Thread: 10EE Android DRO creation

After a year and a half of procrastinating today I have finally lashed out and bought two scales from Singapore to fit to the 10EE. Since the price of the readers is so high I have decided to go the android DRO route. A year or so ago I bought some MSP430 launchpad kits for a good price.

I need to get an android tablet and some other components.

Any ideas of good cheap android tablets?

Android DRO Project | Yuriy's Toys

A question on DROs, either android compatible or those with a remote, wired readout, do they require a coolant shield or doesn't coolant affect them?

Hi Richard.
Any cheap Android pad will do, but make SURE that it has Bluetooth (some advertise Bluetooth and it actually doesn't - I found out by experience....).

Originally Posted by sacc51

A question on DROs, either android compatible or those with a remote, wired readout, do they require a coolant shield or doesn't coolant affect them?

It is my understanding that they all need a shield, not only for coolant, but for chips as well. Anything on the scale will try to enter the read head and there is only so much a seal can protect against. I have a cheaper individual read head type DRO on my mill. I had covers folded from 1.6mm sheet to cover the max length possible and down below the bottom of the read head.

Every installation I have seen on the forum or YouTube has had covers.

Dean

Originally Posted by jhovel

Hi Richard.
Any cheap Android pad will do, but make SURE that it has Bluetooth (some advertise Bluetooth and it actually doesn't - I found out by experience....).

Thanks Joe, I wonder about these cheap ones, take no notice of the rrp, I see people have bought them for as low as $19.

PendoPad 7" - Quad Core - Black - PNDP5M7BLK - PendoPads with Google Play - Tablet - Pendo

I'm using TouchDRO on a old Windows tablet that I installed Android x86 on. It works well, but I had to use an external Bt adapter.

I just recently bought a second hand PendoPad 7, and although I can pair the Bt, I can't seem to get TouchDRO to connect. Still working on a solution.

All my DRO gear is Arduino based ... I have bought Uno's for $5 each and Nano's for $3 ... bloody cheap.

Just an update on this .... Yuri posted a new version of TouchDRO on his website (don't know if it's on Google Play yet) which seems to have fixed my Bt connection issues with the Pendo Pad 7.

Just waiting on the scales to come in so that I can setup the DRO on my lathe.

Originally Posted by .RC.

I have finally lashed out and bought two scales from Singapore

Hi RC,

what type of scales did you go for? And which supplier did you use? I am looking at some Ditron glass scales for a touch DRO project for my Maho mill and will watch this tread keenly.

I will start off using my android phone as the screen.

Cheers

Piers

I went with the normal 5um scales, but the one for the cross slide is a slim line one. I purchased them from the DRO store, which I think used to be Meister. I have purchased from them before. They ship by fedex and are on their way.

I did not actually know aliexpress sold DRO units as I would have searched there as well for a set, having a look prices seem to vary wildly but brand name ones like Easson and Sino seem to be slightly cheaper then what they sell for at the DRO store.

My Pendopad turned up today. It is an older one without bluetooth capability. I plan to try to run it off a mains powerpack without the battery and connect the launchpad to the tablet with the USB cord.

I am under no illusion that in the long long term it is probably not cheaper then a dedicated proper reader unit as they should last decades, but I do struggle to understand why the proper readers are so expensive these days.

Shop glass scales 5um online Gallery - Buy glass scales 5um for unbeatable low prices on AliExpress.com

I am looking at these scales.

Cheers

Piers

(Package Sales) 3 pcs of Linear glass scale/encoder/ruler DC11 measuring length form 50mm 500mm(1um)-in Electronic Data Systems from Electronic Components & Supplies on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

Those scales could very well be very good, I have not heard of that brand name before. I see according to google there is even a local reseller of them around Newcastle somewhere.

(slightly OT)
Probably about 2 and a bit years ago I bought 2 DROs from the DRO store plus some of the magnetic tape and reader from Machine-DRO in the UK. The magnetic strip reader is RS232 so plugs right into the box, but the best thing about it is the low profile (scale plus protective strip is around 5mm height). I finally installed on the mill around Christmas last year and while it does not get used much it is handy for keeping track of position and especially when trying to locate the centres of holes (in conjunction with the Taster).
(a bit less OT)
One thing I haven't done is installed the DRO on the lathe though. Part of it is sloth - I have another magnetic strip readout that I was going to rebate into the cross slide and that requires all sorts of disassembly, but the other reason is that there is no pressing reason to do so - I only use these things for position and I am struggling to think of a situation where there is a great advantage in having a DRO on a lathe when dealing with one-offs that are usually made to match other parts.
For those thinking of installing scales on a cross slide I would suggest having a look at the magnetic scales if you are pushed for space (Digital Readout Systems | Console | DRO | New) (Note that you don't have to use their extrusion to house it either. The mill installation is stuck directly to the table with a cover strip over the top)

Michael

Bit of an update on this. Some issues to sort through.

Firstly the cheapo android pad I bought like all super cheap pads does not have bluetooth. I originally thought no problems as you can connect via USB. But research shows this is not cheaply/easily possible with the launchpad option.

Secondly, as the reader will be fixed in place I want to run the tablet off a power adapter. Like most tablets the only option for input power is through the USB port. I thought OK, I will remove the battery and pump 3.7V into that. A computer PSU has a 3.5V output, but after removing the case and removing the battery and connecting the PSU and giving it 3.5V the device will not power up at all. Al I get it a quick screen flash showing a battery with an exclamation mark inside it.

However it will power up from the USB port with no battery. So my next option is use the OTG cable that came with the device plug a USB double adapter into that. One side gets the bluetooth reciever, the other gets 5V power source to run the tablet.

Hi RC,

A standard computer PSU outputs 3.3 volts and that value is closely controlled. It is just about equivalent to a flat battery. You need 3.7 or even 4 volts ideally. It might be worthwhile regulating the 5 volt rail down to 3.7 with a TO220 variable regulator.

Richard, you might find as I did that it is not thateasy to find a USB bluetooth adapter that works on Android. ALl the ones I ofund need drivers. You can't do drivers on Android. Most versions of Windows since Win2000 had bluetooth drivers in the Operating systems - that's why you don;t need OEM drivers for them there. But as you may know, when you plug one in the first time, Windows tells you to wait a moment while it finds and installs the drivers for the new device. Android does no such thing....
I gave up and bought one with bluetooth built in.