Best posts made by mitch

Although I own a original duet laser filament monitor (v2) I also have a magnetic sensor on order. I have been playing with the various indirect filament monitor approaches lately with limited success and reliability.

FINALLY, I have something that works reliably:
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:4587312

I have remixed the latest carbon fiber method with lots of tweaks as well as getting rid if the idler assembly and instead killing two birds by using a micro switch as the idler assembly.

The build was much easier than the original.

My test run yielded very reliable results:

9/3/2020, 12:48:32 PM	M591 D0
Duet3D laser filament monitor v2 with switch on pin e0stop, disabled, allow 70% to 130%, check every 3.0mm, version 2, quality 223, brightness 255, shutter 92, measured min 228% avg 247% max 268% over 2450.8mm

M591 D0
Duet3D laser filament monitor v2 with switch on pin e0stop, disabled, allow 70% to 130%, check every 3.0mm, version 2, quality 223, brightness 255, shutter 89, measured min 228% avg 247% max 268% over 2273.6mm

M591 D0
Duet3D laser filament monitor v2 with switch on pin e0stop, disabled, allow 70% to 130%, check every 3.0mm, version 2, quality 223, brightness 255, shutter 88, measured min 229% avg 247% max 267% over 609.2mm

I have also asked DC to include the L parameter into the the M591 command so that we can tune the ratio to normalize the output and he is making the change per v3.2:

M591 D0 P6 C"e0stop" R70:130 L0.4 E3.0 S0

Lnn (firmware 3.2 and later) Calibration factor, default 1.0. The filament movement reported by the laser sensor is multiplied by this value before being compared with the commanded extrusion. Intended for use with sensors that use the laser to read movement of a wheel that is turned by the filament.

I would estimate this indirect setup would L0.4 based on the test runs.

The microswitch has a tuner screw to fine tune the operating distance on the switch by simply turning the set screw.

I am printing on a modified Ender 5 with a direct drive Hemera. I have also included a bracket (orange) to make this a rigid mount to make loading and unloading easier. Right now I just push in the filament and it feeds through pretty easily and provides enough clearance to engage/disengage the hemera tension lever.

The real trick was playing with the different hob gear options. The original used a gear that was just to "slick" and didn't have a concave channel to keep the filament centered and create more friction. I had to move to a Mk3 gear in black to get the best performance.

Added soft power control mods to the hardware section.

Thanks to many on this forum I implemented full soft power control and automatic shutdown of my Duet 2 +Hemera based ender 5 build.

I wanted to capture my install for my own reference but also to anyone who might be attempting to do the same.

The first step was the relay based control of the 24VDC PSU. This mod has been done many times before but it is the first stop towards full soft power control. I have attempted to document that here:
https://www.randoprojects.com/2020/07/26/ender-5-mainboard-upgrade/

The big difference in the other soft power mods I have seen before was the addition of soft power control extended to the microcontroller of the Duet 2. I have attempted to document that approach here:
https://www.randoprojects.com/2020/07/30/duet-2-soft-power-control/

I have a ton of respect for those that have written very clear tutorials. In the process of retro documenting the steps I took I see many ways I could improve the way I documented this modification. I plan to add a video shortly of the finished system operating.

Again, thanks to the forum for helping me get this machine up and running!

I was getting erratic readings with my laser filament monitor. Eventually ordered the mag rotating version. The mag version is still back ordered so I started to experiment with these indirect laser concepts.

https://forum.duet3d.com/topic/18497/indirect-laser-monitor-remix-ii-working

At this point i am really pleased with it to the extent that I am not sure I need the mag version.

It consumes a little time to put it together but in the end I felt I had a monitor that was accurate regardless of the filament I loaded.

Mine was mounted right above a direct drive. I have never seen negative values but the range varied a great deal.

@fcwilt I did mean unshielded. I think my phone's autocorrect must have completed the sentence wrong. That being said, I went back to verify the connection and realized I was actually using two twisted pairs from stranded cat6 cable. With the serial data signals as a pair.

One pin was not completed seated in the connector. I reseated the pin and also dropped the baud rate to the next lower rate. I verified the panel came up but then we got hit by a huge storm and power has been out so unable to retest after the changes.

The 4pin cable does not follow a stepper cable (also using twisted pairs) so I feel I can rule that out.

Ideally it will turn out to be an intermittent connection from that loose pin.

