnostic check, could you try it again but click 'close' when you get to that screen at the end of the probing cycle (rather than 'proceed' to return to the starting point).

If not, there is some extra debugging into in the developer console (press CTRL+SHIFT+i on Windows) - look at the 'messages' under the 'console' tab - if you can paste the 'other' messages here it may help to understand what is happening.

*It should be possible to trap this error in the macro, but I don't think it does at the moment.

 

None the wiser, I'm sorry - can you attach the complete serial log and the messages relating to the probe (they should all be grouped together under 'other', I think) as text files, rather than screenshots - also the machine configuration?

Do you have homing switches installed?

 

You need to copy the text in the serial log window (ctrl + A in windows) and paste it into a text document - similarly for the messages in the console if you can.

For the configuration, go to the 'Grbl Settings' tab and click 'Backup settings', then attach that text file.

One more question - when you installed the macro, did you copy and paste the code or use the JSON file?

Thanks

 

Sorry, I didn't post one for that macro!

Thanks for the files - I think I know what's causing it (it's a bug in the code). Leave it with me for a day, or so.

 

@Niuulh

Thanks for your patience. I have corrected what I think was causing the error, but I can't replicate it on my system (either my processor is slower, or there are subtle differences between the way that GRBL_Hal and GRBL_ESP32 behave ).

I have also added code to manage the case where there is insufficient Z+ travel to return to the original position and have set the default option to ignore the 'homed status' reported by Control (it's too much of a PITA!).

Would you mind testing the updated macro attached to this post? I have tested it on my machine, but please proceed with caution.

Let me know what happens. If there are still problems, please could you post the console 'Information' -> 'others' messages and the serial log again?

(If all is OK, I'll update the post on the other thread.)

Thanks.

[Edit - file deleted as it didn't achieve anything - if anyone wants a copy just drop me a PM]

 

Hi, and thankyou.

What is your G30 setting?

Are you probing the tool length from near the surface of the work? If so, you may need to reduce the seek distance for the tool setter (window.tc_seekdistance). It looks like you have it set to 60mm (default 45mm). Work surface offset of 70mm + 60mm seek distance is > machine Z travel of 120mm.

However, there is something bigger happening here that I don't understand...

The macro is sending the following GCode as a single block

Code:

       G21
                    G38.3 Z-60 F200
                    G4 P0.4
                    $J=G91 G21 Z2 F1000

Your log shows error 9 at the G21 and again at the G4 when you deleted the G21. This didn't happen in your original logs - these commands went through OK, and the code here is unchanged. The G21 / G4 commands themselves aren't causing the problem, it's the controller objecting to being sent a stream of commands - I don't understand why your controller isn't queueing the commands. (The previous version of the macro did send two strings of commands without waiting for the first to complete which, I believe was causing your original error, however it didn't cause an error on my controller. This has now been fixed.)

What controller are you using? Do you know what compatability level GRBLhal is using?

(If anyone can help, the actual code is:

Code:

                var tc_probe =  `
                    G21                    ;set mm mode
                    G38.3 Z-` + tc_seekdistance + ` F` + tc_seekspeed + ` ;probe using parameters at the top of the macro
                    G4 P0.4                ;pause
                    $J=G91G21Z` + tc_retract + `F1000    ;jog up by retract paramter at the top of the macro
                    `
                socket.off('prbResult'); // Disable old listeners
                socket.emit('runJob', {
                    data: tc_probe,
                    isJob: false,
                    completedMsg: "",
                    fileName: ""
                });

I'm sorry, but I am at a loss to know why this is causing problems here, despite working OK on my controller (and I guess a few other people's)...

 

getting errors for g21 and G4 are fundamental problems that should NOT be happening at all.
I suspect you have the wrong kind of line endings in your macro. Are you using a Mac?

 

That should be OK, then - probing distances are relative to G30. I had another look at your logs and I don't think you were getting the error I thought you were.

I've attached another couple of files if you wouldn't mind trying them. They are zipped* JSON files that can be imported as an openbuilds macro after they have been unpacked (import macro button). This will eliminate something funny happening to the line endings during the cut-paste process for text files.

V1.5 may work (I have changed something silly - don't spend any time on it if it does the same as before).
V1.6 is something speculative to try if V1.5 doesn't work.

After that, I am really out of ideas!

Thanks

*The forum software doesn't allow JSON files to be posted directly.

[Edit - files deleted as they didn't solve the problem ]

 

I'm not using a Mac, not sure about the OP, but hopefully directly importing the JSON files will eliminate the possibility of anything funny happening when moving text files about. (I don't get any errors at all and can't recreate the problem ).

Will see what happens with the last 2 files...

 

Nor me

Possibly the last roll of the dice: I have reformatted all of the GCode strings to have explicit '\n' character as the new line - Try this carefully to see what happens. N.B. I haven't checked this version on an actual machine, so be cautious.

I have one question for the likes of @David the swarfer or @Peter Van Der Walt :

What is the significance of the ' isJob: ' item in the following snippet (example):

Code:

 
            var tc_goback = "G21\nG90\nG53 G0 Z-5\nG0 X10 Y10\n";

        socket.emit('runJob', {
                data: tc_goback,
                isJob: false,
                completedMsg: "",
                fileName: ""
            });   

Should it be set to 'true' / 'false' / "yes" / "no" or something else for this usage? (Currently set to false)

Thanks.

[edit - file removed as it didn't work]