Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post Reply
User avatar
Fiero2M6
Printmaster!
Posts: 65
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 1:43 pm

Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by Fiero2M6 »

Hey everyone. I'm almost ready to print. The only thing holding me back is my EasyDriver stepper motor driver. I have it hooked up just like these instructions: http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/SeeM ... ssage/2598. The yellow LED on the EasyDriver lights up, but the motor does not seem to get any power. It does not lock up like motors on the 3-axis board which work perfectly. What voltage should I be getting from the 3-axis board to the EasyDriver? Should I be able to switch the x-axis and A-axis pins in Mach3 and jog with switched keyboard shortcuts? Thanks for the help.
seemeadmin
Site Admin
Posts: 23
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2012 3:41 pm

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by seemeadmin »

Fiero,

You should be running 12V and ground directly from the Power Supply to the M+ and GND on the upper right of the easy driver board. Only power it up after you have the motor wired into it. Then, i will assume you have the step and dir pins jumped to the 3 axis board. Also, it's a good idea to ground the gnd pin on the easydriver (between the step and dir pins) straight to the metal shield of the parallel port socket on the 3 axis board. If you are using the extruder as the A axis in mach3 the + and - keys on the keyboard (the 10-key on the right) will jog the extruder motor. If it's not locking the motor thought with power, it sounds like you have the power input going to the wrong place maybe? Double check your connections, and let us know.

Thanks
Dave_Sohlstrom
Printmaster!
Posts: 101
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 5:07 pm
Location: Ariel, WA

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by Dave_Sohlstrom »

And do not unplug the motor with the board powered up and fry the board like I did.
Dave Sohlstrom

H-1 Tank
User avatar
mhackney
ULTIMATE 3D JEDI
Posts: 5412
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 4:15 pm
Location: MA, USA
Contact:

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by mhackney »

Here's a photo of my ED wired up. I struggled a lot with mine as well - it does not power the stepper nearly the same as the 3 axis board does. There is a potentiometer - that little white square plastic part with the slot in it - that sets the current to the stepper. The + and - markings on the ED may be reversed so it is best to turn the pot and check the stepper. You should feel more resistance when the stepper in energized and the pot is maxed. I leave mine there. Even then, the extruder just barely has enough umph to do its job. I finally bit the bullet and went with a 4 axis board. That has way more power and I've not had a problem with pushing the filament since switching.

[img]http://mhackney.zenfolio.com/img/s9/v13 ... 6567-3.jpg[/img]

Also, on jogging, just to make sure you are not experiencing a Num Lock or other keyboard setting, in Mach, press the Tab key and the fly-out jogging window will popup. Use the mouse to click the + and - direction for the A axis to test it.

cheers,
Michael

Sublime Layers - my blog on Musings and Experiments in 3D Printing Technology and Art

Start Here:
A Strategy for Successful (and Great) Prints

Strategies for Resolving Print Artifacts

The Eclectic Angler
User avatar
Fiero2M6
Printmaster!
Posts: 65
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 1:43 pm

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by Fiero2M6 »

Thanks for the suggestions. I believe it is wired correctly. The board is getting 12V to the M+ and GND. However, it was only getting 3.3V from the 3-axis board. The manufacture recommends 5V but has a provision for 3.3V by bridging a gap on the board with solder (http://schmalzhaus.com/EasyDriver/). I believe this just adds a pull up resistor. However, it didn't change anything.

The board is receiving the correct voltages, but it does not output anything to the stepper motor. This seems to point to a bad board. Maybe I unplugged it wrong when I was messing with it. To prevent blowing the IC, Does the board have to be connected to a motor when it is powered on?

If no one else has any suggestions, I'll be ordering a new EasyDriver tomorrow. Every major electrical component on this printer has had problems either by operator or manufacturing error. Thank goodness this is the last component.
User avatar
mhackney
ULTIMATE 3D JEDI
Posts: 5412
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 4:15 pm
Location: MA, USA
Contact:

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by mhackney »

The ED has an OUTPUT for 5 volts that we don't use. It is there to power things from the ED. Is that what you are measuring?