I am brand new to the Duet Eth board and RepRap. I am in the process of getting an ender 5 pro + hemera up and running and I wanted to use this topic to exchange settings with others that may have a similar setup.

What works:

• BL Touch

• Home X and Y

• Fan 0 (Part Cooling Fan)

Not working:

• Z home is VERY slow and it seems to timeout before it even reaches the BL Touch sensor.

• Fans 1 and 2 are no where to be found on the UI

Haven't tested:

• Heaters

• Hemera (E0)

I would like to get the basic homing working before proceeding. Please share your settings and success if you have a similar setup.

I will post a few install images for anyone interested as I was looking around for the same when I was installing.

Here is my G-Code:

; Configuration file for Duet WiFi (firmware version 3)
; executed by the firmware on start-up
;
; generated by RepRapFirmware Configuration Tool v2.1.8 on Sat Feb 01 2020 19:54:19 GMT-0600 (Central Standard Time)

; General preferences
G90                                                    ; send absolute coordinates...
M83                                                    ; ...but relative extruder moves
M550 P"Ender 5 Hemera"                                 ; set printer name
M918 P1 E4 F2000000                                    ; configure direct-connect display

; Network
M552 P0.0.0.0 S1                                       ; enable network and acquire dynamic address via DHCP
M586 P0 S1                                             ; enable HTTP
M586 P1 S0                                             ; disable FTP
M586 P2 S0                                             ; disable Telnet

; Drives
M569 P0 S1                                             ; physical drive 0 goes forwards
M569 P1 S1                                             ; physical drive 1 goes forwards
M569 P2 S0                                             ; physical drive 2 goes backwards
M569 P3 S1                                             ; physical drive 3 goes forwards
M584 X0 Y1 Z2 E3                                       ; set drive mapping
M350 X32 Y32 Z32 I0                                    ; configure microstepping without interpolation
M350 E16 I1                                            ; configure microstepping with interpolation
M92 X160.00 Y160.00 Z800.00 E409.00                    ; set steps per mm
M566 X1200.00 Y1200.00 Z24.00 E300.00                  ; set maximum instantaneous speed changes (mm/min)
M203 X9000.00 Y9000.00 Z180.00 E3600.00                ; set maximum speeds (mm/min)
M201 X500.00 Y500.00 Z100.00 E5000.00                  ; set accelerations (mm/s^2)
M906 X800 Y800 Z800 E800 I50                           ; set motor currents (mA) and motor idle factor in per cent
M84 S30                                                ; Set idle timeout

; Axis Limits
M208 X0 Y0 Z0 S1                                       ; set axis minima
M208 X220 Y220 Z300 S0                                 ; set axis maxima

; Endstops
M574 X1 S1 P"xstop"                                    ; configure active-high endstop for low end on X via pin xstop
M574 Y1 S1 P"ystop"                                    ; configure active-high endstop for low end on Y via pin ystop
M574 Z1 S2                                             ; configure Z-probe endstop for low end on Z

; Z-Probe
M950 S0 C"exp.heater4"                                 ; create servo pin 0 for BLTouch
M558 P9 C"zprobe.in+zprobe.mod" H5 F120 T6000          ; set Z probe type to bltouch and the dive height + speeds
G31 P500 X-43 Y3 Z2.5                                  ; set Z probe trigger value, offset and trigger height
M557 X15:215 Y15:195 S20                               ; define mesh grid

; Heaters
M308 S0 P"bedtemp" Y"thermistor" T100000 B4138         ; configure sensor 0 as thermistor on pin bedtemp
M950 H0 C"bedheat" T0                                  ; create bed heater output on bedheat and map it to sensor 0
M143 H0 S120                                           ; set temperature limit for heater 0 to 120C
M307 H0 B0 S1.00                                       ; disable bang-bang mode for the bed heater and set PWM limit
M140 H0                                                ; map heated bed to heater 0
M308 S1 P"e0temp" Y"thermistor" T100000 B4725 C7.06e-8 ; configure sensor 1 as thermistor on pin e0temp
M950 H1 C"e0heat" T1                                   ; create nozzle heater output on e0heat and map it to sensor 1
M143 H1 S285                                           ; set temperature limit for heater 1 to 285C
M307 H1 B0 S1.00                                       ; disable bang-bang mode for heater  and set PWM limit

