Question: Something I was thinking about for the hot tip.

How practical would it be if I used a micro servo at the hot end that when the filament is retracted a slicer goes forward to stop the flow and when the filament is pushed forward the micro servo would open the slicer?

It could work. The challeng would be in bringing the head up from the surface of the print fast enough that the slicer does not hit the print. Not easy to do with lead screws as the most common from of motion in the Z-axis. I also think that there would be a tendency for plastic bits to build up at the edge that slices. These bits will inevitably make thier way onto the print if not dealt with.

Yes, but would it help any if done right? It is easy enough to know when the head lifts up to slap the slicer and I would assume easy enough to add a g code command to do slice and not slice. I program (C++/ASM) but I have never once looked at g-code to know its capabilities.

So, I just wonder if a slicer would change anything if done right?

It would be very useful for dual-head extrusion, as one head always oozes while the other is printing. Single head extrusion oozing is pretty much solved by retraction.

Problem is that you can't have anything extending below the nozzle, otherwise it will hit the print.

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Yes, I see that as a problem because a dual head will continue to print and never lift the head so the cutter has no where to go. The only way I could see it working is to have a retract/extend Z1/Z2 (head1/head2) system where we print Z1. Z2 is being retracted as is its filament as the slicer extended ever so slightly and closes Z2's opening. When it is time to switch back to Z2 for printing we do all that we did for Z2 but this time it is Z1 and we move Z2 down with the filament beginning its downward travel and the slider has opened and ever so slightly retracted up.

I seriously think it can be done with micro servos (they are really tiny and very precise plus $2.72 each with free shipping). Use a resistor to drop the voltage as they want 6 volts but will work from 3v-7.2v

The main kicker would be new G-Code would need to be implemented and a way to vacuum the blobs of plastic that will surely come along for the ride.

Would be an interesting experiment for someone but just an idea I was kicking around.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/17/2012 01:25AM by Dark Alchemist.