>> Glad you are still playing with it, I remember when you did the first
posts. A photo plotter is still on my to do list of projects.
Well, not playing with it at all. It has been one of the major tools in my shop for
18 years, and I need to keep it running, that's why I was worried the ancient
computer would croak one of these days. While updating the computer, I
took the opportunity to fix a bunch of stuff that I'd always wanted to do
from the beginning. Once I got the basic unit running 18 years ago, I
was just a little afraid to do too much and break something.
I never had the home switch, so I had to wind the carriage back to the
beginning manually. I now have a home switch and it automatically runs
back to home before starting a plot.
I never had the PLL lock sensing set up, so I just had the PC wait for
a long time and assumed the PLL would be locked. Now, the Beagle
Bone senses the lock indication and waits until it shows lock for a
continuous second before starting the plot.
Another project I ought to do is build a nice aluminum housing with
a hinged cover and light-tight seals. Right now, I put a cardboard
box with the interior spray painted flat black over it when it
is plotting to keep the film from fogging. It works, but it is
seriously ugly!
Jon