Setting up the GA500 parameters using the Drivewizard app

Now that the GA500 VFD is installed and wired up, it's time to configure it. Previously I used the Windows / USB version of the Yaskawa Drivewizard to set up a couple of GA500s on the Tree CNC lathe. I recall trying to use the Android app over USB but failing to get a connection. This time I seem to have had better luck. Presumably the intern software engineers fiddled with it in the interim and got it working.

Here's what you get upon connection. 

Usefully, you don't need to power up the main drive from mains to talk to it, as the high level controller resides in the user panel, rather than the low level DSP / FPGA. Simply plugging in your USB host gets it talking.

Speaking of which - why have they persisted with Mini USB, when we have moved from Mini to Micro to USB C? Luckily, against all odds, I found a suitable data cable with Mini USB at one end and USB C at the other - what were the chances of that? Of course, they offer a Bluetooth interface as an alternative but for that you need to cough up over £100 for the Bluetooth Remote Operator (= user keypad), which I won't be doing any time soon.

The signal wiring is done. Not tidied up yet but let's get it working before getting too clever on that front. 

The monitor page shows headline values and VFD status:

You can dive into the parameters and change settings live - but not while the output is enabled of course.

Set up for 2-wire operation using inputs S1 & S2.

The configurable (relay) outputs will show fault and spindle-at-speed status:

Motor parameters:

You can show which parameters have changed from the default:

I also ran the auto tuning and KEB tuning (aka regen braking). These sort of optimise the transient and accel / decel parameters to some degree.

Linuxcnc spindle control:

The actual spindle speed didn't correlate well with the commanded speed. I can see the actual speed displayed in the GUI. This comes from the spindle encoder, so is a good measure of what's actually happening.

You need to set the scale factor and speed range in the .ini file to correspond to the gearing in the machine and the frequency range specified in the VFD. So, with 0-80Hz configured and a 4-pole motor, I can achieve around 2400rpm at the motor which is ~1280rpm at the spindle. Ideally this would have been a 4-pole motor (3000rpm instead of 1500rpm) but this is all I've got to hand. On the upside it's a 5.5kW motor, so even at reduced torque above base speed, it should hopefully be of some use. Generally, when running at high speeds, you tend to be using less power anyway.

Accounting for the gear ratio (1000rpm at the spindle with the motor at 40Hz /1200 rpm at motor) and a max VFD frequency set to 80Hz, I should get a "scale factor" just over 2000 around 1200. Something like that.

Actual values (accounting for actual gear ratios etc):

MAX_OUTPUT = 1600
ENCODER_SCALE = 2400
OUTPUT_SCALE = 2100
OUTPUT_MIN_LIMIT = 0
OUTPUT_MAX_LIMIT = 1600

This gives a max spindle speed of 1600rpm and a good correlation between set speed and actual - without any closed loop action.

Slight issue noticed now - the door won't close due to the 12V MeanWell PSU clashing with the (taller) Yaskawa VFD. Simple to fix, though - I no longer needed it (it was used to power the original ASrock mini-ITX PC), so was able to remove it and it's job done.