CAN bus between two Duet3 6HC, would it work?
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Hey guys,
Just daydreaming here, would it be possible to have two duet 3 6hc connected together via CAN bus? I have a couple of them sitting here and would seriously consider make a 2 armed robot with them this summer (yeah crazy). But this would allow to sync 12 motors for some crazy applications.Anyway, let me know your thoughts, I'd love to hear them.
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@imarobot It'll work in theory but it hasn't been "officially" tested in anger. I'll shortly be modifying my machine to replace two of the three 3HC expansion boards with a single 6HC main board and I'll be working with the Duet guys to identify and iron out any issues that may arise. The configuration will be 6HC main board -> 3HC expansion board -> 6HC as an expansion board.
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One obvious limitation is that 6HCs only have a single CAN connector, so one could only use a single 6HC as an expansion board and it would have to be the last one in the chain. That'll give 12 stepper drivers which is likely to be enough for most people apart from crazy old men like me. If you need more than 12 drivers, then you'll need to add further expansion boards in between the two 6HCs.
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@deckingman you could probably use the relatively cheap tool distribution board to connect up to four 6HCs though. That'll also make terminating the CAN bus easier.
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@oliof Does the 6HC have built in can bus terminators? If it does you may to disable some of them it you want to use more than one board.
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@gloomyandy that's a good point and a question for @dc42
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@oliof @gloomyandy yes the 6HCs have built in termination on the main CAN-FD bus. They are thus best placed at either end of the bus.
