2-3-22 had maybe three days with no issues. no motion control errors, not freezing. Well today FC froze very early in day. I always restart computer bf I start the day. I was fortunately able to save my cut even though FC completely lost all coordinates and even the pierce count. When it started back up the homing presets were waaaaay off, so I had to rehome machine. Ate up a good ten minutes.
I know they are working hard (so it seems) but Im officially over FC and this tiny PC they supplied probably isn’t helping. Was not planning on another table purchase this year but Im definitely done with this company. I have no hard feelings and gave them many chances and 5 machines worth of money. I wish them the best, but as I stated with the PRO a while back, its just not built for professional use. The XR is better but way too inconsistent for me. They need to test these machines heavily with cutting bf launching, FC has been an absolute plague of updates and most always adds other problems. Growing a brand isn’t easy esp in these times. But I hope they can iron out the basics. The pricepoint is always good but comes with a heavy price down the road.
Sounds like you are already at the point of needing a commercial machine given the volume in your shop. As we grow our business the upgrade path from the XR will for sure be a fully commercial CNC plasma table.
Not yet but that is another option. Its not even just with the XR. FC has just been updated so many times, I read on FB forums issues after issues. Im just ready to move on. Not saying other brands won’t give me problems, but Iv just had way too many with FC. I like it when it works but thankfully I don’t cut new programs often bc it just would ruin material. I cut same files for years, production. If yesterday I was cutting a custom sign or something and it froze and I couldnt’ get it lined back up perfectly, I woulda wasted so much money. I was able to use the homing feature twice now when I got a tip and it through off the gantry, that was def nice. But when it hard freezes and loses pierce counts and all coordinates thats a drag. That has happened several times in one day on me and now just yesterday (again, I changed some things and had 2-3 days no issues, then the freeze yesterday)
Yeah for sure. Again I like the company and they have changed my life, that is why I kept going back to them machine after machine. I was saving for a new building for 2.5 yrs, so that is why I didn’t want an expensive table with a big footprint. I was able to buy a 6300sq building, turn key back in October. Patiently awaited the XR to show up and of course just alot of adversity. Iv cut only 15 days worth of production on it. As Iv stated rarely a day with no issues. The freezing has become a major issue. When I got motion control errors I could atleast move onto next part and go. The mechanical side of it is ok even though Iv had some debris in the Y rails and its not smooth riding by any means, compared to the X axis. Iv dealt with alot of down time and bad days with the PRO and XR but Iv had good days too, Iv always been able to meet my weekly quotas. I am to the point where I need a more proven system. Scaling a biz ins’t easy and I don’t know all their daily stuff, but one tech guy for the XR and tons of FC issues, just needs resolved. Last I was told the owners where looking into it and just heard nothing. The programmer made up a new post processor for sheetcam to help with the motion control errors and it made it worse. I had zero motion control errors when running the PRO that I recall. Iv had freezing issues though.
Cam said its very rare but of course I get them quite a bit (not so much past few cut times) but the freezing has become a new issue and a bigger issue.
This machine controller or motion control error seemed to be random and sometimes fixed after I restarted FC and restarted the CPU. What it would do is pierce, stop and not cut. It would give me option to recut and it would never work, so…I could skip that cut and move onto the next and continue the whole file no issues. Fortunately it was only on holes, so I could always drill them. The software guys said it might be a buffering issue, so they wrote a new post processor for sheetcam. It will not work for me, though Cam said it worked on their end.
I sent him one of 5 new files I post processed and all gave me errors and wouldn’t open in FC. So really I don’t think they know exactly what is causing the issue, I think its speculation and makes no sense to me bc I never had that on the PRO. How much different is the PRO FC vs XR I don’t know.
He said the owners were looking into it but haven’t heard anything. I don’t think its a program issue at all, its very random error.
That is strange. Those commands should not be on the same line or even near each other. The G38.2 is the probe command for the IHS and the line before that should be a G92 Z0. It could be a buffering issue and some lines are being lost or combined, but I don’t know how a different post processor could fix that.
