Printrbot Talk Forum

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jun-Wed-16-Jun

http://www.xilka.com/printrbot/marlin/1.1.8/20171227a/

20171227:
Bumped to Marlin 1.1.8.
This version enables LINEAR_ADVANCE for much improved high speed printing. Slic3r Prusa Edition 1.38.5 supports this nicely. There is a "Printrbot Simple.ini" in the directory that works with Slic3r PE 1.38.5.

20171013:
Bumped to Marlin 1.1.6.

20170918:
Bumped to Marlin 1.1.5.

20170707:
Fixed the led code, it now works. If you are using a camera, you will get much better results with the led strip mounted at the camera rather than by the hotend. This allows you to run "lights-out" and monitor/timelapse through OctoPrint.

Great strides have been made in Marlin firmware over the years, unfortunately for most the code is a quilt-work of patches and very difficult to enhance. That is probably why there have been so many forks that did something interesting and then fell by the wayside as the patches became tedious to roll back into newer versions.

I have been enhancing/patching the latest Marlin for over a year to allow me to use the latest versions in conjunction with new features of Marlin and the PrintrBot Simple.

The code:

Minimum requirements:

Firmwares are available here (32 builds to handle the various options):

20170621:
Fixed wrong z-rod calculation for those with 8mm 4-start zrods

Code: Select all: PrintrBot Simple Firmware legend: extruder: | |- extold - the original simple extruder |- extgh - the gearhead extruder z-axis height: | |- origz - the original simple z height |- superz - the super-z upgrade x-axis width: | |- origx - the original simple z width |- xupg - the x upgrade z-rod type: | |- quarter - the original simple quarter inch z lead-screw |- fs8 - the 8mm four-start z lead-screw pulley teeth: 20t - the original simple 20 tooth pulleys 16t - converted to 16 tooth pulleys

**Sponsor**

by **PxT** » 2017-Jun-Mon-17-Jun

Nice work. Where can we find the source code for these changes? The terms of the Marlin license (GPL) require you to post source & not just binary blobs, so that others can build on your work.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jun-Mon-20-Jun

PxT wrote:Nice work. Where can we find the source code for these changes? The terms of the Marlin license (GPL) require you to post source & not just binary blobs, so that others can build on your work.

Glad you like the work. Of course I'm happy to post the source changes. I am a BIG open source fan. FYI, actually the GPL only requires source code "on request" from users of the code. I was actually waiting for someone to find the code interesting enough to ask.

http://www.xilka.com/printrbot/marlin/1 ... 0615.patch

NOTE: the 20170615 specs a 150x150x150 build size, this is so I have a "negative" Y area to extrude a primer strip ala Prusa's I3 firmware. This in fact allows me to slice a file that is compatible with Prusa I3's. As long as my desired platform size is small enough for the Simple build platform, I slice it for the PrintrBot and use it on either machine. There is a Slic3r compatible init file in the patch. I'll also put the ini file in the distribution tree so people have it for the binaries.

Apply the patch to clean Marlin 1.1.3. Look at build-printrbot.sh, Makefile and PrintrBotConfig.h to see how I build the various versions on Linux.

by **DavidYon47** » 2017-Jun-Tue-20-Jun

Can you summarize some of the advantages of using a more up-to-date Marlin build over what Printrbot ships with an F6 board?

I presume some of the things you list as supported are items you had to re-merge into the mainline Marlin (the LED's, improved Z rod, X/Z upgrades, etc). It also seems like that some of these were simply a matter of #defining the proper defaults (like the correct stepper values for the Z-rod, correct X-axis dimension, etc). Not to minimize the amount of work you've done, maintaining such a... ummm... "mature" code base is not for the faint of heart, and it's often the seemingly simple things that prove the most vexing (30-year Software Veteran speaking).

I'm all for having better firmware and therefore better prints. If the G2 board supported a heated bed it might have crossed over my pain/gain threshold, for example. And the stock firmware in my F6 board is noticeably smoother than what was in my old D board from 2013, so having the D's USB connector finally implode was a blessing in addition to a hassle.

Giving up the LCD will be painful. I do plan on building one of those Pi-with-touchscreen OctoPrint setups to put on the printer, so that will probably alleviate some of that pain. But that won't be on my radar for awhile.

by **PxT** » 2017-Jun-Tue-21-Jun

cbxbiker61 wrote: FYI, actually the GPL only requires source code "on request" from users of the code. I was actually waiting for someone to find the code interesting enough to ask.

I think you may have that backwards - if you post the binaries you have to also post the source or a written offer to provide the source. The words "on request" don't appear in the GPLv3, FWIW. In any case, licenses are confusing and I'm certainly not trying to be an a**hole about it. Usually it's just easier to post everything on GitHub and be done with it.

