I am thinking of adding a emergency stop button that connects to the OF controller via the Breakout Board (Pin 23). I find fumbling with my 10" display is a bit slow when things get exciting.
Looking for insights from someone who has done this? What switch did you use? Is it simply a momentary switch?
The controller switch just cuts power.
You could do something like this.
I donāt know about the breakout board.
Iām not talking about cutting primary power. Iām talking about replicating the emergency stop button on the controller display by using pin number 23 on the breakout board.
Hi Alan - looks like e-stop is pin 23.
I got an estop from Amazon but Iām not happy with the action; itās far too soft and Iām concerned it might be pushed by accident. If you have a safe place for button that it wonāt get pushed by accident, it should work fine for you though.
-Tom
Tom,
Yes, it is pin 23. I think it works by simply grounding the pin momentarily.
The switch you linked looks like a locking switch that is released by twisting it. I have several of those in my shop on other equipment. Did you give this switch a try?
I am thinking a āmomentaryā switch is needed but I am not certain. That is where I am looking for experience. Does simply giving pin 23 5 volts momentarily get you the EStop? Does giving 5 volts again get you the release? In other words, the same action as the touchscreen?
Hi Alan - I purchased it and played round with it, but I never connected it. It is easy to push down and āengageā. I was looking for something with a little more resistance that requires a good āslapā to depress and lock.
My understanding is you just need to momentarily ground the estop pin. Based on the schematics, all the IO are 3.3v only, so never apply 5 even if the signal is active high. All the IO seem to have pull up resistors and decoupling capacitors so you donāt need to actively drive it - only ground it and let it āfloatā high.
I really wish they isolated the pins on the connector from the microprocessor so you donāt fry it if something goes wrong, but they didnāt. Iām thinking about creating an interface board that properly isolates the signals and protects the uC a little more.
-Tom
Thanks Tom,
I will dig into schematics. I assume theyāre in the Buildbotics manual/documentation.
Yes, that breakout board is crowded and could be a bit risky if exposed or treated badly by mistake.
Thanks for the help!
Alan
Buy yourself a proper estop button. example estop button