Thanks for the input, here is one that goes some of the code when I got the error.
Since Iv moved the dongle into the actual PC and not the usb hub and also moved PC away from plasma, I haven’t gotten the error, but…I have gotten freezing issues which are way worse.
I restart the PC everyday and sometimes during production. I have noticed FC is very inconsistent when opening, like it takes soooo long to open I almost want to click on it again. I also notice within FC when I click on the set start location, it takes sometimes up to 5 seconds or so bf it actual generates. So could be this crapy PC isn’t helping aside from FC itself.
The amount of variables is frustrating. Oh it could be the “cords” or the PC or a million other things.
This is how hypertherm talks about dealing with electromagnetic interference.
Ultimately is that what this problem is about? That the data signal between the computer and the table is being corrupted overtime?
Thats good info, however I wasn’t having these issue with the PRO, using same extension cords etc. although I do temporarily just have my THC ext wire spliced (LM even has a page about doing so). I even turned THC off when I was experimenting with the motion control error. Example when I closed FC after getting the error, I tried the same hole that wouldn’t cut but with THC off and still go the error. The only way I have not gotten the same error on the same exact hole in my file was when I restarted the entire PC. Its just a sporadic issue. Some days I have had no issues at all and other days it would appear, oddly enough it would only happen when I was cutting 3/16. I never got a motion control error when cutting my 11g material. So Im cutting higher amps on the 3/16 than the 11g.
As for grounding the PRO vrs XR could be this… the PRO gantry and y axis are bare metal, the XR has crappy powder coat. Perhaps there is some grounding issues with the machine??? The PRO use to freeze bf some FC updates and their soldered chip board (which was a very early issue). Last time I was cutting on my PRO I don’t recall any freezes for a while.
I never had motion control error on my PRO, infact I have two PRO tables at two different shops, neither have had that error. Cam said it could be a bad motion control board in the XR. But again, it works most the time and when it doesn’t its just random and only on one hole in one file. The freezing issue I have no idea why and where that is happening, could be ground and interference issue, but why now after about a dozen production runs I would start to get freezes?
I have been pretty lucky with the freeze-ups on my pro.
Normally a freeze up on my pro is because of my wallered out USB port and it disturbs the data signal for a split second, then it’s game over.
Maybe implementing some of those hypertherm EMI protocols may help for your XR?
Hypertherm calling it " routine part of the installation process" says alot.
As your pointing out the powder coat is insulating it or causing continuity issue, potentially.
On your freezing. Is there any way your USB cable is touching the table? Just bought a hypertherm I can bank on a freeze in cable touches table for a second.
Spoke too soon. I got the machine error again. Its so random it drives me nuts, but it does seem like it happens on the same exact part every time. For example this file I’v but atleast 15 times. Iv gotten the motion control error on this file atleast 4-5 times and it seems like it is the same part. It will pierce but then stop. It won’t let me recut the hole, I just have to skip it, rest of file cuts.
I’m trying to understand the G1 F50.0 . its not telling what axis how far to move. just saying how fast to move… this seems like a post processor error to me. unless firecontrol automatically sees G1 as a certain action and is just not taking that action. is this G1 with just a feed rate anywhere else in the program where it works past it?
these were the first two cuts on that same file. It works almost most the time. I also used all these files on the PRO. So I just don’t understand what could be the post processing issue. I have actually re post processed this file before, thinking ya maybe it is a post processing error, but Iv pretty much rule it out and files Iv sent LM ruled it out.
All the motion control errors were thankfully just on circles, which I have a tool path set for. LM thinks its a buffering issue, again what is so diff between FC on the XR vrs FC on the PRO??? At any rate
I hope I can figure this out, its draining to be on here and dealing with this in general. I got too many irons in the fire as it is. Regardless if I get this fixed, Im getting a new table this year and this will be my back up table and or second in line production table.
