weistek RS IdeaWerk Pro User manual

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Usermanualfor
RSIdeaWerkPro3Dprinter
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Created/editedbyVersionDate
DianaThomas‐McEwenV217/05/2016
DianaThomas‐McEwenV330/08/2016
DianaThomas‐McEwenV427/01/2016
DysonCentre
ForEngineeringDesign

1
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TableofContents
1.0MachineFamiliarisation.................................................................................................................2
1.1Basicmachineexteriorsetup.................................................................................................2
1.2Howdotheywork?.................................................................................................................3
2.0Materials........................................................................................................................................4
2.1 PLA..........................................................................................................................................4
2.2ABS..........................................................................................................................................4
2.3Othermaterialavailable.........................................................................................................5
3.0WherecanIgetthedesign?..........................................................................................................5
3.1 ObtaininganSTLFile...............................................................................................................5
3.2Designingafile........................................................................................................................6
3.3CheckingtheSTLfileforerrors...............................................................................................7
3.4ProcessingtheSTLfileusingDoraWare‐P............................................................................10
Filldensity.....................................................................................................................................12
LayerHeightandPrintspeed........................................................................................................12
Shell...............................................................................................................................................13
Raft................................................................................................................................................13
ExteriorSupports..........................................................................................................................13
Height(mm)...................................................................................................................................13
Extrudertemperature(°C)............................................................................................................13
Platformtemperature(°C)............................................................................................................14
3.4.1GeneratingtheGCode.............................................................................................................14
3.4.2ProducingtheWTKfilefromDoraWare‐P..............................................................................18
4.0SettinguptheRSIdeaWerkPro3Dprinter.................................................................................19
4.1Settinguptheprinter............................................................................................................19
4.2Startingtoprint.....................................................................................................................20
4.3Finishedprinting...................................................................................................................21
5.0Chargeforms................................................................................................................................22
5.1Howdoesitwork?................................................................................................................22
6.0HealthandSafety.........................................................................................................................23
6.1Whatcouldgowrong............................................................................................................23
AppendixA‐Troubleshooting.................................................................................................................25
NOTES.......................................................................................................................................................25
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RSIdeaWerkPro3DprinterUserManual
1.0 MachineFamiliarisation
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1.1Basicmachineexteriorsetup
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1.2Howdotheywork?
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Theextrudercanhavetemperaturesettoanywherebetween190°Cand280°C
andtheplatformcanhavetemperaturesettoanywherebetweenroom
temperatureand100°C.Theabilitytosetbothtemperaturesgovernstheability
toprintdifferentmaterials.Theextrudermustbeabletomeltthematerialtobe
printedandheatingthebedpreventsshrinkingwhentheprintcoolsandwarping
offthebed.
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WARNING:Cautionalsohastobegiventoanydangerousgaseswhichmightbe
givenoffonheatingamaterialsuchasABS–don’tassumeitissafe!!!
PLAisnotknowntogiveoffthesegases.
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ExtruderHead
Movesside‐to‐side
Mechanismtodraw
filamentin.
Thenheatsfilament
abovemeltingpoint
Smallnozzleoutofwhich
moltenplasticisforced
USBStick
USBsticksareprovidedfor
usingtheprinters
Usedforfiletransferringto
printer
Filamentisdrawn
throughlowfriction
tubeintotheextruder
head
Reelof1.17mmdiam.
Filamentspoolsoffthe
reel
Platform
Movesfront‐and‐
backalsoup‐and‐
down
Canbeheated
Thinremovable
sheet(bed)is
clippedtothe
platform(thisis
whatisprinted
TouchscreenforoperatingtheprinterSwitchonandoffontherear

