Effector tilt tuning
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Differences in the bed surface can cause small differences in trigger height, for example if you use glass coated with a layer of glue or hairspray and you don't coat all of the bed because you will only be printing on a small part of it. But effector tilt is very common in deltas.
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Also you may want to check the spacing of the magnetic balls, on both the effector and the carriages, with digital calipers. In spite of being printed on the same printer from the same G-code, my three carriages have slightly different spacings. And the effector spacings are not all the same either.
Of course, I don't know how much difference in spacing adds up to (say) a one-degree tilt of the effector. Someone (me I guess) needs to do some sensitivity analysis on the delta mechanics. This would help designers focus on the alignments that matter most.
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I have a bulls eye level as well, but was trying to find the best way to attach it to the effector. My floors are not level so my machine is off a little to start as well. I tried using blue tack but it didn't seem to hold the "level" after sitting for a minute would shift back making it hard to determine what is an issue with the level moving and what is an issue with the blue tack releasing a little.
My first delta (custom rostock) has quite a bit of tilt - enough that i could easily notice by just looking at it, but this one (custom kossel) doesn't appear to have any but I would like to be sure and confirm with the bullseye level.
My second thought was hot glue which will hopefully give me enough time to position to initial "level" but harden and not move later on, while also being semi removable if needed.
How did everyone else attach their level?
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peridot, I agree that there might be differences on the same printed part. I believe that how tight you screw the steel balls on to the carriages and end effector will also cause a slight difference on how high they sit, which I will need to find a way to make sure they are the same.
Unfortunately, unless I go for some CNC parts, I can only 'trust' my printed parts are good enough.
I would love to see the analysis on factors of end effector tilting, too bad I am not that good at maths.piankoc, my current end effector also does not have a good place to mount the level. Since I am using magnetic joints, I will probably print and swap a blank end effector with a slot for the level to test things out.
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I attached the spirit level flat on the effector using double sided adhesive tape. Then I levelled the printer by putting pieces of paper under the three feet.
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Jackal, printing is pretty cheap; maybe print extras and pick the parts that are closest to spec. I measured and marked my effector and tried to match carriage spacings to the effector widths. Plus the plan is once the machine is better tuned, re-print the parts with better dimensional accuracy. Note that delta calibration, left to adjust six parameters, may trade away dimensional accuracy for a flatter bed.
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Jackal,
I think you can eliminate the forces of the Flex3drive from tilting your effector.
I have done a lot of testing on that with the Zesty Nimble and was not able to detect any influence. So put your mind at ease there.As to accuracy of the prints, when I need a really accurate print to test things out or to make use everything is straight, there are 2 things you can do.
1. You can build a jig that you use to mount the parts, so that you know that each part is identical, regardless of the actual geometry of the part.
2. You can print those parts via Shapeways and know that it is accurate enough for the purpose.That is what I do when I sell an upgrade kit as it needs to be spot on.
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Two bulls eye spirit levels, one on the lower frame, one on the effector. Bluetac works but I rolled it into a ball put it under the spirit level, pressed it down, then removed the spirit level and and trimmed away any bluetac that was at the edge of the spirit level (mine have a little indent in the base), then reattached them so they are held in place but perfectly flat against the surface to which they are attached.
I have adjustable feet, so I levelled the printer first, then moved the effector around to look for tilt.
I am using a metal effector with magnets all at the same level in the effector, rods all custom made to the same length, and to be fair I can't say I've noticed any effector tilt. I have had magnets disconnect so its not all smooth sailing.
Auto calibration comes back sometimes as low as 0.02 deviation. Any issues I've had so far come down to differing IR reflectivity of aluminium with hairspray unevenly applied (soon to be solved with a printbite surface), and getting a good nozzle to bed first layer height which without babystepping (yet) is a bit tedious to set.
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Jackal,
I think you can eliminate the forces of the Flex3drive from tilting your effector.
I have done a lot of testing on that with the Zesty Nimble and was not able to detect any influence. So put your mind at ease there.As to accuracy of the prints, when I need a really accurate print to test things out or to make use everything is straight, there are 2 things you can do.
1. You can build a jig that you use to mount the parts, so that you know that each part is identical, regardless of the actual geometry of the part.
2. You can print those parts via Shapeways and know that it is accurate enough for the purpose.That is what I do when I sell an upgrade kit as it needs to be spot on.
Thanks for the input, I hope that's the case. The flexible shaft is a bit too long for my frame, if I need to mount it as straight as possible then the motor will have to be quite a bit above the frame. The Duet wifi board will be in the way as well, so I currently mount the motor on the side with the shaft in a inverted U shape.
I am looking forward seeing the Zesty Nimble, maybe even try it out myself
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I mounted the Stepper at the bottom of the frame, have a nice loop going up and over to the effector.
My Delta is approx 1 meter tall and I have 90 mm long drive cable.
