Piezo20 probe and piezo kit now available
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Thanks mate, I did slightly rework that top sensor holder for 5.5mm rods which I scavenged from work but they are too big the piezo wont fit. The version I sent to you was Lykles original top plate for his effector but I modded it with an extra recess to improve piezo sensitivity. Ive hosted my version here: https://1drv.ms/u/s!Apv79JfGbPIwgu1TAuVGDSUBP5ecuA you need to add holes for the new rods.
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I will wait till you have tried it out I think you will find 2 pieces in the package one PTFE good to 260 degrees and acetal which is good to 100 the acetal is the stiffer of the 2but I think if you can make the max exposed part of the rods to be about 1-2mm both will be plenty stiff enough. The PTFE also absorbs moisture much better at 0.03% acetal can by 0.3 IIRC.
Let me/us know how you get on
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DJ
This looks interesting wonder if same idea could be utilised with Piezo's
http://www.robotdigg.com/product/885/Auto-leveling-force-sensitive-resistor-sensor
A fitting that will fit on the nozzle temporarily whilst the Cal/bed mesh is done then remove and the Z Hight set manually would mean not doing it for each print tho?
Hope the rods arrived ok
Doug
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Hi Doug,
That looks interesting, not sure how it handles a hot bed, and certainly won't handle a hot nozzle, plus the sensing area is a big pad on the end however as an idea a clip on piezo module for probing would certainly eliminate the nozzle wobble issue and the need to change effectors etc…
I will try it, its not that difficult to do is it? The only thing I can't immediately visualise is how it attaches. That being said if we were going to develop a clip-on sensor is piezo the way forward or might FSR be better? Or maybe even a very precise microswitch or optosensor with spring loaded trigger flag a bit like Nebbians deployable touch probe http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1517363
Haven't got the rods yet but the post in Bristol is notoriously slow.
Lol no pressure but David mentioned that he's developing a PCB/glass/epoxy effector and carriages and has a piezo version in mind but is waiting on the prototype… better get on with it then
Should get them tomorrow I am sure.
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I've had great success in the past with a tactile switch clipped to the tip of the nozzle, simple, cheap and surprisingly accurate. The disadvantage is convenience and eventually you're guaranteed to forget to take it off before heating the nozzle.
Moriquendi
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I have been following the discussion with great interest and have tried a 27 mm disc with my E3D Lite hotend on my coreXY machine.
I soon discovered that the inner wire soldered position on the disc would be in the way of the top of the E3D so the contact would not be flat.
I tried to move the wire further out to the edge of the active sensor but the mechanical bond was very weak and after a short time the wire came off, bringing with it some of the coating. I tried another position and the same thing happened. I now have a piezo disc with very little coating so I am unable to solder a wire to the piezo surface.While the wire was attached I was able to get good readings by tapping the hotend, without the bowden tube fitted. Pleased with this I drilled a hole in the centre of the disc to clear the bowden connector but this left only a small amount of the piezo in contact with the E3D because of this I could not obtain consistent readings, in fact they seemed quite random.
So:-
1. how have you all resolved the fact that the wired soldered joint is in contact with the E3D? I assume you have the active piezo surface in contact with the hotend as opposed to the brass side.
2. How are you finding such a small area of piezo in contact with the E3D is sufficient to obtain good readings?Any help and advice would be great.
Paul -
So in my design there is a cut out for the solder pad and wire in the rim of the lower part (which clamps around the e3d groove mount). Place the piezo with the side with solder/wires/active element downwards towards the hot end and then sandwich it between the upper and lower parts. I get very normal triggering despite cutting a 5mm hole in the middle, but unless you have a better approach use a spur point wood drill on a wood surface and drill few seconds at a time with plenty of breaks to let heat dissipate.
The trick has been to tune the recess above the piezo and the contact area of the hot end clamp to allow just enough flex in the piezo to get the signal above the noise, but not so much that the nozzle is wobbly. If you set it up with the piezo flat between two surfaces its not sensitive enough, if you have it so that it can bend dramatically, i.e. a very narrow rim to the lower part, you get amazing sensitivity but wobbly nozzle. Its optimising it between the two.
Assuming the rods Doug sent me arrive today, I will see if the latest revision eliminates the residual nozzle wobble enough to consider it the Beta version.
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I like the idea of no moving parts, just a little flex in the system. That might be a good way to reach the compromise between flex and no wobble. Of course, the problem here is that the wobble and the flex go in the same direction, sort of. It would be nice if one was vertical and the other horizontal.