In any case, thanks for posting your patch I actually do want to look over it. Have you tried compiling the latest Marlin straight out of the box? I last tried it a month or so ago and it was pretty painless - just a few tweaks in Configuration.h to get it configured for my machine. Curious how your changes differ…

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jun-Wed-03-Jun

20170621:
Fixed wrong z-rod calculation for those with 8mm 4-start zrods

http://www.xilka.com/printrbot/marlin/1.1.3/20170621/

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jun-Wed-03-Jun

Github is great for certain cases. In this case, a patch actually makes it more obvious what has been changed.

by **DavidYon47** » 2017-Jun-Sun-15-Jun

Could you provide a legend to decode your file naming? I'm not sure which firmware I really want. My current setup is:

Simple Metal
Four-stop Z-rod (not Super-Z)
Gearhead V2 Extruder
Heated Bed (normal size, not extended Z)
LED Strip
Ubis 13S

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jun-Sun-21-Jun

OK, I put a legend in post #1

Unless you have changed to 16t pulleys, you would want:
extgh-origz-origx-fs8-20t.hex

It's a pre-req for the UBIs 13S and heated bed, so those are not options.

The led should be wired exactly as described in the guide. FYI, I pulled in an external library to handle the RGBA leds, and I haven't actually tested it yet, we'll just have to see if it works. I will have RGBA leds this week so I'll have something to test with.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jun-Sun-22-Jun

Also keep in mind that I use the Marlin standard M851 to set the probe offset rather than the old PrintrBot gcode (can't remember what it was, it's been a long time since I had a stock firmware installed).

by **DavidYon47** » 2017-Jun-Mon-08-Jun

Yay, I guessed right. Thanks for posting the legend. Most of it was fairly obvious, though I had no idea what the stock tooth count is (had to Google that), guessed that "fs8" meant Four Stop 8mm, and had no idea what "gh" meant. I figured it was more likely the right thing than something labelled "old".

I also noticed the M851 command from the M501 report, so immediately switched to that when I had to recalibrate Z. One thing that would be nice for your build is to allow a positive Z offset rather than -1.5 -> 0.0mm, as sometimes the overshoot on the probe nuts is in the opposite direction. When Googling the problem I saw it's a simple #define in the code, though I don't know whether there are undesired side-effects by allowing a positive Z offset.

I really like the improved Z-homing, and the four-point bed leveling whether the Z-stop is tested several times to help average out the inconsistencies.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jun-Mon-12-Jun

David,

There's actually a reason why I didn't allow a positive Z axis offset and it's probably better to leave it as it is. If your probe is set too high, i.e. such that it requires a positive Z axis adjustment, the hot-end would touch down during probing which is something we don't want. In that case physically adjusting the inductive probe to a "normal" height with the original black 1mm acrylic test shim would be called for.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jun-Mon-12-Jun

Something you may want to try out when you get a chance is the M420 (set z fade height) followed by M500 to write it to EEPROM. I have mine set to 3mm. The advantage to setting a z fade height is that bed leveling is tapered off as it move to the z fade height at which point it is totally disabled. The main perks with this are that the lead screw isn't constantly making z height adjustments on each layer and you save cpu cycles, which should improve the print smoothness of curves (faster and lack of stuttering on short radius curves).

by **DavidYon47** » 2017-Jun-Mon-22-Jun

Cool on the Z-fade, had no idea what that was. The other thing I have to play with more seriously at some point is firmware retraction.

Though it may be hard to tell how much the Z-fade will buy me. Over the winter I did a fine-tuning pass shimming the bed, and when I was manually checking Z probing, the four corners of the bed were within 0.1mm of each other when I was done. Even when the extruder makes a long diagonal pass across the bed, there is only barely perceptible movement of the Z-coupling (like less than 5 degrees).

That said, it's worth a try when I have the time to go into fiddle/fine-tuning mode. I had my hands full just getting the fan shroud situation back to where it used to be.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jul-Wed-02-Jul

Bumped version to 1.1.4-20170704.

http://www.xilka.com/printrbot/marlin/1.1.4/20170704/

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jul-Fri-22-Jul

http://www.xilka.com/printrbot/marlin/1.1.4/20170707/

20170707:
Fixed the led code, it now works. If you are using a camera, you will get much better results with the led strip mounted at the camera rather than by the hotend. This allows you to run "lights-out" and monitor/timelapse through OctoPrint.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jul-Fri-22-Jul

BTW, you will get better results at fine print resolutions (0.05, 0.1, 0.15) with the 8mm lead-screw rather than the original SAE lead-screw. I would venture a guess that this has to do with SAE to metric conversion and uneven stepping at those resolutions. With the original lead-screw I was getting banding at 0.15 resolution, that is gone with the 8mm.

Prusa has been saying about the MK2 that you will be impressed by the print quality at 0.15 resolution. Now that I have a 8mm lead-screw (also 16t pulleys) on my PrintrBot I can say that my Simple Metal is achieving print results very much the same as my Prusa.

by **cscott** » 2017-Jul-Thu-13-Jul

Thanks a lot! I used this as a base and added extrudrboard support. My current version is here: cscott/Marlin/tree/xilka2 on github.

I also factored out a number of patches to upstream: MarlinFirmware/Marlin/pull/7284 (neopixel rgbw support) and MarlinFirmware/Marlin/pull/7286 (updates to pins_PRINTRBOARD_REVF.h) on github.

I hope to clean up the rest of the changes so that I can submit a PR which adds the Printrboard to the "example_configurations" directory.

[Sorry, the forum won't let me post linked URLs.]

by **Vapor** » 2017-Jul-Sun-14-Jul

I keep getting gateway timeouts when trying to get to the firmware. Is there somewhere else I could get it from?

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jul-Mon-02-Jul

Vapor wrote:I keep getting gateway timeouts when trying to get to the firmware. Is there somewhere else I could get it from?

