How to emulate part of a keyboard?

E

Eric R Snow

Guest
Greetings All,
I am going to be installing a retrofit control on a cnc machine soon.
All the motion commands come from a standard keyboard. I can buy a
pendant control for $645 for this control but really can't afford it
right now. What I want to do is jog the machine during setup and hold
the small pendant, with just a few buttons, in my hand. Is there a
way, for a novice, to use remote buttons to emulate buttons pressed on
a standard IBM compatible keyboard? And, if this can be done, can both
keyboards be connected to the computer at the same time or will I need
to use a switch to go back and forth between one board and the other.
Thank You,
Eric R Snow
 
"Eric R Snow" <etpm@whidbey.com> wrote in message
news:btv4qvkfrou9e1c8itlt3vdrb91klr8gqn@4ax.com...
Greetings All,
I am going to be installing a retrofit control on a cnc machine soon.
All the motion commands come from a standard keyboard. I can buy a
pendant control for $645 for this control but really can't afford it
right now. What I want to do is jog the machine during setup and hold
the small pendant, with just a few buttons, in my hand. Is there a
way, for a novice, to use remote buttons to emulate buttons pressed on
a standard IBM compatible keyboard? And, if this can be done, can both
keyboards be connected to the computer at the same time or will I need
to use a switch to go back and forth between one board and the other.
Thank You,
Eric R Snow
Click to expand...
If you care to, you could use a multichannel RF remote and connect the
receiver to a gutted keyboard via FET switches. Multiple keyboards are
doable as well. How many buttons do you need? Ming makes a reasonable
priced key fob and reciever.
 
On Fri, 31 Oct 2003 15:48:22 GMT, "Lord Garth" <LGarth@Tantalus.net>
wrote:

"Eric R Snow" <etpm@whidbey.com> wrote in message
news:btv4qvkfrou9e1c8itlt3vdrb91klr8gqn@4ax.com...
Greetings All,
I am going to be installing a retrofit control on a cnc machine soon.
All the motion commands come from a standard keyboard. I can buy a
pendant control for $645 for this control but really can't afford it
right now. What I want to do is jog the machine during setup and hold
the small pendant, with just a few buttons, in my hand. Is there a
way, for a novice, to use remote buttons to emulate buttons pressed on
a standard IBM compatible keyboard? And, if this can be done, can both
keyboards be connected to the computer at the same time or will I need
to use a switch to go back and forth between one board and the other.
Thank You,
Eric R Snow

If you care to, you could use a multichannel RF remote and connect the
receiver to a gutted keyboard via FET switches. Multiple keyboards are
doable as well. How many buttons do you need? Ming makes a reasonable
priced key fob and reciever.



I probably need 8 buttons. Rf is out of the question because of all
Click to expand...
the radio noise in the shop. This comes from welders and other cnc
equipment such as dc spindle drives. However, using the coiled cord
from a keyboard will give plenty of movement. I only need to get about
5 feet max from the main keyboard. How would I use FET switches to do
this? I can follow instructions or a schematic but have no idea how to
hook this up.
Thank You,
Eric
 
"Eric R Snow" <etpm@whidbey.com> wrote in message
news:pc25qvo730hfut2m15sei39o6ieenp5t79@4ax.com...
On Fri, 31 Oct 2003 15:48:22 GMT, "Lord Garth" <LGarth@Tantalus.net
wrote:

I probably need 8 buttons. Rf is out of the question because of all
the radio noise in the shop. This comes from welders and other cnc
equipment such as dc spindle drives. However, using the coiled cord
from a keyboard will give plenty of movement. I only need to get about
5 feet max from the main keyboard. How would I use FET switches to do
this? I can follow instructions or a schematic but have no idea how to
hook this up.
Thank You,
Eric
Click to expand...
You need to get a working keyboard and either trace the keys you wish to
remote through the keyswitch matrix or discover the pins on the controller
that represent those keys. The FET switch would have its drain on one lead
and its source on the other lead of those controller inputs. Assuming an
N-channel FET, A solid high on the gate will cause the keyboard to transmit
as if a button had been pressed.

If you build the FET adapter neatly within the keyboard, you can then use
the keyboard itself and the remote pendant eliminating the multiple keyboard
problem.
 
Is there a
way, for a novice, to use remote buttons to emulate buttons pressed on
a standard IBM compatible keyboard? And, if this can be done, can both
keyboards be connected to the computer at the same time or will I need
to use a switch to go back and forth between one board and the other.
Click to expand...

An i-pac (http://www.ultimarc.com/ipac1.html) might work for you. It is
designed to hook arcade joysticks and buttons up to a computer using the
keybord interface. You could use type of buttons up that you wanted. It is
completely programmable, so you can make it correspond to whtever keys you
need. It also has a pass through for the original keyboard.
 
On Sat, 01 Nov 2003 17:02:53 GMT, "Sockmonkey" <rrabien@telus.net>
wrote:

Is there a
way, for a novice, to use remote buttons to emulate buttons pressed on
a standard IBM compatible keyboard? And, if this can be done, can both
keyboards be connected to the computer at the same time or will I need
to use a switch to go back and forth between one board and the other.


An i-pac (http://www.ultimarc.com/ipac1.html) might work for you. It is
designed to hook arcade joysticks and buttons up to a computer using the
keybord interface. You could use type of buttons up that you wanted. It is
completely programmable, so you can make it correspond to whtever keys you
need. It also has a pass through for the original keyboard.

Greetings Sockmonkey,
Click to expand...
I think that is exactly what I want.
Thank You,
Eric R Snow
 
A very simple way to do this yourself, for just 8 switches, is to use
either a small crosspoint switch or a pair of CMOS quad switches. inside
a keyboard you'll find a 16 x 8 ( 1X - 16X and 1Y - 8Y) matrix
connecting the keys to the controller. It's yars since I've done this,
and I couldn't find the key to track map, but it's easy enough, to trace
by hand. Then wire each switch across the desired track pair. For
example, if 'A' uses tracks 14X and 5Y you would solder the common of
one CMOS switch to 14X and the N/O contact to track 5Y. Connect the
control pin to your button via an R/C to debounce the contact.

Al

Eric R Snow wrote:
Greetings All,
I am going to be installing a retrofit control on a cnc machine soon.
All the motion commands come from a standard keyboard. I can buy a
pendant control for $645 for this control but really can't afford it
right now. What I want to do is jog the machine during setup and hold
the small pendant, with just a few buttons, in my hand. Is there a
way, for a novice, to use remote buttons to emulate buttons pressed on
a standard IBM compatible keyboard? And, if this can be done, can both
keyboards be connected to the computer at the same time or will I need
to use a switch to go back and forth between one board and the other.
Thank You,
Eric R Snow
Click to expand...
 
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