2000 Series Centerless Grinder Operating Manual

Introduction

This manual is designed to give the operator a working understanding of how to operate your new CNC Centerless Grinder. The control is designed to simplify the operation of your Centerless Grinder high-end features. We have elected not to use g-codes to manipulate the servo axis. Instead, we use the combination of a simplified data entry routine with a graphic interface that the operator will find extremely easy to use.

Using a touch screen interface the operator simply touches the push button to start of stop a function or touch an edit field to change data, directly on the screen.

Each page contains items that are used specifically for the function of the individual screen like starting and stopping motors, changing cycle modes, entering new feedrates and positions, etc.

There are other items that are used globally. This means that the same items are found on all of the pages. Primarily they are the machine state, cycle time, and date and time at the top of the screen, the axis position, cycle status, current feedrate, and wheel speed on the right side of the screen.

Operator Panel Overview

The following is a description of the Operator Panel and it's functional devices. The numbered balloons point to the object.

Computer HMI. Consists of screens designed to control the machine functions and feedback information on the machine state.
Emergency Stop Button. Used to stop process and motors in the event of an emergency, by turning off all active output logic.
Cycle Start Button. Used to initiate an automatic cycle and confirm actions.
Feedhold Button. Used to pause an automatic cycle in place.
Cycle Stop Button. Used to stop an automatic cycle in place.
Reset Button. Used to clear or reset machine faults and enable system servo motors.
Rapid Speed Control Buttons. Used to change the speed the machine moves during rapid moves.
Feedrate Override Knob. Used to change the speed the machine moves during feed moves.
Spindle Control Buttons. Used to start and stop the wheel and change the speed override value.
Programmable Function Buttons. Used to customize the control.
Jog Control Buttons. Used to manually jog servo axes while the machine is not in a cycle.
Jog Speed Knob. Used to control the speed during manual jog moves.

The system includes In-Feed, Thru-Feed and Profile Dressing pages. With the controls familiar windows interface, intuitive graphics, and user friendly layout, the system is easy to learn. Allowing you to have the machine operational almost immediately.

Easily navigate the 5 pages of the screen using the tab menu at the bottom of the screen. The control will seamlessly switch operating modes following the active page and update the Axis Position group to only show the relevant axes for that operation.

Status
- Status - Displays any current messages (Home All Pressed, Cycle Start Pressed, etc.)
- State - Displays the current state of the machine (Run, Feed Hold, etc)
- Cycle Time - Displays how long the GCode has been running
- Date - Date and time of the timezone of the control
Operation Pages
- In-Feed Cycle Page
- Thru-Feed Cycle Page
- Grind Wheel - Setup and Dressing Page
- Regulating Wheel - Setup and Dressing Page
- Service
  - Maintenance and Support
  - Dashboard
  - Machine I/O
  - Grinder Settings
  - Program
Operation Display
- Axis Position Display
- Cycle Status
- Feedrate Display
- Grind Wheel Display
- Regulating Wheel Display
Grinder Dashboard
- Configurable Dashboard with Widgets for machine auxiliaries (Hydraulics, Mist Collectors etc.)
Side Bar Dashboard
- Configurable Dashboard with Widgets for productivity

In-Feed Cycle

The In-Feed Grinding cycle begins at the Load Position and rapids to the start of the Coarse grind and continues through Medium and Fine with optional Feedrates and pauses until it reaches the Finish Position and pauses to spark-out. Then rapids to the Retract Position and completes the cycle at the Load Position.

[Cycle Start] button is used to start the In-Feed cycle.

In-Feed Cycle Parameters

Position Parameters

Retract Position: The position the slide will move to at the end of the cycle to drop or eject the part. When the Retract Position is not needed set the make it equal the Load Position.
Load Position: This is the first and last slide position in the cycle.
Finish Position: This is the final grind position and the position that Fine, Medium and Coarse grind amounts are referenced from. The Finish Position can be set to a diameter or 0 depending on the setup.