Must've been a temporary outage, I know it's online now. The site is distributed to servers in various locations.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Jul-Wed-08-Jul

I designed a PiCam 2/RGBW LED bed mount that will facilitate the RGBW firmware support.

viewtopic.php?f=113&t=11498

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Sep-Mon-05-Sep

Bumped to Marlin 1.1.5.

http://www.xilka.com/printrbot/marlin/1.1.5/20170918/

cscott: I PM'd you about a fix to the merged 1.1.5 code.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Oct-Fri-15-Oct

Bumped to Marlin 1.1.6.

http://www.xilka.com/printrbot/marlin/1.1.6/20171013/

by **dp250f** » 2017-Nov-Fri-16-Nov

Does this firmware work on a Printrboard REV D? (Printrbot Metal Simple with gear-head extruder, E3D V6 using original UBIS thermister, and heated bed)

I just installed a BuildTak FlexPlate build surface and I don't imagine it will ever be perfectly flat.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Nov-Fri-16-Nov

It's not built for the older boards.

You can apply the patch (it has bug fixes and improvements) and tweak the configuration files for your setup. Look in build-printrbot.sh to see how I'm passing options into the build.

by **dp250f** » 2017-Nov-Fri-18-Nov

Thanks for the reply. I've never compiled a firmware before, so I'm not familiar with the workflow you describe. I sent you a PM so I don't clutter up this thread with all my questions.

by **knightrider** » 2017-Dec-Sat-15-Dec

any chance you will be updating to 1.1.7?

also how do we apply the patch ourselves? I have the larger Matrix bed and Z upgrade so I need to edit the build size before compiling.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Dec-Sun-03-Dec

The patch applies to the official Marlin source code - from the source directory : patch -p1 -i patchname.patch.

I have started updating the patch to 1.1.7, quite a bit of code has changed in 1.1.7 so I have to be a bit careful in my update. I would suggest going ahead with the 1.1.6 patch, I want to make sure I get a good patch for 1.1.7 before I release it.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2017-Dec-Wed-09-Dec

http://www.xilka.com/printrbot/marlin/1.1.8/20171227a/

20171227:
Bumped to Marlin 1.1.8.
This version enables LINEAR_ADVANCE for much improved high speed printing. Slic3r Prusa Edition 1.38.5 supports this nicely. There is a "Printrbot Simple.ini" in the directory that works with Slic3r PE 1.38.5.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Jan-Thu-20-Jan

This a snippet from a PM.

What heated bed are you using?

Glad you like linear-advance, it's been very good for me.

The "official" PrintrBot heated bed is quite thick aluminum which keeps the temp stable regardless of bang-bang or PID.

As for compiling Marlin... My patches are in the source tree with the hex files and you just apply them to the appropriate Marlin version with the patch utility.

Thomas Sanlanderer (good channel) has a youtube video on compiling Marlin.

by **0Aicher** » 2018-Jan-Thu-21-Jan

I am using the Printrbot upgraded x and heated bed. I am also using the printrbot power supply to power it if that matters.
And this is the problem I am experiencing.

IMG_0742.jpg

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Jan-Thu-23-Jan

If you're using OctoPrint you can watch the temperature graphs. In my case I see a nice straight line on both the extruder and heatbed temps.

The only thing that makes sense to me is that the heatbed is causing enough current draw when it's on that it droops the voltage going to the hotend which would cause the hotend temp to vary. You should easily see that with the graphs. Using PID on the heatbed would no doubt lessen the effect, since it would switch much quicker. But I have a feeling that would only be masking the problem.

Make sure the 6 pin connector is pushed all the way on...they can fool you into thinking they're seated when they're not.

In my case I'm using a beefy Seasonic power supply, so I know mine can keep up with the current draw.

by **0Aicher** » 2018-Feb-Thu-15-Feb

This may be an obvious question, but I am finding it hard to find the answer to.
I just got a new e3d style hotend and need to reconfigure the 1.1.8 firmware to match the new thermistor. I am trying to apply your patch to the firmware I downloaded from Marlin's website. I have both downloaded on my computer, yet I cannot figure out how to apply the patch. I understand how to edit the firmware as it stands ,but so far, I have found no documentation online on how to apply the patch. Would you be able to boil it down to a step by step on applying a patch to an arduino library?

Also follow up question. Since there are so many printrbot configurations that this patch is used for, What do I need to do to your patch in order to select the right settings for my hardware configuration to compile to the base firmware?

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Feb-Thu-20-Feb

"patch" is a GNU utility, native on Linux, but I'm sure there must be a Windows version. It is used like this:

patch -p1 -i PatchFile.patch

As for the configurations for PrintrBot, look in build-printrbot.sh, that shell script loops through the config options, writes them out to PrintrBotConfig.h and then runs a build. You just need to craft a PrintrBotConfig.h that matches your setup. Once you have the PrintrBotConfig.h setup and your thermistor setup in Configuration.h you should be able to build from Arduino IDE.

by **RetireeJay** » 2018-Feb-Thu-20-Feb

cbxbiker61 wrote:"patch" is a GNU utility, native on Linux, but I'm sure there must be a Windows version.

