Ed Nisley's Blog: Shop notes, electronics, firmware, machinery, 3D printing, laser cuttery, and curiosities. Contents: 100% human thinking, 0% AI slop.
Solder pretty cable with silver plating on the braid (it’s probably mil-spec Teflon dielectric RG-174 coaxial cable) to the LEDs
Conjure a coax power connector and wall wart
Apply foam squares to mounts
Affix to sewing machine
The front LEDs have a jaunty angle along the bottom of the plastic panel:
Kenmore Model 158 Sewing Machine – LED Lights – front
You can see why I want cool-white LEDs, rather than these warm-white ones, to match the daylight from the window to the right. The wash of orange light from the incandescent bulb inside the end bell has got to go, too.
The rear LEDs over the arm may be slightly too close to the opening:
Kenmore Model 158 Sewing Machine – LED Lights – rear
The single-segment strip on the side provides a bit more light for the needle across the opening:
Kenmore Model 158 Sewing Machine – LED Lights – rear detail
Now, I’ll grant you that the strips of of black Gorilla Tape aren’t particularly attractive, but the intent here is to find out whether the LEDs produce enough light, don’t snag the quilt, and generally meet requirements.
My old Thing-O-Matic has new life as the Frank-O-Squid at Squidwrench Galactic HQ, with all the original Makerbot electronics replaced by an Azteeg X3 controller. Over the last several weeks I’ve coaxed it into doing most of the right things at the proper speeds & feeds, so we can now move on to actually making stuff:
Frank-o-Squid in action
The warping on that little digital caliper thumbwheel holder show that I don’t have the tiny-object slowdown settings quite correct, but it’s getting close.
The Marlin firmware is on GitHub. I intended to set it up so that pulling changes from upstream Marlin would be easy, but totally blundered something along the way. I’ll eventually plug the changes from Configuration.h, Configuration_adv.h, and pins.h into a clean branch and start over, but, for now, we’re slowly diverging from consensus reality.
Although the platform still has the Z-min switch over on the right edge, neither the firmware nor Slic3r pay any attention to it. A stub in the startup G-Code sequence does a head fake toward the switch, but doesn’t actually probe it.
I scrapped the original craptastic Makerbot ATX power supply and replaced it with Makergear’s huge 12 V laptop brick that powered the original M2 platform, so the thermal switches on the extruder no longer do anything useful; it’s running bare, pretty much like all other 3D printers.
The Slic3r configuration exports thusly:
# generated by Slic3r 1.0.0RC1 on Mon Mar 3 07:48:29 2014
avoid_crossing_perimeters = 0
bed_size = 105,120
bed_temperature = 100
bottom_solid_layers = 3
bridge_acceleration = 0
bridge_fan_speed = 100
bridge_flow_ratio = 1
bridge_speed = 40
brim_width = 1.0
complete_objects = 0
cooling = 1
default_acceleration = 0
disable_fan_first_layers = 1000
duplicate = 1
duplicate_distance = 6
duplicate_grid = 1,1
end_gcode = ;---- end.gcode starts ----\n; TOM 286 - Al plates + Geared extruder\n; Ed Nisley - KE4ZNU - January 2014\n; Marlin with tweaks for Azteeg X3 with thermocouple\n;- inhale filament blob\nG91\nG1 E-5 F900\nG90\n;- turn off heaters\nM104 S0 ; extruder head\nM140 S0 ; HBP\n;- move to eject position\nG0 Z115 F1000 ; home Z to get nozzle away from object\n;G92 Z115 ; reset Z\nG1 X0 F6000 ; center X axis\nG1 Y35 ; move Y stage forward\n;---- end.gcode ends ----
