Last night, I hooked up my MP3DP to power, steppers, and end stops. Using Octoprint (not an LCD which I have not hooked up yet), it moves, but not properly, and suspect the problem is firmware related. I ordered all the parts from V1Engineering the beginning of October last year (2018). It is a completely standard, no mods, no double end stops. The controller board is the Mini-Rambo. The hot end is the MK8 with the Swiss throat and nozzle. Reading the forums, posts from September 30, 2019 indicate that Ryan has created new versions of the firmware, but the GitHub repo hasn’t been updated in 8 months (which is still newer than would be on the Mini-Rambo). There is a preconfigured MP3DP version of the firmware, but for the Aero, not the MK8. Is it the same? Where is the new firmware to be found? I saw reference to Ryan creating a new repo in relation to some licensing issue. Also, is there a guide for updating a Mini-Rambo’s firmware, that you could recommend?
The MP3DP moves in the X, Y, and Z access, but only in one direction, away from the end stops. It thinks it is homed at 0, 0, 0.
Send: M114
Recv: X:0.00 Y:0.00 Z:5.00 E:0.00 Count X:0 Y:0 Z:2000
Recv: ok
The end stops are wired NC, but show all triggered. I tested the end stops with a multimeter before installing them. I used Ryan’s Mini-Rambo end stop connectors and while probably not critical, made sure the GND was connected correctly to the end stop connector.
Send: M119
Recv: Reporting endstop status
Recv: x_min: TRIGGERED
Recv: y_min: TRIGGERED
Recv: z_min: TRIGGERED
Recv: ok
It is probably something stupid. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thank you.
You probably just need the right firmware. But the endstops can be inverted in the configuration.h file. They should be inverted in Ryan’s. That will probably solve a few other issues too.
Snagged the repo. Checked out the Rambo branch. Made the TEMP_SENSOR_0 go back to 11 for the MK8. Installed 1.8.10 Arduino IDE. Added the Rambo boards with the Ultimaker URL, but it lists a 1.0.0 and 1.0.1 Rambo board. No MiniRambo 1.3a. Set up the port. But trying to build using the IDE generates a ton of messages like:
Error while detecting libraries included by /tmp/arduino_build_635164/sketch/src/HAL/HAL_AVR/HAL.cpp
Thoughts? Do you use the Arduino IDE or the PlatformIO to build? I have Python 2.7.14 and 3.6.4 installed on my Fedora 27. Not 3.7.4. So I tried the Arduino IDE first, rather than worrying about whether PlatformIO required the newer Python. Thank you.
For the Mp3DP I have two branches, one for a ramps based printer and one for a mini-rambo. If you are using a mini rambo just flash it as it is to make sure it works, you should need to add nothing. If it works then change two lines only to make it work for the MK8 extruder. The thermistor and the steps per mm.
Correct me if I am wrong, but when I look in the source for the MP3DP_MRambo_16T_aero branch, there are unresolved conflicts. I went ahead and updated my VSCode from 1.25 to the latest, 1.39, and installed the PlatformIO IDE extension, and its error messages were clearer. I checked out head on the branch. Should I be using a specific tagged version? Thank you.
I can open another post, because I am not sure this is related to the firmware. It could be. Good news is I hooked up the heated bed and extruder and their thermistors and they seem to work great heating up and show temperature changes. Bad news is neither set of fan pins are causing the fans to turn on, even when plugged directly into the board. And I tried multiple fans. I am using the M106 S255 command to turn it on, and M106 S0 and M107 to turn it off. And trying M106 S255 on my MP Mini works file. Thoughts?
Hmm. The mini rambo does have two fan ports. I set one to only turn on when the extruder was over 50C, but I remember doing that myself. And it doesn’t explain why the part fan isn’t working…
I had stuck the wires from the extension cable with the MiniRambo fan connector into the extruder fan connector. It seemed like it was in there solid, but apparently not. I soldered a fan connector onto the end of the extension cable (with heat shrink around it), and now the extruder fan is operating and responding the the M106 P0 S255/S0 commands, as well as to the buttons on Octoprint. So my bad. I was trying to test which direction the fan was going to blow before soldering a cable. Although I could have flipped the fan, if it was wrong. Fortunately, I won my 50% coin toss. Sorry.
The secondary fan port, which I plugged one of the spare fans into, is still not responding to M106 P1 S255/S0 commands. Googling seems to indicate that the fan ports on the Rambo boards are 12V 5A, with PWM speed control. My spare fans are 12V (also from V1Engineering). Is it possible the 2nd fan connector is not mapped to P1? I have been reading all these forum posts about fan issues and learning about pins_MINIRAMBO.h, and line 113, “#define FAN1_PIN 6”, seems to be what everyone is saying it should be, with FAN_PIN being defined as 8. Am I using the wrong gcode command to try and turn on the second (parts) fan? Thank you.
More data. Following your suggestion, I tried the turning on the hotend, and then the second fan. Didn’t work. For some reason the MiniRambo reported “Thermal Runaway, system stopped!” and Octoprint disconnected. I also created a second jumper wire, and that didn’t work. BUT! What I did discover was the 2nd fan got HOT! Not spinning, but hot. So I turned it off. Removed the jumper. Went back to plugging the fan plug directly into the motherboard with a different fan. Got hot. turned the fan off. Cooled off. So I don’t think it was my extension cable. Is it possible that I have a short in the fan connector on the MiniRambo board? I looked at it on zoom with my phone and a jeweler’s loop. Doesn’t look bad. Thoughts?