Nope.
https://www.drupal.org/forum/general/general-discussion/2009-10-20/whats-the-simplest-way-to-apply-a-patch-using-windows

by **0Aicher** » 2018-Feb-Fri-08-Feb

Thank you very much!
Luckily I dual boot-Linux, but didn't realize I'd have to use it here
I thought it would be a patch tool within Arduino.

by **Mooselake** » 2018-Feb-Sat-17-Feb

It might be easier to just replace the thermistor with the same one most other vendors use

Kirk

by **RetireeJay** » 2018-Feb-Sat-19-Feb

cbxbiker61 wrote:"patch" is a GNU utility, native on Linux

I guess I don't even understand what you mean by "patch" in today's terminology.

Back in the dinosaur days, when computers filled rooms and 64K of memory was a lot, a "patch" was a binary file that modified specific bytes within an operating system or a program.

But apparently your "patch" is in source code, not binary.

Exactly what is it doing? Are you substituting particular lines or blocks of original source code with your own? For us Windows users, could you simply publish complete "revised" files instead of "patches"? I.e. if you've made changes within, say, "motion_control.cpp" just publish a new version of the complete file? It would be up to us, the users, to delete or de-activate the existing "motion_control.cpp" (by renaming it "motion_control_cpp.obsolete) and insert your file in the same place within our file hierarchy.

Or maybe I still don't understand... GIT is entirely opaque to me; it's obviously extremely powerful but I've never had the 30,000 foot view of what it is and why I want to use it (if indeed it is useful at all under Windows).

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Feb-Tue-20-Feb

I have been learning tho negotiate the configuration, well, trying anyway. Would you be so kind as to post your source code for the 'extold-origz-origx-fs8-16t.hex' and the 'extold-origz-origx-fs8-20t.hex'? It would be greatly appreciated. I would like to compare your implementations to what I have been working on.

Thanks-
Matt

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Feb-Tue-21-Feb

RetireeJay wrote:
cbxbiker61 wrote:"patch" is a GNU utility, native on Linux

... GIT is entirely opaque to me; it's obviously extremely powerful but I've never had the 30,000 foot view of what it is and why I want to use it (if indeed it is useful at all under Windows).

GIT is a repository for code, coding projects and final code products in general much like Thingiverse is a repository for 3D printable object design files. But beyond the general scope of GIT being a repository it is also a platform forum for those developing the code to interact with one another remotely about the code, as well as work together to address issues discovered by one another as well as those using the code (us the users). You can post issues there yourself, directly to the individuals actively developing, in this case, Marlin, or any other code project that is using the platform.

Pretty amazing in the grande scope of its existence. When I was in college, my CS (Computer Science) classes used GIT as a means of submitting assignments. You can create closed groups, or limit those able to access certain areas of deposits. So even though we submitted assignments here, other students couldn't simply look at other students assignments and copy them. Privileges can be assigned by an administrator much like a personal computer or even FaceBook. Most of all, GIT isn't OS specific, Mac, Windows, Linux... doesn't matter.

Hope this clarifies what GIT is and why it exists. I probably left out a lot of details.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Feb-Tue-23-Feb

Arcmatt wrote:I have been learning tho negotiate the configuration, well, trying anyway. Would you be so kind as to post your source code for the 'extold-origz-origx-fs8-16t.hex' and the 'extold-origz-origx-fs8-20t.hex'? It would be greatly appreciated. I would like to compare your implementations to what I have been working on.

Thanks-
Matt

The patch is in the same directory as the hex files... Programmers tend to find it quite easy to read patch files to determine how the source is being changed, hence the reason I publish the patch file.

As far as the configs go... build-printerbot.sh loops through the options and sets them appropriately for each variation and builds them.

by **Mooselake** » 2018-Feb-Wed-13-Feb

RetireeJay wrote:
cbxbiker61 wrote:"patch" is a GNU utility, native on Linux, but I'm sure there must be a Windows version.

Nope.
https://www.drupal.org/forum/general/general-discussion/2009-10-20/whats-the-simplest-way-to-apply-a-patch-using-windows

Yep

Plus there's always cygwin and the newish Windows 10 Subsystem for Linux. I'm a long time cygwin user, and played with the W10 SfL a little bit when it was added to the insider preview, but I haven't spent a whole lot of time in front of the desktop computer this winter (which is kinda odd since I've had some enforced downtime lately, where is all that time going?)

Kirk

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Feb-Thu-15-Feb

Arcmatt wrote:I have been learning tho negotiate the configuration, well, trying anyway.

cbxbiker61 wrote: Programmers tend to find it quite easy to read patch files to determine how the source is being changed, hence the reason I publish the patch file.

As far as the configs go... build-printerbot.sh loops through the options and sets them appropriately for each variation and builds them.

Thanks for the reply, as I stated I am just learning. Took me a while to decipher what you were saying... still confused about the build-printerbot.sh... but I will figure it out.

I guess a question I have, is it seems these forums are for groups of people with similar interests to interact and communicate with one another, share ideas, found knowledge and experiences. But when it comes to people asking questions or looking for guidance, most of these forums aren't really that simple. So my question is this:

When someone asks for help, why do most replies involve something that the person asking for help will probably not understand?

