We generally use the USB to power the interface (breakout board). The current from the computer is sufficient to supply the breakout board.

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Breakout Board with Relay. What is the USB connection on this board for? Does this board Still require a 5v power supply?

To use the inputs and outputs on the MAch3 USB controller, you will need at least a 12 VDC power supply inte 24V terminal (V+) and the DCM terminal (V-). The common lead of the limit switch will be connected to DCM (V-) and the NO (Normally Open ) lead of the limit switch will be connected to the Input of your choice (IN1 - IN4).

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[65] So do you need a 24 volt power supply on the USB breakout board or can you use the 5 volt side ?

For our parallel breakout board (https://www.buildyourcnc.com/item/electronicsAndMotors-parallel-breakout-relay#prettyPhoto/2/) the schematic will show the connections going from the BB to the drivers. The parallel breakout board uses the 25 pin parallel connection to communicate from the computer to drivers, and the USB is used to power the main-board itself, supplying 5V.

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I am wiring my breakout board and it has a USB port on it. Is the USB port there to supply the 5 volt power to it?

Our breakout board, does require 5v to operate the correct voltages coming in from the drivers and also coming in from your computer, now the 5V will be supplied by the USB connection, so no external power supply is needed, for either our USB/Parallel breakout board.

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Just for general knowledge. If a spindle gets i.e. 240VAC, and the drivers 36-50VDC for power, why do you need 5VDC for the Breakout Board (BlueBrew)? Is it only for the relay? I think I've seen other BoB's working without power supply, or am I wrong?

You can add a limit switch to either the USB or the parallel board. Please refer to the product pages for these items to view wiring diagrams.

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I want to add limit switches but I have no connections on the breakout board. Can I use a usb interface board for the limit switches as well as the parallel port for the running?

You can add a limit switch to either the USB or the parallel board. Please refer to the product pages for these items to view wiring diagrams.

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I want to add limit switches but I have no connections on the breakout board. Can I use a usb interface board for the limit switches as well as the parallel port for the running?

That depends on a few factors. In most cases, three 3.0 amp motors and drivers will not exceed 8.8 amps of available current. All of the motors would need to be at full torque to reach the 9 amps (3x3). This depends on the mechanical method you are using for each motor, and how you are using the machine. In most cases, only two motors are moving at a time (i.e. 3D carving where the X and Z are moving simultaneously and the y only moves to go to the next row). In traditional cutting profiles, only the x and y are moving simultaneously and the z-axis moves at the location it needs to start cutting the next layer.

With that said, it is ok to add an extra power supply if you feel you need more available current.

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[810] Is this a closed loop motor? What is the recommended driver and power supply for this stepper? Would you recommend using one power supply per motor pair or one power supply per motor?

The 5V power required for the breakout board can be a simple USB male to male cable, that will connect from your computer to the board itself.
Now adding a external power supply make sure that it does not exceed a total of 5V and the standard 500 MilliAMP - 1 A.

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I have a YDH-18-5 Power Supply AC Input:100-240v 47-63Hz, Ouput: 5v - 2A and need to know if its safe to use with the Parallel Breakout Board.

We generally use the USB to power the interface (breakout board). The current from the computer is sufficient to supply the breakout board.

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I have a blue brew break-out board. Do I use a seprate power supply for it and what amp output should it have if used.

We generally use the USB to power the interface (breakout board). The current from the computer is sufficient to supply the breakout board.

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I have a blue brew break-out board. Do I use a seprate power supply for it and what amp output should it have if used.

For safety's sake I would recommend a new board because they are inexpensive compared to the electronics that they support. Alternatively, it's possible that the one dead pin is a simple fix, such as a bad connection or solder joint; if you feel comfortable making those repairs then it could be worthwhile to check. Finally, if you are not using all the input pins, you could continue to operate the limit switch on pin 11 and hope for the best.

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I have a breakout board and it appears that the pin 12 connection has failed: when i move my limit switches to pin 11 they work; they don't work on pin 12. Do i need a new breakout board?

Have you tried a different input pin?

Customer response:
I've tried all pins: 10, 11, 12, and 13. I get the same non-response in each case.

Recommended action
There may be a problem with the board. If you are using our parallel breakout board, we can ship you a replacement (call us), otherwise, you will need to determine the problem with the vendor of the breakout board you are using.

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I have tried 3 different breakout boards from 3 different providers and they all do the same thing My limit switches are microswitches wired NC with each axis wired to the BO Board. I have checked each circuit and all is OK to the BO board. each circuit has continuity at the board and when any switch is pressed the circuit breaks. Mach 3 does not recognise that the switches are even there. They are configured as active low Do you have a suggestion.

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I'm having trouble getting Mach3 to recognize my limit switches. I've eliminated everything back to the breakout board. I can directly connect Input 10 to GND on the breakout board while Mach3 is in autorecognize mode and Mach3 doesn't acknowledge anything.

The 12V power supply has 3 terminals for AC in: N, L and earth ground. The output of the 12V power supply has 2 DC + and - terminals. Cut the connectors off of the ends of the fan and pump wires. Strip the red and black wires of both units. The fan will connect to the 12V power supply red to the + and black to the -. The pump will connect in the same way, but the white is not connected.

If you have a pump that has a grey and black wire on the large connector, the grey is the 12VDC V+ wire and the black wire goes to the V-. The extra wire does not need to be connected.

