Wireless Handwheel

This product is available in our web shop: Wireless Handwheel.

• Wireless communication
• No additional software plug-ins needed
• Display with backlight showing work, machine coordinates and override
• All 9 axes supported
• 5 selectable jogging modes
• Spindle override control
• Feed override control
• Machine control buttons (E-Stop, Start, Pause…)
• Button function customization
• Offset control buttons
• Spindle and coolant control buttons
• Durable rubber protection guard
• Long lasting batteries (Batteries are not included!)
• High quality long range easy mountable antenna with detachable cable

• Wireless handwheel with rubber guard
• Antenna with extension cable
• USB dongle transceiver
• Metal hanger bracket and screws for mounting
• Requires 2 x AA batteries (Batteries are not included!)

• Insert 2 x AA batteries
• Attach cable with antenna and USB dongle
• Connect the USB dongle with your PC's USB port.
• Turn ON the handwheel using ON/OFF switch
• Launch PlanetCNC TNG sw and check the Jogging/Handwheel settings section.

If handwheel is recognized by TNG software, Wireless Handwheel option should be available for enable:

Initiates E-Stop.

Runs program.

Pauses program.

Stops program

Sets work position offset value to zero.

Sets current XY work position to zero.

Sets current Z work position to zero.

Turns flood ON/OFF.

Turns mist ON/OFF.

Initiates Measure Height procedure.

Initiates Tool Length measurement procedure.

Initiates Move to Zero procedure.

Initiates Home procedure.

Turns spindle ON/OFF.

Toggles Machine and Work coordinates.

Selects group of axes: X,Y,Z or A,B,C or U,V,W

Toggles Feed and Traverse override.

X,Y,Z (A,B,C,U,V,W): Axis selected will move when encoder wheel is rotated.
F: Feed speed and traverse override menu.
S: Spindle speed override menu.
C: Additional info of currently selected jogging mode or macro selection (see buttoncustomization chapter)

Selects jogging mode from 1-5. Jogging modes are configured in PlanetCNC TNG sw under File/Settings/Jogging/Handwheel. See PlanetCNC TNG user manual for more info.

User can customize handwheel button functionality. This can be done by configuring the Handwheel.txt file.

First, create a blank Handwheel.txt file and place it in your profile root folder.

Button HEX values: Each button of the handwheel keypad is represented by its default HEX value. These values could also be in a decimal form, but HEX gives better and more intuitive description.

ach button can be represented with two types of HEX values, Lower HEX (SHIFT button is not active) and Upper HEX values (SHIFT button is active). Best to describe it is by using illustrated view.

Lower HEX button values (SHIFT button not active):

While holding SHIFT button, each buttons is now represented with the Upper HEX value:

Now that we know LOWER and UPPER HEX values of each button, we can easily assign new alternative functions of the handwheel buttons.

Buttons and their representative HEX values:

Earlier chapter can be better described with the actual command lines of the Handwheel.txt configuration file.

Below are a default* program functions that will be executed when corresponding button will be activated:

;this is default assigment
cmd: "Machine.Emergency_Stop" "" num=0x0001
cmd: "Machine.Start" "" num=0x0002
cmd: "Machine.Pause" "" num=0x0003
cmd: "Machine.Work_Position.Offset.To_Zero" "" num=0x0004
cmd: "Machine.Work_Position.Axis_To_Zero.XY" "" num=0x0005
cmd: "Machine.Work_Position.Axis_To_Zero.Z" "" num=0x0006
cmd: "Machine.Flood" "" num=0x0007
cmd: "Machine.Work_Position.Measure_Height" "" num=0x0008
cmd: "Machine.Tool_Offset.Measure_Length" "" num=0x0009
cmd: "Machine.Move.Axis_To_Zero.XY" "" num=0x000a
cmd: "Machine.Spindle" "" num=0x000b

Lines below will execute Homing procedure, Machine Stop and Mist ON/OFF actions. Because upper HEX values are used, this indicates that SHIFT button needs to be pressed:

Homing procedure:

cmd: "Machine.Home" "" num=0x0a00 

Machine Stop:

cmd: "Machine.Stop" "" num=0x0300

Mist On/Off:

cmd: "Machine.Mist" "" num=0x0700

So if user wishes to add an alternative functionality to a button, all it needs to be done is to add a line which would execute desired program function. Upper HEX value of button should be used.

