[spletcher1]

Hi Everyone,
I have been running my PCNC770 with power draw bar and ATC for about six months now without any problems. Suddenly, tonight there was a major issue during one of the tool changes that resulted in a busted tool holder and some damage to the ATC unit itself. After I got everything untangled I noticed that the ATC has lost the ability to actuate the power draw bar. I'm not sure whether this was the cause of the crash or a result of it. Either way, I'd like to get back up and running. I'm wondering whether anyone has experienced this or has an idea of where to direct my attention for repairs. I can actuate the draw bar with the foot petal and the standard push button, so it's functional and getting power. But I can't control it from the drawbar buttons on the ATC control screen, and it doesn't actuate during a normal tool change operation.

Thanks in advance,
Scott

[wwendorf]

I don't know if this helps or not, but I had issues with something similar. It turned out I was loosing air pressure, so the PDB was attempting to release the tool, but never did. I fixed it by taking the GPF outlet out of the circuit my air compressor was plugged into. Not saying you have this exact issue, but perhaps your air compressor doesn't turn on soon enough, and the pressure is low enough not to fully engage the PDB.

Wade

[spletcher1]

Thanks for the pointer, Wade. I actually don't think this was the issue because I was able to manually engage the PDB right after the crash. It's possible that there was an acute pressure problem. I have the ATC pressure sensor hooked up and there was no error. It's frustrating that I was actually away from the machine when it happened so I don't have a good idea of what went wrong. The scary thing is that when I came back to the problem this evening, it seemed to be working again. Last night I rebooted the controller, checked the air pressure and checked on pretty much everything I could think of (wiring, etc.). I did not see any problems yet the PDB could still not be engaged by the ATC. Now today everything seems okay. I guess that I need to cross my fingers, hope it doesn’t happen again, and rebuild my confidence in the setup.

Scott

[Manifoldman]

I have had the same problem as you describe. The controller is not telling the PDB to engage or dis-engage. I spend a couple hours on the phone today with Tech support. The are sending me a new PDB card and cable. You can also check the Parallel port cable. Take it off and put it back on.

[BAMCNC.COM]

Had something similar happen, and all I did was reboot the PC, then... again... And all was fine.

Do they have an upgrade for the ATC software? Mine is from Jan 2013