I realize that I am delving into something new for me. I have printed for 5 years, but just recently finally had had enough of the limitations PrintrBot puts on their own machines and want to get more out of mine. If Marlin is willing to post their firmware, in all its glory with every resource needed for an individual to compile their own working custom version, why don't individuals on forums like this one do the same? You have obviously made a custom version set of Marlin that you are proud enough to post for everyone here. Why not post it in its entirety like Marlin actually does, with all the files, completely editable so others can compile it in a manner they want for their own re-customized circumstance or needs/wants?

Don't get me wrong, the patch file will work, I will figure it out, and I do appreciate it and all the work you put into it. My questions are simply that, questions. Why make it harder on each other than it needs to be. Imagine if Marlin actually did this in their development of the actual firmware on github... well we probably wouldn't have what we have today. But that is also why github exists, to make the whole process more efficient and to save time in the whole process. Their formula for development and release formats works, why don't we do the same here? Our little group of PB users and fans is kinda our own little Marlin PB development team, we could learn a thing or two from the Marlin pros over there on github.

Those are my two cents, I am not a programmer. I have taken classes in C++ while getting my degree, I do write code periodically for my own extremely simplified projects, but do not write code professionally. So, my statements could be well off base... or they could be revolutionary, you decide.

Thanks for the code and the work. Much appreciated.
Cheers-
Matt

by **RetireeJay** » 2018-Feb-Thu-16-Feb

Arcmatt, you've over-genralized, but to a certain extent I agree with you. cbxbiker61 has done a tremendous job to create an improved version of Marlin. His reasoning for posting it as a patch rather than modified source code was in his post on 21 June:

cbxbiker61 wrote:Github is great for certain cases. In this case, a patch actually makes it more obvious what has been changed.

But I looked at the patch file the other day, and while it does make it clear exactly what he has changed, it also seems to be irrevocably locked in to a particular edition of Marlin. That is, if I understand the syntax correctly, the patch file goes into various source files and replaces or adds lines based on line numbers. So if a new version comes out with any lines in the original added or subtracted, the patch file won't work correctly. Of course, I really have never run a patch, so I may be all wrong about my assumptions.

But on the other hand, here is how I documented my additions and changes to my version of "Configuration.h". I added these lines very near the top of Configuration.h.

Code: Select all: * **Revisions by JCS 6 May 2017 * - Type of electronics : **Printrboard Rev F * - Redefined CUSTOM_MACHINE_NAME for ID displayed when connecting or using M115 * - Power Supply Switch: **No switch * - Type of temperature sensor : **Hot end = 5; Bed = 1 (Using E3D hot end with its provided thermistor) * - Adjusted PID tuning for my hot end: 22.41, 1.70, 73.8 * - Endstop polarity (?): **Set to "false" for X & Y, "true" for Z (my system uses a "switch") * - Steps Per Unit: ** 80, 80, 2267.7, 578.13 * - Max Feedrate: **Reduced Z max rate to 5 from 10 * - Max Acceleration: **Left at high rates for now * - All Stepper directions should be set to "true" * - Printer geometry: Travel Limit for Y = 0, not 20 * X_Max = 187; Y_Max = 189; Z_Max = 200 * - Preheat fan speed **230 (90%)

It seems to me that doing it this way "makes it obvious what has been changed" but also avoids the hassle and risks of patching. In fact, in some of my mods on previous versions I've actually included line numbers in my comments - but those are approximate because when I add comment lines I'm bumping the line numbers of everything that follows.

Maybe to a Unix user patching is completely natural and no hassle, but to the rest of us - a majority of Printrbot users - it's not our native language.

Still, if you download the patch file (it is a text file) you can actually put in all of cbxbiker61's modifications by hand using cut-and-paste if you want to. cbxbiker61 did us a service by sharing his improvements, and he's under no obligation to make it easy for the rest of us who don't live in his Unix world.

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Feb-Thu-17-Feb

I agree, but we are all 'under no obligation' to do anything, including being here. It just seems that lessons could be learned from those who actually wrote Marlin from the ground up, or as some say, from the metal. With some code editors, you can place two files side by side and enable a compare function that will highlight differences between the two, as an example. There are lots of choices, and I am not necessarily suggesting the easiest, but the most efficient and logical, patterned after the pros own choice of github and full source documentation. Not to mention, the current forms most post config changes doesn't allow anyone else to switch from linear ABL to bilnear ABL without redoing the entire process... not efficient.

But, I totally get the 'under no obligation' premise.

BTW, I have already gone through and noted his changes. There are a lot of entirely custom definitions, that how they are actually implemented would only be revealed with a full set of source files. Providing only a .hex limits the set of tools Marlin firmware is meant to provide. Nice custom build though, I won't deny that, props!

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Feb-Thu-17-Feb

RetireeJay wrote:Arcmatt, you've over-genralized, but to a certain extent I agree with you. cbxbiker61 has done a tremendous job to create an improved version of Marlin. His reasoning for posting it as a patch rather than modified source code was in his post on 21 June:

cbxbiker61 wrote:Github is great for certain cases. In this case, a patch actually makes it more obvious what has been changed.

But I looked at the patch file the other day, and while it does make it clear exactly what he has changed, it also seems to be irrevocably locked in to a particular edition of Marlin. That is, if I understand the syntax correctly, the patch file goes into various source files and replaces or adds lines based on line numbers. So if a new version comes out with any lines in the original added or subtracted, the patch file won't work correctly. Of course, I really have never run a patch, so I may be all wrong about my assumptions.