Cycle Parameters

Coarse Grind
- Coarse Grind Amount: The amount to be removed at the Coarse Feedrate
- Coarse Feedrate: The Feedrate used during Coarse grind
- T1: Optional Delay at the end of the Coarse grind
Medium Grind
- Medium Grind Amount: The amount to be removed at the Medium Feedrate
- Medium Feedrate: The Feedrate used during Medium grind
- T2: Optional Delay at the end of the Medium grind
Fine Grind
- Fine Grind Amount: The amount to be removed at the Fine Feedrate
- Fine Feedrate: The Feedrate used during Fine grind
- T3: Optional Delay at the end of the Fine grind, sometimes referred to as Sparkout Time
Retract Delay
- T4: Optional Delay at the Retract position to allow the part to drop between the Regulating Wheel and Grinding Wheel
Load Delay
- T5: Optional Delay at the end of the cycle. This is normally used along with Cycle Repeat to allow time to load the next part.

In-Feed Comp

Comp is used to adjust the part diameter. For more info see Compensation.

At any point Cycle Stop or Retract buttons will cause the slide to Rapid to the Retract Position.

Thru-Feed Cycle

Thru-Feed Grinding will rapid the slide to the Grind Position and stay there.

[Cycle Start] button is used to start the Thru-Feed cycle.

Thru-Feed Cycle Parameters

Position Parameters
- Retract Position: The position the slide will move to when Cycle Stop or Retract are used.
- Finish Position: This is the position the slide will move to when the cycle is ran.

Thru-Feed Comp

When the slide is at the Grind Position and Comp offset is applied the slide will move back to the Grind Position. When the slide is at any other position than the Grind Position the slide will apply the offset without any movement. For more info see Compensation.

At any point Cycle Stop or Retract buttons will cause the slide to Rapid to the Retract Position.

Grind Wheel

The Grind Wheel Page is where the Grind Wheel parameters and dress parameters are configured. Depending on the enabled options of the machine some of these parameters will be hidden.

Use the following figure for Grind Wheel dimensions and clearances

Grind Wheel Parameter Descriptions

Diameter: The current wheel diameter. The dressing cycle automatically updates the wheel diameter. When a new wheel is mounted on the machine this parameter should be updated.
Minimum Diameter: When the wheel is dressed to this diameter the control will not allow any more dress cycles to complete. The operator will get a alarm messages stating that the wheel is to small.
Width: The current width of the wheel, used in the straight dressing cycles.
Minimum Width: When the wheel is side dressed to this width the control will not allow any more dress cycles to complete. The operator will get a alarm messages stating that the wheel is to narrow.
Clearance Circumference: This is used in the dress cycle, the diamond will rapid to this clearance position and then switch to a feedrate move before touching the wheel.
Clearance Front Side: This is used in the dress cycle, the diamond will rapid to this clearance position and then switch to a feedrate move before touching the wheel.
Clearance Back Side: This is used in the dress cycle, the diamond will rapid to this clearance position and then switch to a feedrate move before touching the wheel.
Max Wheel RPM: Max RPM the wheel can be commanded to run. Check the wheel specs and keep this number under it.
Wheel SFM: The commanded Surface Feet Per Minute or (SFM). There are buttons just below that set the mode, RPM Mode or SFM Mode.
Wheel RPM: The commanded Rotations Per Minute or (RPM). There are buttons just below that set the mode, RPM Mode or SFM Mode.
Wheel Speed Mode: RPM Mode or SFM Mode switch the command source between Wheel RPM and Wheel SFM modes.

Grind Wheel Diamond Setup

Using the Jog buttons or MPG, Jog the GD (X) axis so the diamond is just touching the front side of the wheel.
Press the yellow Teach button for X.
Using the Jog buttons or MPG, Jog the GD (Y) axis so the diamond is just touching the circumference of the wheel.
Press the yellow Teach button for Y.

Y Diamond Comp

Diamond Comp can be used at anytime and during a dress cycle to move the diamond in closer to the wheel. Sometimes the wheel will wears a lot between dress cycles, and this can be use to reduce the number of dress passes. For more information see Compensation.

Standard Dress

The Standard Dress is the default dress cycle and would be used after the wheel has been shaped and is ready for production. Standard Dress will use whatever profile was selected on the New Wheel Dress page.

Standard Dress Parameters

Dress Rate: The feedrate the diamond will travel across the wheel.
Dress Passes: The number of passes the diamond will make across the wheel.
Dress Amount: The amount mount of wheel to remove per pass. The amount is in radius of the wheel so 0.001 will change the wheel diameter by 0.002.
Spark-Out Rate: The feedrate the diamond will travel across the wheel during the Spark-Out Pass or Free Pass.
Spark-Out Passes: The number of passes the diamond will make across the wheel without in-feeding the diamond into the wheel. Sometimes this type of pass is called a Free Pass.
In-Feed Parts Per Pass: This is only used in the In-Feed Cycle and will cause the control to automatically call a dress cycle after the number of cycles is greater than the value in this parameter. A value of 0 disables this feature.