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2.0Materials
Thereareavarietyofdifferentmaterialsthatthis3Dprintercanbeusedueto
itsrangeintemperatures.
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2.1 PLA
PLA(polyestercalledpolylacticacidorpolylactide)isderivedfromrenewable
sourcessuchascornstarch.Thismakesitbiodegradableandrecyclabletherefore
easiertodisposeofandwithnoharmfulgasesgivenoffwhenused.Theextruder
meltsthePLAatatemperatureof220°C,byheatingthebedtoatemperatureof
70°Cforprintofanythingofsignificantsizeorheightcanmaintainadhesionto
thebed.TheDysonCentrecurrentlystocksnatural(offwhite),red,blue,orange,
yellow,blackandgreyatapriceofaround£25perkg(forreasonablequality
filament).Othercolourscanbeorderedsuchaswhite,clear,grey,green,purple.
Also(foruptotwicethecost)fluorescentcolours,goldcolour,translucent
filament,thermochromaticandphotochromaticcolourswoodcolours,filaments
withsparklyinclusions.
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“PLAisanorganicmaterial,oftenmadefromcornstarchorsugarcane,making
itquitesafetouseasfarasfumesareconcerned.Currentlythereisverylimited
officialinformationavailableabouttheeffectsofPLAonourhealth.”Takenfrom
http://3dprinthq.com/desktop‐3d‐printer‐safety/
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2.2ABS
ABS(acrylonitrilebutadienestyrene)ismadefromfossilfuelsandthereforewill
releaseharmfulgassesandlikePLA,isrecyclable.Therearesomebiodegradable
versionsnowcomingonmarket,butmostarenotbiodegradable.Theextruder
temperatureneedstobeat240°Cwiththebedtemperatureat100°Corhigher
tocreateasuccessfulprint,theareaalsoneedtobeventilatedduetothegasses
released.Suppliersstockarangeofcolourshowever,duetotheproblemof
ventilationtheDysoncentredoesnotcurrentlyusePLA.ABAistechnically
strongerthanPLA,howeverdoesn’tbondtoitselfaswell,resultingin3Dprinted
partsareaboutsamestrengthasPLA.ABSisalsoalittlebitmoretemperature
resistancethanPLA.
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“AfewstudieshaveshownABSfumestobetoxictoratsandmiceandthereisa
fairchancethatABSfumesaremoreharmfulthanPLAfumes,mostlydueto
higherlevelsofemissionsandhighertoxicity.”“Recentstudieshaveshownthat

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ABSemitsaround10timesasmanyUFPs(UltraFineParticles)asPLAwhen
heated,againmakingABSmorelikelytoaffectourhealththanPLA.”
Takenfromhttp://3dprinthq.com/desktop‐3d‐printer‐safety/
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2.3Othermaterialavailable
Manyotheroptionsareavailableincluding:
Metalladenfilaments
Woodladenfilament(sometimesreferredtoaswood)
Flexiblefilaments
HIPS(HighImpactPolystyrene)‐dissolvablesomightbeusefulformaking
amouldwhichcanlaterbedissolvedaway.
PC(polycarbonate)
PA(polyamide)
PVA(polyvinylalcohol)
Nylon
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Wehaveyettoinvestigateanyoftheabove,intermsofavailability(in1.75mm
diameterfilament)/cost,Safetyoffumesandhowwellourprintersworkwith
them.Theprintermaybeharmedbyusingthem(e.g.acidiccompoundsgivenoff
onheating)sofurtherinvestigationisneededbeforeusingtheseinevery‐day
use.
3.0WherecanIgetthedesign?
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Therearemanyonlinedatabasesthatofferfreedownloadabledesignsthatjust
needtobeconvertedintotherightfileformat.
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3.1 ObtaininganSTLFile
WebsitessuchasThingiverse(auniverseofthings!)andinstructablesmakesthis
veryquick/easytoobtainSTL:StandardTriangle/TessellationLanguage(orother
similarfileformats

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Simplygotothewebsitetypeintheitemorthemethatyouareinterestedin
downloading,searchthroughofthousandslisteddesignsanddownloadthefiles
neededtocreateit.
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3.2Designingafile
TheSTLfilegeneratesverysensitivesettingssotheuserwillneedtocheckthe
STLfileprovidesclosed(watertight)surfaces.Stillworthcheckingeveninthecase

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ofThingiverseSTLfiles,oriffilehasbeen3Dprintedbeforeasdifferentprinter
softwareprocessesSTLfilesdifferently.
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Ifdrawinginanyofthe3Ddrawingpackagesbelowpleasesee,
www.dysoncentre.eng.cam.ac.uk/stlforhelpoutputtingSTLfiles.
[formerlyGoogle’s]Sketchup
Creo(Pro‐Engineer)
Solidworks
AutoDeskInventor
Catia
IronCAD
McNeelRhino
SolidEdge
UGSNX
Notethatmoltenplastichastobesupported,soconsideraddingsupportsinyour
model(pleaseseesection‐‐‐forfurtherdetails)
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3.3CheckingtheSTLfileforerrors
AquickcheckofSTLfilescanbedonewithaviewere.g.gotowww.viewstl.com
anddrag/drop(orupload)your(<35MB)STLfile.
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Onlinesitespinsobject
foryou,currentlylooks
okay…Version2offile

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Thisuserthenre‐exportedtheirSTLfileusingdifferentsettings,andtheproblem
seemsfixedinthisview.
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NOTE:ittakessecondstocheckinthisway.Thefilewon’tprintproperlywith
‘issues’sotendstowasteafewhoursofprintingtime.

