CNCMogul Help - What is this "extra" port for?

Hi Everyone. New to the forum, and CNC in general. Not sure if I'm posting in the correct section, but if not I apologize. Let me know and I'll be happy to move this elsewhere.

I seem to have jumped on the bandwagon like a lot of other "newbies" and went for the entry-level CNC Mocul setup to learn the basics with.

Bought the setup several months ago before all of the negative stuff started surfacing, but I think it will be fine for what I need. I'd like to set it up as a Laser Engraver and/or Plasma cutter, so the physical strain on the motors and such should be minimal.

That being said, I'm trying to find out if there is a way to get a TTL signal to drive the laser pulse? From what I understand, I can basically use the PWM signal generated by Mach 3 for spindle speed control, I just have to figure out where to tap into it. I noticed there was this extra port on the CNC Mogul machine, just below the parallel port. (See attached image). There is no mention of this in any of the documentation and assembly instructions, so I'm hoping someone here can help me out.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that some of these pins might be signal outputs that I can connect to and retrieve a PWM or TTL signal from, without having to scrap all of the hardware and build a new box.

I do have an oscilloscope on the way this week so I can hopefully do some diagnostics, but any help or advice would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks!

-Tim

start here
The Laser Project.
Mach 3 Laser config

the other option
Arduino Laser Control
The "Mach4" 3D Laser Build

Hi Tim

the connector is for a simple manual control

it looks like your controller is something like this -

New 3 Axis TB6560 Motor Driver Stepper Board Controller With Box For CNC Router | eBay


Attachment 260794

going by the limited info on line I expect the wiring of the D-type connectors are not the same on the 3 and 4 axis controllers and possibly between different versions



the 15 pin connector will probably work the same way as the 5 axis break out board I've looked at
with the printerport signals buffered by a 74ls14 and its output passed through a 270 ohm resistor ( 150 ohms on the all in one board)
so the remote control can over ride the PC 's comtrol -

Attachment 260800

Attachment 260798




this thread has more information that may help -

http://www.cnczone.com/forums/genera...-software.html

from page 1
Attachment 260802


John

Great, that's extremely helpful.

I'm going to do some more reading when I get back to my laptop, will hopefully find everything I need in the links you provided.

That being said, I'm very curious about the "Spindle Interface" ports on the bottom right corner of the first picture you posted, John. Would this be possibly a PWM signal for speed control? If so, that's exactly what I'm looking for.

Thanks again for all of your help.

-Tim

So did some more research - Looks like that might be a NPN Spindle Driver (Voltage Output), not entirely sure but from what I'm reading it could be a variable output from 0v to 36v. If that's the case, I just need to get a simple Analog to Digital (voltage to PWM) converter, then use the PWM as a TTL ouput to drive either a Laser or Plasma Torch. Thanks again for pointing me in the right direction. If I can get this to work, will post up the details in case anyone else is trying to do the same thing.

-Tim