Nova Series X Axis Motion Failure
Preface: This article will cover reasons why your X axis will not move left or right. There can be several different causes from mechanical to electrical, including a failed sensor, failed driver, improper adjustment, belt tension etc.
The only way to reset a driver fault is to power the laser machine off and then back on again. The red RESET button is a warm boot/soft restart and DOES NOT reset a driver fault.
Component overview:
It is a good idea to familiarize yourself with the major components involved and their naming.
Driver
Motor
Ruida Controller
Driver
There are two drivers generally found in the NOVA series, the HBS57 and the CL1. They both perform the same functions and in general have the same wiring with the exception of the connector style at the driver. The driver accepts motion signals from the Ruida Controller and passes them over to the motor, while keeping track of the motor position and faulting if there is an issue.
HBS57 | CL1 |
Known as the Blue Driver. Obsolete and found on older Nova Machines | Known as the Grey Driver. Current driver found on newer Nova machines. |
Motor
The motor for the X and Y axes are the same and interchangeable. The motors accept the commands from the driver on which way to move and then the encoder on the motor provides feedback to the driver that the motor actually moved. If the driver tells the motor to move but does not see the proper feedback, then a fault (7 flashes) may occur.
Ruida Controller
The Ruida controller tells the driver what to do. There are 3 wires from the controller to the driver. The Dir- for direction (left or right, forward or backward, up or down) and then the Pul- wire which is pulsed for each time the controller wants the driver to step the motor. Think of it like someone telling you to walk by stepping each leg, one leg at a time. Then there is the common 5V+ signal which is used for Dir+ and Pul+ on the driver. If the signals are not reaching the driver properly, then the system will exhibit erratic behavior like not moving at all, moving with jitters or even going the opposite direction. The Ruida Controller is not aware if a driver faults and will continue to run the machine/project so you should always be monitoring your machine while it is running.
LED #14 should flash, it is completely normal and you can ignore it.
Locations of components:
It is a good idea to familiarize yourself with the major components involved and their locations.
Driver
Motor
Ruida Controller
Driver
The drivers will be on the right hand side of the machine in the main electronics bay. Depending on the layout, the drivers may be horizontally mounted as shown or even vertically mounted.
HBS57 on a Nova 35 | CL1 on a Nova 24 |
Motor
The x motor is located on the right side of the gantry and moves forward and backward with the gantry. You can access the motor from the right hand side of the machine from the upper blue door.
Ruida Controller
Will be in the electronics bay on the right hand side of your machine, behind the lower blue door(s) and on the left.
Initial Troubleshooting Steps
The initial steps are the discovery phase which will help decide what to do next. Basically we want to check the driver for being powered and if there is a fault code.
Tools you may need:
Multimeter
Phillips Head Screwdriver
Small Flat Head Screw Driver
First Initial Check: Is the Driver Powered Up
If the driver is not showing a green light then it does not have 36VDC power coming from the 36VDC power supply. Check the 36VDC power supply for a Green LED and with a multimeter check the output to be near 36VDC
Driver LED Indicator:
Power on the machine and check for the green light. In the below pictures, the CL1 is shown but the HBS57 has the same lights.
Location of the 36VDC Power Supply:
We will need to locate the 36VDC Driver power supply to be able to perform some checks on it. Please see the pictures below for locations.
Nova 24 Newer Nova 35, 51 and 63
Located on the back of the machine to the left of the exhaust outlet port, behind the blue door
Right hand side of the machine behind the lower blue door(s) on the right side. May also be mounted vertically.
36VDC Power Supply Indicators:
If you notice that the Y and Z drivers have green LED's on them but the X does not, you can skip the part about checking the power on the 36VDC power supply but still perform the steps about checking the wiring on the power supply.
Green Light On 36V Power Supply 36VDC Output Testing
If you still do not have a green light on the 36VDC power supply and it does not measure 36VDC, then further troubleshooting is required. You can reach out to support@thunderlaserusa.com for further guidance. It could be the 120VAC input power or another device that is overloading the 36VDC power supply.
Second Initial Check: Is the Driver Faulted
The driver can display a fault code by using the RED led on the the driver. The LED will flash a certain amount of times, pause, and then flash that same number of times. Power cycling the driver will clear the fault code until it comes back.
You can count the flashes of the red LED to help determine the fault:
The most common code is 7 flashes. Typically this is caused by an the head or gantry running into a hard end of travel obstruction which can be caused by the Endstops not functioning, letting the machine frame out of bounds, a loose Direction Pin wire or a fault driver input.
What to do based off the fault code:
Use the table below as guidance as to "what is the next step" based off the fault code that the driver is displaying
1. A driver swap with the Y driver to see if the problem follows the driver. If it does, the driver needs replacement
2. A motor swap with the Y motor to see if the problem follows the driver. If it does, the motor needs replacement
3. Email support@thunderlaserusa.com
1. Power cycle machine to clear fault
2. If the fault remains or occurs again, replace the driver
3. Email support@thunderlaserusa.com
1. Check connections at the motor
2. Power cycle machine to clear fault
3. If the fault remains or occurs again, replace the driver
4. Email support@thunderlaserusa.com
1. Power cycle machine to clear fault
2. If the fault remains or occurs again, replace the driver
3. Email support@thunderlaserusa.com
Continued Troubleshooting:
Ok so if you have made it to this section you likely have a fault code 7 which is the most common because it has the longest list of possible causes. The steps below are generally organized from the most common to least common, but depending on your exact situation, one or more of the steps may be applicable. It may be worth using the table below to establish a starting point of what to check first, but if the first check does not solve the issue then you should explore the other checks as well.