external_perimeter_speed = 50%
external_perimeters_first = 0
extra_perimeters = 1
extruder_clearance_height = 20
extruder_clearance_radius = 20
extruder_offset = 0x0
extrusion_axis = E
extrusion_multiplier = 0.95
extrusion_width = 0.50
fan_always_on = 0
fan_below_layer_time = 1
filament_diameter = 2.95
fill_angle = 45
fill_density = 0.15
fill_pattern = honeycomb
first_layer_acceleration = 0
first_layer_bed_temperature = 100
first_layer_extrusion_width = 0.50
first_layer_height = 0.25
first_layer_speed = 10
first_layer_temperature = 210
g0 = 0
gap_fill_speed = 30
gcode_arcs = 0
gcode_comments = 0
gcode_flavor = reprap
infill_acceleration = 0
infill_every_layers = 2
infill_extruder = 1
infill_extrusion_width = 0.50
infill_first = 1
infill_only_where_needed = 1
infill_speed = 50
layer_gcode =
layer_height = 0.25
max_fan_speed = 100
min_fan_speed = 35
min_print_speed = 10
min_skirt_length = 3
notes =
nozzle_diameter = 0.4
only_retract_when_crossing_perimeters = 1
ooze_prevention = 0
output_filename_format = [input_filename_base].gcode
overhangs = 1
perimeter_acceleration = 0
perimeter_extruder = 1
perimeter_extrusion_width = 0.50
perimeter_speed = 30
perimeters = 1
post_process =
print_center = 0,0
raft_layers = 0
randomize_start = 1
resolution = 0.05
retract_before_travel = 0.0
retract_layer_change = 0
retract_length = 0.75
retract_length_toolchange = 10
retract_lift = 0
retract_restart_extra = 0
retract_restart_extra_toolchange = 0
retract_speed = 30
rotate = 0
scale = 1
skirt_distance = 2
skirt_height = 1
skirts = 1
slowdown_below_layer_time = 30
small_perimeter_speed = 50%
solid_fill_pattern = rectilinear
solid_infill_below_area = 5
solid_infill_every_layers = 0
solid_infill_extrusion_width = 0.50
solid_infill_speed = 150%
spiral_vase = 0
standby_temperature_delta = -5
start_gcode = ;---- start.gcode begins ----\n; TOM 286 - Al plates + Geared extruder + Zmin platform sense\n; Ed Nisley - KE4ZNU - January 2014\n; Marlin with tweaks for Azteeg X3 with thermocouple\n;\n; Set initial conditions\nG21 ; set units to mm\nG90 ; set positioning to absolute\n;----------\n; Begin heating\nM104 S[first_layer_temperature] ; extruder head\nM140 S[first_layer_bed_temperature] ; start bed heating\n;----------\n; Home axes\nG28 X0 Y0 Z0\nG92 X-53.5 Y-58.5 Z114.5\n;----------\n; Initial nozzle wipe to clear snot for Z touchoff\nG1 X0 Y0 Z3.0 F1000 ; pause at center to build confidence\nG4 P1000\nG1 Z10 ; ensure clearance\nG1 X39 Y-58.0 F1000 ; move to front, avoid wiper blade\nG1 X55 ; to wipe station\nG1 Z6.0 ; to wipe level\nM116 ; wait for temperature settling\nG1 Y-45 F500 ; slowly wipe nozzle\n;-----------------------------------------------\n; Z platform height touchoff\n; Make sure the XY position is actually over the switch!\n; Home Z downward to platform switch\n; Compensate for 0.05 mm backlash in G92: make it 0.05 too low\nG1 X56.0 Y8.2 F5000\nG1 Z4.0 F1000 ; get over build platform switch\n;G1 Z0 F50 ; home downward very slowly\n;G92 Z1.45 ; set Z-min switch height\nG1 Z6.0 F1000 ; back off switch to wipe level\n;-----------------------------------------------\n; Prime extruder to stabilize initial pressure\nG1 X55 Y-45 F5000 ; set up for wipe from rear\nG1 Y-58.0 F500 ; wipe to front\nG91 ; use incremental motion for extrusion\nG1 F100 ; set decent rate\nG1 E10 ; extrude enough to get good pressure\nG1 F2000 ; set for fast retract\nG1 E-1.0 ; retract\nG90 ; back to absolute motion\nG1 Y-45 F1000 ; wipe nozzle to rear\n;----------\n; Set up for Skirt start in right front corner\n; Compensate for Z backlash: move upward from zero point\nG1 X40 Y-40 F5000\nG1 Z0.0 F1000 ; kiss platform\nG1 Z0.2 F1000 ; take up Z backlash to less than thread height\n;G92 E1.0 ; preset to avoid huge un-Reversal blob\n;G1 X0 Y0\n;---- start.gcode ends ----
