Stagehand Apprentice 2: Operation
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Last updated
Last updated
There are 3 circuit breakers on the front of the Stagehand Apprentice 2. All 3 Circuit Breakers need to be turned on to use the Stagehand and control machinery.
Main Power
Once you turn on the Main Power Breaker, the Power Indicator light will turn on.
Brake Power
Turning on the Brake Power Breaker, will allow power to be sent to release the brakes during a move
Control Power
The Control Power Breaker will turn on the Stagehand Motion Controller Which will display the hardware and firmware installed on the Stagehand.
Flip off all 3 breakers.
Make sure you use a Compatible IP Address
In order to connect to and control your Stagehand from Spikemark, you will need to set a compatible IP Address. To set the IP Address on your Stagehand follow these steps:
Press the Jog Wheel to reveal the Stagehand Settings screen.
Turn the Jog Wheel to select the CHANGE IP ADDRESS option and press the jog wheel to edit the IP Address
Select the segment (or octet if you want to get your geek on) with the jog wheel you want to change and press the jog wheel to highlight and edit the value:
Turn the jog wheel CW or CCW to set the new segment and press the jog wheel to save it.
Once you've adjusted all the required segments, use the jog wheel to scroll to Save and press the jog wheel.
Navigate to Exit
The default and typical Subnet Address should be set to 255.255.255.0
Most people don’t need to change the Subnet Address, but if you do, follow the same procedure for setting the IP Address in the “CHANGE SUBNET ADDRESS” Settings.
The Stagehand Apprentice 2 is really two devices in one package:
Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) – the power source for the motor that can spin the motor at (nearly) any speed with exceedingly accurate speed control.
Motion controller (aka the Stagehand Card) – a small computer that signals to the VFD when to start, what speed to move, and when to stop. It uses the Sensor Inputs to keep track of the position of the scenery and run cues.
The VFD must be configured to match the motor it spins. Without proper VFD configuration, the motor will either not move at all, or won't move smoothly. The motion controller is not used during manual operation (jogging), it is only used to run cues with Spikemark. But the VFD is used any time the motor spins. Even for the simplest operation, the VFD must be properly configured for the machine it powers, so it's important to get it set up correctly first.
Out of the box, the Stagehand Apprentice 2 is configured to power a 5HP machine like our Pushstick, Revolver, or Spotline. However, if you are using a Floorpocket, Smart Chain Hoist, or another custom machine, you will need to configure the parameters for that machine.
If you are using a 5hp Machine (Revolver, Spotline, Pushstick) you can write VFD Parameters from Spikemark using the drive parameters library.
You can manually jog your machine from the face of the Stagehand. Here are the steps:
Release the Emergency Stop button on your Showstopper
Press the Forward Button.
While holding the Forward Button, turn the Knob Clockwise slowly. The brakes should release and the machine should begin to move. The Position Encoder counts are displayed on the Status Display. The counts should be increasing in positive value. If not, the motor and encoder are out of phase and you’ll need to rewire either the motor or encoder. See the troubleshooting section for more details.
Gradually rotate the Knob counterclockwise until the machine stops.
Release the Forward Button.
Release the Emergency Stop button on your Showstopper
Press the Reverse Button.
While holding the Reverse Button turn the Knob Clockwise slowly. The brakes should release and the machine should begin to move. The Position Encoder counts are displayed on the Status Display. The counts should be decreasing. If not, the motor and encoder are out of phase and you’ll need to rewire either the motor or encoder. See the troubleshooting section for more details.
Gradually rotate the Knob counterclockwise until the machine stops.
Release the Reverse Button.
When manually jogging from the Stagehand, each "click" of the jog wheel increases or decreases the jog speed by 1%. this value can be adjusted on the Stagehand Apprentice 2, so each "click" of the jog wheel can change the % up to 5%. This is super useful if you're impatient. 😄
To adjust the jog increment, click the jog wheel and select CHANGE JOG INCREMENT.
Press the Jog Wheel to select the Increment
Choose the Jog Increment you want from 1% to 5%
Press the Jog Wheel to confirm the Increment
Turn the Jog Wheel to navigate to Save and click the wheel
Navigate to Exit and click the wheel
The Stagehand Pro can control two safety brakes for use in hoisting applications. The Stagehand Pro will internally check the electronic systems to ensure the brake circuits are working properly before releasing either the motor brake or the load brake to prevent dropping a suspended piece of scenery. However, the Stagehand cannot confirm that the brakes are mechanically operating correctly.
Since the Stagehand cannot confirm that both brakes are functioning mechanically and that neither has jammed in a released state (very rare, but possible), nightly pre-show check should include a brake test. The Stagehand has convenient buttons on the faceplate to assist you with testing the brakes. To test that your brakes are operating correctly in a hoisting application, read through the following steps in their entirety and then perform each action as follows:
Navigate to the Brake Test Menu
Press the Jog Wheel
Turn the Jog Wheel to navigate to PERFORM BRAKE TEST
Press the Jog Wheel to enter the BRAKE TEST menu
Test the Motor Brake by releasing the Load Brake
Clear the stage below the suspended scenery
Press the FWD jog button to RELEASE LOAD BRAKE
This will manually release the Load Brake
The Motor Brake should still be engaged and will hold the load
If the suspended scenery slips down, release the Load Brake button immediately. Since the Motor Brake did not hold the load as expected, that brake has failed. AND DO NOT OPERATE THE MACHINE UNTIL THE BRAKE IS REPAIRED.
Test the Load Brake by releasing the Motor Brake
Clear the stage below the suspended scenery
Press the REV jog button to RELEASE MOTOR BRAKE
This will manually release the Motor Brake
The Load Brake should still be engaged and will hold the load
If the suspended scenery slips down, release the Motor Brake button immediately. Since the Load Brake did not hold the load as expected, that brake has failed. AND DO NOT OPERATE THE MACHINE UNTIL THE BRAKE IS REPAIRED.
When using your Stagehand, it is important to make sure that you are using the correct firmware for what version of Spikemark you are using. You can find this using the Spikemark/Stagehand Firmware Matrix. Inside the Stagehand Apprentice 2, the Stagehand Control card is a Unipolar V6. All the Firmware will be numbered in the 600s.
You can update your Stagehand Firmware right through Spikemark. If for some reason you need to manually update your firmware, the Unipolar 6 cards do not use the Stagehand Updater utility, you'll need to connect a USB cable to the card. Check out the how to guide here.
