POWER CONTROLS
Power Control switches control the ON/OFF status of system components. |
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POWER
Turn on the Systems Control Unit by pressing the red POWER Switch. If the POWER Switch doesn’t light when pressed, check to make sure the Master Power Switch in back of the Systems Control Unit is on. |
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STOP
Press the STOP Switch, and its light will blink on and off. The Systems Control Unit and engraving table will stop until RESTART is pressed. If the cutter is in the middle of a character when STOP is pressed, it will move to the up position and stay there until RESTART is pressed. |
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RESTART
When the RESTART Switch is pressed, the action resumes, and any values that the SCU held previously are restored. |
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AUXILIARY POWER SWITCHES
The Systems Control Unit provides auxiliary power for connecting appliances to your system. |
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ON/OFF
Pressing ON sends power to the accessory immediately. When the Auxiliary Power Panel is OFF, accessories plugged into the auxiliary outlet in back of the SCU do not receive power. |
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AUTO
Press the AUTO Switch, and the auxiliary device receives power only when the spindle moves away from home to engrave a job. |
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TABLE MOTORS SWITCHES
The table motors lock and unlock the engraving table’s movement along the X and Y axes. |
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LOCK
Pressing the Table Motors LOCK Switch locks the engraving table’s X and Y stepper motors in place, and they cannot be turned manually. Be sure the Table Motors are locked in place before engraving a job. |
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UNLOCK
The TABLE MOTORS UNLOCK Switch overrides the LOCK status, and the table movement is disengaged. You can then manually move the table along the X and Y axes. Remember to unlock the table motors before setting home position. (To learn more about setting home position, see your table manual.) |
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SPINDLE CONTROLS
The SCU’s Spindle Controls regulate the spindle motor and the speed at which the spindle turns. Different types of engraving require different spindle speeds. See the chart at the end of the chapter for suggestions. |
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MOTOR
The Motor Controls regulate the spindle motor’s timing during the engraving process. Keep your hands clear of the engraving table when the spindle motor is set on AUTO or ON. |
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AUTO
Press the AUTO Switch, and the Spindle motor will come on when the spindle moves away from home to begin engraving a job. It will stay on until the end of the job. |
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ON/OFF
Press the ON Switch, and spindle motor comes on immediately and stays on until the OFF Switch is pressed. Failure to turn on the Spindle Motor during rout-out engraving can result in damaged cutters and poor engraving. |
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SPINDLE SPEED
Pressing the Up Arrow Switch increases the speed at which the spindle turns; pressing the Down Arrow Switch decreases the speed. Setting the appropriate spindle speed for your job type and material is important. For example, a medium spindle speed works best for rotary engraving on plastic. A speed that’s too fast can melt the plastic and distort characters, but a speed that’s too slow can result in burrs. For suggestions on setting the spindle speed for your job, see the chart in back of this chapter. |
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TABLE CONTROLS
The Table Controls Panel sets the execution mode (AUTO or MANUAL), and the speed at which the table moves during engraving. |
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MODE
In selecting a table mode, you specify when the SCU begins a job: As soon as it is received or when the RUN switch is pressed. |
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AUTO
In the AUTO Mode, a job is engraved as soon as it is received from the computer. AUTO is especially useful if you’ve set up a big job and you’re waiting for the SCU to receive it. You can walk away from the job, letting the SCU send the job to the engraving table as soon as it’s been processed. After pressing AUTO, press RUN during the job transfer. The RUN Switch will blink green. |
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MANUAL
Use the Manual Mode to control when the cutter leaves home position. Even after the job has been computed and is ready to be engraved, the cutter will not move away from home until you press the RUN Switch. |
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SPEED
The table moves along the X and Y axes at the speed selected on the Speed Panel. For most jobs, a medium speed is sufficient. It is important to select a table speed appropriate for your job. If you’re engraving on hard metal, for example, a slow table speed is best. While a table speed that’s too slow can waste time, a speed that’s too fast results in burred characters. See page 4-30 for suggestions on setting the table speed for particular job types. Pressing the Down Arrow Switch decreases the table speed and moves the yellow light on the LED Indicator downward, while the Up Arrow Switch increases the speed of the table.
