I too have encountered the weird double-jog problem when using a handheld at my machine. I also encountered jogging runaways where the machine just runs with one jog and continues in the direction it was jogging, needing a stop button to stop doing that. That bug put me off the hand-held remote option, so I installed a dedicated PC at the machine side.
This freed up the super-duper-long USB cable used to control the longmill from my office. I put a camera on it and am now able to take accurate measurements using the camera option built into Lightburn, watch it go from my office, and import an exact picture of the project into V-Carve to project designs on.
I am really pleased to be able to watch the machine run in real time and be able to accurately project designs directly onto the project. (Or pick designs right of the machine bed and trace via the camera.)
Very nice🤩. That is exactly what I would like to do, except for the 2nd computer. I’ve been considering replacing the usb with an Ethernet connection, but like so many other things, I haven’t moved forward with that yet.
thank you @Spamming_Eddie. Can I pick your brain on your camera setup?
The camera option is available in Lightburn. I have a low cost HD webcam mounted on the gallow above the machine bed. After calibrating, you can take measurements from the cosy chair in your office.
You probably are using Lightburn already and have some webcam lying around (and if not, they are fairly cheap to get by.) so this setup would be a breeze to set up.
Very sorry to rain on your parade but you are breaking the first rule in using a CNC. Be present in the area it is running at all times. Its very easy to something to go wrong and for a fire to start. This is a very bad practice. By the time you get to your machine your shop could be burnt to the ground! Please rethink this. I CANNOT OVER STATE HOW DANGEROUS THIS IS!
@GregsReinventions If there is, I’m not aware of it. The only thing that comes to mind is that you would need to capture the youtube video and convert it to an .mp4 file. That file type is an acceptable type to upload.
I am sitting right next to a fire extinguiser, have two cameras on two independent systems running on the screen I am cadding on, and am one slide door away from my machine (10m into the next room). Next to that door, I have a switch that switches off all power to the longmill without the need to enter the room where the machine is bursting into flames, flinging a carbide-coated piece of metal spinning at 22 krpm in a random direction, or scattering a multiple-hour-long laser etch through a largely unprotected class 4 laser module. I like a door between me and that schrapnel flinger/eye blinder as much as possible, and I will most certainly not be caught towing a fire extinguiser or a bucket of water towards a machine still on an active powerline. I cannot overstate how dangerous this is.
There are different ways to ensure savety. I like to think mine are more than adequate, if not better, for my specific situation.
It was an actual fire that happened to the guy when he thought the work was secure under the clamps and tape and glue was good enough for the cut. It failed him. Perhaps he didnt clean the bed enough to take dust off? Who knows. It was a pure accident. It can happen to anyone. He lost his whole shop because of it. I only posted it as a reminder please dont take safety for granted.
I Realise that and I appreciate the explanation of your set up. At first glance it looked like it was doing the cuts while you were away at the cottage. I appreciate your sense of safety in your shop. I hope everyone on this board takes it as seriously.
I don’t think he lost his shop. In the comments of the original video, he says the machine even survived with only one melted v wheel and a scorched rail.
Possibly I didnt read it I saw that video quite a while ago. I think someone in the comments or in another video I watched said they did. It was a few years ago. I posted it here when someone way back asked about leaving their cnc alone while it was running. Bad idea. as that video shows. Its very easy to have a fire start!
On the issue of safety, The camera on the machine bed is mostly used as a tool to copy the dimensions of projects from lightburn to vectric. The safety comes from a security IP camera overseeing the machine from an angle. IT gives a broader overview of what the machine is doing across the bed and has way better specs than the webcam.
It seems Lightburn is on the brink of implementing the ONVIF protocol, so I can use an IP camera in Lightburn, which would be nice because that would eliminate the need for the webcam, which is poor quality, but I am a use what you have kinda guy.
Now I need to adjust my etch because the laser isn’t really scratching the paint layer. I had to go back to Gsender 1.2.2 to even be able to load and run this job. It’s huuuuge.
I very rarely hang around when I have a longish job on the go.
However, I have the work securely secured (video shows no clamp on the LH side of the job, only one on the right), My work area on the CNC is cleaned if any residue is left after the job (the video shows piles of dust from past work), I have my dust collection attached (his does not). Besides that, I have a smoke detector set up.
Just my observations.
Better let it shut down the mill too if you don’t like your bits dragging around your projects. Smoke alarms don’t get triggered by smoke alone. Back in the day, we used to test them by spraying a mist of hairspray below them. Hell, the misses had to mouse her hair in the living room to avoid triggering the detector in the washing room.
I have no idea how they fare in a dusty environment, but I can imagine them falsely triggering if you mill some mdf without a vac or happely burning some wood with your laser, in which case you don’t want the mill on the detector.
That said, now that you mention it, it might be wise to at least have one that will start screaming in case of smoke, dust or the misses foaming.
It’s indirectly a good test on how much these things get (falsely) triggered to see if one on the machine is wise or not. Yup, you have put that pretty high on the to-do list.
thank you 