start_perimeters_at_concave_points = 1
start_perimeters_at_non_overhang = 1
support_material = 0
support_material_angle = 0
support_material_enforce_layers = 0
support_material_extruder = 1
support_material_extrusion_width = 0.50
support_material_interface_extruder = 1
support_material_interface_layers = 3
support_material_interface_spacing = 0
support_material_pattern = honeycomb
support_material_spacing = 2.5
support_material_speed = 60
support_material_threshold = 0
temperature = 210
thin_walls = 1
threads = 2
toolchange_gcode =
top_infill_extrusion_width = 0.50
top_solid_infill_speed = 50%
top_solid_layers = 3
travel_speed = 150
use_firmware_retraction = 0
use_relative_e_distances = 0
vibration_limit = 0
wipe = 0
z_offset = 0
All of that should become three TOM286 - Default sub-profiles.
The Pronterface configuration looks like this:
set port /dev/ttyUSB0
set monitor True
set last_bed_temperature 100.0
set last_temperature 210.0
set baudrate 115200
set temperature_abs 210
set xy_feedrate 5000
set z_feedrate 1000
set build_dimensions 110.00x120.00x117.00+0.00+0.00+0.00+0.00+0.00+0.00
set extruders 1
set slic3rintegration True
set tempgauges True
set preview_extrusion_width 0.4
set e_feedrate 100
set last_extrusion 3
set last_file_path /home/ed/Documents/Thing-O-Matic/Calibration/Thread Thickness
set recentfiles ["/home/ed/Documents/Thing-O-Matic/Calibration/Thread Thickness/Caliper Thumbwheel Holder.gcode", "/home/ed/Documents/Thing-O-Matic/Calibration/Thread Thickness/Thinwall Open Box.gcode", "/home/ed/Documents/Thing-O-Matic/Calibration/Thread Thickness/Platform Level.gcode", "/home/ed/Documents/Thing-O-Matic/Calibration/Circle Diameter Calibration/Small Circle Cal - M2 0.2 mm.gcode", "/home/ed/Documents/Thing-O-Matic/Calibration/Circle Diameter Calibration/Small Circle Cal - TOM.gcode"]
As you can see, it’s all running from a directory on my old laptop. The next step involves migrating everything to a dedicated PC next to the printer, so nobody else need worry about this stuff…
Mary’s Sears Kenmore Model 158 sewing machine arm has a flat rear surface and a plastic plate on the front, so double-sided adhesive foam tape can hold a straight mount in place; we rejected putting strips under the arm to avoid snagging on the quilts as they pass by. So, with LEDs in hand, these are the mounts…
LED strip lights must have strain relief for their wires, as our Larval Engineer discovered the hard way on her longboard ground lighting project, and I wanted nice endcaps to avoid snagging on the fabric, so the general idea was a quarter-round rod with smooth endcaps and a hole to secure the wire. Some experiments showed that the acrylic (?) LED encapsulation directed the light downward, thus eliminating the need for a shade.
So, something like this will do for a first pass:
LED Strip Light Mount – bottom view
The overall dimensions for the LED mounts:
Length: N x 25 mm, plus endcap radii
Front-to-back width: 10 mm to allow for strip variation and 1 mm protection
Top-to-bottom height: 12 mm to fit double-sided foam sticky squares
Wire channels: 3 mm diameter or square cross-section
If there’s not enough light, I think a double-wide mount with two parallel LED strips would work.
