Tri-Polar Bot Concept -- Meet Wally

Can't wait !

Good new: Wally prints!

I might throw some stl's up tonight or tomorrow but I won't be able to do a full release for awhile. Getting Wally ready for the Maker Faire, fixing what TSA broke, and debugging firmware has stolen all my extra time. I want to do the release right. However, if someone is just itching to start printing then I don't want to hold you back.

Wally is a big hit at the fair. My software leveling and arc compensation is working brilliantly. I am getting tons of attention. Wally rocks steady.

Whoo Hoo! Wally is alive! First print in the booth at the Maker Faire

Congratulations on making it to the Faire with both Wally and Simpson printing, and a nice looking Morgan is there too.

Get a several minute long video of each printing before the crowds show up tomorrow if you can. That would be epic to share.

Wally, Simpson, Morgan and Nick do NYC (really queens) Maker Faire NYC 2013









Wally was working on print number three!!!

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 09/22/2013 12:15PM by cozmicray.

nicholas.seward Wrote:
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> Good new: Wally
> prints!
>
> I might throw some stl's up tonight or tomorrow
> but I won't be able to do a full release for
> awhile.

Release early and often!

...drop the STLs into github, and you can update them later.

> Wally is a big hit at the fair. My software
> leveling and arc compensation is working
> brilliantly. I am getting tons of attention.
> Wally rocks steady.

No surprise there, the designs are awesome!

CONGRATS! Wish I could be there...

My booth got the "Educator's Choice Award" at the NY Maker Faire 2013.

I haven't really had time to put the files together. I was busy doing things like getting Wally printing for the first time. However, I am attaching a zip file for the brave. If you can wait I will post the design on Thingiverse this week along with assembly instruction. (I would highly suggest that. I just threw some files together in a few spare moments I had so no telling what I attached.)

Here is a walk around of Wally during a print.

Congratulations on the Educator's Choice Award. Your booth is showing three different ways to do 3D printers that most folks have not seen before this.

I like the steady Wally video walk-about. Very clear.

I understand the fan on the part being printed, but I was curious as to why one was needed on the extruder cold end? I would not think the stepper would get that hot on a slow print. Of course, unlike servo motors, steppers dissipate max power just sitting there doing nothing. Hmmm, small stepper on a worm drive with current reduction between steps?

Congratulations as well! Wally, Simpson, and Morgan looked like they had a huge turnout.

If you don't mind my asking, what is the reason for using a basalt bed? You may have covered this in this thread, but I've somehow missed it.

Shane

Basalt has the same print adhesion properties that glass has but doesn't have to be tempered after it is water jet cut. Basalt might not make it to production but it looks awesome on the betas.

I don't think anyone will be surprised about the award. Well done.

nicholas.seward Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Basalt has the same print adhesion properties that
> glass has but doesn't have to be tempered after it
> is water jet cut. Basalt might not make it to
> production but it looks awesome on the betas.


Ah, I thought maybe you needed a heavy weight for the print stage for some reason. I guess not.

Shane

see3d Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I understand the fan on the part being printed,
> but I was curious as to why one was needed on the
> extruder cold end? I would not think the stepper
> would get that hot on a slow print. Of course,
> unlike servo motors, steppers dissipate max power
> just sitting there doing nothing. Hmmm, small
> stepper on a worm drive with current reduction
> between steps?

All of our printers were suffering very badly from the grit that was blowing around the area on Saturday. I think it was increasing friction in the Bowden tube, and I know that it was clogging the nozzles. We didn't put a meter on Wally's extruder driver, but it was well beyond the current rating for that motor, and without active cooling it wouldn't have survived. At one point it appeared that the drive gear was hot enough to begin melting the filament.

Repeated un-clogging operations and oiling the filament made it just barely possible to print with the hotend at 210-215. The dark spots that you can see in the print are either accumulated dust flushing out of the nozzle or places where the filament burned, we couldn't tell. . .

From the lessons learned category - if you have to print outside, put the filament in a box to keep the spool from getting all gritty, and add a wiper to keep the crud out of the machine (we did that, but only after things were already getting bad). I'm leaning towards a geared extruder rather than direct-drive, but I also ordered some big Kysans for further direct-drive testing, I think the mid-size NEMA 17s are just too small.