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I purchased the spindle cooling kit with power supply. and was wondering if you have a diagram on installing or a video. thank you

The USB port on the Parallel Interface board is necessary to supply 5V power. Connect with a USB cable to a USB source.

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I purchased a parallel port breakout board. I have checked all the info and found nothing on the usb port. What is it used for?

You can use any of the inputs on the mach3 controller. If there is a free terminal input terminal, use that one. You will need to modify the input number in the inputs tab in config->Ports&pins to assign the limit to the correct input number. When adding the pin number, make sure that the port number is 3.

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Mach 3 USB motion card: what two pins do I use for the limit switches and E stop button? One of the wires pulled lose and I don't remember what the other contact was.

Sure, the USB interface has a place for 4 axes of limit switches.

Each axis can have two limit switches: one for the ++ (positive) end and one for the -- (negative) end. The positive end would be the limit switch at the end of the machine that, say the machine has a 4'x8' area, reaches a bit after the 8 foot mark. The negative end would be the limit switch behind the 0 foot location behind the origin. If the origin is in the middle, the negative would be at a little more than the -4 foot end and the positive would be at a bit more than the +4 foot end. Note that you can have more than one switch on each pin where the NC is connected in serial fashion and the NO is connected in parallel fashion (this can be seen on the diagram in the multiple limits switch section). The software configurations for the limits switches are under File -> Settings -> Limit.

A typical limit switch has three connections on it. These connections consist of COM (common), NC (normally closed) and NO (normally open). The COM would generally go to GND and the NC or the NO would go to the pin. If the NC is used, then the the switch is constantly connected until the switch is pushed (engaged) then the connection from the pin to gnd is broken (open). Use the settings in software to set whether in NC or NO configuration.

Let me know if this information was helpful (or not) by adding information to this question. Thanks.

User response:
Thank you very much for this helpful information. I'm still a little fuzzy on how the 6 limit switches physically connect to each other and to the USB breakout board. You've stated one switch (home) goes to positive and another switch (limit) goes to negative. Are all the GND prongs from all 6 switches connected to each other and going to GND on the breakout board, or no? And the NC prongs, how exactly are they connected to each other? And to the board? There has to be a diagram somewhere shows this visually, no? I don't know how to wire the switches in series or in parallel. I have already physically installed all the switches on the machine and ran the wires to where the board is. Now I just need to know where to plug these wires into the board. Also, taking into consideration that I'm using the Planet CNC software, the only settings I have pertaining to limit switches is "Enable/Disable" for each axis, and the actual limit for each axis. Nothing about NC or NO. Is that only in Mach3?
Thank you.

buildyourcnc response:
On the USB interface, the COM on the switch connects to GND and the NC or NO connects to the input pin (i.e. x++, y--, etc.)

Limit switch configuration is rather difficult to understand, especially with series and parallel. You can think of series as a single wire going from GND to the axis letter input terminal (i.e. X++ or X--). If the wire is broken, then the circuit is open (or the switch is engaged in a normally closed scenario). Normally closed is like an actual wire, and when engaged, the switch "opens" (breaks the wire). This is why we recommend in some systems that you can put many switches in series on a single pin. When one of the switches is engaged (breaking the connection) then the entire circuit of switches is broken and the machine stops.

In a parallel scenario, the state of the circuit is always broken until the one of the switches is engaged and the circuit is then closed or connected. The topology looks like a ladder. All the switches connect to both sides of the ladder and the switches are like the runs of the ladder (the horizontal bars that the feet are placed while climbing). Imagine all of the switches broken in this scenario (normally open). It would be like the ladder could be split in two, but if one of the ladder runs (switches) is closed by engaging it, then that run would connect both sides of the ladder and the two sides of the ladder would have a connection.

There is a diagram on the USB page of the various limit switch configurations. If you need more information (visual and/or otherwise), please let us know and we will immediately add that information to benefit everyone.

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I purchased limit switches from you mounted them on my machine and wire them to the breakout for using pin 12 and the ground on the breakout board, after a few minutes I got a message about a limit switch trip. Am I supposed to use the extra outport on the board instead of the ground?

No, you should not have received two parallel breakout boards in your CNC kit. You can return the extra item using standard shipping with COD. Our apologies for the confusion and the inconvenience.

I will answer the other question as another FAQ. Please check the Customer Service page to see the answer to that question.

If you have difficulty finding the answer, here is a link:
https://www.buildyourcnc.com/FAQ/13636

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I HAVE A 2000 WK 11–3 Z LIMIT SWITCHES GOING TO C10R10 BREAKOUT BOARD . CAN ALSO USE THEM AS MY HOME POSITION WELL. NEED THE WIRING CONFIGURATION

Did you connect the USB connector to the breakout board?

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YES I CONNECTED THE USB TO THE BREAKOUT BOARD

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I connected the electronics (for 2 x 4 feet) that I ordered from you. But how do I check if I connected all the wiring properly. There is neither any light on motor drivers nor on breakout board. And the motor shaft also does not move before and after the power supply is given.

I would recommend using a separate 24VDC power supply for the controller. The 24VDC that is connected to the controller is used for delicate input signals and output signals that control external devices. To keep interference and possible current and voltage fluctuations at a minimum due to the motor load, a separate power supply would be best.

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[575] Can the 24VDC supply used for the interface board be the same supply used for stepper drivers, or do you need separate power supplies? If not, does GND and DCM need to be isolated?