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MX2 Users Guide Part I: Controller Basics

Looking for the full downloadable PDF? Select the attached file at the bottom of this article.

The MX2 is designed to be extremely simple to use, and to let you quickly input the most important parameters during a shoot.  This document describes the means of interacting with the controller through the user interface, and how to use the main control screen.

Buttons

There are five pushbuttons, four arranged in a cross-pattern, and one to the lower left.  The four buttons together are [Left], [Right], [Up] and [Down] while the button to the lower left is the[Enter] button.

Enter:

  • Brings up the main menu, or selects a menu item.
    • If item is another menu, that menu will be opened, otherwise the value selected will be shown for editing, or executed depending on the currently selected item.
  • Saves the current value being edited
  • Exits manual motor control

Up:

  • Selects the menu item directly above
  • Increases the value of the currently selected item
  • Increases motor speed (manual motor control)

Down:

  • Selects the menu item directly below
  • Decreases the value of the currently selected item
  • Decreases motor speed (manual motor control)

Left:

  • Moves input selection left (main screen only)
  • Moves current motor left (manual motor control)

Right:

  • Moves input selection right (main screen only)
  • Cancels value input (when changing the value of a selected item)
  • Moves current motor right (manual motor control)

Menus and Editing Values

When on the Main Screen, pressing the Enter button will draw the main menu.  Pressing [Enter] on any menu item will either draw the sub-menu selected or, if the item selected is an input, it will be displayed for editing. When a value for editing is displayed, you may use [Up] and [Down] to alter the value.  If you wish to save the value, simply press [Enter] again.  To exit the editor without saving, press the [Right] button and the original value will be restored.  The [Right] button also functions as the “back” button, allowing one to go back one level from any menu, or return to the Main Screen from the top-level menu.

For some values that you can edit, a limited selection of choices such as ‘Up/Down’, ‘On/Off’, ‘Left/Right’ may be displayed.  Pressing either [Up] or [Down] in the edit screen will alternate between the available values.  For some values, you may be allowed to enter more or less than the value accepts — when saving in these cases the value will be set at its minimum or maximum, and will reflect this when next displayed.

To increase or decrease a number, you can simply hold [Up] or [Down] to continue to increase or decrease the value for as long as you hold it down.  The longer the button is held, the faster it increases or decreases a value.  In this manner, you may easily enter large numbers.

Saving Input Values Permanently

When editing certain values (such as RPM for a motor axis, interval time, etc.) they are automatically saved to permanent memory for you.  In this way, you will not have to make the same changes between re-start.  The values which are saved permanently are indicated in their appropriate documentation.  To wipe out permanent memory, and reset to default values, choose the ‘Reset Mem’ option in the Main Settings menu.

Please note that direction and speed of a given axis are designed to be changed regularly, and are not saved to permanent memory.

The Main Screen

The Main Screen provides an overview of the current status and also allows for quick modification of key operating parameters.  This screen has the following layout:

-----------------
On 3s       [15]
R30.50%   L0.00%
-----------------

 

On the first line we have the current status (On or Off), the intervalometer timing (3s), and a count of shots fired since turned on ([15]).  The second line displays the direction and speed for each motor, with motor 1 on the left, and motor 2 on the right.

Pressing [Right] will advance through the values that can be changed directly from the main screen: status, timing, direction and speed of each motor.  When a particular value is displayed with a flashing cursor on it, you can change the value using  [Up] and [Down].

Notes:

  • You may change any value when the shoot is running — it will take effect immediately.
  • Motor speed can be displayed in either percentage (%), inches-per-minute (i), or cm-per-minute (c) this is configurable in the Settings menu.
  • Pressing [Left] will back up one setting on the screen
  • Pressing [Enter] at any time when on the main screen will bring up the Main Menu, even if program is running

 

With the MX2 controller, you can either display and input speeds in percentages of maximum (relative) or inches per minute (absolute).

The speed display setting is global, and impacts all axes.  You may not configure one for relative and one for absolute speed display.

If you modify the speed for a given axis while the program is running, it will immediately take effect.

Displaying in Relative Speeds (Percentage)

When displaying in relative speeds, the main screen will show a floating-point number and the symbol ‘%’ on the speed value for the given motor.  You may modify this value to any value between 0 and 100% as allowed by the motion control mode you are in by highlighting it using the[Right] button on the main screen and then using [Up] and [Down] to change the value.

