ProfileMaker – Stop printing calibration cubes!
Obsolete 40mm Cube Test Object by bre
As some of you may know, I’ve been working on a Skeinforge calibration projected called, “ProfileMaker.” I released v3.0 last month over at MakerBlock.com. 1 My goal was a web-based cross-platform easy-to-use Skeinforge setting calculator.2
Calibration by cube is essentially a trial and error process. Print a cube, examine the results, take some notes, change a setting, and LRR3 until you have a satisfactory result. There’s nothing wrong this this, but it is time consuming and can be frustrating. ProfileMaker uses the same math and formulas as Dave’s Profileinator to derive the flowrate (or speed at which plastic comes out of the nozzle) based on the few settings you choose. There are also some advanced options, for the more adventurous.
When you calculate some new profile settings, ProfileMaker will generate the settings and tell you exactly where to enter them in Skeinforge. Or, if you wish, it can e-mail a zip file containing those settings as part of a complete profile. Just unzip into your directory and start slicing!
As always, I’d appreciate feedback!
- In that time more than 200 people have generated nearly 1000 profiles. I see this as a good trend. If people weren’t happy with the profiles they’re getting, they probably wouldn’t come back to generate five profiles on average. [↩]
- In fact, if this isn’t the easiest Skeinforge calibration system you’ve EVER used, I’ll give you your money back! [↩]
- Lather, rinse, repeat. [↩]
| Tagged with | calibrate, calibration cube, dave durant, flowrate, MakerBlock, profile, profilemaker, skeinforge, skeinforge calibration | 6 comments |
6 Comments so far
Allan Ecker
So I have this thought I haven’t been able to try implementing yet– it seems there are currently two basic methods:
* Print calibration object, translate into profile adjustments
* Monitor actual process parameters, translate into profile directly
There’s a third method which hasn’t been tried as far as I’ve seen, probably because it’d require quite a lot of fiddling: calibrate via a custom GCODE file (not a calibration STL) that prints at several (or many) different speeds, infils, and flowrates in the same print job. The user would then check some boxes indicating which one of the prints in an array looked best, and then you’d have calibration.
I’ve been wanting to write this one, but grad school…
Peter Cauchy
There was a script that came with replicatorg when the thing-o-matic came out, Paraminator.py and did this, but it was from the command line only in python.
Peter Cauchy
Update:
Paraminator.py did have a gui written for it.
Also, tried the Profile Maker and there is no way to tell it you have a dc motor extruder, which makes the flow rate unusable if it is too slow.
Peter Cauchy
Nevermind the dc motor comment, I need to read more
Matt
It is so great that more and more folks are jumping into tools to help make Skeinforge easier. I love MakerBlock’s tool for UI and ease. Something else you might want to try is Starno’s Print-O-Matic SF Assistant (http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:7308). I’m using 0.4 and 0.5 mm nozzles and ranges of plastic widths so his tool is much more helpful to me. Starno a mechanical engineer for MakerBot and the logic inside his spreadsheet profile tool will be incorporated right into RepG 25 in the near future.
Julian Hupp
I am a member of the ProfileMaker choir. In fact I was promoting it at robot fest to anyone that asked about my bot there. Makerblock’s website made my bot go from most prints failing because of one some random setting I changed thinking it would do something or another, to working right most of the time. If you have seen the giant barnacle lamp on thingiverse, I have one almost complete I just have to finish the lamp socket. That was able to print entirely because of the profile maker. With out it I couldn’t get the settings right. One run of the profile maker and they pieces not only printed, but at a .25mm layers when I was using .36mm before. Keep up the good work Makerblock, and everyone there that is paving the way for geeks like me to make cool stuff.