In Mach3, LPT1 pin 12 input is used for the probe.
3D
Digitizing
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3D Digitizing Probe,
Digitizing Movie
Basic 3D
digitizing steps: probe, mesh point cloud, convert
to appropriate file type, CAM
to g-code & then CNC the part.
Find the Mach3 3D Probing Plug-in, then
install & configure it
under Mach3
Conf Menu.
Adds the
3D Probing tab to the right of
Help.
Creates an XYZ comma-delimited
txt
file.Mach3 also has a
Digitize Wizard
but it is purportedly slower than the plug-in.
MachCloud reads the 3D Probing
comma-delimited txt
file & creates an XYZ
point cloud that can be
meshed from the
menu &
then saved as an STL file or just saved it as
an STL file for use by
other meshing programs e.g.,
MeshLab.
Raw point cloud file structure can vary e.g., comma,
tab, or space delimited.
Reading errors can result.
Convert meshed
STL file (using any preferred method)
into g-code for Mach3 with a CAM program
e.g.,
FreeMill.
STL is a file
format native to the stereolithography
software created by 3D Systems. This
file format is
supported by many other software packages.
It is widely used for rapid
prototyping & computer-aided
manufacturing. STL files describe only the surface geometry
of a three
dimensional object without any representation
of color, texture or other common CAD model attributes.
The STL format specifies
both ASCII & binary
representations. Binary files are more common, since they
are more compact. An
STL file describes a raw
unstructured triangulated surface by the unit normal & vertices
(ordered
by the right-hand rule) of the triangles
using a three-dimensional Cartesian coordinate system.
Mesh generation is the practice of
generating a polygonal or
polyhedral mesh that approximates a geometric
domain. The term "grid generation" is often used interchangeably.
Typical
uses are for rendering to a computer
screen or for physical simulation such as finite element
analysis or
computational fluid dynamics. The input
model form can vary greatly but common sources are CAD,
NURBS, B-rep & STL
(file format). Three-dimensional
meshes created for finite element analysis need to consist
of tetrahedra,
pyramids, prisms or hexahedra. Those
used for the finite volume method can consist of arbitrary
polyhedra. Those used
for finite difference methods
usually need to consist of piecewise structured arrays of
hexahedra known as
multi-block structured meshes.
Computer-aided manufacturing (CAM)
is the use of computer
software to control machine tools & related machinery
in the manufacturing of work
pieces. CAM is the next
computer-aided process after computer-aided design (CAD),
as the model generated in CAD can be input into CAM
software, which then
controls the machine tool.
Traditionally, CAM has been considered as a numerical control (NC)
programming
tool, wherein two-dimensional (2D)
or three-dimensional (3D) models of components
generated in CAD software are
used to generate
G-code to drive computer numerically controlled (CNC) machine tools.
In Mach3,
LPT1 pin 12 input is used for the probe.
3D Digitizing Probe
Econo-Probe. The shaft is
3/8" x 1.2", body is 1.8"
D x 1.9" L &
the probe is about 1/4" x 2" with a 1/8" ball.
The shaft can be removed & the probe tip replaced with a
rubber boot-sealed
pedestal. The unit is then
mounted upside down on the mill table in a setup that
would be used for
automated tool length sensing.
Centering Probe 1
Centering Probe 2
Econo Probe instruction sheet.
3D Probing (Alt-3) menu. The 3D Mach3 Probe Plug-in module.
Digitizing Movie
Click to see digitizing probe movie.
Another probe tip was constructed of stainless steel with
a
10-24 thread.
A 2mm (0.078740") carbide tip from
a
dial test indicator was
used for the tip. The tip is seated
in a reamed hole & held in using Loctite red
#271.
Smaller ball tip mounted into the probe housing.
3D Digitizing Probe, Digitizing Movie