MDF Rose Engine Lathe 2.0

Enabled

Indicates that the selected stepper motor is enabled even when not in use. Touch this to change it to Disabled.

The More screen can be used to set this to be continuously Disabled or Enabled. These buttons temporarily override that configuration setting.

Key Note:When using DM542T stepper motor drivers, this needs to be Enabled (especially for work using indexing), otherwise the position will be lost and the movement will not be predictable.

Disabled

Indicates that the selected stepper motor is only enabled when in use, and then disabled. Touch this to change it to Enabled.

Used to indicate the direction for the movement on the axis. Movement will continue for Distance set and then stop and wait for another move instruction, either repeating move or returning to origin.

Used to stop the motion of the stepper motor.

Used to return the spindle or the selected axis to the start point of the previous operation.

When using this function, Be sure to stop and retract the cutter from the cut first. The return path does not always follow the same path as the initial cut. (Backlash and other factors come into play here.)

The speed of the return action is set in the Preferences | Returns screen.

Config

Touch Config on the screen image above to see the details for this screen.

This is used to display or edit the configuration settings for the MaxSpeed and the Acceleration for the respective stepper motors.

Move Screen

Purpose: This screen allows for movement along the Z, X or B Axis. The movement is for a specific distance and direction.

This movement could be used:

To cut a flute (or other element) for a specific length along Z Axis, or

To move a specific distance along the Z axis, facilitating ease in producing a rose engine basket weave (or other repeating design element) on the cylindrical surface of the workpiece

^Z₁

₂

To cut on the end face of a cylinder (if set up to drive the X Axis), or

Plunge in and out of cylindrical surface to do index work (if set up for X Axis)

^X₁

₂

Rotate a spherical slide (on the B axis, when it is set to Linear on the B Preferences page)

^B₁

₂

Each of the 3 axes can have 2 pre-defined values (aka, pre-sets), allowing the ornamental turner to easily repeat a prior setup.

Count

Tracks the number of moves.

Distance

This sets amount of movement along Z or X Axis and is is dependent upon value entered in the Configuration Screen for Distance/360 for the axis you are using. If using the B axis with radial movement, the gear ratio sets this value.

B Radius

B Radius is the distance from the center of rotation to the cutter. This field is only visible when moving on the B axis.

Speed

The controls on the right side of the screen are for controlling the respective stepper motor's speed and acceleration.

To change the Max Speed, touch the number, and you will be presented with the Number Pad Screen.

The slider is a red bar that can be moved up to increase the speed, or down to decrease it.

Want to understand this better? More details about the stepper motor speeds are on this page.

Acceleration

The bottom number (5210) is the acceleration for the stepper motor.

To change this value, touch the number, and you will be presented with the Number Pad Screen.

Limit Switches

Limit switches can be used with this function. The pins used for this are configured on the Limit Switches Configuration Screen. (More information about the implementation of limit switches is on that page.)

Specific Axis Notes

Axis	Comments
Spindle	Movement continues until the identified movement distance is completed, or the stop button (shown to the right) is used.
Z	Movement on this axis is the same as for the spindle.
X	Movement on this axis is the same as for the spindle.
B	The fields on this screen are used with the fields and settings on the B Axis Configuration screen to calculate how long to run the stepper motor to achieve the desired rotation. Movement on this axis is the same as for the spindle.