; Fans
M950 F0 C"fan0" Q20                                    ; create fan 0 on pin fan0 and set its frequency
M106 P0 S0 H-1                                         ; set fan 0 value. Thermostatic control is turned off
M950 F1 C"fan1" Q20                                    ; create fan 1 on pin fan1 and set its frequency
M106 P1 S1 H1 T45                                      ; set fan 1 value. Thermostatic control is turned on
M950 F2 C"fan2" Q20                                    ; create fan 2 on pin fan2 and set its frequency
M106 P2 S1 H1:0 T45                                    ; set fan 2 value. Thermostatic control is turned on

; Tools
M563 P0 D0 H1 F0                                       ; define tool 0
G10 P0 X0 Y0 Z0                                        ; set tool 0 axis offsets
G10 P0 R0 S0                                           ; set initial tool 0 active and standby temperatures to 0C

; Custom settings are not defined

@dc42

Thanks, Sorry, I went from 3.1.1 straight to 3.2 RC2 and I missed that note back in beta 3.

if sensors.filamentMonitors[0].status  =  "noFilament"

Image of the carbon fiber shaft.

Image of the mounted PCB

I am thinking perhaps a hobbed version of the shaft pulley would be better such as this one:
https://amzn.to/2Ed1Qez

Instead of the idler pulley this type of microswitch has a short lever arm and more pressure is required. This could serve as both the idler pulley and the filament out microswitch:
https://amzn.to/3asXKeB

Another option would be to sandwich the filament between two hobbed pulleys that are connected by a gear:
https://amzn.to/3iMtoXn

Trying to decide if/when to give up on the laser and go to the hall effect style rotating sensor. Thoughts?

After I made a "super" cable I no longer have issues. The documents say that a shielded cable is not necessary. After the firmware update to both the Duet and the PanelDue for 3.1.1 I had to use an old USB cable to resolve it. I never bothered to try old FW as I needed to get back up and running.

I had been playing around with some macros by @Kolbi. After much tweaking I adapted the approach and thought I might share it with the board:

I created a start macro that will create custom heightmaps based on the slicer specified bed temp and attempt to load a heightmap if one already exists. Separating the heightmap logic from the DWC filament config has really simplified my slicer start code as well as my filament configuration files.

The resulting heightmaps are stored with the temp as the leading value in the filename so they are grouped together in the system directory and easy to delete or see what I have available:

70.0C_heightmap.csv
80.0C_heightmap.csv

Slicer Start Script (simplify3D):

; Simplify3D Start G-Code

; Set nozzle and bed to the specific temperatures declared within this slicer
M140 S[bed0_temperature]                         ; set bed temp
M104 S[extruder0_temperature]                 ; set extruder temp

; Home Bedlevel and primeline
M98 P"0:/sys/primeLine.g"                          ; primeline macro

• The slicer start code warms the system to a desired bed and extruder temp
• The primeline.g script is called
• the script looks for a heightmap for that given temp
• If a heightmap is found then it prints with it, if not, then it creates one

Just that simple.

/sys/primeline.g

; 0:/sys/primeline.g
; Home axes, wait for temps, create heightmap, and wipe a primeline
 
; Determine if we need to Home first or not
if !move.axes[0].homed || !move.axes[1].homed || !move.axes[2].homed
    G28		                                               ; Home all axes

G90                                                        ; Absolute Positioning.
G1 Z50 F1000                                               ; [BLTouch] Last chance to check nozzle cleanliness.

G29 S1 [P{"0:/sys/" ^ heat.heaters[0].active ^ "C_heightmap.csv"}] ; Load bed mesh for the slicer set bed temp.
if result > 1                                             ; If the file doesn't exist, perform mesh and save.
   M291 P{"Creating a height map for the bed temp of " ^ heat.heaters[0].active ^ "C."} T10
   M116                                                   ; Wait for temps
   G29                                                    ; Perform mesh now.
   G29 S3 [P{"0:/sys/" ^ heat.heaters[0].active ^ "C_heightmap.csv"}] ; Save heightmap.csv based on commanded temp

M400                                                       ; Finish all moves, clear the buffer.
M83                                                        ; Extruder relative mode.
M116                                                       ; Wait for temps

; Charge! tune
M98 P/macros/Tunes/Charge!.g	

G1 Z3.0 F3000                                             ; move z up little to prevent scratching of surface
G1 X0.1 Y20 Z0.3 F5000.0                                  ; move to start-line position

M117 "Printing Wipe Line"
G1 X0.1 Y200.0 Z0.3 F1500.0 E15                           ; draw 1st line
G1 X0.4 Y200.0 Z0.3 F5000.0                               ; move to side a little
G1 X0.4 Y20 Z0.3 F1500.0 E30                              ; draw 2nd line

G92 E0                                                    ; reset extruder
G1 Z3.0 F1500                                             ; move z up little to prevent scratching of surface
M400                                                      ; finish all moves

M117 "Printing"

@dc42 I know you are not a big fan of firmware changes and most of the time an alternate approach is appropriate but this is an instance that I think may be applicable to a firmware change.