New Wheel Dress

The New Wheel Dress is the cycle used to create the profile in the wheel and to rough the wheel into shape.

New Wheel Dress Parameters

Dress Rate: The feedrate the diamond will travel across the wheel.
Dress Passes: The number of passes the diamond will make across the wheel.
Dress Amount: The amount mount of wheel to remove per pass. The amount is in radius of the wheel so 0.001 will change the wheel diameter by 0.002.
Custom Profile: When the Custom Profile is off the dress profile will be a straight profile and use the Grind Wheel Parameters to make the profile. When Custom Profile is on there will be a subroutine with a profile that the diamond will follow.

New Wheel Dress - Straight Profile

When the Custom Profile is off the dress profile will be a straight profile and use the Grind Wheel Parameters to make the profile.

New Wheel Dress - Custom Profile

When the Custom Profile is on the the dress cycle will use the Subroutine that is created with the profile number.

Custom Profile

Profile Number shows the selected Profile to use. To change the profile press Open.
There are 3 buttons for creating opening and editing the custom profiles.

New will open the Grind Wheel Profile Dressing dialog with blank profile.
Open will open a File Browser dialog and allow you to select a profile.
Edit will open the current profile in the Grind Wheel Profile Dressing dialog.

Grind Wheel Profile Dressing

The Grind Wheel Profile Dressing is where you create your custom dress profile for the wheel. The profile can be a mixture of lines and arcs. There are four columns Type, X Position, Y Position and Radius showing the data for the given line or arc segment. The example below has profile number 2005 loaded.

Add Line Segment

Use the Add button to add an new line or arc. The new segment values will be copied from the previous segment. Use the Type field to change between a line or clock wise (CW) and counter clock wise (CCW) arcs. All positions can be modified at any time, click on a value and it will highlight to green to show it can be changed.

Remove Line Segment

Use the Remove button to remove any line segment.

Profile Operations

Open: Open a different dress profile

Add: Add new line segment to the dress profile

Remove: Remove a line segment from the dress profile

Save As: Save the profile with a new name

Save: Save the current profile

Regulating Wheel

The Regulating Wheel Page is where the Regulating Wheel parameters and dress parameters are configured. Depending on the enabled options of the machine some of these parameters will be hidden.

Use the following figure for Regulating Wheel dimensions and clearances

Regulating Wheel Parameter Descriptions

Diameter: The current wheel diameter. The dressing cycle automatically updates the wheel diameter. When a new wheel is mounted on the machine this parameter should be updated.
Minimum Diameter: When the wheel is dressed to this diameter the control will not allow any more dress cycles to complete. The operator will get a alarm messages stating that the wheel is to small.
Width: The current width of the wheel, used in the straight dressing cycles.
Minimum Width: When the wheel is side dressed to this width the control will not allow any more dress cycles to complete. The operator will get a alarm messages stating that the wheel is to narrow.
Clearance Circumference: This is used in the dress cycle, the diamond will rapid to this clearance position and then switch to a feedrate move before touching the wheel.
Clearance Front Side: This is used in the dress cycle, the diamond will rapid to this clearance position and then switch to a feedrate move before touching the wheel.
Clearance Back Side: This is used in the dress cycle, the diamond will rapid to this clearance position and then switch to a feedrate move before touching the wheel.
Max Wheel RPM: Max RPM the wheel can be commanded to run. Check the wheel specs and keep this number under it.
Wheel SFM: The commanded Surface Feet Per Minute or (SFM). There are buttons just below that set the mode, RPM Mode or SFM Mode.
Wheel RPM: The commanded Rotations Per Minute or (RPM). There are buttons just below that set the mode, RPM Mode or SFM Mode.
Wheel Speed Mode: RPM Mode or SFM Mode switch the command source between Wheel RPM and Wheel SFM modes.

Regulating Wheel Diamond Setup

Using the Jog buttons or MPG, Jog the RD (Z) axis so the diamond is just touching the front side of the wheel.
Press the yellow Teach button for Z.
Using the Jog buttons or MPG, Jog the RD (A) axis so the diamond is just touching the circumference of the wheel.
Press the yellow Teach button for A.