Patch is more sophisticated than that...It actually can be applied to newer versions, it uses context to figure out what needs to change. In the case of conflicts it creates a .rej file so you can fixup any changes that it can't figure out for itself. This is in fact how I go between version, I apply the previous patch to the new version's source code and look at the .rej files and fix them up by hand.

Thanks to RetireeJay for replying, his reply was very statesmanly.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Feb-Thu-17-Feb

Arcmatt wrote:I agree, but we are all 'under no obligation' to do anything, including being here. It just seems that lessons could be learned from those who actually wrote Marlin from the ground up, or as some say, from the metal. With some code editors, you can place two files side by side and enable a compare function that will highlight differences between the two, as an example. There are lots of choices, and I am not necessarily suggesting the easiest, but the most efficient and logical, patterned after the pros own choice of github and full source documentation. Not to mention, the current forms most post config changes doesn't allow anyone else to switch from linear ABL to bilnear ABL without redoing the entire process... not efficient.

But, I totally get the 'under no obligation' premise.

BTW, I have already gone through and noted his changes. There are a lot of entirely custom definitions, that how they are actually implemented would only be revealed with a full set of source files. Providing only a .hex limits the set of tools Marlin firmware is meant to provide. Nice custom build though, I won't deny that, props!

OK, you seem to be missing something fundamental.... you extract the "official" source...then apply the patch, now you have the modified tree.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Feb-Thu-17-Feb

One more thing to note. Git is excellent software, I use it all the time. Since it is based on diff and patch....the same amount of effort is required when merging patches to new versions...you will see the same conflicts.

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Feb-Thu-18-Feb

As I have said, I am not a programmer. Even retireeJay said he isn't completely sure how to use a patch file.

So I appreciate your rough explanation of the patch file. Please, if you could help me and probably a lot of us better understand how to fully use the patch file if you could. Note, one of the best advantages of github is it is OS agnostic, so if you could, which I am sure you can, explain in such a way that it won't matter what OS an individual is using. I admit, I have 3 regularly used OS's, but this is not true for most of the world.

I appreciate it, admittedly perhaps my statements were unfounded, but I admitted that from the beginning. For the average user of git, not a developer, these nuances of the platform are not obvious.

I admit, I am impressed with your implementation and would like to understand it more so I can get the most out of my printer. I like how much you have customized it specifically to the PB Simple as apposed to the general printer template, and the thought you put into the typical modifications that individuals have made. I would just like to open up some of the other ABL options as well, while retaining some of your great implementations.

Thanks-
Matt

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Feb-Thu-18-Feb

I searched "using patch on windows"

The answer is in there.

https://www.drupal.org/node/60179

by **RetireeJay** » 2018-Feb-Thu-20-Feb

The common (default) IDE for people using Marlin on Printrboards is Arduino.
An alternate editor & compiler is Notepad++ and PlatformIO (viewtopic.php?f=22&t=10160). I found that combination to have a very nice balance of power vs complexity.

It seems like the patch tools in the drupal site require the user to be using some other IDE like Eclipse or NetBeans. I've used Eclipse a bit to try to study Java, and it's so powerful that it has its own learning curve that is not negligible. It took me days to get it working for the Java online course. I shudder to think what I'd have to do to beat Eclipse into shape to work on Marlin. For starters, I don't even know if I'd have to have a totally separate installation of Eclipse!

Maybe it's worthwhile to install a whole new set of software and learn a whole new way of managing software projects in order to use the patch file. Or maybe not.

It's interesting... Some people are such dedicated software geeks that they are constantly tinkering with their Printrbot firmware. Some of these are so deep into tweaking the source code that they'd rather change the steps per millimeter for their extruder in source code rather than use the simple built-in utility of changing the value in EEPROM. In fact, they don't even think about the EEPROM. I kid you not; when I complained on the Github site that flashing new firmware changed the values in my EEPROM (which should not have changed) - that's what they told me! On the other hand, I think the majority of Printrbot users are not firmware geeks. Only a minority compile their own firmware. And only a very small minority go beyond making changes in Configuration.h. And only an even smaller minority use Unix all the time.

Don't get me wrong; I'm thankful for the geeks. We wouldn't be where we are without them. But I'd still love to see this new version of Marlin have its own branch on Github so I could just download working source code.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Feb-Thu-21-Feb

RetireeJay, you missed it...all you need is GnuWin32 utils installed, then you'll have unix2dos and patch.

Code: Select all: Windows 7 is typically going to put the GnuWin32 utils under C:\Program Files (x86), so patch.bat will need to be updated. Also, depending on the specific patch file, you may need to pass the -p option, so it is advisable to update it to allow that. Finally, and this is an incredibly stupid Windows thing - UAC treats files differently if they have the word patch in the name (see http://stackoverflow.com/questions/7914180/windows-7-exe-filename-starts...), so patch.exe was not executing for me. I ended up copying and renaming patch.exe and updating the bat file to the below. That provides a working solution: "C:\Program Files (x86)\GnuWin32\bin\unix2dos" -v %2 "C:\Program Files (x86)\GnuWin32\bin\patch" %1 --verbose < %2 pause

Those are the utils, and apparently they wrapped it up in a batch file, hence the %2 options.

