New member, anxious to start!
Thomas Charron
Larry referred me to the group after I stumbled across him on the
google maps of RepRap users. Thanks Larry!
I've been looking at making up my own RepRap machine up here in NH,
and I was wondering if you know anyone in Mass who might be willing to
make up some some parts for Mendel?
I was really considering retrofitting some old XYZ cartesian robots I
salvaged from some old work projects and am considering making a
RepStrap machine, but I haven't really had the chance to look at what
kind of changes I might need to make to the Ardiuno firmware to
actually handle a physical mechanism that's different then it was
designed for. Larry let me know it's pretty easy, and I started
looking over the source late last night.
http://pdf.tricontinent.com/tricont/pumps/XYZ_Datasheet.pdf is the
datasheet of the arms I have, but ignore the driving circuitry specs,
their driver board is a horrible thing to talk to without using the
CCU board, and even that is horrid.
In the end tho, I'd really like to be able to work on a darwin or
mendel system. Unfortunatly, I don't really have the 1500$ it'd cost
me to order a darwin online over at bitsforbytes. I would love to see
future RepRap machines achieve the quality that the builders of the
MakerBot CNC machines seem to be achieving.
Little background about myself. I'm an Engineering Technologist at
a Medical Device R&D company in NH. We actually do quite a bit if
mechatronic, probably about 50% of the software work we do is in that
realm. Hence to 'spare robots'. :-D I've been considering other
ways to be able to work on interesting projects outside of work, and
RepRap really seems perfect.
Anyhow, thanks for having me. If anyone has the ability to print
Mendel parts, please get in touch with me, I'm sure we can work
something out, either trades for parts or money, as long as it isn't
too much.
Chief Geek
Where are you in NH? I live in VT (the civilized side of the
Connecticut River), but work in NH. I'm a mechanical engineer that
spent the first 10 years of my career building medical device
manufacturing machines. Looks like we've worked on similar
technologies, just different scales (for us 400 watt servos were
small) and different times.
The TriContinent gantry sure looks like it was meant for the high-
throughput-screening jobs that I worked on 10 years ago. Those tiny
linear bearings look perfect. How many and what sort of parts does
your company have collecting dust. If there are steppers on each of
the axis, life should be pretty simple to integrate them into the
reprap controls.
Chief Geek
On Jan 10, 9:44 am, Thomas Charron <twaf...@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hello everyone!
>
> Larry referred me to the group after I stumbled across him on the
> google maps of RepRap users. Thanks Larry!
>
> I've been looking at making up my own RepRap machine up here in NH,
> and I was wondering if you know anyone in Mass who might be willing to
> make up some some parts for Mendel?
>
> I was really considering retrofitting some old XYZ cartesian robots I
> salvaged from some old work projects and am considering making a
> RepStrap machine, but I haven't really had the chance to look at what
> kind of changes I might need to make to the Ardiuno firmware to
> actually handle a physical mechanism that's different then it was
> designed for. Larry let me know it's pretty easy, and I started
> looking over the source late last night.
>
> http://pdf.tricontinent.com/tricont/pumps/XYZ_Datasheet.pdfis the
Peter Olson
>Mendel parts, please get in touch with me, I'm sure we can work
>something out, either trades for parts or money, as long as it isn't
>too much.
We have a Makerbot Cupcake machine at Willoughby & Baltic, in Somerville, MA.
If you are able to get into the Boston area Tuesday evening, you should drop by
and we can look at what you need to make.
peter
Thomas Charron
> Thomas
>
> Where are you in NH? I live in VT (the civilized side of the
> Connecticut River), but work in NH. I'm a mechanical engineer that
> spent the first 10 years of my career building medical device
> manufacturing machines. Looks like we've worked on similar
> technologies, just different scales (for us 400 watt servos were
> small) and different times.
Live in Lyndeborough NH, about half way between Keene and Nashua,
down by the Mass border.
> The TriContinent gantry sure looks like it was meant for the high-
> throughput-screening jobs that I worked on 10 years ago. Those tiny
> linear bearings look perfect. How many and what sort of parts does
> your company have collecting dust. If there are steppers on each of
> the axis, life should be pretty simple to integrate them into the
> reprap controls.
We've got steppers pretty much out the ears. Nearly everything we
make uses steppers, the only time we've been using servos is with
linear stages where we need to be moving ~12 positions per second with
around 5um in position windows. I'm guessing if I order then gen 3
main board, and an extruder, I can probably scavenge the rest of the
parts. I may just go ahead and order the 3 chopper boards their
selling on Makerbot for simple convenience, but if I was really bored
I could probably wire up chopper drivers that take step and direction.
My only real concern with trying to use it as a RepStrap would be
how much weight I could put off of the Z on the gantry. Moving
rapidly in X&Y may cause some 'twang' on the Z, which when trying to
print might be, needless to say, 'bad'. :-D We've actually had
situations when moving them in X and Y with the Y axis stalling as the
steppers from the X axis caused some resonance in the Z arm,
increasing the load on the Y, leading to a stall.
Not having really seen a RepRap working live, what kind of speeds
are they moving the axis at while printing?
--
-- Thomas
Thomas Charron
>> Anyhow, thanks for having me. If anyone has the ability to print
>> Mendel parts, please get in touch with me, I'm sure we can work
>> something out, either trades for parts or money, as long as it isn't
>> too much.
> MA.
> If you are able to get into the Boston area Tuesday evening, you should drop
> by
> and we can look at what you need to make.
Thanks for the invite Peter, but it's looking like I'm stuck at work
until late tonight. I'd love to come down some other time when you
have an opportunity.
In the meantime, I've taken one of my Tricontinent gantry robots out
of barn, and I'm ordering a set of Gen 3 electronics, and parts for
the extruder from Makerbot. With the two combined, I'm pretty sure
I'll be able to come up with a RepStrap machine pretty quickly. I'm
going to have to make up a custom mounting for the end of my Z arm,
but that'll be pretty easy. I'm considering actually mounting the
extruder electronics on the XY of the gantry up top, and just running
the wires down to the extruder, so there will be minimal weight on the
end of the arm.
Since you guys have a makerbot, it would appear from the online
videos etc that the makerbot produces reliable results more then
peoples RepRap units, is this true? How much do you have to play with
feed rates, etc when printing?
I was considering after making the unit experimenting with more
intelligence within the extruder head itself, such as pressure sensors
within the tip. But perhaps I'm getting ahead of myself here. :-D
--
-- Thomas
Peter Olson
>until late tonight. I'd love to come down some other time when you
>have an opportunity.
Tuesday evening is a pretty regular thing at W&B. If you want to try
next week, that would be great. http://willoughbybaltic.com
> Since you guys have a makerbot, it would appear from the online
>videos etc that the makerbot produces reliable results more then
>peoples RepRap units, is this true? How much do you have to play with
>feed rates, etc when printing?
We did some fine-tuning of the mechanics of the device to get it to run
well, but I have been preoccupied with other things, so I'm not up to
speed on it.
peter