I flashed the Marlin FW like written here: https://docs.v1engineering.com/learn/platformio/
I connected the Board to Octoprint and see a lot of good Informations in the Terminal like Marlin and so on. Working!
I can use the Motors with all the Octoprint stuff. It works. Also the Endstops - everything seems to be fine.
As first maybe the important question:
1.) Could it be working?
2.) What did I have to set in the CNC Program setings? Marlin or GBRL?
3.) In the Control Settings Window: What must be the first Value? “Arduino Mega”? Or GRBL all?
3.) Did I have to flash in CNC Control? With GBRL i did not get an connection. With Arduino Mega it seems to be flashing this arduino… but then is nothing working.
Estlcam can connect to boards flashed with the estlcam firmware. But in general, we use estlcam to make gcode files, save them, and then use another program (most commonly repetier host) or the lcd and SD card to play them.
Take a look at the software workflow and see if that all makes sense.
That makes me sad.
If I take a look to all the fantastic Videos e. g. UnclePhil and all the fantastic things like Tool plate auto leveling (not pretty sure how it is named in english) I would not only send lonely gcode files.
Just see, what I mean:
Although it’s German, it’s pretty obvious what I mean.
So I wonder, what I can Do to connect estlcam directly with this board.
Don’t be sad! You can do all that without EstlCAM connected! In fact, you can put that in your gcode, and send it with Octoprint!
I don’t recall the specific code, but I’m sure it’s over in the docs (look in the milling sections), or someone will drop by soon enough with their code to do auto-leveling, etc.
The Z probing is easy to do with Marlin. The X and Y probing isn’t, especially the second tap, where it measures the angle of the workpiece.
I would not worry about it though. That is not necessary. You can move the bit wherever you want and reset the zero position. If you want to align to the corner of a workpiece (be careful, workpieces are often not square), you can screw down an L shaped piece of wood and then just surface the edge to get a square that is perfectly aligned to your machine.
If you do want to use estlcam as a controller, then you’ll need a different controller. But you will lose the ability to use octoprint and cnc.js. You also will lose the ability to have an lcd controller, and dual endstops (if you have those).
This is, what me makes sad.
Octoprint = I love it. I use it for my 3d Printer exclusively. But so far I didn’t have the slightest idea of using this with a CNC.
cnc.js = looks good. I am going to have a look on it.
LCD Disp = Not seen bevor. Would be a nice Idee. But i thought i would do this with the Notebook and a Remote Controller.
Dual End = I wouldn’t take anything else.
So do I have to choose one evil or the other. Or I manage to combine the two.
In the end it’s just code and a bit of hardware. Estlcam supports the arduino Mega and the outputs are described.
But damn… then the endstops are a topic.
Maybe the developer has a possibility to support me here. I think this is really an optimal combination - and a cheap one. I have already contacted him. Let’s see if he can find the time. In any case, I would be willing to provide massive support, testing, etc.
I made the v1pi image with octoprint and cnc.js if you want to try it.
Like I said, you can probe the Z with the Marlin you already have. I don’t see it as a huge loss to not be able to probe X and Y. But maybe you are doing a special kind of job?
Unfortunately, Estlcam is closed source, so we can’t edit it ourselves. Or else, we might have added a lot of those features a long time ago. There are several software engineers here who have given their time to improve Marlin and Grbl for CNC machines. But we can’t edit a hex file.
As first many thanks for all the good stuff, work, support and assistance!
Also for the Image. I am going to install it later tonight.
I will throw all my previous thoughts overboard and reorient myself.
Because I like the here adapted Marlin Software FW with dual stop very much.
And cncjs looks very good too. I watched a few videos.
The automatic x and y alignment looks very sexy and I found it magic. But my goodness, you can’t always have everything.
1.) What I haven’t quite understood yet: If I use cncjs - why do I need Octoprint?
2.) When do I have to use GRBL where? Or has it been integrated directly into the Marlin and I don’t care about it anymore? So I only send my gcode files e.g. from Estlcam to cncjs?
I ask because Octoprint has a GRBL plugin. And so I am confused who is doing what exactly.
Marlin and Grbl are both firmwares for the controller. Marlin supports many many boards, and is focused on 3D printing. Grbl is focused on CNC, but doesn’t support many boards, and a lot of neat features are only in Marlin. So you don’t have to worry about grbl.
CNC.js is not maintained by me, I just like it. So I took the octopi image and added node.js and CNC.js. I then added a landing page and made a hotspot version so people can use it in their barns where there is no wifi. Leaving octoprint installed was easier, and it lets you try them side by side, without making a bunch of different images.
Now that I have had a good look at it all, I think Estlcam is really not very necessary!
On the contrary, the answer of the developer was - let’s say - sparse to listless.
It’s a simple matter of flipping the control pins.
I tested it and with little effort it worked.
To create a profile in the software, where the 2 pins per driver are adjusted, is a 2 minute piece of cake.
As I understood it, the community would have already adapted many things in Estlecam - no I understand…
I just do not buy a license
And so a big thank you for all the information. I am already enthusiastic about cncjs.
Now the mpcnc just has to be finished - so far everything is just flying wired and tested.
Thanks!
