Connecting encoder to linuxcnc+mesa vs ODrive

What is the best way to connect an (optical linear) encoder to a system involving linuxcnc + Mesa 7i95T and an ODrive Pro or S1 as the motor controller for each axis.

Can a single encoder be connected to both ODrive and the mesa board simultaneously?

Can the encoder be wired to the ODrive and have the ODrive passthrough the readings onto the mesa board?

Other/better options? Hopefully other than getting two encoders per axis.

TIA!

Hmm, interesting problem! What encoder specifically is this? I think a lot will depend on that.

Ditron DC13
5V RS422 and/or 5V TTL connectivity (will likely end up with some of both types)
0.1 micron resolution
10000 counts per mm

Perhaps the simplest is to connect the encoder to the mesa board and linuxcnc, and run the ODrive in open loop. Any concerns with that approach?

Given that’s it’s just an incremental encoder, I think you should be able to connect it to both the ODrive and Mesa at once! I don’t think I see any issues at all with that :slight_smile:

Any ground loop or resistance / signal level concerns if splicing the encoder to both the ODrive and mesa? Could there be situations where the two PID loops (linuxcnc+mesa vs ODrive) end up “fighting” each other?

Does the ODrive have the ability to re-output the encoder values, eg via GPIO pins, to the mesa board?