Machine powers up with the laser head in the middle and moves slowly to the right until it hits the end of travel and clunks or after a while of moving slowly it slows down further and then stops
Checks:
Here is the list of checks you can perform based on the feedback from the table above.
Endstops
Motor Connections
Dir- Wiring
PUL- Wiring
Driver Swap
Endstops
The endstop may be damaged, not signaling to the controller or is not getting triggered by the flag/arm that is supposed to trigger it. For more information about the Endstops, please see this article:
Motor Connections
The power and encoder connections at the motor or drive may be loose or damaged.
Also be sure to check the belt out for wear: Example of Belt wear on a Thunder Laser Nova Series Machine
At the Driver | At the Motor |
Dir- Wiring
The Ruida controller tells the driver when to change directions with one signal wire and another signal wire tells the driver to move. If the signal wire for direction change is loose, not terminated, output broken from controller etc, then the driver will only know to go one direction, the default 0v direction which for the X axis is to the left. So even if you are pressing the arrow button for direction to the right, but the head goes to the left, you likely have this issue. If the head contacts a hard travel stop, it will fault out the driver.
Ruida Connector, X axis is D1:
Wire | Description |
Brown | +5V signal common used for Pul+ and Dir+ signals |
Blue | Pul- signal. Tells the driver when to move the motor |
| Yellow/Green | Dir- signal. Tells the driver when to go right (Off = Default=Left) |
Example Driver Connection:
(Your driver may vary but the wiring will match what is on the Ruida) Note the jumper brown wire, it is the 5V common.
HBS57 | CL1 |
Perform this Diagnostic:
-Power off the machine
-By hand, slowly move the Laser Head (X axis) to the middle of its travel
-Power up the machine, but as it is booting up and attempting to home, press the ESC button multiple times to interrupt the homing sequence
-Use the Left and Right arrows to jog the X axis. If the axis only goes left even when you press the arrow for the Right direction, then you need to perform the checks below
To test the Direction Signal Wiring:
1. You can manually use a multimeter to OHM it out from the Ruida Controller to the Connector on the Driver. Check both the Yellow/Green and Brown Wires from the Ruida Connector to the Driver Connector
2. Check that the D1 Plug on the Ruida Controller is fully seated. Remove and reinsert.
3. Check that the D1 Plug on the Driver is fully seated. Remove and reinsert.
4. Check that the terminal screw on the Direction wire and Brown is tight and is touching the metal ferrule end or not wire insulation for both the Ruida and Driver connectors
5. Retest with Diagnostic procedure above
PUL- Wiring
The Ruida controller tells the driver when to change directions with one signal wire and another signal wire tells the driver to move. If the signal wire for when to move is loose, not terminated, output broken from controller etc, then the driver will not know to move and the position that the controller things the axis is in and the actual position will not be the same. The controller screen will show the position changing with the jog buttons, but the motion does not really occur.
Ruida Connector, X axis is D1:
Wire | Description |
| Brown | +5V signal common used for Pul+ and Dir+ signals |
| Blue | Pul- signal. Tells the driver when to move the motor |
| Yellow/Green | Dir- signal. Tells the driver when to go right (Off = Default=Left) |
Example Driver Connection:
(Your driver may vary but the wiring will match what is on the Ruida) Note the jumper brown wire, it is the 5V common.
HBS57 | CL1 |
Perform this Diagnostic:
-Power off the machine
-By hand, slowly move the Laser Head (X axis) to the middle of its travel
-Power up the machine, but as it is booting up and attempting to home, press the ESC button multiple times to interrupt the homing sequence
-Use the Left and Right arrows to jog the X axis. If the position value change on the Laser Screen, but the head does not actually move, you need to perform the steps below
To test the Pul Signal Wiring:
1. You can manually use a multimeter to ohm it out from the Ruida Controller to the Connector on the Driver. Check both the Blue Pul and Brown 5v Wires from the Ruida Connector to the Driver Connector
2. Check that the D1 Plug on the Ruida Controller is fully seated. Remove and re-insert.
3. Check that the D1 Plug on the Driver is fully seated. Remove and re-insert.
4. Check that the terminal screws on the Pul wire and Brown wire is tight and is touching the metal ferrule end or not wire insulation for both the Ruida and Driver connectors
5. Retest with Diagnostic procedure above
Driver Swap
Please power off the machine, then swap two drivers according to the video below. The video is of HBS57 but it is very similar for the CL1 except the encoder cable is not the Grey Connector but a white connector the has a tab to release it from the drive.
MARK THE DRIVERS AND TAKE PHOTOS SO YOU WONT MIX THEM UP!
After that, power on the machine, check if the machine is resetting normally.
If x-axis still not moving at all, so the x-axis motor is broken;
If the problem shifts to y-axis, the same driver is flashing red light, so this driver is broken.
Reference Articles:
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