Rotary setup

Configure and safely verify an experimental roller or chuck rotary attachment on a GRBL-family controller.

Beam Bench v0.1.11 adds Experimental rotary attachment support for GRBL-family G-code controllers. It supports roller and chuck geometry, with the rotary mapped to the X axis, Y axis, or a dedicated Z-axis port.

This is a generic GRBL-family workflow. It does not cover LaserPecker accessory modes, DSP controllers such as Ruida or Lihuiyu, or galvo cylinder marking.

Before you begin

You need:

A rotary attachment supported by your machine and controller.
The manufacturer's wiring and restoration instructions.
A Beam Bench machine profile for the flat-bed machine.
The attachment's travel per full rotation.
The drive-roller diameter for a roller rotary.
The workpiece diameter.

Record the controller's original wiring and settings before disconnecting an axis motor or changing hardware. Beam Bench does not rewrite the controller's steps-per-millimeter values for rotary mode.

Safety limits

Rotary mode changes how one canvas axis is emitted as machine motion. Follow these limits every time:

Use Start From Current Position. Absolute positioning is blocked while rotary mode is active.
Do not home while the rotary attachment is connected. Beam Bench blocks homing when the active profile has rotary mode enabled.
Frame the job before running it and keep a hand near the physical emergency stop.
Material, focus, and interval tests are unavailable while rotary mode is active.
A Z-mapped rotary cannot be combined with job Z offsets or focus-test Z movement.
Framing and job start are blocked unless the connected controller supports the GRBL-family rotary path.
Rotary feed compensation must stay within the machine profile's maximum speed.

Offline rotary G-code export is not currently available. Beam Bench requires a connected, compatible GRBL-family machine so it can validate the active controller before export.

Configure the profile

Open Laser Control > Manage Machine Profiles.
Open the Profiles tab and select the profile used with the attachment.
Find Rotary Attachment and enable Rotary.
Select Roller or Chuck.
Select the mapped axis:
- X axis replaces normal X movement.
- Y axis replaces normal Y movement.
- Z axis uses a dedicated rotary port and maps the canvas Y direction to that port.
Enter Travel per rotation, the linear travel the controller commands for one complete rotary revolution.
For a roller rotary, enter the Drive roller diameter.
Enter the measured Object diameter.
Enable Reverse rotation direction only if a positive canvas move turns the workpiece the wrong way.
Save the profile.

All calibration values must be finite and greater than zero. Beam Bench rejects an enabled rotary profile with invalid values.

How the workspace changes

Beam Bench keeps artwork, previews, speeds, and distances in surface millimeters. The rotary dimension of the workspace becomes one circumference of the workpiece:

circumference = object diameter × π

For a Y-axis or Z-axis rotary, the workspace height becomes the circumference. For an X-axis rotary, the workspace width becomes the circumference.

For a roller rotary, the drive-roller diameter determines the motion conversion and the object diameter determines the available surface circumference. For a chuck rotary, the object diameter is used for both.

Prepare and verify a job

Connect the supported GRBL-family controller with the rotary profile active.
Place the artwork fully inside the rotary workspace.
In Laser Control, select Start From Current Position.
Position the laser manually at the intended job origin.
Use a low-risk frame with laser output disabled.
Confirm that the linear axis and rotation direction match the preview.
Run a small, low-power calibration mark on scrap before using the full design.

If the rotation direction is wrong, stop, disable output, and change Reverse rotation direction. If the size around the workpiece is wrong, recheck travel per rotation and the relevant diameter. Do not compensate by scaling the artwork until the hardware calibration values are correct.

Return to flat-bed work

Disable rotary mode in the machine profile and save it.
Restore the original motor wiring and any hardware settings using the manufacturer's instructions.
Reconnect the machine.
Home only after the normal axes are restored and safe to move.
Frame a small flat-bed test to verify direction and scale.