After a bit of screwing around with additive endcaps that produced catastrophically non-manifold solid models, I figured out the proper subtractive way to build the mounts: the endcaps actually define the overall shape of the mount.
Start by placing a pair of spheroids, with radii matching the strip dimensions, so that their outer poles match the desired overall length:
Strip Light Mount – end cap spheroids – whole
The north/south poles must face outward, so that the equal-angle facets along the equators match up with what will become the mount body: rotate the spheroids 90° around the Y axis. The centers lie at the ends of the LED segments; the model shown here has a single 25 mm segment.
Then hack off three quadrants:
Strip Light Mount – end cap spheroids
That leaves two orange-segment shapes that define the endcaps:
Strip Light Mount – end caps – shaped
Here’s the key step that took me far too long to figure out. Shrinkwrapping the endcaps with the hull() function finesses the problem of matching the body facets to the endcap facets:
Strip Light Mount – end caps – hull
Model the wire channels as positive volumes that will be subtracted from the mount. The Channels layout shows both channels separated by a short distance:
Strip Light Mount – positive wire channels
The horizontal hexagons started as squares, but that looked hideous on the rounded endcaps.
Seen from the bottom, the mount starts like this:
Strip Light Mount – no wiring channels
Position and subtract a wire channel:
Strip Light Mount – visible wire channel
Which leaves the final solid model as a single, manifold object:
Strip Light Mount – complete
The module generating the mount takes three parameters: the number of LED segments and two string variables that determine whether to punch a channel in each endcap. Instantiate the module three times with suitable parameters to get a trio of LED mounts, all laid out for 3D printing:
Strip Light Mount – build layout
They built just exactly like those models would suggest; the M2 produces dependable results.
The OpenSCAD source code:
// LED Strip Lighting Brackets for Kenmore Model 158 Sewing Machine
// Ed Nisley - KE4ZNU - February 2014
Layout = "Strip"; // Build Show Channels Strip
//- Extrusion parameters must match reality!
// Print with 2 shells and 3 solid layers
ThreadThick = 0.20;
ThreadWidth = 0.40;
HoleWindage = 0.2; // extra clearance
Protrusion = 0.1; // make holes end cleanly
AlignPinOD = 1.70; // assembly alignment pins: filament dia
inch = 25.4;
function IntegerMultiple(Size,Unit) = Unit * ceil(Size / Unit);
//----------------------
// Dimensions
Segment = [25.0,10.0,3.0]; // size of each LED segment
WireChannel = 3.0; // wire routing channel
StripHeight = 12.0; // sticky tape width
StripSides = 8*4;
DefaultLayout = [1,"Wire","NoWire"];
EndCap = [(2*WireChannel + 1.0),Segment[1],StripHeight]; // radii of end cap spheroid
EndCapSides = StripSides;
CapSpace = 2.0; // build spacing for endcaps
BuildSpace = 1.5*Segment[1]; // spacing between objects on platform
//----------------------
// Useful routines
module PolyCyl(Dia,Height,ForceSides=0) { // based on nophead's polyholes
Sides = (ForceSides != 0) ? ForceSides : (ceil(Dia) + 2);
FixDia = Dia / cos(180/Sides);
cylinder(r=(FixDia + HoleWindage)/2,
h=Height,
$fn=Sides);
}
module ShowPegGrid(Space = 10.0,Size = 1.0) {
RangeX = floor(100 / Space);
RangeY = floor(125 / Space);
for (x=[-RangeX:RangeX])
for (y=[-RangeY:RangeY])
translate([x*Space,y*Space,Size/2])
%cube(Size,center=true);
}
//-- The negative space used to thread wires into the endcap
module MakeWireChannel(Which = "Left") {
HalfSpace = EndCap[0] * ((Which == "Left") ? 1 : -1);
render(convexity=2)
translate([0,EndCap[1]/3,0])
intersection() {
union() {
cube([2*WireChannel,WireChannel,EndCap[2]],center=true);
translate([-2*EndCap[0],0,EndCap[2]/2])