Movement along the X and Y axes and downward movement of the cutter are completely unrelated. For this reason, the cutter will sometimes begin moving along the X and Y axes before completing its descent to the plate. It is important to make sure that the cutter reaches the material before beginning its movement along the X and Y axes. If the cutter down movement is too slow, this happens:
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CUTTER CONTROLS
The Cutter Control Panel contains switches necessary for setting cutter depth and zeroing the cutter before engraving. |
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CUTTER POSITION |
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Cutter Auto
When the cutter is set in the AUTO position, it remains in its up position until it is positioned over a character to be engraved. Then it descends, engraves the character, moves to its Up position and moves on to the next character, where it descends again. The cutter should be in its AUTO position to engrave. |
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Cutter Up
Turn on the SCU and the spindle defaults to its Cutter AUTO position. It stays in this position until the UP or DOWN Switch is pressed. |
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Cutter Down
When the Cutter Down Switch is pressed, the cutter descends to the table, and remains down until Up or Auto is pressed. Do not use the Cutter Down Switch to engrave. Use it only to zero the cutter. To engrave, use the Auto Switch. |
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CUTTER DELAY
The Cutter Delay Switches control the amount of time allowed for the cutter to descend to the plate. During the delay, the spindle must descend to make contact with the plate. The greater the delay, the longer the spindle and table wait before moving. Press the Up Arrow Switch to increase the Cutter Delay and the Down Arrow Switch to decrease the delay time. When the delay time has lapsed, the spindle and table begin to move along the X and Y axes, as shown below and at the top of the next page: |
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HOME
If you’re using an engraving table with computerized Z axis control, the Surface switches make it quick and easy to zero the spindle’s cutter and set the cutter’s depth. The spindle on a Z Axis Controlled engraving table is moved up and down by a stepper motor. Up and down movement of a pneumatically-controlled spindle is controlled with compressed air. Two spindle assemblies are shown above. On the left is a Z Axis controlled spindle. When the stepper motor turns counterclockwise, the spindle moves downward. On the right, the pneumatically-controlled spindle is lowered to the table by air pressure. |
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The Surface Switches
work only for Z Axis controlled spindles. For pneumatically-controlled spindles, see your table manual to learn how to zero the cutter and set cutter depth. Before pressing Surface Locate, make sure the cutter Is at least one inch from the surface of the table. |
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SURFACE LOCATE
Press the Surface Locate Switch, and the Cutter Depth Adjustment Knob, on the side of the spindle assembly turns clockwise, sending it upward as far as it will go. Then the Z axis stepper motor in back of the System Ten spindle assembly turns counterclockwise, sending the spindle down as far as it will go. When the spindle is in the cutter down position, and the Cutter Depth adjustment Knob is in its uppermost position, you’re ready to use the Surface Down and Up Switches to zero the cutter. |
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SURFACE DOWN
After pressing Surface Locate, use the Surface Down Switch to move the cutter down toward the plate. Unlike most switches on the Systems Control Unit panel, the Surface Down Switch is a momentary switch; it’s operable only while depressed. Each momentary press of the Surface Down Switch moves the cutter 1/1000 of an inch closer to the engraving table. Press the Surface Down Switch until the tip of the cutter just touches the plate on the engraving table. At this point, the cutter is "zeroed" and you’re ready to set the cutter depth. |
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SURFACE UP
If you press the Surface Down Switch and accidentally send the cutter boring into the material, you can press the Surface Up Switch to move the cutter upward. Pressing the Surface Up Switch moves the cutter in 1/1000 inch increments. |
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SURFACE SET
When the cutters tip just touches the plate, press the Surface Set Switch to save the new cutter down position. The spindle will move to its up position. WHEN CUTTER TIP IS FLUSH WITH PLATE, SURFACE SET LOCKS NEW POSITION IN PLACE DOWN FEED |
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Down Feed Switches
control the rate at which the spindle on Z Axis-controlled tables descends to the material. To set down feed for pneumatically-controlled spindles, see their respective manuals.
Using the proper down feed helps ensure high-quality engraving and longer cutter life. For example, never use a fast down feed when rotary engraving on metal, as this can nick the cutter’s tip and cause poor engraving quality. Check the chart at the end of the chapter to make sure you are using the proper down feed setting for your job type.
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ENGRAVING CONTROLS
Engraving Controls regulate the actual engraving process. Only one Engraving Switch is active at a time. Be careful to keep your hands away from the spindle and engraving table
CAUTION when you see a flashing green light on the RUN Switch. Press the PAUSE Switch before making adjustments to the spindle or table.
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RUN
The RUN Switch must be activated to engrave a job. At SCU power up, the RUN Switch s red light will come on. The RUN Switch will light in one of three ways depending on the status of the engraving system: As long as there is no job in the system, the switch stays solid red; The switch is either a solid or a flashing green when a job is sent to be engraved, depending on the mode of engraving used. The red light returns after the job has been engraved.
**A flashing green light appears under one condition: When you’ve pressed the Auto Switch on the Table Controls Panel. Remember, when you re using Auto and you’ve already pressed the RUN Switch, the spindle will move out to the engraving table as soon as it receives the job from the computer. While the job is being computed and transferred to the SCU, the flashing green ~warning’ light appears, to remind you that at any minute the spindle could move away from home position and begin engraving.
The RUN Switch displays a solid green light while engraving
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PAUSE
Pressing the Pause Switch will activate its red LED and will stop the engraving process at any point beyond the transfer of information from the computer. If engraving has already begun, the cutter will finish the character it is currently engraving. It will then move to its cutter up position and stay there until the RUN switch is pressed. |
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HOME RESTART
Pressing the Home Restart Switch in the middle of a job sends the spindle back to home position immediately. The job will remain in the SCU’s memory. When you’re ready to engrave it again, press the RUN Switch. |
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HOME CANCEL
The Home Cancel Switch also stops a job in progress and moves the cutter back to home position. But with Home Cancel, the job inside the Systems Control Unit is immediately cancelled. |
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LINE BACKUP
When you press the Line Backup Switch in the middle of a job, the cutter will complete the character it is working on, then move to its cutter up position and move back to the beginning of the current line. Keep the Line Backup Switch pressed, and the spindle will continue to move backward to the previous line. This makes it easy to re-engrave particular lines of a job immediately. Press the RUN Switch to resume engraving. |
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VACUUM CONTROLS
Engraving Controls regulate optional vacuum devices that can be connected to the engraving table
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CHIP
The vacuum chip removal system helps keep your work area free of debris produced in rotary engraving. In the Auto position, the vacuum chip removal kit is on only while the plate is being engraved. In the ON position, the kit stays on until the OFF Switch is pressed.
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TABLE
The vacuum table clamps plates to the engraving table using air suction. In the AUTO position, the plate is held to the table by suction only while it is being engraved. In the ON position, the suction continues until OFF is pressed.
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