RepRap: Blog

In the photo below you can see that the new Pantograph Driver is a wee bit too long to fit on the V0.04 XY Table framework, and there's a bit of a gap. I think it would be wise at this point to draw a line under V0.04 because it's going to start to get incompatible with V0.05 printed hardware pretty soon. Not entirely sure what V0.05 will look like yet, which is why it's a selection of Metriccano holes, but the general form is coming together.

As well as the length issue, that thin, green connection between the XY Table and the Y axis can't continue to be flexible, and once I make that rigid V0.04 Axis Drivers won't work so well. I'm also going to redesign the XY flexures so that the axis pairs are crosslinked to reduce rotation - no guarantees that things will still fit the old frame after that. On the plus side I'm going to be more enthusiastic with the captive nuts, so it won't be a pain in the armpit to assemble.

I'm not anticipating any changes in the required software or electronics. Indeed, using off-the-shelf controller systems is part of the ethos behind this project. Some tweaks to the GRBL config will be required for the increased range of motion though, and I suspect I'll be able to drive the X & Y axes somewhat faster in V0.05 so the max. speed config items will change too.

If anyone - and I know there are about 12 of you - out there would like me to do anything with V0.04 before I draw the line, now would be a good time to speak up :)

All that said, I'll keep compatibility with V0.04 hardware as long as I can, because I have other deposition experiments to do that I'd like to get on with before V0.05 is finalised. They really need the extended range of motion that V0.05 will bring to the table (ahah) though.

I'm going under the knife tomorrow, so I'll give you until I get out of hospital to make your peace with V0.04  - I'll properly tag it in github if/when everyone is happy.