How to setup a connection between FAULHABER Drive systems and ctrlX CORE

Applies to

ctrlX OS 3.6
ctrlX I/O Engineering 3.6
ctrlX PLC Engineering 3.6
ctrlX Apps from ctrlX OS Store
- ctrlX OS - EtherCAT Master 3.6
- ctrlX OS - Motion 3.6
- ctrlX OS - PLC 3.6

HW Setup

ctrlX CORE Device
FAULHABER Motion Controller or Motion Control System V3.0
- The FAULHABER Drive System needs to be commissioned with Motion Manager at first. For further information please refer to this Webinar.
PC with ctrlX I/O and PLC Engineering

Step-by-Step guide

Configure the EtherCAT Master
1. Establish a connection to the ctrlX CORE and log in to the web interface
2. If not already done, install the EtherCAT, Motion and PLC app and assign a license
  
  Device Dashboard ctrlX CORE
3. Add an EtherCAT Master
  
  EtherCAT Master instances
4. Open ctrlX I/O Engineering
  
  EtherCAT Master Status
5. Create a new project and establish connection to the ctrlX CORE
  
  Connection to ctrlX OS device
6. Right click on the EtherCAT Master and "Scan for Devices..."
7. If the ctrlX I/O Engineering database doesn't contain the ESI of the FAULHABER Motion Controller or Motion Control System yet, the ESI must be installed.
  ESI files can be found in the following directory:
  Motion Manager 6: C:\Program Files (x86)\Faulhaber\Motion Manager 6\ESI
  Motion Manager 7: C:\Users\Public\Documents\Faulhaber\Motion Manager 7\Device description\ESI
  After installation, the device is recognized and can be inserted to the project
  
  Scan for Devices
8. Adapt the PDO Mapping according to the requirements of the application. Enable the Expert settings and go to the Expert Process Data tab
  
  Enable Expert settings
  If the FAULHABER Drive system will be linked to an axis in the Motion App, at least the following objects must be added to the PDO mapping
  
  Objects to be added in a RxPDO
  Objects to be added in a TxPDO
9. Download the I/O configuration to the ctrlX CORE
  
  Download project
  ✅ With the download of the I/O configuration, the configuration of the EtherCAT master is done.
Configure the Motion App
1. Add an axis (The utilized communication protocol is CANopen over EtherCAT)
  
  Add axis
2. Adapt the axis limits according to the specific drive system and the requirements of the application. The following settings are chosen for a FAULHABER Drive system of the series MCS 3242 BX4
  
  Limit settings for Axis 1
3. Edit the scaling of the axis profile according to the resolution of the sensor system and the units configured in Motion Manager. In this case a drive system with linear hall sensors is used and the position unit is configured to increments. This means the resolution of the drive system is 4096 increments per revolution
  
  Scaling of the axis profile
4. In the "Variables" section of the axis profile, the mapping of the EtherCAT process data to the axis variables is shown. In this example, the mapping is done automatically and doesn't have to be adapted.
5. Now the axis can be switched from Configuration to Running mode
  
  Switch axis in running mode
6. In the commissioning tab, the axis can be enabled and tested in Jog-mode, position- and velocity-controlled mode.
  These functions cause machine movements. Take all necessary measures to avoid personal injury or machine damage!
  
  Move axis
  ✅ With this step, the connection of the FAULHABER Drive system to a Motion axis is successfully finished.
Integrate the axis into a PLC sequence
1. Open ctrlX PLC Engineering
  
  PLC applications
2. Create a new project and establish connection to the ctrlX CORE
  
  Connection to ctrlX OS device
3. Right click on Application and select "Insert templates"
  
  Insert templates
4. In the "Motion Interface" tab select "Axis Interface" and Insert
  
  Select Axis Interface
5. There are many demo programs available. For a first impression the visualization "Overview Axes" is very helpful. Open the visualization and login to the device
  
  Login to the device
6. The visualization allows to test the FAULHABER drive system in different modes of operation. Start the application by clicking on the "Start" button
  
  Start application
7. In order to understand the utilized commands, open the "DemoAxisCommands", right click on "arAxisCtrl_gb" and select "Add to Watchlist"
  
  Add to Watchlist
8. Go back to the "Overview Axes" visualization, open Axis 1 and select "Position mode". In position mode, e.g. a relative movement can be performed by defining a distance and selecting "Relative"
  
  Position mode visualization
9. The same movement can be performed in your own application with the following code sequence. Here, a relative move of 360° is performed if the variable "move_relative" is set to TRUE
```
PROGRAM PLC_PRG
VAR
	move_relative : BOOL;
END_VAR

// Setup dynamic parameters
arAxisCtrl_gb[1].PosMode.Velocity := 1000;
arAxisCtrl_gb[1].PosMode.DynValues.Acceleration := 10000;
arAxisCtrl_gb[1].PosMode.DynValues.Deceleration := 10000;

// Move 360° if move_relative is TRUE
IF move_relative THEN
	arAxisCtrl_gb[1].PosMode.Distance := 360;
	arAxisCtrl_gb[1].Admin._OpModeBits.MODE_POS_REL := TRUE;
ELSE
	arAxisCtrl_gb[1].Admin._OpModeBits.MODE_AB := TRUE;
END_IF
```
  ✅ Congratulations! You have successfully integrated the FAULHABER Drive system in the ctrlX CORE system and can continue to develop your own application.