rotate([0,90,0]) rotate(180/6)
PolyCyl(WireChannel,4*EndCap[0],6);
}
translate([HalfSpace,0,(EndCap[2] - Protrusion)]) {
cube(2*EndCap,center=true);
}
}
}
//-- The whole strip, minus wiring channels
module MakeStrip(Layout = DefaultLayout) {
BarLength = Layout[0] * Segment[0]; // central bar length
hull()
difference() {
for (x = [-1,1]) // endcaps as spheroids
translate([x*BarLength/2,0,0])
resize(2*EndCap) rotate([0,90,0]) sphere(1.0,$fn=EndCapSides);
translate([0,0,-EndCap[2]])
cube([2*BarLength,3*EndCap[1],2*EndCap[2]],center=true);
translate([0,-EndCap[1],0])
cube([2*BarLength,2*EndCap[1],3*EndCap[2]],center=true);
}
}
//-- Cut wiring channels out of strip
module MakeMount(Layout = DefaultLayout) {
BarLength = Layout[0] * Segment[0];
difference() {
MakeStrip(Layout);
if (Layout[1] == "Wire")
translate([BarLength/2,0,0])
MakeWireChannel("Left");
if (Layout[2] == "Wire")
translate([-BarLength/2,0,0])
MakeWireChannel("Right");
}
}
//- Build it
ShowPegGrid();
if (Layout == "Channels") {
translate([ EndCap[0],0,0]) MakeWireChannel("Left");
translate([-EndCap[0],0,0]) MakeWireChannel("Right");
}
if (Layout == "Strip") {
MakeStrip(DefaultLayout);
}
if (Layout == "Show") {
MakeMount(DefaultLayout);
}
if (Layout == "Build") {
translate([0,BuildSpace,0]) MakeMount([1,"Wire","Wire"]); // rear left side, vertical
translate([0,0,0]) MakeMount([5,"Wire","NoWire"]); // rear top, across arm
translate([0,-BuildSpace,0]) MakeMount([6,"NoWire","Wire"]); // front top, across arm
}
The original design doodles, which bear a vague resemblance to the final mounts:
LED Strip Light Mounts – Original Design Sketches
The little snood coming out of the top would hide a wire going through a hole drilled in the capital-S of “Sears” on the front panel, but I came to my senses long before implementing that idea…
Back in 2006, I clamped a Hobo temperature sensor onto the pipe that delivers town water from the main, under 150 feet of front yard, and into our basement:
Town Water Inlet – temperature sensor mounting
Wrapping a chunk of closed-cell foam insulation around it made me feel better, but probably doesn’t affect the results very much at all:
Town Water Inlet – temperature sensor insulation
I assume the temperature of the pipe at that location will match the water temperature pretty closely, at least while some water flows into the house, and the water temperature will match the ground temperature four feet under the front yard.
Under those assumptions, the bottom trace shows the pipe temperature and the top trace shows the air temperature on the shelf a few feet above the pipe:
Town Water Inlet
The gap in early 2011 documents an embarrassing bit of forgetfulness. All in all, you’re looking at about 750,000 logged records; if you observe something long enough, it turns into science.
Cleaning up the date and time columns in the data files required a few hours of heads-down sed experimentation:
Convert quoted headers to comments → s/^\"/#&/
Convert non-data records to comments → s/^.*Logged/#&/
Convert two-digit years to four-digit years and enforce trailing blank → s_/\([01][0-9]\)[ ,]_/20\1 _
Enforce blank after four-digit years → s_/\(20[0-9]\{2\}\),_/\1 _
Remove blank after time-of-day value → s_\(:[0-9]\{2\}\) _\1_
Being reminded that sed will accept (nearly) any delimiter character came in handy!
The temperature spikes happen when I bring the Hobo datalogger upstairs to read it out. The plotting routine discards the junk readings caused by unplugging the remote sensor; anything below 30 °F or above 100 °F counts as spurious. The gnuplot idiom uses the ternary operator with the Not-a-Number value:
plot "filename" using 2:((\$3 > 30) && (\$3 < 100) ? \$3 : NaN) with ...</code>
The backslashes escape gnuplot’s variable markers, which would otherwise get eaten by Bash.
