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Tinyg chilipeppr 2011macbook pro: job stops midway through

kevin.mcnally
Enthusiast

Tinyg chilipeppr 2011macbook pro: job stops midway through

kevin.mcnally
Enthusiast
Enthusiast
Hi there,

I'm cutting simple contour operations in plywood using the system indicated in the
Subject. This also uses a JSON server to communicate to the tiny g.
My CNC machine will stop suddenly toward the end of what was otherwise a
A successful cut. I have a feeling this is a memory issue.
Given the fact that I am cutting plywood, are there any settings I can adjust to
Make my gcode less heavy? I have heard that fusion 360 is configured for met
Metal by default which apparently requires more memory.
Also can someone explain how the gcode changes based on the type of process that is
Posted for various controllers? For example what's the difference between the tiny g
And the gcode for a shopbot?

Many thanks for help you can lend!

Kevin
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LibertyMachine
Mentor
Mentor

The reasons your job is stopping can be one of a few things; It could be because there is a memory issue with the TinyG. I'm not certain what it's limit is, but I'd imagine it's rather large From what reading I've done, the chilipepper is a program that runs in Windows or Mac environment. So, the memory doesn't seem to be an issue.

 

So, what does that leave us with? A bad g-code or calculation that is causing it to fail. Without seeing the file, it's not the easiest thing to render an opinion on. You could export and upload the .f3d file and that might give us some clues. File > Export > Save to Local folder. Return to thread and attach the .f3d

 

To answer your question though about reducing file size; Smoothing is an awesome tool to employ and it can often reduce the file size by as much as 70% (going off memory) There is an excellent thread exploring what Smoothing can do for you, available HERE. Note; not all operations allow for smoothing. 

 

The idea that metal requires more "memory"..yes and no. Metal often requires more conservative cuts, yielding more lines of code. Hence, the memory consumption. However, even moderate complexity molds (in metal) should fit in most modern controls

 

 

The difference between each post processor is as subtle as a small code here and there, or to the other extreme, completely different formats using numbers and letters that are completely foreign to many people outside that small circle of users.

Fortunately for you, there is a Tiny-G post processor, so that would be the one you would use.

 

If you can share your file as well as indicate where in the cut it stopped, that would go quite a ways in getting you sorted out 


Seth Madore
Owner, Liberty Machine, Inc.
Good. Fast. Cheap. Pick two.
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kevin.mcnally
Enthusiast
Enthusiast

Hi there, Seth.

 

Thank you for your reply! I am attaching the file for your reference. I am also attaching the Gcode file as well. I of course used the TinyG post processor. And finally I have attached a screenshot indicating where the machine stopped. Although, to be honest it stopped multiple times in multiple locations. It would always get through the peck drilling but then it would stop after the first plank or 2nd or 3rd...Sometimes it would get to the 6th plank but stop just short of finishing. Thanks so much for your help. I will also be sure to read up on smoothing.

 

Thank you and best regards,

 

Kevin

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LibertyMachine
Mentor
Mentor

Have you tried running a smaller part to see if you can execute start to finish? I'm not seeing anything jump out at me for what could be the issue. I don't think it's a Fusion issue, and not certain on the post side. My first thought is hardware

 

There is a lot of code to go through on a program of this scale. Repeating the hang-ups on a smaller file would be the best way of narrowing down the cause


Seth Madore
Owner, Liberty Machine, Inc.
Good. Fast. Cheap. Pick two.
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kevin.mcnally
Enthusiast
Enthusiast
Accepted solution
Thanks for the great feedback. I've been in touch with the chilipeppr community and they were suggesting that it might be 'electronic noise' with the limit switches on my machine. The way it stops is very similar to the way it stops when a limit switch is activated. I'm going to try insulating my wires at the limit switches or just disconnect them completely to test this hypothesis.

Thanks so much for your help. This has really helps narrow down the cause since there seems to be a consensus at this point that it is hardware and not software.
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