Have you used a voltmeter on the DIR line while jogging to make sure you are getting signal to the ED? You measure at the DIR on the 3 axis board. It is one of the jumpers. Pin 16 or 17 depending on what you have configured in Mach.

ALSO double check the Mach motor pins setting to make sure you have your A on port 1. That has bit a lot of us.

Cheers
Michael

Sublime Layers - my blog on Musings and Experiments in 3D Printing Technology and Art

Start Here:
A Strategy for Successful (and Great) Prints

Strategies for Resolving Print Artifacts

The Eclectic Angler
User avatar
Fiero2M6
Printmaster!
Posts: 65
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 1:43 pm

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by Fiero2M6 »

Good suggestions. I may have read the EasyDriver documentation wrong. If I did, soldering the bridge shouldn't have changed anything. The voltage I am measuring is the DIR line coming from the 3-axis board to the EasyDriver.

On the parallel port from the cable, the DIR line has 3.4V when it is jogged and zero when it is not moving. This is consistent with the other axes that are working.

I double checked the Mach3 motor pin settings and I have A on port 1 (the same port as the other axes).

When I click on the Mach3 diagonstics tab, the port 1 current state DRO shows this (the pluses are green):
---+++++----
------------

Also, if I am using the SeeMeCNC Mach3 profile, should I have to change anything under the Ports and Pins menu, Output Signals tab? Enable 1, 2, and 3 and Output #1 are selected.

Thanks for the help.
User avatar
mhackney
ULTIMATE 3D JEDI
Posts: 5412
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 4:15 pm
Location: MA, USA
Contact:

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by mhackney »

There may be several versions of the Mach config file and even then it might need a tweak or two. Unfortunately, I switched out to a 4 axis board so my config is different. Maybe someone here can post a working 3 axis board/ED configuration. It sounds like you have signals to the ED. I still wouldn't rule out a config issue.


Cheers,
Michael

Sublime Layers - my blog on Musings and Experiments in 3D Printing Technology and Art

Start Here:
A Strategy for Successful (and Great) Prints

Strategies for Resolving Print Artifacts

The Eclectic Angler
User avatar
Chris Muncy
Printmaster!
Posts: 137
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 1:30 pm
Location: Willis, Texas

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by Chris Muncy »

Post a screen shot of your Ports and Pins page and we might be able to help a little more.
Chris Muncy
H-1 #5
User avatar
Fiero2M6
Printmaster!
Posts: 65
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 1:43 pm

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by Fiero2M6 »

Here's some pictures of my settings. I hope they show up. I appreciate the help.
Attachments
Spindle Setup.JPG
Settings.JPG
Port Setup and Axis Selection.JPG
Output Signals.JPG
Motor Outputs.JPG
Input Signals.JPG
HotKeys Setup.JPG
Diagnostics.JPG
A-axis motorer tuning and setup.JPG
User avatar
mhackney
ULTIMATE 3D JEDI
Posts: 5412
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 4:15 pm
Location: MA, USA
Contact:

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by mhackney »

Are you sure you have pin 16 on the 3 axis board wired to the ED Step line? That's what you have configured in Mach. If the step and dir are reversed, the motor won't turn. An easy check is to switch step/dir assignments in Mach and try to jog.

Also, your A tuning - looks like you have Mach Native Units configured for inches. In theory it shouldn't make any difference. In practice, a number of us struggled with odd behavior until we reconfigured in mm.

cheers,
Michael

Sublime Layers - my blog on Musings and Experiments in 3D Printing Technology and Art

Start Here:
A Strategy for Successful (and Great) Prints

Strategies for Resolving Print Artifacts

The Eclectic Angler
User avatar
Fiero2M6
Printmaster!
Posts: 65
Joined: Mon Mar 26, 2012 1:43 pm

Re: Troubleshooting EasyDriver

Post by Fiero2M6 »

I've tried switching pin 16 and 17 around. Nothing changes. I believe the EasyDriver is recieving the right inputs, but not outputing correctly so I ordered a new EasyDriver.

Thanks for the advice. I'll keep that in mind when I start printing. Unfortunatly, my stubborn American mind much prefers inches to mm.
Post Reply

Return to “Parallel Port based boards”