The Bash / gnuplot script that produces the plot:
#!/bin/sh
#-- overhead
export GDFONTPATH="/usr/share/fonts/truetype/"
base="${1%.*}"
echo Base name: ${base}
tfile1=$(tempfile)
ofile=${base}.png
echo Input file: $1
echo Temporary files: ${tfile1}
echo Output file: ${ofile}
#-- prepare csv Hobo logger file
sed 's/^\"/#&/ ; s/^.*Logged/#&/ ; s_/\([01][0-9]\)[ ,]_/20\1 _ ; s_/\(20[0-9]\{2\}\),_/\1 _ ; s_\(:[0-9]\{2\}\) _\1_' "$1" > ${tfile1}
#-- do it
gnuplot << EOF
set term png font "arialbd.ttf" 18 size 950,600
set output "${ofile}"
set title "${base}"
set key noautotitles
unset mouse
set grid xtics ytics
set timefmt "%m/%d/%Y %H:%M:%S"
set xdata time
#set xlabel "Week of Year"
set format x "%Y"
set ylabel "Temperature - F"
set yrange [30:90]
set datafile separator ","
plot \
"${tfile1}" using 2:((\$3 > 30) && (\$3 < 100) ? \$3 : NaN) with lines lt 3 title "Air", \
"${tfile1}" using 2:((\$5 > 30) && (\$5 < 100) ? \$5 : NaN) with lines lt 4 title "Water"
EOF
No snagging on a bulky quilt shoved through the machine
Not completely butt-ugly
Reasonably durable
I picked up reels of cool-white and warm-white waterproof LED strips (12 V, 3528-size chips, 5 m, 600 LED, 25 mm segments) from the usual eBay supplier, who promptly charged for both and shipped only the warm-white reel. Cool-white LEDs will be a better color match to daylight from the window and the little Ottlite she uses for detail work, but I ran some prototypes while we wait for the replacement.
The Chinese New Year really comes in handy as an excuse for screwing things up and not responding for a week or two. ‘Nuff said.
They’re similar to the RGB LEDs from a while ago, with even gummier “waterproof” encapsulation. I got double-density 600 LED strips to put more light emitters across the arm:
Various LED strip lights
The smaller 3528 SMD LEDs (vs. 5050 chips in the others) allow a narrower strip and the double-density layout means each three-LED segment is half as long long. The as-measured dimensions work out to:
25.0 mm segment length
8.2 mm strip width
2.5 mm thickness
The sealant thickness varies considerably, so I’d allow 3.0 mm for that in case it mattered. It slobbers over the edge of the strip here and there; allowing at least 9.0 mm would be wise.
The SMD resistor in each segment is 150 Ω. A 5 segment length drew 85 mA @ 12 V = 17 mA/segment. Boosting the voltage to 12.8 V got the current to the expected 100 mA = 20 mA/segment.
The LEDs are noticeably less bright than the 5050 LEDs, even at 20 mA/segment, but I think they’ll suffice for the task.
This chart, shamelessly ripped from the Interwebs because the links keep rotting out, may prove useful in the future:
Desiccant absorption vs humidity
In round numbers: between 10% and 40%RH, silica gel equilibrates at 1.8%RH for each percent of weight gain. If you toss 100 g of dry silica gel into a container with some filament, when it weighs 120 g (20% weight gain) the air inside the container will be at about 36%RH.
Come to find out that Makerbot changed the spacing between the Y-axis rod and the idler bolt, so it doesn’t fit the TOM286. I could fire up the Token Windows Box, install Sketchup, modify the model, rebuild and clean up the STL, and try again, but it’s easier to just give up. The TOM286 has worked fine so far, so maybe this isn’t really needed.
The Smell of Molten Projects in the Morning 