Maybesomething
oddgoingonhere
andhere
Version2offile
Definitelyaproblemhere.
Thethinhorizontalsurface
hasvanishedwhenviewed
fromthisside
Version2offile

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WARNING:Alsoimportanttokeepaneyeonthesizeofyourmodel,the
IdeaWerkmachinecanprintatmost150mmx150mmx140mmhigh.
Notethatyoucanprintlongthinpartsdiagonally.
Inthiscase,wecouldscaledownthesizeofthepart(seelateronusing
DoraWare‐P).
Alsonotethatexcessivescalingdowncanreducepartthicknessesbeyondwhat
ispracticallyprintable/durable.
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Version3offile

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3.3.1FixingtheSTLfileerrors
OncetheerrorshavebeenfoundintheSTLfilewebsitessuchastheonebelow
canbeusedtofixtheseerrors.

https://netfabb.azurewebsites.net/


SigninusingIwindowsaccount(ifyoudon’thaveanaccountyoucancreateone
heretoo)uploadyourSTLfileandclick‘Repair’thesitewillgothroughyourfile
andfixtheerrors,thenyoucandownloadthefile.Itisrecommendedthatthe
filebeviewedagainintheSTLchecker.Iferrorsstillremainthefilewillneedto
becorrectedintheprogramoriginallycreatedin.
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3.4ProcessingtheSTLfileusingDoraWare‐P
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ToprocesstheSTLfileintoaWTKfilewhichcanbefedintotheIdeaWerk
machine,weuseapackagecalledDoraWare‐P.Youcaninstallthisonyour
ownPCatyourownriskfrom:www.dysoncentre.eng.cam.ac.uk/DoraWare
oritisinstalledonthemachine/sindicatednearthe3Dprinters.Thesoftware
takesthearrangementoftrianglesin3Dspace,whichrepresentyoursurface/s
andturnsthemintoinstructionsformaking2Dlayers.Instructionsforsuch

11
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machines(includingCNCmillingmachines)isknownasG‐code,whichis
instructionssuchasmoveXbysomanymillimetres,ormoveinanarcintheXY
plane,centredonthispoint,etc.DoraWare‐PmodifiestheG‐codeslightlyintoa
WTKfileformat.Other3Dprintershaveotherfileformats(suchasmakerbot,
etc).





Usethis
buttonto
importyour
STLfile
PurplemeansitwillfitwithinwhattheIdeaWerkmachinecanprint.
Greenmeansthatisitoutsideofthisspaceandmayneedscalingdown,or
mayjustneedrelocating,ormaybeboth.
Manipulatethe
object(mayneed
toclickonyour
objectfirstto
makesymbols
a
pp
ear
)
usin
g

x,y,z
translations
x,y,z
rotation
scaling–allaxes
simultaneously…orifyoumadetheobject
yourself,ifmaybeeasierto
domorespecialist‘tweaks’in
theoriginaldrawingpackage.

12

















Filldensity
3Dprintedobjectsarerarelysolidusuallytheyconsistofahoneycombcentreand
asolidshellthedropdownforfilldensityallowsyoutovarytheamountof
materialinthehoneycomb.

LayerHeightandPrintspeed
Howthickalayer(inmm)theprintertriestolaydownatonce,andhowfastitis
traversingwillhaveaneffectinprintquality.0.2mmandstandardprintspeed
seemtoproducegoodresults,asdofasterandthickersettingsforcrudeitems.
Whenyou’rereadytostartproducingG‐codeforyour
item,clickonGandtheaboveoptioninterfacewillopen.


13

Shell
Enablesyoutovarythethicknessofthesolidshell.Whattopickwillvaryalittle
dependingonwhatyouwantthepartfor,butthedefaultsettingforbothisnota
badstartpoint.

Raft
Raftproducesalayerunderyouritem,whichhelpsittostaystucktotheprint
bed,whilsttheitemisbeingprinted.Itwilleasilypeelawayfromyouritem,and
wedonotrecommendyouuntickthisoption.Theraftalsohelpstocompensate
foranymisalignmentand/orirregularityinthebed.

ExteriorSupports
Thisreferstotemporary(breakaway)verticalcolumnswhichtheprinterprints
underyouritem,tohelptheprinterprintrunsofmaterialwhichwouldotherwise
constituteittryingtolaydownmoltenplasticinmid‐air,whichwouldn’twork.
Ourtwooptionsare:
Exteriorsupport(i.e.underneathit,betweenitandthebed/raft).OR
Fullsupport(wherealloverhangsfurtheruparealsosupported.














Height(mm)
Settingthe[maximum?]heightofthemodeldoesn’tseemtohavemuchpoint,
unlessyouhaveamodifiedmachine.

