5
Recording the Positions of Motors
When the system is first set up, the motors must be rezeroed using the
Front Panel
program, as
described below.
After this, the software will automatically log the positions of all of the motors in the system and it
will save these positions to disk at the end of each run. This means that it is not necessary to
rezero the motors each time the computer is switched on. Only rezero if you have some reason
to believe that the system may be incorrectly positioned. However, you must not switch off the
computer without quitting all crystallization software. If you do this, you will be forced to rezero
the next time that you use the system.
Unpacking
Take the Chassis, MCC Motion Control Center, and the XYZV Plateloader out of their packaging.
Unwrap the Z- and V-arms. Take the motorized syringes and ground-glass syringes out of their
packaging.
Electrical Connection
1. All cables are individually labeled. Use the
long 9-way D-type cable
to connect the port
labeled “serial port” on the MCC to the serial port (COM1) of the computer.
2. Follow the labeling to connect MCC to the Chassis and Plate Loader using the three
37-
way D-type cables
The MCC also possesses outputs for a screen and keyboard. These can be used to diagnose
malfunctions.
Installing the Z and V Arms
Now install the Z-arm as follows:
1. Unwrap the Z-arm.
2. Remove the cardboard or plastic protective sleeving from around the Z lead-screw.
3. Lower the Z-arm into position and allow the leadscrew to settle on the centre of the motor
inside the ZV-box. The arm will automatically be pulled in to the correct position on the
first rezero of the table.
4. Repeat steps 1 – 3 to install the V-arm.
