Standalone controller V4.0

[math]

I`m very anxious for the moment to order...

[dragonator]

Pages are progressing nicely. I am still looking at adding a description of the software, some examples, and then just flesh out everything.

https://ytec3d.com/hp45-controller-v4/
https://ytec3d.com/hp45-inkjet-printhead/
https://ytec3d.com/hp45-controller-commands/
https://ytec3d.com/hp45-controller-v4-01-PCB-assembly/
https://ytec3d.com/hp45-controller-v4-0 ... -assembly/

I am currently making the testing equipment to make larger quantities. I am missing 1 component (a voltage regulator) which is currently not available. I will see if it comes available anytime soon, else I will design around it. After that I can start with batches of controllers.

@math, If you are interested I already can make single controllers. Let me know if you are interested or if you want to wait on a slightly more mature product.

[math]

Sorry for the delay, i've been a little busy. Yes I'm interested. What is the price for Brazil?

[Priyashree2]

Pages are progressing nicely. I am still looking at adding a description of the software, some examples, and then just flesh out everything.

https://ytec3d.com/hp45-controller-v4/
https://ytec3d.com/hp45-inkjet-printhead/
https://ytec3d.com/hp45-controller-commands/
https://ytec3d.com/hp45-controller-v4-01-PCB-assembly/
https://ytec3d.com/hp45-controller-v4-0 ... -assembly/

I am currently making the testing equipment to make larger quantities. I am missing 1 component (a voltage regulator) which is currently not available. I will see if it comes available anytime soon, else I will design around it. After that I can start with batches of controllers.

@math, If you are interested I already can make single controllers. Let me know if you are interested or if you want to wait on a slightly more mature product.

Do we get Kicad files for Controller V4.0 ? I unable to see if it is there.

One more thing ... Can we drive HP45 without encoder ?

[dragonator]

No PCB source files for now. Since I do intend to sell the boards, I do not want to be instantly copied. The files will probably be share at some point in the future.

The V4 can run without an encoder. You can tell it how fast it is moving and then give a trigger to start moving. I do hope to add a step-dir positioning in the future, but I do not know when I can add this.

The lack of updates is because I am currently building the testing equipment for the HP45 controller. As expected it takes a while. So far I can test only for shorts, but I have added all features to also test the rest. As a side effect of this, the pure serial interface is now implemented. You can now control the HP45 controller over either the built in USB to serial, and just serial.

[rofl]

Would you be able to provide just PCBs and BOM of components in order to DIY soldering? I fully understand your concerns regarding copying though. I think that most would be just fine with bare PCBs and BOM list to purchase components separately. However, with current situation on the market, I believe there might be issues with components, so if you have them and could provide them separately together with PCBs, that would be also great.

[dragonator]

I am more than willing to provide PCBs. The schematic is on the HP45 controller page. The BOM is already share on the PCB assembly page.

Most component should still be available. There is sadly one exception, and that is the voltage regulator chip LMR36510. This chip will not be in stock until December 2022. I am going to redesign the board to take an available voltage regulator, and to allow an easy hack to add whatever voltage regulator is available.

I do have 3 more boards worth of components in stock. If you are interested I can PM you with the current prices of the components.

[rofl]

Yeah, drop me a PM with info.

[dragonator]

The HP45 controller was (and still is) intended for sale somewhere in the future. For this I wanted a fast and thorough way to test each controller before it goes out. The ability of the controller to do some of the tests itself helps, but it is not perfect.

PXL_20220117_194314316s.jpg (480 KiB) Viewed 38457 times

For this I made a special tester. It holds a controller by the connector and the DC jack and talks to it via hardware serial (which was implemented just for this test). It can measure and test:

• Short circuits
• Current draw of the board
• Temperature circuit
• Nozzle check circuit
• Enable circuit
• Shorts and missing connections in addresses
• Shorts and missing connections in primitives
• Primitive current rating

It then provides me with a pass or a fail, and a nice list of all the measured parameters as seen below. If it fails I know what needs to be fixed. In this case it has a broken enable circuit which I will need to fix.

HP45 controller tester terminal 20220117.png (69.97 KiB) Viewed 38457 times

Another curious issue I found is that the way this controllers' TLC591213 driver chips are implemented, I cannot have continuity over the nozzles when the controller starts. I had issues with the controller having an over current on a startup. This was fixed by adding an extra relay over the resistors I use to test each primitive, but it is curious to know about. On the actual controller this is not an issue, since the enable circuit blocks current from the primitives when the controller is starting.

Now for the bad news. I cannot get all chips I need anymore. The power supply chip for which this controller was designed is no longer available, and while I will redesign the controller to be more flexible, it will be a while (easily months) before I am ready to sell. I will be updating and adding to the HP45 V4 controller page and I will be making example projects there, so when it does become sensible to make more controllers, most documentation will be there. More on that in the coming months.

More updates when they happen.

[rofl]

Yvo, could you upload images of the driver board without Teensy and in good light conditions (close-up)? I would appreciate that if the image was on the assembly page. It would be helpful as some steps are a bit confusing, so good image would be helpful.

Also, I would suggest to fix the mistake on assembly page with resistor soldering steps, i.e. you left 1.2kOhm text in all steps just above the list of all R values. This was surprising at first.

Also, could you explain your D2 marking idea? I was really struggling to find such marking elsewhere and still I do not get the placement of diode without going into schematics and trying to figure that out.

Appreciate everything, I will send some more observations after I finish.