I will have a look at a different effector design that will locate the hot end with a little up flexibility. If we tune it right, we might use the force of the extruder to keep the hot end down against the stops. Can't wait for the Peizo, so I can have a look at the actual forces happening on a hot end.
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Had the same problem with the thin wires pulling off the Piezo. Not solved that problem yet…. As my mount for the hotend allows laterally movement so I used a spacer between the flat part of my e3d and Pieso. This allows space for the wires too. Only problem at the moment is sensitivity but Im pretty sure I can fix this with a design different design for the clamp. Was going to print this but got a clog in my hotend.... so need to strip that down first when I get a chance. Bah!
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Lykle in most ways the nozzle wobble is lateral and comes from the clamp resting against the piezo which is compliant - and the 2 screw fixing system is the line about which it pivots, the triggering force is vertical and is the whole hot end plus clamp pushing up into the piezo. This is why I am keen to test the design with the four rods to slide the clamp up and down on. Or as you said use a version with 4 screws (like the mk I but smaller). Its no problem for the nozzle to move upwards by 0.15mm, its equivalent to having a sprung bed (but only very slightly sprung), its the lateral movement which can cause issues with squashed down first layers which are uneven when the nozzle passes over them on the second layer and curling edges of overhangs etc…
Sakey - If I might be so bold to suggest a strategy start with my mk5 design and try it then tell me where you changed it, if this is feasible. It seems silly to design from the ground up when my version works albeit needs refining to reduce lateral nozzle movement without eliminating vertical (upwards) nozzle movement.
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Not taking anything away from DJ's work, was just trying to mount it into onto a Rostock with a machined mount to hold the hotend already (it seems to lets it slide up and down and then is clamped via 3 points at the top already which is seemed a good platform to start with for a piezo. I wanted to use this with as little modification as possible. My temp spacer is just a nut with a cut out in . Ill post a picture and stl when I re-assemble and get it working somewhat reliably.
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That makes sense, it will be nice if these can be fitted between two existing parts without much change but my experience so far shows they need to be able to flex on probing contact, by an amount (around 0.15mm if my z resulting offset is anything to go by) to trigger clearly above the noise they generate.
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Hmm, if the hot end can slide up and down in the clamp, you might be able to avoid sideways wobble.
Only trouble I see here is tolerances. You have to get it exactly right so that there is no sideways play but just enough space to slide up and down. That will be very hard to achieve with printed parts. So it will have to be post processed.But I like the idea of a sliding hot end, A little like the Auto lift hot ends but then for calibration.
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Well unfortunately the rods Doug sent to me have not appeared, so lost in the post might be the issue, but I have now got some 4mm steel rods (wood screws shanks cut down with a dremel). I am printing a version now with holes for these rods. I intend to bond/heatpress the rods into the top piece, and then hand file the clamp piece so the rods fit and slide. This might be difficult due to the fact that the clamp will have to be tightened around the hot end exactly the right amount or these holes won't line up.
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Okay so this latest version with rods to support the assembly is working extremely well. Almost no nozzle-wobble and calibration deviation at 0.02mm. It seems to be the optimum between sensitivity and nozzle wobble.
If you intend to make something like this, and are not planning to design your own (or if you are making your own, consider downloading this one and perhaps copy the salient features to your design - to save you time) this is the version to make. I am now calling this the beta version.
I have yet to test it with acetal or PTFE rods instead of steel but 4mm smooth steel rods work.
It's now on Thingiverse - http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2069480
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DJ I'll put some more in the post tomorrow mate
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Glad to see it is working so well.
It was a pleasure working on this, even tho it was just a small part. -
That's way too kind Doug, the post is a constant source of irritation.
This version does seem quite solid. I've done one to fit Lykle's (congrats on getting the nimble on sale ordered mine already) effector and the other generic one to bolt onto underside of an effector or carriage.
I might make one up for the corexy (and a new x carriage to fit it to) be nice to try it on a ramps setup for the benefit of the majority who haven't got a duetwifi.
Also along the same lines thinking if I can make it fit a clone hotend bowden with the much larger push fit bowden couplers, might be tricky can't cut a 12mm hole in the Piezo…
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I am really impressed by your works guys!!! great to see such projects.
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Thanks on behalf of all who are contributing, it's been a very encouraging collaboration. 3d printing needs a z probe that's cheap, accurate and reproducible, that minimises the effects of tilt because it has no offsets.
