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For both step motors and servo motors, drive current must be set to match the motor. Motor current ratings may be obtained from motor labels or from web page specifications. In the three images below, we show how this section of the Si Programmer's main screen changes depending on the type of drive connected to the PC. In the case of all stepper drives except the STAC, the screen looks like the image on the left. In the case of STAC stepper drives the screen looks like the center image. And, in the case of BLu servo drives the screen looks like the image on the right. All other aspects of the Si Programmer's main screen don't change depending on the type of drive connected.

Notice that in the case of stepper drives (left and center images) you will need to set the microstep resolution (steps/rev) for your system, and in the case of servo drives (right image) there is a button to enter tuning parameters for your servo motor.

Stepper Drives (except STAC)	STAC Stepper Drives	BLu Servo Drives

Si drives have two inputs that can be dedicated as Jog inputs, and activated during Wait Input instructions. This section of the screen allows you to set the jog speed and jog accel/decel rates..

If your system does not require dedicated Jog inputs, the two inputs can be configured as general purpose inputs in the Configure I/O window.

This window is used to configure some of the dedicated and automatic input/output functions of an Si drive. For example, end-of-travel limits, interput input, jog inputs, motion output, and brake output are all configured from this window. The Configure I/O window (second image below) is opened by clicking on the Configure I/O button shown below.

Many PCs have more than one COM port available for communicating to an Si drive. Also, newer PCs without a physical serial port will assign a COM port number to a USB or PCMCIA adapter. Use this section of the screen to select the COM port to which you will connect your Si drive.

This box shows the Si product that is connected to the computer and if communications are working properly it will show the firmware level that is installed in the drive.

Before a program can be executed it needs to be downloaded into the drive's non-volatile memory. Furthermore, a previously downloaded program can be uploaded from the drive to the PC for editing and saving. The Execute button is used to execute the program currently stored in the drive's memory (the program last downloaded). Program execution always begins on line 1 of the program.

Si programs can be saved to the PC's hard drive or to removeable media for archiving or distribution by clicking on the Save button. Similarly, previously saved programs can be opened from this section of the screen using the Open button. The Print button prints the program currently displayed in Si Programmer to your system's default printer. The Quit button exits the Si Programmer application.

The default unit of rotation in Si Programmer is steps (settable with stepper systems and fixed by the encoder resolution with servo systems). Once a motor is connected to a real-world mechanical system, sometimes working in steps can be tedious. It is often much more convenient to convert steps to a more intuitive linear or rotary unit, such as inches, millimeters, degrees, etc. Once this conversion is made the scale factor can be placed in the User Units box on the main Si Programmer screen, along with a name for the new units. After checking the User Units box all units in the program will immediately be scaled to the new units. From this point on the user can work in their own units when setting up program instructions rather than working in steps.

The small picture shown in this section of the main screen will change to the drive you have connected to Si Programmer once communication with the drive has been established.

The latest versions of Si Programmer include an online Help File which can be accessed from yellow Help buttons located throughout the Si Programmer application.

This is how you enter new lines of commands in your program. By clicking on the small arrow next to a line number, the instructions available for that program line will open in a new window (see second graphic below). With single-axis Si-compatible drives a progam consists of 100 lines.

To learn more about the instructions available in Si Programmer, click here, or on the image below.