As I have been experimenting with indirect laser filament sensor concepts it became clear that leveraging the L parameter reserved for rotating mag sensors is actually also applicable to the Laser sensor.

Additional parameters for Duet3D rotating magnet filament monitor

Lnn Filament movement per complete rotation of the sense wheel, in mm

If the L parameter were to be extended to the Laser (types 5 and 6) sensors then the community could tune various indirect laser sensor solutions just as we are with the mag rotating sensor.

Pnn Type of sensor:
0=none
1=simple sensor (high signal when filament present)
2=simple sensor (low signal when filament present)
3=Duet3D rotating magnet sensor
4=Duet3D rotating magnet sensor with microswitch
5 = Duet3D laser sensor
6 = Duet3D laser sensor with microswitch
7 = pulse-generating sensor

As most of the time you guys developing are pretty clever I tried to use the L parameter with my type P6 and P5 sensors just to see if you already allow this type of config. No dice. It was ignored.

Would it be difficult to extend the L parameter in the M591 logic to include P5 and P6 sensors to allow for tuning when used in an indirect configuration?

Thanks

Another reference. I rewired my ender 5 pro for duet2:

Here is my wiring diagram using Cat6 cables and the original Z axis wiring.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IE73tfQX7RgpArzxZJwyxEA-VIYsMFzE/view

I did add a BLtouch as well. My config is at the bottom:
https://www.randoprojects.com/2020/07/26/ender-5-mainboard-upgrade/

The current status window under the sensor summary shows the status of my Z probe sensor but not the Filament Sensor (I use laser version).

With some filaments the calibration is different and it would be helpful to be able to monitor how the sensor is behaving periodically.

Can the filament sensor data be summarized in the sensor section of the status window on the next DWC update or added to the queue of requests?

@Kolbi That is why I like this forum so much. Lots of quick responses and several ways to skin the cat. I think I am going to go with the file loaded as it seems to be the easiest way to solve this one.

Although, this is really all your fault because the macros you have on your github sparked the inspiration to dig into some of this.

BLtouch assisted bed leveling macro:
The next idea I had was to look at a way to make a BLtouch bed leveling assistant macro. The idea would be to have the bltouch probe go to each leveling point so the user just adjusts the bed level slowly until the BL touch activates. I figure doing this in 3 or 4 passes to include the center point should make it a much shorter process that the trial and error of leveling and re-running the entire G29 to figure out where you want to tweak and re-run.

Thanks for the help.

Like many others I have the magnetic filament monitor on backorder. I currently use a laser filament monitor with the micro-switch option so my macros can detect filament presence.

I would like to keep the static switch feature with the new magnetic monitor. The enclosure isn't really designed for FDM printing.
https://github.com/T3P3/FilamentMonitors/tree/master/Filament_Monitor_Magnetic_v1.7/enclosure

Any chance a version of the enclosure is in the works that would include a microswitch? Perhaps a FDM add on above the feed mechanism?

The following OMRON switches are very small, easy to find, very little actuation distance and make for a good candidate switch:
https://www.arrow.com/en/products/d2fl2/omron?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4KjHi6CC7AIVCNbACh0zWQ6lEAYYASABEgJMHfD_BwE

@makemerush No problem. The orange part is that limit switch which is was specifically chosen because of it's activation distance as well as the tension it provides. Essentially this is killing two birds with one stone. The switch acts as an idler assembly to provide tension against the hob and at the same time also acts as a switch to statically detect filament presence.

The switch can be purchased here:
https://amzn.to/2SkgX9U

The switch is attached to the switch assembly with a single screw so it can pivot. The hole on the top side of the switch assemble is used so you can insert a screw to increase or decrease tension and activation distance to tweak your setup. The screw just pushes the switch tighter against the hob.

The second thing that may not be obvious. Is the mount. I got great results once I used a rigid mount. You don't want this flopping around and only held on by the tube. I hope that helps.

BTW, with the new firmware beta released the L parameter can be used in the config.g to normalize the results between 0-100%.