@sgraber - The additional weight is very helpful when you're carrying the printers around. . . no, wait, "helpful" isn't the right word, I think that would be "annoying" But the basalt does look really cool, especially with the laser engraving, and the crosshairs effect makes it easier to get Simpson's endstops set correctly. That said, if I were building one from scratch I'd definitely use a round mirror. . .

Fan on extruder?
I was there -- it was hot in packed tent,
direct drive cold end (hobbed gear on stepper motor shaft)
long bowden tube
the fan in back cooled the extruder motor
Some tweeks to driver, hobbed gear and printing INSIDE -- no problem
If it is there is a geared drive --- or even a non-bowden set up

SyFy Dvice Article

Pretty sweet. Wally is getting a lot of love. I had an educational company talk to me about using Wally for their product line.

On the technical side, I think the KickStarter version will be belt driven. It will cost about $20 more but will be more friendly to a classroom.

respect, you have managed to do what thousands reprappers and engeeneers didnt, 3d printed 3d printer.

Oh dear, the article attributes you as the creator of the Morgan.

Yeah. I let them know and Quentin let them know but no love yet.

Any idea how soon you'll release the source files and the BOM for Wally? I'm really itching to print one. Yep, I know files were released in an earlier post, but I've held off doing anything with them since it was mentioned everything will be released this week.

I'll reiterate yet again: Wally is definitely cool and cudos on the Makerfaire award!

I am combing through the design to make sure it is all end user friendly. I should have a basic release this week. My wife will be putting together instructions similar to LEGO manuals and it should be done by the end of next week.

Great! Will this version be the one with the fishing line or the belt? I seem to recall you mentioning a belted version?

Shane

The official RepRap version will be string drive. The official ConceptFORGE version will be belt drive. Both will be GPL so you can make either one. I think the string drive is more in line with the RepRap goals. (You will have to wait a month or so before I publish the belt version.)

I'm curious what rewards you will put on the Kickstarter campaign. I pledged for a couple of projects and almost all had key chains, t shirts, and signed / personalised rewards.
Make sure you know how the pledge system works because you can't edit or delete rewards after someone has pledged on them.

I haven't thought about all the levels yet. I will pour over all the successful and unsuccessful campaigns to see what works and what doesn't. I love geeky tshirts so that will be a low level reward for sure.

I really like that there will be both string and belt designs. I would guess that a belt design would be a bit more rugged and easier to build, which would be better in schools. String or belt would work for RepRappers, since neither string nor belts are printed. I would expect that a well calibrated Wally should be able to print an accurate large belt pulley, but the small one on the motors might need to be metal?

+1 for both the string/belt drive and the tshirt idea for the KS. I'll definitely fund.

Quick note: I am already sourcing the small pulleys. However, the large pulley needs no teeth. I am going to use a strip of belt stock and have a tensioner on the large printed pulley. I could use a loop with a clothespin tensioner but I think I may want more than that. I am not sure what the small pulleys will add to the design but the belt for both sides will cost around $5.

Wouldn't the pitch be a mismatch between an outside and inside curved belt since there would be a different radius being followed by each belt's continuous smooth surface?

EDIT: I misunderstood the idea to mean using a piece of belt backwards around the large pulley to create teeth. I see now that was not the intent. Since the pulley rotates less than 180 degrees, all it needs is an attachment point to work. Yes, I like this!

nicholas.seward Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I am going to use a strip of belt stock and have a tensioner on the large printed pulley.

see3d Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> EDIT: I misunderstood the idea to mean using a
> piece of belt backwards around the large pulley to
> create teeth. I see now that was not the intent.
> Since the pulley rotates less than 180 degrees,
> all it needs is an attachment point to work. Yes,
> I like this!

I feel better now - I had thought the same thing, and I've actually seen Wally print so I know that the arms don't have to make a full rotation!

My question is what kind of belt. As it happens I have pulleys for both XL (leftovers from Printrbot) and GT2 (since they get included in the reprapdiscount kits and I don't need them). I suppose it probably doesn't matter for scratchbuilding, it'll just be a matter of making sure the calibration numbers are appropriate. Or I'll just use filament drive since those parts are going to be ready for printing sooner. . .

I think string makes sense for Simpson, where it's essential to the existence of the machine, but for Wally people will look at it and say "Why did you use string?"
But one concern--how small can the motor belt pulley be? If too large, perhaps the big pulley will have to be enlarged too to make for a good ratio? And if so, perhaps one arm's motor and pulley need to be raised above the other's, so the big pulleys don't interfere in part of the build area?
Dave