Heater & wire safety
The hot wire is the one part of the machine that can start a fire or burn an operator. FoamSync gives you three ways to control wire heat, and gates the riskier ones behind an explicit safety acknowledgement.
Hot-wire cutting produces fumes and intense heat. Always cut in a ventilated space, keep a fuse / current limit on the wire circuit, and never leave a heated wire unattended. FoamSync advises on safe use but cannot enforce it on machines it does not control.
Heater modes (SET → WIRE → HEATER MODE)
| Mode | Who drives the heat | Use when |
|---|---|---|
| External | You — via a separate dimmer / PSU | Simplest and safest default. FoamSync only moves the wire; you set heat by hand. |
| Board PWM | The controller, open-loop PWM | You want FoamSync to set a power % per material, no temperature feedback. |
| Board PID | The controller, closed-loop to a target temperature | You have a wire-temperature sensor and want held temperature. |
External is the recommended starting point: motion and heat are independent, so a software issue can never change your wire power.
The safety acknowledgement
When you switch from External to a board-driven mode (PWM or PID), FoamSync shows a one-time modal asking you to confirm:
- a fuse / current limit is fitted on the wire circuit,
- a detector (smoke / thermal) is present,
- the machine will be attended during cuts.
Acknowledge once per release. This is required for liability coverage — board-driven heat means software is now in the heat loop, and you’re confirming the hardware safeguards exist.
Wire setup
- Wire length (SET → WIRE) must match your physical wire span — it feeds the lean-angle geometry.
- Tension — a slack wire lags behind the towers and bows the cut; over-tension snaps it. Set tension so the wire stays straight under cutting load. The top-vs-bottom kerf delta from WIRE CAL is your best signal that tension/lean is off.
- Max wire angle (SET → WIRE) is the lean limit. The wire-safety check flags any toolpath that would exceed it before you cut.
The HUD lean gauge
During a cut, the HUD shows the live wire lean angle (the 000° gauge — this is wire angle, not temperature). It warns as the wire approaches the safe limit. A sustained high lean means the towers are out of sync or the path is too aggressive for the wire span.
First test cut
Before a production run on a new material or machine:
- Finish Quick Lab (kerf + material cal).
- Load a small test shape and run it with DRY RUN first (motion only, no heat) to confirm the path.
- Run it for real on scrap. Inspect edges, kerf, and surface; re-run MATERIAL CAL if needed.
What’s next
Learn the generators and packs, then take a part through CAM and run the cut.