RepPanel - A DIY alternative to the PanelDue with WiFi support

jay_s_uk · 4 Aug 2021, 20:06

@seeul8er here you go https://github.com/Duet3D/DuetSoftwareFramework/wiki/REST-API

seeul8er · 1 Jan 2022, 16:40

Happy to announce that the new release of RepPanel v1.2.0 is out!
With support for RRF3 Object Model calls via the PanelDue port and DuetWebControl. Unfortunately, the ESP32 WROOM module does not provide enough RAM to support Duet3D+SBC via Wifi, but a wired connection should work just fine. Updated hardware using the ESP32 WROVER module could fix this.

Changelog:

Support for RRF3.4 (Object Model)
Screensaver (black screen + backlight off) after 60 seconds
Legacy Support for RRF2 type of requests
Improved message box handling

Get it here: https://github.com/seeul8er/RepPanel_ESP32/releases

zapta · 1 Jan 2022, 17:28

@seeul8er said in RepPanel - A DIY alternative to the PanelDue with WiFi support:

I have some ideas on a custom board but found no time to get familiar with electronics design, yet.

Revisit the ESP32 TouchDown port option? It may make this cool project much more available and will leave it to Dustin to deal with the logistics and supply chain issues.

seeul8er · 7 Jan 2022, 21:50

@zapta I do have RepPanel running on an improved hardware platform. It is much more stable, responsive and will also allow for longer file paths etc. I might offer a few pre-flashed modules that are ready to use in the future, once I tested it a bit more.

The ESP32 TouchDown also uses the more "unlucky" hardware. The ESP32 WROOM on there is also low in RAM and the display controller causes increased RAM usage because of required colour conversions - it basically has all the flaws of my current hardware design. The new hardware platform fixes most of those issues.

Fladdie · 1 Oct 2022, 15:49

@seeul8er

That sounds really great. I just got rid of the proprietary electronics on my Craftbot3 printer and installed a Duet3 6HC board instead.
The previous display was also a 3.5 inch display.

So I am very interested in a latest generation RepPanel.
If you need someone to test it, I hereby announce my willingness

Greetings from Heidelberg

zapta · 10 Jan 2022, 18:26

@fladdie said in RepPanel - A DIY alternative to the PanelDue with WiFi support:

Craftbot3

That's a nice looking printer. For me tethered display works the best, especially when working on the computer. Similar to the FLSUN Super Racer.

seeul8er · 29 Jan 2022, 19:09

Release 1.3.0 is out now!
It is the most stable so far. Thanks to fixes for some memory issues, crashes are now dramatically reduced. Because of that I highly recommend upgrading to it. My own ILI9488 runs super stable now.

Changelog:

Fixed memory bugs - this release is stable and pretty much runs crash free
Less crashes due to low memory
Fixed crashes due to updating items that are not visible anymore
Increased max. directory listing from 16 to 24
Increased max. filename length from 128 to 160
Made scrolling smoother
Removed the Console feature due to low significance and for the benefit of more memory for other applications - can be re-enabled via idf.py menuconfig

Get it here!

bberger · 30 Jan 2022, 00:15

@seeul8er said in RepPanel - A DIY alternative to the PanelDue with WiFi support:

@zapta I do have RepPanel running on an improved hardware platform. It is much more stable, responsive and will also allow for longer file paths etc. I might offer a few pre-flashed modules that are ready to use in the future, once I tested it a bit more.

The ESP32 TouchDown also uses the more "unlucky" hardware. The ESP32 WROOM on there is also low in RAM and the display controller causes increased RAM usage because of required colour conversions - it basically has all the flaws of my current hardware design. The new hardware platform fixes most of those issues.

Do you have exact dimensions for that? Trying to see if it could be a drop-in replacement on my Predator frame..

oliof · 30 Jan 2022, 18:34

@seeul8er I updated a RepPanel I have to 1.3.0 and unfortunately I cannot say it behaves better in terms of stability and responsiveness. It's still only a 20% chance that I can use the hamburger menu selector, and the screen freezes on the "Job" view. It doesn't help that it shows 1193043h 715 as remaining time and just Textin the bottom left instead of the filename or what is expected there. Also, the display goes dark after roughly one minute.

On the serial console, I see a busy loop requesting status, interspersed with the occassional ERROR message:

The serial console keeps running when the screen goes dark.

If I wait long enough, the screen returns for a while, then goes dark again.

oliof · 30 Jan 2022, 18:37

oliof · 30 Jan 2022, 18:51

It looks like you're trying to download dwc2settings.json; the file is called dwc-settings.json in DWC 3.4.0-b6 at least (that's what's running on the machine I am testing this with at the moment).

seeul8er · 30 Jan 2022, 21:21

@oliof said in RepPanel - A DIY alternative to the PanelDue with WiFi support:

The serial console keeps running when the screen goes dark.

If I wait long enough, the screen returns for a while, then goes dark again.

That is not a bug, that is actually a feature. The screen saver kicks in after 60s

I am sorry it does not work right out of the box for you.
On my screen the burger menu works pretty fine. You can also click on the printer status message to open the menu. Usually that is more convenient.

The current release is untested with RRF3.4. It seems like it is not detecting the DWC apiLevel correctly. If you click on the wifi symbol you can see the apiLevel it detected during connecting to DWC. It should be 1 for all firmware versions that do support the object model. If it is detected correctly it will automatically switch to object model requests and things should sort itself out.
Could you post the JSON you receive when connecting to your printer via http://yourprinter.local/rr_connect?password=yourpassword

oliof · 30 Jan 2022, 22:13

@seeul8er if that's a screen saver, there is no consistent way to get the display on again, it's not reacting to touch input.

rr_connect returns "Your Duet rejected the HTTP request: Unknown request". I don't have a password set. No JSON response is generated.

I have shut down things for tonight and will check apiLevel tomorrow.

seeul8er · 31 Jan 2022, 09:13

@oliof Ah that might be the issue here. I use the rr_connect to get the apiLevel from the Duet. Since the rr_connect is not really required my software is missing that information. I'll figure it out.

The screen saver goes away on touch. That will work properly once RepPanel got a "proper connection". So if I fix the above the screensaver will work fine.

oliof · 31 Jan 2022, 09:17

@seeul8er gotcha. Not surprisingly, the reported API level is 0.

oliof · 7 Mar 2022, 22:53

The issue with the hamburger menu may be that it's touch target is a bit too small and I can't reliably reach it with my case.

seeul8er · 3 Aug 2022, 07:27

@oliof and all the others:

Release 1.4.0 is out now!
Changelog:

Added file info information when long-pressing a job on the job selection list
Added print bed temperature to header
Fixed crashes when a user does not click the button of a dialog, but the dialog box
fixed filament length parsing
fixed UART parser errors
fixed simulation time parsing errors
fixed error when no Duet password is specified

Get it here: https://github.com/seeul8er/RepPanel_ESP32/releases/tag/v1.4.0