Fanuc lathe crash using i-guide. Parameter maybe?

[Bruce Caulley]

Ahoy!

 

When doing an i-guide cycle on an Oi-mate control the point that the machine is at prior to starting the cycle is where the machine rapids back to once complete. We have had a couple of bumps because of this and I was wondering if there is a parameter controling how the machine retracts from these cycles???.

 

Seems to me a bit bogus if the control has been told the shape of the part and the stock definition only to rapid straight through it if a position called outside of the cycle is "unsafe". Should rapid by default to a position on the Z+ side of the stock boundary and not do an X move at all if you ask me. Seems that this would be safe and idiot proof 98% of the time as opposed to the landmine situation that the current method creates.

 

Any ideas?

 

Bruce

[Tony35]

good day mate

we have a 18i with manual guide i on it. the best results i have got is to write the programs by hand (old school) plus we do a lot of macros on that machine. as the manual guide i goes it seems a little over kill than it needs to be. i dont like it and cant get it to work right but i am a mill guy so i did not put too much time in it or any schooling. (we need that machine cutting chips, ok boss) i have books on it if you need me to look anything up. i am no expert on it

good luck

[DavidB]

Bruce can you post the code?

[Bruce Caulley]

Should have said I wasn't using MC to programme. I am only programming at the control.

 

In i-guide the safe start and end point aren't actually in the cycle. It just rapids to where it was before the cycle started. So we: Move to a safe point, call the cycle, define the shape, move to home, TC, repeat.

 

Bloke last night was making some spigots for fixturing on the mills. First was 150mm OD and the second was 200mm OD. After the first part he changed the defined shape in the cycle and re-ran the programme. Only problem was the machine was at X155mm when the cycle was called, so when the diameter was finished the machine went back to X155, Z5 at rapid.

 

This will catch any turner eventually, no matter how careful they are. While not a bug in fanuc per se, it is a landmine waiting for someone to step on it. The safe entry and exit point should be in the cycle and hopefuly I am not the only one to bring it up and the i-guide software will include this in a future release.

 

Until then I thought there may have been a parameter to control motion on exit from a cycle. Everything else in fanuc is a parameter so I thought I would try my luck.

 

Bruce

[Tony35]

bruce

if it is a canned cycle it will return to the start point of that cycle so if you start at X3.0 Z.1

when it is done roughing it goes back to X3.0 Z.1 then home TC etc.