MeDucer controller not working

[Elder1]

I have very recently received a MeDucer. I have been trying to make it work with the supplied as well as the latest version of Repetier. When not connected to the computer when power is switched on the steppers lock with full power but the LCD stays illuminated with two full black lines and two blank lines, between each other. It stays that way until turned off. When connected to the computer (Win 7, Bulldozer CPU with 32 gig ram running 4 ghz) the Repetier software says it is connected but the display stays the same except the steppers are unlocked. Nothing else happens. I could just use my 4 channel controller for my CNC mill but it is large and bulky and it is required for the mill. I have inspected all the wiring and the PWBs and see no obvious faults. Power is good. USB is good. Fans run. Display illuminates but does not change.

I should point out I know a lot about CNC and am a retired mechanical/electrical/computer science engineer. I have designed and built a lot of systems including a CNC milling machine. Some of my work can be seen at http://ixian.ca/gallery

I suspect something has a hard failure.

Any ideas?

[zhangxueyou]

There are 2 reasons may cause LCD displaying only 2 rows of blocks:
1. One of the LCD cable is not well plugged.
2. The firmware was not completely uploaded to mainboard.

[Elder1]

The cables are all properly plugged in. I suspect that there may be a firmware issue. That could be a simple fix or it could be a permanent problem in the Atmega memory. Where can I download the firmware? What app do I require to try a rewrite of the firmware? While I have a lot of experience in other systems I am not familiar with these.

[zhangxueyou]

The firmware has been sent to your email, you can refer to this page to upload it:
http://www.geeetech.com/forum/viewtopic ... 20&t=16433

[Elder1]

Thank you. I will try that tomorrow. It is now 睡觉时间

[zhangxueyou]

您可以讲中文。

[Elder1]

Just a little bit. I speak some of many languages and a lot of about five. Good night from Canada.

[Elder1]

I am not finding what looks like the correct firmware for this board. The board is labelled Sanguinololu Rev 1.3a The Chip is Atmega 1284p
What folder contains the correct firmware?

[Elder1]

Sorry to misunderstand. I see that you attached the firmware to an e-mail so that is what I need. I will report when I test it.

[Elder1]

I have finished the uploading and now have a correct display on the LCD. It is now late at night and I will try the machine tomorrow. Thank you for your help so far. I hope I can make it work but there are other issues that I must still correct. Those I can do but will take some machining work to fix in this one case. I don't think the problems I have are usual for this machine. I will not go into details here but I am sure you know what I am referring to. If I find anything else that I cannot make work I will contact you again. I have ordered another 3D printer just in case I cannot make this work the way I want.

I would strongly suggest you use a different material for the Z axis stepper mount plate, either aluminum or PET-G or polycarbonate. Acrylic is very easy to shatter under twisting loads. It also breaks very easily when screws are slightly overtightened. This machine will be very easy to damage if dropped even a centimetre or two. It is a very nice looking machine but will require a lot of care when being moved in a portable fashion. Also, the home switches should be mounted so that they are spring loaded. This will prevent damage to the switches if they are pressed too hard due to misadjustment of the switch actuator.

The linear bearings need to have a slight preload fit to the round rod ways. The proper specification for such ways on rolling ball linear bearings is -0.0 to a very slight amount over the minimum spec inner diameter (ID) of the bearings. In no case should the rod ways be smaller than the minimum (ID) size spec for the bearings. Due to the possibility of specification stacking any deviation toward large on the bearings ID and small on the ways OD will produce very loose linear bearings. Personally, I would prefer the use of Rulon AR as the linear bearing material. It is good to high temperatures and is very chemically inert.

I used PTFE as the linear bearings on my milling machine and it has worked extremely well for years. That machine has sufficient accuracy to create diffraction gratings with a minimum step size equal to the wavelength of red light. It is able to engrave on the head of a pin. I will most likely replace the bearings on the Me Ducer with Rulon.