PRSalpha Air Drill
The PRSalpha air drill has been designed to function and mount exclusively with ShopBot’s PRSalpha line. This document will discuss the mounting and installation of the PRSalpha air drill as well as the programming necessary to use it.
The PRSalpha air drill is a pneumatic drill with a 3/8” capacity chuck that is controlled through the software to turn on and off. The depth and speed of plunge of the drill are determined with the z axis, allowing for multiple hole depths within the same setup. The PRSalpha air drill is designed for point to point drilling in a variety of materials. While it is possible to drill into mild steel, the pneumatics were not intended for this purpose.
The PRSalpha air drill turns 2,500 RPM’s with a required 90 PSI (6.2 bar) of clean, dry air. The air drill has a consumption rate of 5 cfm (3.6 scfm) with a torque output of 45 lbs. in. (5Nm). Decibel levels on this unit are around 84 dB. Hearing and eye
protection should be worn at all times.
The Spindle Mounting Plate
In most instances the spindle plate will have already been mounted to the spindle body when you received your spindle. Depending on what era your spindle mounting plate was produced, this plate may need to be updated. To see if your plate qualifies, look down the side of this spindle mounting plate. If there are NO ¼- 20 holes down the ½” edges, then an updated spindle plate is needed. If you do have these holes on the ½” edges of your spindle mounting plate and are assembling the ShopBot for the first time, please continue the spindle mounting instructions. If there are holes in your spindle plate and you are just now adding the PRSalpha air drill to your machine, continue to mounting the drill cage.
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If you have a spindle mounting plate without the ¼ - 20 holes on the edge, remove the spindle and plate by loosening the six socket head mounting screws that hold them to the Z-axis with a ¼” hex key. Once removed from the Z-axis, remove the 4 flat head screws that attach the spindle mounting plate to the spindle. Disregard the spindle mount without holes on the ½” edge.
Mounting the Drill Cage
Position the drill cage with the angled side facing down. With the (8) ¼ – 20 x ¾” button head socket cap screws, loosely mount the drill cage to the holes in the ½” edge of the spindle mounting plate. Using a square make sure that the front face of the cage is square to the machine bed. Tighten screws firmly.
Mounting the Air Drill(s)
Position the PRSalpha air drill inside the drill cage. On the drill cage notice the arrangement of holes on the front face of the cage. These holes are arranged so that two air drills may be mounted inside the cage. Drills may be mounted one in the center of this area or one on either side of center.
Attach the air drill plate to the drill cage by selecting the desired position. The air drill has eight holes that are spaced in 1” increments that allow for the air drill to be mounted in one of three height positions. Use the (6) ¼ – 20 x ½” button head socket cap screws to mount the air drill loosely to the cage. Use a square along the extruded track to square the air drill to the machine bed. Tighten screws firmly.
Consider the lengths of drill bits that will be used before mounting the air drill. The pneumatic cylinder has a 4” throw, so longer bits may cause the air drill to be mounted in the highest mounting position. Not to worry though, the air drill is easy enough to reposition by removing these six button head screws and moving the air drill up or down.
Note: Remember that the tip of the drill bit, when extended, will need to be lower than the bit in the router by a distance greater than the depth of the holes to be drilled. In other words, “don’t let either drag”. Connecting the Air Drill(s)
Using a Philips head screw driver tighten the solenoid plug to the solenoid at the top end of the air drill. On the PRSalpha air drill the pneumatics are mounted at the top of the air drill plate. Take the female ¼” disconnect end of the air line and connect it to the male ¼” disconnect on the opposite face of the air drill. Route both the air line and the wire from the plug over the wire guide. Connect the air hose into an existing air line. Route the wire from the solenoid plug into the side of the control box.
For two or more air drills use the air line splitter (002187-01). Remove the male quick disconnect from the air drills mounted inside the same cage (these parts will be reused).
On one air drill, thread the air line splitter vertically into the elbow (disassemble 3/8” pushin connecter from splitter to tighten Tee then reassemble). Plumbers tape (not provided) is recommended to reduce leaks. Use one of the male quick disconnects that was removed earlier to thread into the top of the air line splitter.
On the second air drill, thread the 3/8” push-in connector into the elbow. Connect the two air drills together with the 3/8” tubing.
Note: It is now possible to connect up to four air drills (2 Z axes required). Label the wires from the air drill for tracking purposes (drill #1, drill #2, etc.)
For the primary air drill (drill #1) Inside the control box connect the red wire to the +24v side of the green relay. Place the black wire to output #5 on the relay board.