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Feb-Fri-01-Feb

Thanks for the info, I am sure I will have more questions. But for now, I am going to jump down the rabbit hole and see if it sinks in.

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Feb-Fri-02-Feb

This is EPIC !!!! cbxbiker61 I used this article:

https://www.drupal.org/node/60818

I can not believe this is so easy. I admit, you are right, this is a much easier way to do it. Thanks for the lesson, and sorry for my matter of fact personality. I really do appreciate the lesson and pointing me in a new direction. I never knew typing 'cd' drag and drop and 'patch <' drag and drop could do so much!

EPIC !!!! THANKS !!!!

by **RetireeJay** » 2018-Feb-Fri-07-Feb

cbxbiker61 wrote:RetireeJay, you missed it...all you need is GnuWin32 utils installed, then you'll have unix2dos and patch.

Code: Select all
Windows 7 is typically going to put the GnuWin32 utils under C:\Program Files (x86), so patch.bat will need to be updated. Also, depending on the specific patch file, you may need to pass the -p option, so it is advisable to update it to allow that. Finally, and this is an incredibly stupid Windows thing - UAC treats files differently if they have the word patch in the name (see http://stackoverflow.com/questions/7914180/windows-7-exe-filename-starts...), so patch.exe was not executing for me. I ended up copying and renaming patch.exe and updating the bat file to the below. That provides a working solution: "C:\Program Files (x86)\GnuWin32\bin\unix2dos" -v %2 "C:\Program Files (x86)\GnuWin32\bin\patch" %1 --verbose < %2 pause

Those are the utils, and apparently they wrapped it up in a batch file, hence the %2 options.

I'm glad to see that ArcMatt found this to be easy, but basically cbxbiker61, I think you proved my point. Your position is that I need to download, install, and learn how to use a fussy ("you may need to pass the -p option, so it is advisable to update it to allow that. Finally, and this is an incredibly stupid Windows thing - UAC treats files differently if they have the word patch in the name..., so patch.exe was not executing for me. ") piece of software. Software that I will never use for anything else except reconstructing your source files. And all the while you have complete and perfectly good source files in your possession! If you really would like lots of people to use your wonderful handiwork, you will lower the barriers to access (it's called "marketing").

I have a CAD program called Alibre. It's a great system that I use to design things that I print. But if I shared my designs only in the native Alibre format, wouldn't you find that frustrating?

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Feb-Fri-11-Feb

RetireeJay,

hehe, you would suggest that distributing an ASCII text file that opens in every text editor ever created, is somehow akin to distributing a proprietary binary CAD file implemented by one piece of software?

The issue really is that Windows was conceived as a binary only platform and has never been friendly to tools designed to empower source code development.

What I really hate here is the inefficiency....distributing a zip file costs 2.9M per download...distributing a patch file is 40K per download. All of this because it's hard "on Windows" to run a simple patch utility. BTW, even MAC OS supports patch natively.

In any case I have capitulated and will make a zip file available:

http://www.xilka.com/printrbot/marlin/1 ... 171227.zip

I'm not sure I'll do it again, but there it is.

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Feb-Fri-16-Feb

Posting a .zip was very nice of you cbxbiker61. I am however happy with the new found knowledge, thank you. Also happy that MAC OS supports patch natively, so easy.

RetireeJay, the article that cbxbiker61 posted has instructions for NetBeans which seem as if they may be the easiest solution. In the instructions where it discusses open the 'project', this is referring to Marlin, on my Mac I just directed it to the entire folder, not a specific file. Some instructions refer to 'modules', this seems to me to be another term for the same thing. Here is the article, again:

https://www.drupal.org/node/60179

Once you get this figured out, you won't want to go back. The patch file literally does everything for you. You can also run a diff, which will actually show you the difference between the original and the patch version, similar to reading the patch file and manually entering the changes. When I ran the patch on my Mac, my terminal displayed what changes were made so I could follow along. After patch is complete you will have a set of Marlin files with all of the updated files, same as cbxbiker61's, it takes less than two seconds, and no manual transposition of values other than customizing the configs before you build for you specific Bot. cbxbiker61's files have some additions that aren't in the original files to configure upgrades and such for a Simple Metal, or even other Printrbots, I added a screenshot from my terminal to reference the changes made.

Figuring out how to do something new is the hard part, but honestly, cbxbiker61 is right... this is the easiest way.
Good luck.
Cheers-
Matt

by **alberto2000** » 2018-Feb-Wed-13-Feb

I installed the firmware, works fine. But: can't seem to get any info about z-axis compensation when entering M501 anymore... why is that?

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Feb-Wed-16-Feb

M501 here:

Z-Probe Offset (mm):
Recv: echo: M851 Z-0.42

by **alberto2000** » 2018-Mar-Sun-10-Mar

cbxbiker61 wrote:M501 here:

Z-Probe Offset (mm):
Recv: echo: M851 Z-0.42

Thanks, I didn't know you have to adjsut z-offset with M851 now... was using M212 still, which did no effect.

by **revnull** » 2018-Mar-Tue-09-Mar

I just came across this awesome thread! Thanks for your work on bringing modern firmware to my aging printrbot. I can't wait to give this a try. As someone that works with both windows and *nix platforms, I'll see if I can write up a how-to patch doc for the folks that find this process intimidating.
It's been more than a year since I was playing with adding full graphic LCD support, but what I learned at the time was the version of the AVR tool chain that ships with the Arduino IDE can drastically affect the size of the build. That being said, you may be able to add basic LCD support back by disabling SD card support (octoprint FTW!) and testing builds with different versions of the tool chain.

