An Open CNC System Based on Component Technology

In a conventional CNC system, communications between the motion controller and the analogue servo driver usually take place in a unidirectional manner, i.e., from the controller to the driver. In order to increase the interoperability level between the motion controller and the driver, Fieldbus is used in this research. The digital servo in a Fieldbus-based system enables applications with all servo loops closed. Functions that have been traditionally executed by the motion controller can now be shifted to the driver. In this research, the traditional CNC system has been redesigned based on the component technology. Following the analysis of the architecture of a traditional CNC and the features of a Fieldbus, component models have been developed for the motion controller and the driver. This Fieldbus-based CNC system gives the much-needed interoperability between the motion controller and the driver. A comparative experiment based on a four-axis CNC system has been carried out to showcase the component model-based system.