Extrudertemperature(°C)
ForPLAprintingsettheextrudertemperatureto220°C.
Raft+exterior
su
pp
ort
Raft+full
support
RaftOnly(sel
f
‐
supporting
design)

14

Platformtemperature(°C)
ForPLAprinting,settheplatformtemperatureto70°Cifyouritemismorethan
about4cmindiameter,otherwiseyoucouldleaveitat20°C.Byraisingthe
temperaturethisavoidsshrinkagecausinglargeritemstowarpoffthebedduring
printing.

NOTE:Thesetemperaturesettingswillalsobeenteredintothemachinetoavoid
anissuewiththewayinwhichitoperates.

3.4.1 GeneratingtheGCode
ClicktogeneratetheG‐code,theprogressbarwillthenstarttoshowagreenbar
asitprocesseseachlayofthedesign.Notethatthisiscomputationallyfairly
complexandthattimetakenmayvaryfromafewminutesforsomethingsimple
toabouthalfanhourfortheexampleitemwithnosupporttoafewhoursfora
verycomplexpiece.Theratethattheprogressbarmovesisausefulindicator
somethingishappeningandhowlongitcouldtaketocomplete.MultipleSTLfiles
ofdifferentdesignscanbyuploaded(spaceonthebedproving)inDoraWare‐P
andcanthenthesecanproduceasingleG‐code,howeveritcantakealongtime
toproducethecode,sowesuggestyoucombineSTLfilestogetheroutside
DoraWare‐P,orproduceasingleSTLfromyourdrawingpackage.















andwhenwegetthemessageabove,weknowtheG‐codehasbeenfinished.


15

TrackingtheproblemwiththeG‐code
SometimewhenproducingtheG‐codethroughDoraWare,theprintdoesnot
turnoutthewayyouexpecti.e.holesingearsarefilledin.Youcancheckthat
theproblemisnotwiththeG‐codeviaGCODEANALYZER,gotohttp://gcode.ws/



a. UploadyourG‐Code

16


b. Lookingatthe2Dtabwillshowtheroottheraftwillbeencreated.
c. Lookingatthe3Dtabwillshowthemodelbeingcreated.

17

OtherinformationincludedisProgressindicator,Modelinfo,
LayerInfo ,2D
Renderingoptions,GCodeanalyseroptionsandPrinter
Info.



d. LookingattheGCodetabwillshowthecodeofthemodelbeingcreated.

18

Bylookingthroughtheseoptionsyouareabletoseetheproblemwithyour
design(ifany)andcheckthesettingarecorrectbeforecreatingtheWTKfileto
useontheprinters.YoucanthenalsomodifytheG‐Codefiletobecreatethe
desiredWTKfile.
3.4.2 ProducingtheWTKfilefromDoraWare‐P
Selecttheuploadiconatthetopofthewindow


UsethisbuttontoexportaWTKfiletoaUSBmemorystick,selectwhereyou
wouldliketosavetofile,ontheDysoncentreUSBstickthefileneedstobesaved
under‘3DMODEL’.

Therearesomepeculiarrequirementsandrestrictions:
1. Memorysticknotlargerthan32GB
2. WTKfilemustbeinadirectorycalled3DMODEL,andthisdirectorymust
notbewithinanyotherdirectory.
3. ThemodelnameoftheWTKfilebeforethe.WTKmustbenomorethan8
characterslong:e.g.

E:\3DMODEL\Richitem.WTK  fine
E:\3DMODEL\Richardsitem.WTK won’twork

4. Theprintercanrecognisenomorethan58modelfilesonthestickand
bettertohavemaximum20.
5. Notclearoftheeffectofothercontentonthestick,andifitmight/could
corruptit!(I.e.suggestadedicatedstick.)




19

4.0SettinguptheRSIdeaWerkPro3Dprinter

NowthattheWTKfilehasbeenobtainedtheprinteritselfnowneedstobeset
up,beforeusingpleasecheck:
Theprinterison(atthewallandatatback).
Alsothatablackbedisclippedwithfourclipstothealuminiumplatform.
Checkthattheprinterisloadedwiththecorrectfilament(bothtypeof
plasticandcolour)andthatthereisenoughfilamenttocompletetheprint

4.1Settinguptheprinter
Whentheprinterisfirstpoweredupthestart‐upscreenwillappearasshown
below

Touchthescreentoaccessthemainmenuandothertabs.Nowinsertyour
memorystickandselectthefileyouwishtoprint,touchtoselect.










NOTE:
Notecarefullytheformatofthescreen:Extruderandplatform
temperatures,andtargetandcurrenttemperatures.

Nowselectthe‘Move’tabandsettheextruderandplatformtemperaturesagain.
Todothistaponthetargettemperatureandtypeinthenumberfollowedby‘ok’.