I’m sure someone from the community has tried something similar to this already. In any case, here’s my version of a quick and dirty wireless remote for jogging (call it a USB pendant, if you like). Since it interfaces with carbide motion, it should be carbide-machine independent.
With num-lock off, one can jog all three axes with the arrow and page up/down keys. Num-lock on allows one to select the jog speed with the 1,2,3… keys.
Since there is seldom any need to jog the machine without a computer being present, this should suite most of our needs.
At some point I may make a peripheral that knows enough GRBL for “semi-automatic” operation through. It seems like quite a few simple jobs could be done on fixtured stock using a joystick or two combined with manual speed adjustment controls/readout. Good application for a Raspberry Pi Zero, maybe.
I bought this keypad, hooked it up and was jogging my machine wirelessly in 10 seconds. It doesn’t get any easier than this… at least for the effort required to get it working. Rereading your post I just noticed using num lock and 123 to adjust speeds. I was going to comment that the slow speed is a bit of a pain but I’ll try that to see how it does.
Thanks again for this post! I’m a big fan of simple solutions that make work flow much easier.
I had a similar solution that I posted over in the Shapeoko forum. I am using a Xbox controller to jog my machine. Hopefully they will add feed hold in the upcoming updates which I will add to keys on the controller that I have left empty.
Thanks for that tip also… for anyone wanting a SUPER simple mod for only $18 that makes improves workflow significantly here’s everything in a nutshell…
Pull the battery tab (battery is included) to power it on
Plug in the wireless USB piece into a USB port (I bought a hub so I could still have plenty of extra USB ports)
It installs itself and is ready to use right away
Here’s how it works:
Arrow up/down = move Y in the positive/neg direction
Arrow right/left = move X in the positive/neg direction
Page u/down = move Z up/down
Press the “num lock” to allow jog speed changes
While in num lock…
1 = “fast jog”
2 = “slow jog”
3 = 1 mm per press
4 = 0.1 mm per press
5 = 0.01 mm per press
Switch the num lock off to allow jogging again.
Its wireless so you can put the number pad right next to the router if you want to while you are jogging. Mine just sits in my enclosure for super easy jogging without stretching between the computer and the router to see what’s going on.
Thanks again @vkopr for posting this fast, cheap, simple and effective upgrade!!
I’m going to post the details in its own thread just so people don’t miss this one.
Can someone confirm that wireless keypads still work with the most recent version of Carbide Motion, v407? I just bought the recommended keypad (G-Cord) and the X & Y jogging works great, but Z jogging (pgup/pgdwn) does not work, nor does using 1-5 for speed changes. I’ve tried with num lock on and off and these features don’t work either way.
Have you tried those features w/ another application to make sure the numeric keypad actually works and isn’t defective? You should be able to get a 1-2-3-4-5 into Notepad or a word processor, and the arrow keys should work in either Notepad/word processor as well.
Most of the reports from CM4 users indicate that number pad jogging doesn’t work at all. Your post is the first I remember reading of any number pad jogging operations… I know of a few users that rolled back the CM3 for this very reason.
Phil - Yes, I verified that the wireless keypad operates correctly in other applications. Also, since I posted this yesterday, I dug through my PC stuff and found an old wired USB keypad. It works exactly the same way in CM 407. That is to say, not very well. So I think the HW has been ruled out as the problem.
Jim - Thanks for the feedback. This confirms my findings above. It’s too bad this useful functionality has been broken in recent revisions. Still, X/Y jogging is better than nothing and still helpful - my reach is not sufficient and I usually have to do a bit of back and forth before I get the end mill to the correct spot.
I can confirm that it’s broken. X/Y work, Z does not and speed increment does not. I rolled back to CM3 and Grbl 0.9. Hoping it will get fixed, I liked CM4 a lot, but with this functionality not working I have no choice except to roll back because I can’t be in front of my PC and watch the machine at the same time, at least not enough to accurately set zeros.
For me on CM3, the <> and ± keys are the ones that work for controlling the Z axis. I’d like to build a programmable pendant using an Arduino Teensy. My objective would be to have the standard x/z/y controls, a rotary switch to select speed, and buttons for log and MDI… plus build in a probe and have some additional programmable keys that could send, for example M G0 x-110 y-110 Enter, which would allow me to have some fixed project locations for projects/items that repeat. I just can’t get a layout that I like that seems natural.In addition, I’m having motivation issues at the moment.
The Contour Design Shuttlexpress layout seems pretty good to me (maybe one of these days I’ll hook it into a communication / control program which actually supports it).
It is awesome. I can jog using the arrow keys (there is a PgUp and PgDn at the bottom edge of the keyboard). I can also use the trackpad (mouse) and keys to enter coordinates.
So I tried to purchase the wireless keypad from the original post from amazon but it’s no longer available. Will any 2.4Ghz wireless keypad work or is there any certain features I need to look for? Thanks in advance, any help is appreciated!