Tools/Onefinity
The Onefinity is a CNC router. It is used for precision-carving of wood, acrylic, soft metals and other materials. Onefinity generously discounted this unit through a Makerspace support program they offered to Hacksburg. A CNC router processes "G-code" to tell it where in X,Y,Z space to go, how fast, and in what order. The essence of the process is to first create a model or design (CAD, STL, Thingiverse, Inkscape), then convert that design into G-code. The G-code is transfered to the router controller on a thumb drive, and the router controller executes that code to completion.
Onefinity website original model, 32"x32" workspace
20 second display of cutting with attached vacuum
Contents
Safety
You must be properly trained before using this machine. It uses a high speed cutting head that can cause serious injuries and a powerful motors that can damage metal, wood and especially humans! It also produces dust and that can be respiratory hazards, and cut chips that can be an eye or cut hazard. If at any time you feel something is wrong or unsafe, stop the machine. Your safety is more important than what you are working on.
Specifications
Original Series Woodworker Package Includes:
- Woodworker Cutting Area: 32 1/8"(X) x 32 1/8"(Y) x 5 1/4"(Z)
- Z-16 Z slider with 133mm travel
- BB Buildbotics controller
- Open Loop Nema 23 Stepper Motors on X,Z, Y1 and Y2 axis
- 1610 Ball Screw on X and Y Axis (Travel Per Revolution is 10mm)
- 1610 Ball Screw on Z axis (Travel Per Revolution is 4mm)
- Integrated sensorless stall homing
- Smart CNC controller with built in software allowing for operation without a computer.
- 8-inch high-definition industrial capacitive touch LED screen.
- Rigid, high precision, hardened steel, linear motion Shafts.
- Precision ball screws on all axis.
- Conveniently located Emergency Stop.
- Rapids at 400 Inches Per Minute (IPM).
- Wi-Fi enabled.
- 4th Axis Rotary Plug & Play Support
- Plug and play XYZ Probe Support
- Plug and play Laser support
- Joypad support makes jogging and positioning your CNC a breeze
- Patent Pending Micro Tramming.
- Quick and easy setup - start carving in under an hour.
- Open ended front to back allowing for 'tiling' (carving pieces longer than the cutting area)
- User friendly design.
- A large “how to” library with a very helpful and supportive community.
- Compatible with all major CAD software including Vectric, Carveco, and Fusion 360
- CNC Software to generate G-gcode:
- Instructable for web-based CNC
- Deskproto (hobby license available)
- Fusion 360 (hobby/education license available)
Instructions CNC Router Tutorial (6/1/2025)
You can use other resources to generate g-code. Use LinuxCNC or other simple gcode
- Max F400 in/min for rapid 10,000 mm/min
- Max cut around 100 in/min 2500 mm/min
- Spindle speed 24000 rpm!
- Use gcode M3 for spindle on. Delay for spindle acceleration with
- S24000 M3
- G4 P8 ‘ dwell for 8 sec
- At the endo of your file, Use gcode
- M5 ‘to turn off spindle
Please have someone check your code first until you're very comfortable with this machine!
Note that this file uses metric for X,Y,Z and feedrates (mm/min)
Code Example
- G17 G21 G40 G49 G94
- G0 X0.000 Y0.000 Z6.000
- S24000 M3 'set speed and turn on spindle
- G4 P8 'allow 8 seconds to spin up
- G94
- G1 Z1.000 F1200 'move to height at 1200 mm/min
- G1 Y37.271 Z-2.261 F1284 'plunge into work
- G1 Y0.000 Z-5.522
- 'lots of other G1 commands, or skip "G1" and just give X, Y, Z coordinates since G1 is assumed
- G1 Y64.295
- G1 X65.965
- G0 Z6.000 'return to clearance height
- M5 'turn off spindle
- M30 'end of the program
Workpiece fixturing
Ensure your workpiece won't move!
As we improve the aluminum hold-down fixture, we can use screw-in clamps
Always use a spoiler-board: sacrificial wood or acrylic in case you cut too deep
Ensure the workpiece is flat by using the belt sander. Test for wobble before mounting.
Attach workpiece to spoilerboard with double-sided carpet tape (white roll in shop)
- Ok to shut ball-valve while fixturing
- For carpet tape, weight down workpiece a few minutes while doing the other start-up procedures
Machine Tool Power Up
- Air compressor on
- Air valve (red) on
- Controller on. - black box silver button
- Home? Clear the edges of debris and tools to allow full motion range!
- Jog with Xbox controller
- Green=slow, red= medium Yellow= fast.
- Warm up procedure:
- Air back on
- Power for 220 VFD: behind crates, bottom of the metal shelf
- Radiator: beige box on floor, top right rocker.
- Spindle will ramp up to 24k. Load & run Warmup.ngc on screen scroll list
- Clear the spindle, then hit play. Caution: it’s quiet! 8 minutes, then it stops
- See progress on the touch screen
- Check motor housing for shake, heat. Should be cool to touch, else the bearings are first suspect
- Wiggle-check workpiece.
- Remove dust shoe to layout workpiece zero
- X0 Y0
- Set the tool in collet
- Hold tool, press pedal until completely out, release pedal
- Leave pedal in the location where it is tough to accidentally hit
- Hold tool collet just under, press pedal to air clean a few seconds, push tool up and release pedal to catch collet. Test spin with fingers and pull by hand to ensure seating.
- X zero: Machine is actually in metric mode for input values, but displays “inches”. Or “in”. It wakes up in metric mode. So input a 1/4” as 6.35.
- Y zero: same process.
- Replace dust shoe- magnet catch. Adjust dust feet with wing nuts for brush to contact work surface.
- Z zero: you can use feeler guage or paper to position the cutter 0.005" above the material. Negative Z is into the material, 0 is at the top.
- Load your guide by inserting thumb drive in back of controller
- Press black folder and find thumb drive, folder and file. Then find file in drop down list
- Hook in dust hose
- Check everything!
- Turn on dust collection, gate open for your hose
Run the Gcode!
- Play button becomes the pause button. Hover your finger a while to be ready for any weirdness.
- Issue with job: screen pause
- Issue with machine: red stop button located on back of controller
- See “remaining” indicator for job time. Progress bar is by line number
- Scroll display to x,y,x readout.
- With the whine of the spindle plus the vacuum, wear hearing protection
Change a tool
Changing a tool manually involves releasing the collet, explained in the Power Up procedure
Once you have the collet, use the collet wrenches to open the jaws
Sometimes, the tool bit will not release from the collet
Use the Tool holder bit extractor, stored in a ziplock bag
Once the top collet nut has been removed, place the collet in the aluminum pipe, and the brass rod into the collet, resting on the captured bit. Place the assembly in the large woodworking vise located mid-shop. Slowly turn the vise to gently release the bit. Have your hand ready to catch the assembly when the bit releases!
Shut down process
- At job end, use dust collector to clean area, then turn off the dust collector.
- If you take out your tool, leave a tool in the spindle to keep it clean and spring-catch engaged
- Home the tool to back left to leave table open
- Power off the air ball valve, then the air compressor
- Turn off the radiator
- Turn off the 220 Volt VFD
- Turn off controller
- Clean up everything
