Monthly Archives: July 2010

CNC software – designing Cerberus

CNC software is a three-headed beast (hence “Cerberus”). To go from “idea” to “cut piece”, you need: – CAD software, to build the 3D model of the object (or the “2.5D” layout, or the 2D circuit diagram or whatever); – … Continue reading

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CNC plans on hold

I will continue researching CNC software and firmware, maybe build out my CNC Etch-a-Sketch like I’d been wanting to. I don’t know if the Ladyada Motor shield can juice the motors up enough to drive the EaS, but I can … Continue reading

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CNC – Electronics

The electronics for a CNC machine are reasonably complicated, and consist of: – 3 motors, one per axis, which drive the leadscrews that position the axes, driven by – 3 “motor drivers”, one per motor; the boards convert TTL-level “step” … Continue reading

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CNC – design ideas

After much research, I have decided that I should aim to build a moving-gantry, 3-axis mill, with a 2′ x 4′ bed (sized for a 1/4 sheet of plywood, although I will only be able to use about 20″x40″ of … Continue reading

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DIY CNC – A Mathematically Constrained Robot

Ah, CNC. The promise of turning idea into creation. The idea of owning a CNC machine appeals to me on many levels. I often have project ideas that I can’t figure out how to construct because of my limited toolset … Continue reading

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Sidereal time

The stars rise about 4 minutes earlier every day, making them seem to march ever-westward across the sky. I received the gift of a real-time clock (RTC) circuit last week, and it got me to thinking about how to convert … Continue reading

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