www.hobbycrankorgan.com

Making a simple computer driven punching machine

This page has been made after several requestst which I have got.

The title of this subject is in my experience easier than done. I already have made a punching machine based on an old concept and an matrix printer but the results where disappointing. Partially due to a lack of mechanical knowledgeand partially due to the used material (printer). Using drawer rails in stead of a printer gave a better result. I got primary the source code for punching from Piet Paardekam but reprogrammed it for my needs and wishes. Also I have made the software multilingual, because I have got requests out of the country.

The discovery of the existence of Arduino components gave the development of my punching machine a new boost. The first punching machine comntained two stepper motors for the x-y movements and a analog motor with an eccentric for the punching work. The processing work was be done with an Arduino Nano. It worked.

One problem still was that a rotation for the punching work could not be determined for 100%. So i used a stepper motor for that place which made the punching results better and more reliable. The number of malfunctions decreased significally. Also by using a good mold and stamp the holes became perfect. For paper transport I used special rubber which was applied in printers so that slipping caused by the combersome roll was solved. The punching arm was replaced though a massive aluminium one, so that vertical movement in the arm was minimalized. Also I have made the machine suitable for 100 and 140 mm as well.

In the upper standing version, which was the first with a stepper motor as punching motor, drawer rais has been used and the sensor for the punch is missing.

Most recent developments.

The punchings were in the beginnig good, but after a while there came derivements in the arm position, which got worse. After replacing processor and stepper motor, only the driver remains. It was waiting for a new driver from China(13-4-2021).

Piet Paardekam attended me that there were other, even faster drivers. Concerning the low amount of these drivers, I purchased two of them and experimented with them.

During my investigation of getting more information of these drivers (A4988), i discovered that there were complete boards available for making an CNC machine, simply said: all the components for a punching machine were on two boards, which could be connected to each other and that for an extraordinary low amount.

The parts came soon and quickly the stepper motors did what i wanted and even much faster than the old version. Two things were important: the drivers should be adjusted and cooled.

A fellow hobbyist from my village wanted to make a punching machine too and asked for drawings. I have solved that question in below standing way.

The transport roll for the drive cord of the arm car has been forseen with an iron core to avoid wear.

With the stepper motors a cable with Dupont connector has been delivered which fits on the CNC shield. On below standing photo the CNC shield is being showed with the used connecting points.

And here the finally result working on a 12 V power supply. It is possible to increase the performance by increasing the voltage but for me 8000 munches are satisfying.

After making a good punching machine, it is now possible to make music rolls with 110 en 140 mm paper.

I have made rolls for 16 note Deleika organs, 20 note rolls 5 mm heart distance rolls and of course standard 20 note rolls, which have 3 mm holes.

Do you want to have a roll punched? Just contact me: Hobbycrankorgan

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