Send g-code directly to reprap

Hi All,

I just recently acquired the parts and assembled 98% (theres a few loose ends to tie up) of a mendel reprap that will uses gen 3 electronics and makerbot mk5 plastruder components with a bowden type feed system. I fired it up and drove the axes around using replicatorG just this evening.

I would also would like to write up some code to drive the reprap for some specialized applications that I have in mind for down the road, but sending g-codes through the serial connection manually doesn't seem to work. I've tried using the arduino software console (with and without CR appended at the end) and also tried it using Matlab to send the serial g-codes to the motherboard. In both cases, the motherboard debug light switches from the slow steady blink to 4 blinks with a pause in-between.

So, does anybody have an idea of what the correct way to format and send the g-code manually is, or what I'm missing? Also does anybody have a table of what the different debug light blink codes mean?

maybe wrong baud rate? any method of sending valid gcodes should work fine.

I successfully use

stty raw ignbrk BAUDRATE < /dev/ttyUSB0
( cat <&3 & cat >&3; kill %%) 3<>/dev/ttyUSB0

for debugging

---

-----------------------------------------------
Wooden Mendel
Teacup Firmware

You have send.py bundled with skeinforge.
Or send-gcode.exe here: [forums.reprap.org]
Of course you could also open any gcode file in your RepRap host software of choice and send it to the printer. Not command line though.

---

--
-Nudel
Blog with RepRap Comic

Nudel, Triffid_Hunter, thanks for your replies.

I'll give the send-gcode.exe a try (not sure why that thread didn't come up in my search).

Also, you're right. I guess I don't need to reinvent the wheel. If I just generate a custom g-code file and send it through a host software it's the same result. Thanks for your thoughts!