For additional air drill (drill #2) Inside the control box connect the red wire to the +24v side of the green relay. Place the black wire to output #6 on the relay board.
For additional air drill (drill #3) Inside the control box connect the red wire to the +24v side of the green relay. Place the black wire to output #7 on the relay board.
For additional air drill (drill #4) Inside the control box connect the red wire to the +24v side of the green relay. Place the black wire to output #8 on the relay board.
Wiring the Air Drill(s)
Turn off all power to and supplying the control box. On relay positions being used, make sure that the
+24v supply on the relay board is wired into the screw terminals through
Relay out on the wiring diagrams. This 24v power can be daisy-chained via the
Relay out to other relay positions.
Bring the cable(s) from the air drill(s) into the control box. For the primary air drill (
drill#1) bring the brown cable from the solenoid to relay 5 position. Connect the
Red wire to the screw terminal
Relay in and the
Black wire to
Gnd on the relay board. Make sure that the jumper for the relay 5 position is across both posts in line with 5.
If adding additional air drill (
drill#2) bring the brown cable from the solenoid to relay 6 position. Connect the
Red wire to the screw terminal
Relay in and the
Black wire to
Gnd on the relay board. Make sure that the jumper for the relay 6 position is across both posts in line with 6.
If adding additional air drill (
drill#3) bring the brown cable from the solenoid to relay 7 position. Connect the
Red wire to the screw terminal
Relay in and the
Black wire to
Gnd on the relay board. Make sure that the jumper for the relay 7 position is across both posts in line with 7.
If adding additional air drill (
drill#4) bring the brown cable from the solenoid to relay 8 position. Connect the
Red wire to the screw terminal
Relay in and the
Black wire to
Gnd on the relay board. Make sure that the jumper for the relay 8 position is across both posts in line with 8.
PRSalpha Wiring
Check to ensure that all wires between relay board and the control board correspond to like output positions, ground, and 24v power. The solenoid cable will connect to the ground
(Gnd) with the
Black wire and
Relay in with the
Red wire. Additional air drills may be wired in as the “solenoid plug optional” in the diagram. Reconnect power when complete.
PRSstandard Wiring
Check to ensure that all wires between relay board and the control board correspond to like output positions and ground. The wiring for the PRSstandard only differs from the Alpha in that the 24v power on the relay board needs to be furnished from the 24v power supply. The solenoid cable will connect to the ground
(Gnd) with the
Black wire and
Relay in with the
Red wire. Additional air drills may be wired in as the “solenoid plug optional” in the diagram. Once wiring is complete it is now safe to reconnect power to the control box.
PRSstandard Wiring (63/24V Power Supply)
Check to ensure that all wires between relay board and the control board correspond to like output positions and ground. The wiring for the PRSstandard (63/24V) only differs from the Alpha in that the 24v power on the relay board needs to be furnished from the 24v side of the power supply. The solenoid cable will connect to the ground
(Gnd) with the
Black wire and
Relay in with the
Red wire. Additional air drills may be wired in as the “solenoid plug optional” in the diagram. Once wiring is complete it is now safe to reconnect power to the control box.
Testing the Air Drill(s)
*** Warning *** Warning *** Warning *** Warning *** Warning ***Pay close attention to the following instructions. Failure to do so may cause bodily harm. Manually Testing the Air Drill(s)
Once the air drill(s) have been wired in and are connected to an air supply, test the unit. To safely test the air drill move pneumatic slide valve to the up position. With the slide up, this will prevent the drill from turning when the solenoid is activated. The pneumatic cylinder will still plunge to depth. Make sure that there is no drill bit in the air drill and that the chuck of the drill is greater than 4” above the machine bed. Make double sure that all hands and any other items are out of the area directly beneath the air drill.
Use the small blue switch on the solenoid to manually test the air drill. With a small screw
driver turn the switch clockwise a ¼ turn. This should active the pneumatic cylinder and
the air drill will plunge to full depth of stroke for the duration the switch is turned. Once the
switch is released, the cylinder will return to the top of its cycle. If this performed as
expected, continue. If not, check that the air supply is on and that you have 90 PSI going
to the drill.
Now position the pneumatic slide in the down position. In this position the drill will now
turn while the cylinder plunges to full depth when the solenoid is activated.
Testing the Air Drill(s) Through the Software
Now that the air drill can be switched on and off manually, the air drill(s) activation through the software should be checked. Move the slide on the air drill back to the up position (Drill off) as directed above. Make sure that there is no drill bit in the air drill and that the chuck of the drill is greater than 4” above the machine bed. Make double sure that all hands and other items are out of the area directly beneath the air drill.
