Duet with Autodesk machine-collaboration-utility possible?

rooiejoris

Hi All,

I was wondering if the Duet board can communicate with the machine-collaboration-utility [MCU] from Autodesk used for the Escher project by Autodesk.
github.com/Autodesk/machine-collaboration-utility/wiki/

I am not a programmer, so I don't know what 'language' the MCU speaks to the Conductor [as autodesk calls it]

Don't really know what more information to give at the moment, but please let me know if you are missing something

cheers / joris

Whitewolf

Honestly would prefer to just operate the whole thing from a Duet Wifi with expansion board than a bunch of rasberry pis and Netfabb….

The only thing that they do really is use the conductor to coordinate the independant gantries ... something Duet could do with firmware modification?

Whitewolf

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1tdNxJ4bb499kH6Z3zQ1ebDDKu7tmycFAdLfrN3ilemE/mobilepresent?slide=id.p

If you take a look here you can see how it works…. Duet is not part of it.

I would prefer doing this build using a DuetWifi with expansion board and modified firmware... this should make it more open (not limited to netfabb) and able to use any STL without modification (possibly)

The tricky part is getting Duet firmware to coordinate multiple gantries for single large prints and to be able to print independant smaller prints seperately .

This is a build I plan on doing just have not dived into it yet. Hopefully with cooperation from Duet3D

Whitewolf

Hopefully Dc42 will help us along with this project as it will be great being able to multiple independant gantries for coordinated large prints but where it gets really interesting is where you have some gantries doing additive manufacturing while others are doing subtractive and others doing pick and place… obviously that is where netfabb invisions the future of this tech but they are only designing control software built on raberry pis... while the Duet already has most of whats needed and is in my opinion a much better option

dc42

I can see the need for one RPi or similar to orchestrate the multiple printer controllers, but not why it also needs an additional RPi per controller. I guess they are using low-end controller boards that are too tight on memory or processor power to handle the extra functionality needed to work with the orchestrator.

The page at https://github.com/Autodesk/machine-collaboration-utility/wiki/00–-Intro has a !ink to where you can request support for a new firmware. So I suggest you use it to request support for Duet/RRF.

Whitewolf

@dc42:

I can see the need for one RPi or similar to orchestrate the multiple printer controllers, but not why it also needs an additional RPi per controller. I guess they are using low-end controller boards that are too tight on memory or processor power to handle the extra functionality needed to work with the orchestrator.

The page at https://github.com/Autodesk/machine-collaboration-utility/wiki/00–-Intro has a !ink to where you can request support for a new firmware. So I suggest you use it to request support for Duet/RRF.

Because the Duet has the capability of supporting additional steppers/servos with expansion boards wouldnt it be possible (with firmware improvements) to have the Duet be the Orchestrator reducing the need to a single controller?

What I do not like about the AutoDesk solution is that it requires a subscription to Netfabb to make it all possible.

Not to mention that the Duet Control panel is much more polished than the Autodesk solution.

Whitewolf

There are some closed source printers that have been being developed with custom controllers that support independant xyz axis carriages. The DuetWifi just seems like it is already half way there to being able to do the same.

I would be willing to be a beta tester if this is something you are willing to tackle. I want to build the Escher just not the Netfabb way.

Whitewolf

Also during the press release of Project Escher they stated that they are not intending to develop hardware solutions. They are only interested in developing the software side and as seen the solution is so far only being used by closed sourced commercial printer companies such as Titan.

The Duet can do this better in my opinion and make it more accessible to the masses. I wish I had the skills you have because i would be all over developing such a solution. But the best I can hope for is that I can help with testing the Duet.