Ramps LCD is weird then the print stops

This is the third of my custom build and it is one that has me stumped.

The print starts out fine, screen works great, then randomly throughout the prints the LCD will display some random text(I've attached a pic). Shortly after the print stops.

The firmware is the same I run on my other two machines(with the exception of autotune values) and they work great.

I first assumed it was thermal shutdown, so I reset the pots on the ramps and they are all running under .3-.4V with nothing getting hot. I then starting replacing electronics ie Ramps/Arduino and the problem persists. The only thing left is to replace the LCD, but I'm not sure that is the issue.

Has anyone had any similar issues? I've tried searching around with no luck.

Thanks

It might be the 5v regulator overheating . . . the LCD puts an extra draw on it that some Arduino's can't handle long term. Otherwise, and overheat on a driver would not cause this - the Arduino gets no signal back from the drivers to even know that they are hot . . .

- Tim

If that was the case then it should of been fixed when I swapped over to a new arduino/ramps board, but the problem persisted.

This is a known problem with these LCD's, and the general feeling is that the ribbon connector between the arduino and the LCD is too long - too close to motors - too susceptible to electro-magnetic interference - and that's what causes this garbage to appear. Try to keep your wires as short as possible and try not to route them near any of your motors.

Most of the times that this occurred to me, I was able to restore the LCD by popping the SD card out and then back in - of course if you're printing from the SD card, that's not an option.

The only thing that concerns me about your story is the statement that the print stops. The LCD is an output-only device. It should not interfere with a print job. In my case, it never did. I never got any meaningful information from the display, but the prints always succeeded. If your print job is stopping, there may be something else at play here.

The ribbons I'm using are the stock ones that come with the LCD, and I did try swapping them out for another pair with no improvement. The closest motor is at least 8 inches away, so I'm sure I'm not getting any interference from it.

Well, I guess I will try and replace the LCD and hope it helps.

I suspect it is the 5V regulator overheating, as Tim suggested. This is a common issue with Arduino/RAMPS when you add a 12864 LCD.

---

Large delta printer [miscsolutions.wordpress.com], E3D tool changer, Robotdigg SCARA printer, Crane Quad and Ormerod

Disclosure: I design Duet electronics and work on RepRapFirmware, [duet3d.com].

I'm only using the 2004 LCD, not the 12864 LCD.

Replaced the 2004 LCD with a 12864 and the screen has stops going weird.

But the stopping issue still persists. I've checked for loose wires, bad soldering on boards, nothing helps. The problem is completely random.

I went through the wiring and can't find anything wrong. I've testing the 5v regulator seperately, and it is supplying 5v. How do you test if the regulator is getting to hot? if it is, how do you cool it. I currently run a 80 mm fan blower on both boards. The extra heatsinks I have are to large to fit between the two boards.

Trying to figure my issue out, I did a couple dry runs and the controller seems to either freeze or reset.

I'm at a lose of what to check now.