To set the MX2 to display relative speeds:

  1. [Enter] to enter the main menu
  2. [Down] to select Settingsand press [Enter]
  3. [Down] to select Motor Disp. and press [Enter]
  4. [Up] or [Down] and choose  PCT
  5. [Enter] to save or [Right] to abort

Displaying in Absolute Speeds (inches or cm)

When displaying in absolute speeds, the main screen will show a floating-point number and the symbol ‘i’ (or ‘c’ if in metric mode) next to the the speed value for the given motor.  You may modify this value to any value as allowed by the motion control mode you are in by highlighting it using the [Right] button on the main screen and then using [Up] and [Down] to change the value.

To set the MX2 to display absolute speeds:

  1. [Enter] to enter the main menu
  2. [Down] to select Settingsand press [Enter]
  3. [Down] to select Motor Disp. and press [Enter]
  4. [Up] or [Down] and choose  IPM
  5. [Enter] to save or [Right] to abort

Displaying in Metric Values

The MX2 can shows absolute distances and speeds in centimeters.  When you enable the metric mode parameter, all distance values stored in permanent memory are converted from inches to centimeters, and the display will show a ‘c’ on the main screen instead of ‘i’ for absolute speeds.

You should always re-start the MX2 after enabling the  metric mode parameter.

To set the MX2 to display metric values:

  1. [Enter] to enter the main menu
  2. [Down] to select Settingsand press [Enter]
  3. [Down] to select Metric Disp. and press [Enter]
  4. [Up] or [Down] and choose On
  5. [Enter] to save or [Right] to abort
  6. Power off the MX2 and power back on

The MX2 controller comes with the ability to control the LCD display to reduce power consumption or light pollution onto your shots at night.  The standard LCD for the MX2 is a 16×2 character black on green LCD display.  This LCD can easily be read during bright daylight without the backlight on and at night with very little backlight.

Adjusting the BackLight Brightness

The backlight brightness can be dimmed by the MX2 firmware, but only when in interleaved motion mode.  If you have turned on continuous motion mode, and run an axis below the defined slow speed threshold, the backlight dimmer will not work until the MX2 is re-started.  When you have engaged in continuous motion at a speed under the slow speed threshold, the LCD will either be fully on or fully off depending on your LCD backlight settings.

You can set a value between 0 and 255 for the backlight level.  If you enter a value larger than 255, it will automatically be limited to 255.

Like most values in the MX2 controller, the backlight level value is retained after power-off.

Actions:

  1. [Enter] to enter the main menu
  2. [Down] to select Settingsand press [Enter]
  3. [Down] to select Backlight and press [Enter]
  4. [Up] or [Down] to adjust the backlight level value
  5. [Enter] to save or [Right] to abort

Turning the LCD BackLight Off Automatically

You may wish to have the backlight on while entering values, but then to turn off automatically a few seconds later to reduce the power drain on your batteries.  You can configure the MX2 to turn off the backlight after a number of seconds of inactivity by adjusting the auto dim parameter.  The backlight will turn back on the next time a button is pressed.

Enter the auto dim parameter value in seconds of inactivity before the backlight turns off, set it to zero if you wish to disable automatic dimming of the LCD backlight.

Like most values in the MX2 controller, the auto dim value is retained after power-off.

Actions:

  1. [Enter] to enter the main menu
  2. [Down] to select Settingsand press [Enter]
  3. [Down] to select AutoDim and press [Enter]
  4. [Up] or [Down] to adjust the auto dim value
  5. [Enter] to save or [Right] to abort

Disabling the Entire LCD Automatically

To save as much power as possible, the MX2 can completely disable the LCD, turning off the text in addition to the backlight.  To enable this feature, enable the blank lcd parameter in addition to setting an auto dim time.  When blank lcd is enabled, the LCD is turned off entirely after the number of seconds specified in the auto dim parameter value pass with no input via the buttons.

After the LCD has been blanked, the first button you press will simply re-enable the LCD to allow you to verify where you were on the screen before submitting a button press and taking an unknown action.

Like most values in the MX2 controller, the blank lcd value is retained after power-off.

Actions:

  1. [Enter] to enter the main menu
  2. [Down] to select Settingsand press [Enter]
  3. [Down] to select Blank LCD and press [Enter]
  4. [Up] or [Down] to select on or off
  5. [Enter] to save or [Right] to abort
 
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