I’ve noticed in the past I did a couple of longer jobs and my spindle seemed to randomly disconnect from the software and would just sit there and spin. I thought it may have been a bad USB cable so I replaced it, didn’t seem to have the issue and forgot about it.
Fast forward to this summer. I set up a new jig to allow me to process six of my game boards at once, and lo an behold, my very random issue started coming back.
Now as it gets colder in Wisconsin, it gets less humid. I’ve noticed the spindle disconnects happening more and more often. I’m a compliance engineer by trade, and I think I’m seeing an EMI issue here. EIther something to do with ESD (electrostatic discharge) or radiated immunity.
I’ve added ferrites to the cables going in to the control box, added a shielded USB cable with ferries from computer to control box and added a ground lug and grounding to my shop ground, but the issue is persisting.
It’s getting to be Christmas rush season, and I cannot afford to keep resetting and redoing jobs every time I try to run something.
When I was shopping for a new Shapeoko Pro I was hoping to add after the Christmas season, I did see something mentioned about “V3 electronics are more resistant to electromagnetic interference and static discharge than ever” so I think I may be on the right track with my suspicions.
Has anyone found the source of the issue and identified any potential solutions? Please help!!
Let us know about your difficulties and how an “air job” (where a file is run w/o the router on or stock in place) turns out at support@carbide3d.com — we have a 10-step plan which works for most folks, and a fallback solution for folks it doesn’t work for — assuming that the electrical supply is stable (all bets are off if you have a refrigerator or other heavy load such as a compressor on the same circuit, or if the transformer in your neighborhood is failing (typical symptom of that is flourescent bulbs going out prematurely)).
I sent an e-mail to support as well as this thread, but have not tried to run an air job yet.
Printing out your grounding instructions to be sure I have that done right.
I’ve got five 20A circuit in the shop. The circuit the CNC is on includes my ethernet/wi-fi router and an LCD TV which is rarely on. Power source to the neighborhood seems solid. Haven’t noticed any premature bulb failures in teh nine years I’ve been here so far.
I would be interested in receiving the 10-step plan you mentioned as well as wondering if there is any opportunity to purchase the updated electronics for the Shapeoko I currently own?
I also noticed that the control box appears to be made from anodized aluminum. Anodized aluminum typically isn’t conductive, and would not provide a very good faraday cage around the controller board inside. Is there any other option for an enclosure around the controller board to help reduce susceptibility?