Thanks again!

by **revnull** » 2018-Mar-Tue-23-Mar

I ran through the process of compiling Marlin 1.1.8 tonight on a windows 10 machine. It all seemed to work quite well. I got it to compile with Arduino IDE 1.8.5 and Teensyduino 1.41. If you are open to suggestions, it would be cool if you could add a conditional to use the PID settings for the original ceramic hot end (yes, I'm still using that one

.

Code: Select all: Sketch uses 115066 bytes (88%) of program storage space. Maximum is 130048 bytes. Global variables use 4261 bytes (52%) of dynamic memory, leaving 3931 bytes for local variables. Maximum is 8192 bytes.

Unfortunately, even with SD card and neopixel support disabled, there is not enough program space for basic LCD support. Is there any other "fat" to trim in 1.1.8 for a bone basic Simple Metal with a heated bed?

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Mar-Wed-00-Mar

You can define NO_VOLUMETRICS in Configuration_adv.h. Volumetric extrusion's usefulness is questionable. Unfotunately as the code has improved in features/functionality it became a bit too much for the PrintrBoard to support all of the features. It's really amazing how much better the new code performs compared to when I bought the Simple. 40-50mm/sec was realistically as fast as it would go. 100mm/sec linear advance works well with current code.

If you can't get it down to a usable size, you do have the option of upgrading to the Einsy board, since the Einsy has twice the flash capacity, it's working amazingly well for me, smooth and quiet. See my Einsy board thread, I'll make more information on that conversion available if/when someone decides to go that route.

by **revnull** » 2018-Mar-Wed-08-Mar

Thanks for the tip. I'll try it tonight. On a side note, when upgrading to 1.1.x, do I need to discard my eeprom settings?

by **revnull** » 2018-Mar-Wed-21-Mar

After making a few changes from the bugfix branch, I was able to disable volumetric extrusion. Unfortunately it's still a little too big.

Code: Select all: Sketch uses 128322 bytes (98%) of program storage space. Maximum is 130048 bytes. Global variables use 3322 bytes (40%) of dynamic memory, leaving 4870 bytes for local variables. Maximum is 8192 bytes.

Based on, teensylu.upload.maximum_size=122880, I still need to cut another chuck of "fat".

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Mar-Wed-23-Mar

revnull wrote:Thanks for the tip. I'll try it tonight. On a side note, when upgrading to 1.1.x, do I need to discard my eeprom settings?

Yes, although current Marlin will check the version that wrote the eeprom and should discard it automatically.

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Mar-Sun-02-Mar

I was trying to configure cbxbiker61's Marlin 1.1.8 firmware for my Printrboard RevF6. What I finally figured out was that if using PrintrBots firmware, the Fan 2 connections on the Printrboard will turn the fan on for the hot end when it heats at or above 50ºC and off when it cools to or below 50ºC. I also wanted this behavior for cbxbiker61's Marlin firmware. So I went to https://github.com/Printrbot/printrboard and downloaded the schematics for the Printrboard. I then opened them in Eagle CAD to get the following information:

Printrboard RevF6 Pinout.png

Looking in the upper left hand corner, there is a pin labeled PWM-FAN 2 with pin #55. Using this pin # in the Marlin firmware throws a bunch of errors. So not the right pin #. In the 'Configuration adv.h' file for the Marlin firmware this pin is by default listed as pin #37, which does not work.

ConfigAdvPin37.png

But there is a website listed for the Printrboard (AT90USB1256) : https://labitat.dk/wiki/Panelolu_and_Pr ... e_easy_way

Printrboard Pin Config.png

The website shows that pin #55 should be pin #46 (highlighted in green), but this also does not work. The website also lists that this pin should be pin #44 for an Arduino, which the Printrboard is an Arduino Mega 1286 basically, and indeed pin #44 produces the same behavior as PrintrBots own firmware, turning the hot end fan on at or above 50ºC, and off at or below 50ºC. As you can also see from my screen shot, the 50ºC setting can also be changed to whatever temperature you choose to use, I left it at 50ºC.

ConfigAdvPin44.png

So, for future reference, with a Printrboard RevF6, if you want to use custom firmware but still have the hot end fan turn on and off automatically from the Fan 2 connection on the Printrboard, this pin needs to be set to pin #44.

by **cbxbiker61** » 2018-Mar-Sun-03-Mar

arcmatt,

Yeah, The pin I used toggles a pin on the EXP headers for the F4 and F5 boards. The pin used on the F6 is not broken out on F4 and F5 boards, hence I used a different pin. BTW, if you wire up a MOSFET on the F4 and F5 boards to the correct EXP header pin, the auto fan works on both of those boards.

by **Arcmatt** » 2018-Mar-Sun-04-Mar

Nice, well now we have the F4, F5 and F6 covered!

I saw another post about this, so I posted the pin # for the F6.

I do have an old F5, I may just get a MOSFET and try it out.

I am really liking the Bilinear Auto Leveling with fade! Very nice. Thanks for all your work cbxbiker61 !

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