I have had my shapeoko 3 xxl since 2016, and I’ve always experienced random disconnects. A few years ago I added a grounding cable from the spindle mount to my electrical conduit and that mostly stopped the issue.
I recently started working on a project after about a year of hiatus and I’m getting disconnects all the time again. Nothing has changed in my setup. Same computer/peripherals/shopvac etc… Cncjs locks up when it loses connection to the shapeoko.
Example gcode 1-4 ball_1-Chanfer Finish.nc (497.9 KB)
I’ve tried:
-replace usb cable
-check Makita brushes (they still have more than half life on them, i have new on hand)
-disconnect all other usb devices from the computer
-different computer
-run air job (pass)
-run air job with just shopvac running (pass)
-run air job with just router running (pass)
-run air job with shopvac and router but not cutting (pass)
-run real job. random failure. In most cases, it will not fail until it has passed the lines where it already cut.
It feels like my case has something to do with when the system is actually cutting material. The disconnects have happened at all humidity levels and dew points (from a garage in 10 degree weather with 5 % RH to 85+ degrees and 70%RH)
I’m wondering if there is any newer information on the issues than what I’m seeing in the forum already or any new testing procedures.
My suggestion would be to ground the dust collection and to replace the brushes — as they wear, the EMI which they put out increases.
For grounding, the best option I’ve come across are the high-tech hoses which are carbon-infused so as to be conductive and which also have some other material which causes them to dissipate static. I’m using one from Peachtree Woodworking:
(but now all the anti-static items are on the closeout page? Close Out Items )
I think you hit the nail on the head. You get disconnects while cutting. The combination of the moving air and the cutting of the material are creating static. Maybe as @WillAdams suggested a grounding of hose/dust collection may help. As humidity decreases the possibility of static increases.
Way back on my first Shapeoko 3 controller the usb connector was flakey. I would get disconnects not from static but from loss of connection. I put a wire tie holder on with a wire tie to secure the connection.
It is possible you have a loose fitting usb. I will definitely not hurt to fix and is cheap. You can get those wire tie holders at most hardware stores. I get mine at Lowes. If it does not help then you really have not lost much. I had to replace my controller when I got a BitRunner. So my usb problem disappeared. Plus I live in East Texas where humidity if very high most of the time. I have gotten a few disconnects after a cold front comes through and lowers the humidity but it is rare.
I’ve experienced two main disconnect scenarios for what it’s worth. Not sure they are related to your situation.
If I have too many things plugged in, that seems to matter. For example with the S03, Makita router, shop vac and laptop charging I’ve had disconnects during heavy cuts.
Something about just after a cut or returning home, if I turn off the router at the wrong time, somehow feedback must be causing a disconnect. Most reliably, this is if I flip the switch while it’s on its way back home, but and toggle when the motors are ramping up/down to move the gantry seems like a culprit.
Mine was that I have a control panel with a remote switch for the Vacuum. The line ran too close to the Shapeoko P/S, when I turn off the vacuum, it spiked the P/S. Just putting some distance between the AC electrical and the low voltage electronics helped me. FYI My system is well grounded including the vacuum and ferrite chokes everywhere but still it coupled into the P/S and then from there to the controller. I could replicate it repeatedly, proving that was my problem.
Not a complaint as I love my machine, we are mixing sensitive electronic with industrial electrical noise. I believe understanding that the controller is quite sensitive to electrical noise might help people troubleshoot. The microcontroller seems to gets wacked, as only a reset of the controller really seems to bring it back, I have also seen the memory get messed up and the controller just gets lost and or confused. IMHO. (Industrial Electronic Technician)
Every ones solution will be a bit different as it depends on where the electrical noise is coming from and how it getting into the controller. Some electrical noise can be removed, vacuum static and replacing brushes, other electrical noise can be normal for that equipment, and you just have to shield it or … . It is a matter of making sure it does not make its way into the controller. So there is no one right answer IMO. You have to find the path the noise is making its way into the controller and try to remove, reduce or isolate. Best of luck
I run my Shapeoko on an HP i7 laptop. My last one was also an HP i5. I never connect the charger when I am cutting. Now if it is a 12 hour cut I will plug it up to another outlet. Not sure why having both the Shapeoko and the laptop on the same outlet gets more disconnects but it does. Luckily my HP can run for 7-8 hours on battery so that is usually only needed for 1-2 hours on most of my cuts.
