K40 Nano board replaced, worked once

Lasers
1

Hi All, I have 40w chinese laser that I have just replaced Nano M2 board with the Nano M3 board, reason for replacement was not communication with my laptop (Usb device not found), usb port on laptop is ok, cable is ok, the new Board worked once and now has stopped working giving same message usb device not found. When laser is powered on it goes to home and all appears fine and test fires ok.
Does anyone have any ideas
Thanks Doreen

2

What laser control software are you using? What operating system?

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Hi Michael
Im using K40 Whisperer and wondows 10

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Check whether Meerk40t works with it; it works with a wider range of USB device drivers, and if Windows decided to replace the one from K40 Whisperer with a default version, it probably will still work with Meerk40t.

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Thanks Michael, I tried meerk40t also and no joy, I am now wondering if the new
board is now fried too, the Nano M2 board stopped working and then put in new
Nano M3 board which worked fine once and when turned on machine next day, back to square one again, so even if I now buy another M3 board will the
same thing happen and if so why is it happening

6

Yes it’s possible that it’s being damaged, but if so it’s probably from the laser power supply.

I’ll let others here jump in, because it’s not obvious to me what the best next step is.

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Thanks for your help Michael.
If anyone has any other ideas please help !

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It would be unusual for a running system to self-destruct two controller boards.

This suggests that the controller is mostly working but has problems connecting/staying connected.

I would try to isolate subsystems that may be causing a disconnect from the controller to the host.

Please post a picture of the LPS showing the connections.
Did this system ever connect and stay connected reliably?
Is there any hissing or crackling noise while you are running?

Try these things:

  • Measure the 5V & 24V supply on the controller while running the job
  • Disconnect the LO connection on the LPS and see if the controller connects
  • Check that the ground at the LPS and the ground at the controller are connected together. You can do this with a OHM meter with power off.
9

Try putting your old board back again and update the drivers for USB from an old source,
Window recently updated the drivers and almost everyone has had the same problem.
I used a source from LaserGRBL software, that works fine.

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10

I have the same problem, did you manage to solve it? If yes, how did you do it?

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I solved it by reinstalling old USB drivers, the latest Windows update was the problem, the drivers don’t work with most boards.
The driver that works can be found in LaserGRBL

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12

So guys I discovered the new Nano M3 board I bought was a fake, so ordered a
proper Nano M3 and a controller panel so complete kit, installed both to be sure, its recognized now by computer and can run jobs on K40 whisperer but the laser is not firing, I can do a test fire no problem but when run something to cut or engrave, no laser, installed and uninstalled the various versions of K40 Whisperer drivers and no joy, any ideas guys?

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Does your K40 have an analog POT/knob or a digital POT/buttons for controlling the laser output power?

FYI, both of those should be wired to the 5V+, IN and GND on the LPS since the M2 Nano only controls the ON/OFF firing of the laser LPS and the POT voltage on the IN signal sets the power output level.

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Hi Dougi
It is a digital POT. Is it not just a straight swap form Nano m2 to Nano M3?
Thanks Doreen

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I believe it is but didn’t you make other wiring changes in order to troubleshoot why your fake M3 Nano wasn’t working? We don’t know for sure you got everything back where it was before so have to ask about things which can stop the system from firing.
There are other things which can stop the laser from firing like if there is a water flow sensor or door-open/close sensor. If those aren’t working correctly they too can stop the laser from firing even though the software is telling the board to fire.
I believe your LPS has a P+ or W/P signal which is often wired through all your “protection” switches in series along with the front panel “Laser” rocker switch. This means that the front panel Laser enable switch needs to be closed, your lid switch(if you have one) needs to be closed and your water flow sensor switch needs to be closed(water flowing and switch operating properly) otherwise the laser will not fire.

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