Example:
We would like to execute Surface Measure procedure when we press the Start button in combination with SHIFT button. Since we will assign an alternative button functionality we need to obtain the Upper HEX button value. Earlier chapter with the layout illustration gives this information → 0x0200

Cmd line is usually the menu path of the program function. In this case this would be:
Machine/Measure/Surface

Note that path menu levels are represented with “.” and spaces in the program function name with “_” character. Command line that would help us achieve this is:

cmd: "Machine.Measure.Surface" "" num=0x0200

If we would like to turn ON/OFF Output 1 with the same button instead, we would write:

cmd: “Machine.Outputs.Output_1” "" num=0x0200

Since there are not enough buttons for every possible function of tool that TNG offers, macros can be created. Macros are able to execute program functions, expression functions, parameter manipulation etc

They can be navigated and used trough the Custom menu.

How to create a macro:
Just as we added command lines for button alternative functions to Handwheel.txt file, in the same way we add dedicated lines to create macros.

We will demonstrate three examples of macro use. Macro for program function, program function with parameter manipulation and expression function.

Macro command line for program function File Open:

cmd: "File.Open_..." "Open file" num=0x10001

cmd: “File.Open_…“
Like before, command line is the path of the program function, File/Open

“Open file”
Macro will be displayed under this name in the custom menu.

num=0x10001
This num value serves as a macro ID as also as a menu sequence number. First value 1 identifies this as a macro line, and last value 1 is its sequence number

Macro command line for expression function with parameter manipulation:

cmd: "Machine.Output_PWM" "PWM" num=0x10002 param=0|10|0|100 val="[0;expr:_hw_mpg_custom]"

cmd: “Machine.Output_PWM”
Like before, command line is the path of the program function, Machine/Output_PWM

“PWM”
Macro bill be displayed under this name in the custom menu.

num=0x10002
This num value serves as a macro ID as also as a menu sequence number. First value 1 identifies this as a macro line, and last value 2 is its sequence number

param=0|10|0|100
These are definition values of PWM signal that will be changed trough this macro.

So, when the PWM signal will be modified, if will consider these definitions:
0[initial value] | 10[increment value] | 0[min value] | 100[max value]

val=”[0;expr:_hw_mpg_custom]“
0 is a number of output pin that will generate the PWM signal. Zero based numbering is used (1st pin has number zero, 2nd pin has number one etc…)
Macro uses parameter _hw_mpg_custom for PWM signal value modification

Macro command line for expression function:
This macro executes expression function located in the Expr.txt file.

<code>expr: “exec('#Message')” “Message” num=0x10003</code expr>

expr: “exec('#Message')“
Since exec is an expression function, we need to use expr command at the beginning of the macro line. exec command will execute the #Message function located in our Expr.txt file.

In this case, #Message function looks like this: #Message exec(msg('Handwheel function trigger'));

“Message”
Macro will be displayed under this name in the custom menu.

num=0x10003
This num value serves as a macro ID as also as a menu sequence number. First value 1 identifies this as a macro line, and last value 3 is a sequence number.

Accessing and using the Custom menu
Custom menu can be accessed using axis switch knob set at C position:

At first, display will show current jogging mode info. If the handwheel encoder is rotated custom menu will be displayed.

As per our configuration, three macros will be available for selection. Using a handwheel encoder, user can navigate trough the menu items:

To execute the Open File or Message macro, macro should be selected in the menu and confirmed with Cycle button:

To execute PWM macro, we select it in the menu and by simultaneously using a Shift button and an encoder wheel we can change the PWM duty cycle value:

To actually set PWM on the output pin, we just need to confirm it with the Cycle button: