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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : XY plotter/router
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elproducts Senior Member  Joined: 19/06/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 282 |
I'd like to build a 3D printer using Maximite as the controller. The whole 3D printer revolution has a lot of stuff based on Arduino but even that is scattered documentation so I'm trying to start simple with an XY plotter. I've been searching and found some old parallel port controlled XY router descriptions but with very little documentation or good "How-To". Does anybody out there know of a well documented XY plotter project that includes the electronics and software description? If it was written in GWBASIC, then even better but I'm open to anything well documented to help me get started. www.elproducts.com |
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Gizmo Admin Group  Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5036 |
Would you be building a XY table from scratch or using something like a modified inket printer? Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| elproducts Senior Member Joined: 19/06/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 282 |
Not sure. I guess I was thinking XY table but a printer may also work. Those are cheap. That does give me a few new ideas to search on. www.elproducts.com |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5036 |
I have seen youtube videos of 3d printers hased on inkjet printers, but know very little of their workings, especially the software. I could see a standard XYZ table used though, with run of the mill CNC software. A PC based CNC machine is not much more than a PC connected to stepper drivers and stepper motors, electrically its easy. Mechanically its up to the builders own abilities. Most CNC software will accept G-code, which controls the XYZ axis and things like spindle speed, spindle off/on, etc. These spindle type commands could be used to control the 3d printers "stuff". I think your in for a big learning curve. I would be looking into how others have done it, save reinventing the wheel. Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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bigmik Guru  Joined: 20/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 2870 |
Gday Chuck, Bryan1 (on this forum) has built a CNC mill, There are CNC topics on The Back Shed such as this one from Bryan1. Bryans Mill Last Post on it was August,maybe he has some ideas that Might Help. regards, Mick Mick's uMite Stuff can be found >>> HERE (Kindly hosted by Dontronics) <<< |
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| elproducts Senior Member Joined: 19/06/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 282 |
Exactly, learning is the fun part. It's like solving a mystery or acting as a detective to solve a crime. I could just buy one and then move on but that's just not that much fun to me. I like trying to figure it out, piecing together what bits people will share. Then at some point I have a good understanding of it and can describe it for the next guy as a complete story in my own words. For example, I've now built four different Maximites. One on a Microchip cap-touch board, one on a original Maximite board, one on a Maximite Mini board and one on a custom board design. Each step I learned a little more. I plan on writing a book on Maximite and this is all research. And a lot of fun. www.elproducts.com |
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| Gadget Regular Member  Joined: 22/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 70 |
I think silicon chip ran a series of articles on an xy(z) table Terry |
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| Gadget Regular Member Joined: 22/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 70 |
I should have looked first then posted. searching silicon chips website they ran a series of articles on this and they have software written in basic (qbasic it think) if nothing else the software could be of use Terry |
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thetinkerer Regular Member Joined: 16/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 68 |
Over the years there have been a number of methods used to get a PC to control the Stepper motors/servos of a CNC machine. While the Dos programs work well the use of key strokes and having to remember them all is just not as user friendly as the windows CNC programs Programs like Mach 3 and others. Unfortunately these windows programs make some CNC machines sound like they have mechanical issues due to the uneven timing of pulses from the CNC program to the Machines stepper motors. There have been some intermediate timing devices created which do the timing of the pulses such as smooth stepper and Max stepper. I believe the these do create a smooth running machine. In regards to the Maximite, I have also thought of using the Maximite to read the G-code that is stored on the SD card interpret this G-code and create the correct number of pulse for the stepper/servo drives thus controlling the CNC machine. The Maximite CNC program would work out how far and how fast to move based on the G-code and then convert the movement (EG: 2.5mm) into pulses for the stepper /servos. The distance to move is converted to pulses to move based on the pulses/rev of the stepper/servo and the pitch of the lead screw. The time between the pulses sent to the stepper/servos will determine the speed of the machine movement and this timing figure would have to be one of the many set-up parameters of your Maximite Cnc program. just a few thoughts Moving one axis at a time would be straight forward but things start to get a little more complex as we move more axis together. |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5036 |
The other factor you will need to take into account is acceleration and deceleration. If you just start pulsing the steppers at full speed, they will miss steps and in worse case, make a hell of a noise and go nowhere. A sudden stop also causes problems as the machines momentum will drive the stepper past it stop position. Also backlash needs to be included in the calculations. Servo motors are similar, they will hunt back and forth if you try to bring them to a sudden halt without a deceleration ramp. I think the Maximite could be used as a dedicated controller for a simple XYZ table. Be a fun project. Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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Bryan1 Guru Joined: 22/02/2006 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1211 |
G'day Guy's, Chuck did say he wanted to go the 3D way like the 'reprap', now I have done a heap of research on this and basically one draws their design in say Rhino or another 3D software package then converts the STL file to G-code by using Skeinforge or Slic3r. What these 2 programs will do is convert the STL file and setup the G-code to do layers so when the extruder head comes down the pattern can be molded. Autocad has brought out a freeware 3D package called 123D which is a 500 meg download and I found out the hardway one does need a later model computer just to run it. Cheers Bryan Edit: A link to Slic3r and a link to Skeinforge wiki |
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| thetinkerer Regular Member Joined: 16/06/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 68 |
I agree about the acceleration. As steppers have a lot of torque at low speed, starting off slow allows you to get the machine moving and you can ramp up pretty quickly from there. From my practical experience, a good ramp up and ramp down allows you to have a much higher top travel speed than without the ramp. One of the possible options I thought of was to attach a DB25 to the maximite and have the Maximite emulate the printer port signals. This way you would have your CNC machine wired up like many others supporting Mach3, Kcam etc etc and at any time you can unplug the printer cable connecting the cnc to the Maximte and plug it into the pc with Mach3 etc. |
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| cmichaelcouch Newbie  Joined: 23/10/2011 Location: United StatesPosts: 16 |
I too am interested in using the Maximite or rather my Duinomite-mini for 3 D Printing. I'm a memeber of the Yahoo group for 3D printing. I have also been on hand as the Reprap was being developed at NYCResistors in NYC and enjoyed meeting Zack, Bree, and Adam. They are coll people. Anyway, I wasn't to eventually build an DLP type 3D machine which only requires a Z axis and a tilt mechanism to break contact with the glass between layers. The DLP 3D printers print a whole layer at one exposuer into a UV cure liquid. Very fast and higher precision than the RepRap, also may be much cheaper to do but the UV cure fluid is usually very expensive. |
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| MM_Wombat Senior Member Joined: 12/12/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 139 |
Our Laser cutter at work caught fire, last month, and they have said that I can have it. The insurance people said it is a write off. Work was going to throw it out.... They removed the laser module and pc from the device. I don't know about the z-axis yet, but the x and y axis still move, but not under stepper power as of yet. I even have the rotary unit, with another stepper motor. I still have to clean the machine and check for and twisting of carriages. The laser cutter was an 42W co2 one, with a size of 600 x 450.. The laser cutter made by Universal Laser Systems , Scottsdale , Arizona, USA. It is Similar to the PLS4.75 model on the www.ulsinc.com webpage, but built in 199x... I too am hoping to make it into a 3D printer, but won't know until I have fully checked it out. I may be able to make exchangeable heads, to make a small cnc mill / router /3d printer...powered by a Maximite maybe... Here is to hoping.... Cheers Dennis MM_Wombat... Keep plugging away, it is fun learning But can be expensive (if you keep blowing things up). Maximite, ColourMaximite, MM+ |
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| Gizmo Admin Group Joined: 05/06/2004 Location: AustraliaPosts: 5036 |
Wow Dennis, right place at the right time. We had one of those little etching/cutting lasers at a laser cutting business I was working with a few years ago, it was a 25w model. The XYZ table is of light construction, since its pretty easy to move a few small mirror's around, so it wouldn't be suitable for any CNC routing other than a small engraver. But for 3d printing it would be fine. Also worth considering is a plasma cutter. Glenn The best time to plant a tree was twenty years ago, the second best time is right now. JAQ |
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| MM_Wombat Senior Member Joined: 12/12/2011 Location: AustraliaPosts: 139 |
I was the one that put the fire out, in the laser. Lucky I used the co2 extinguisher... Plasma cutter sounds cool as well... Almost as good as a milling machine, and could cut up to 12 mm steel/aluminium quicker as well. cheers Dennis Keep plugging away, it is fun learning But can be expensive (if you keep blowing things up). Maximite, ColourMaximite, MM+ |
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