Power-up the control box and the SB control software. Once the SB control software is open go into the KeyPad mode (K). On the KeyPad screen click on the output switch for the appropriate air drill. Drill #1 will be activated with output #5; drill #2 will be activated with output #6; drill #3 will be activated with output #7; and drill #4 will be activated with output #8. With output switch #5 in the on (up) position on the KeyPad, air drill #1 should cycle on and plunge to full depth and stay there until output #5 is turned off (down). All other air drills should respond accordingly. If all air drills are in working order, move the slide to the down position to ensure that the drill is activated.
Tip: ALT + (Output #) will toggle the selected output on/off. Finding the XY Offset between Air Drill(s) and Spindle(s)
In ShopBot Control software version 3.5.4 or higher, use the Tools, ShopBot setup (TS) command to setup home position, Z zero plate thickness, and offsets between multiple spindles and air drills. The software prompts you what to do throughout the program. For more information refer to Finding Offsets for Multiple Spindle / Air Drills document.
Zeroing the Air Drill(s) in the Z or A axis
Caution: The air drill z height location references the location of the bit zeroed in the spindle. The spindle bit(s) must be zeroed before the bit in the air drill(s) are zeroed out.First zero the Z (and A axis) spindle(s) with Zzero.sbp (C2) (or Azero.sbp) to find the location of the router bit. Open the file Drill Offset.sbp to zero the bit in the air drill(s).
*** Warning *** Warning *** Warning *** Warning *** Warning ***Pay close attention to the following instructions. Failure to do so may cause bodily harm. Make sure that the slide valve on the air drill is in the off position. Click OK. The file will raise the designated Z (or A) axis up to 6” then activates the drill’s cylinder to plunge to full depth. Make double sure that all hands and other items are out of the area directly beneath the air drill.
Place grounding clip on the drill bit and place the Z-zero plate below the bit. Click OK.
Type in drill position 1-4 for which drill location is needed to be zeroed. Click OK. The Z (or A) axis will move down until contact is made with the plate then move up a little, move back into the plate at a slower speed, then retract.
Make sure that the slide valve on the air drill is in the ON position before resuming cutting.
Click OK.
Repeat the above steps for additional drill zeroing.
FAQ:
- Q: When should I re-zero the drills?
- A: If a drill bit breaks, slips, or is replaced.
- Q: Is it necessary to re-zero the drills if the router bit breaks?
- A: Yes! Replace the router bit and zero this bit using the Zzero (or Azero)
routine. Z (A) height offsets will need to be reassigned with the Drill
Offset.sbp file.
Creating a File using the Air Drill(s)
The following instructions have screen shots taken from PartWorks. In any software that output the PRS air drill post, the setup is essentially the same. A tool must be selected from the tool database that can be recognized by air drill software. This tool will be used to generate toolpaths in the same way the software would normally process a drilling operation, however, the tool number will dictate which air drill will do the drilling.
Draw or layout what needs to be machined as one would normally do.
When the toolpath is ready to be created, select the holes to be drilled and open the Drilling Toolpath tab. Set the depth for the holes (above Cut Depth 0.375) then select the tool to be used.
In PartWorks the tool database will have PRS Air Drill templates already. The templates are named PRS Air Drill Position #1 - 4 (Define Dia.). These templates all have a default diameter of .25 in the geometry of the tool. The most critical portion of any of these templates is the tool number located at the bottom of the window. This information identifies what drill position the bit is in.
Note: Most other software packages that have posts for ShopBot will have the ability to define a tool number.
Copy the template of a drill position while that position is highlighted using the copy button at the bottom of the screen. Select the new copy and change the (Define Dia.) in the Name. Enter in new geometry info, angles, feeds and speeds, and any other info that would be needed then click
Apply to save the tool.
Once a PRS Air Drill tool has been selected, calculate the tool path. When all toolpaths have been calculated, save only the drilling toolpaths with the ShopBot PRS AirDrill posts. Strategies other than drilling will continue to use the post that the ShopBotter has been accustomed to running.
For a single spindle ShopBot that has 1-2 air drills use the post ShopBot PRS AirDrill (*.sbp) or ShopBot PRS AirDrill MM(*.sbp). For a duel spindle ShopBot that has 1-4 air drills use the post ShopBot PRS AirDrill Head2(*.sbp) or ShopBot PRS AirDrill Head2 MM(*.sbp) when air drill positions #3 and #4 are needed.
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