Rostock MAX is alive (almost)

[johnoly99]

So, you guys have been guessing what we've been up to, here it is. The Rostock MAX is almost done

http://reprap.org/wiki/Rostock_MAX


We brought the arm mechanisms to life yesterday, proving the cheapskate would work awesome! Now, we're just finishing up some of the parts/pieces for the arms, and we're already cutting the molds for the injection molded platform and arms. Hopefully, I'll be on Ustream all weekend showing it off and printing. It might be early next week before we're printing, but we'll see!

Go take a look and see what you guys think,

[johnoly99]

Also go check it out on thingiverse.com

http://thingiverse.com/thing:29762

[jbinion]

You beat us to it.....But it looks great.

[Eric]

As a concept, it has a lot of cool factor.

What are the pros/cons of this kind of 3-point positioning system compared to the more traditional XYZ approach?

[Polygonhell]

Delta robot have very low moving mass that means the potential for very high speeds, which is attractive for printing.
On the downside with a linear configuration like the Rostock you need a lot of vertical height to get the necessary travel.

[timothysvec]

Sweeeeet. Look forward to seeing that thing running.
cheer's tim

[timothysvec]

How do you think your board and driver's will hold up when you use nema 23's? If they don't... geko 540 and mach3. I know that the $75.00 4 axis board has had problem's, when used with small cnc milling machines.

[johnoly99]

Tim, the Rostock MAX uses NEMA 17's. And, as of right now, I'm unaware of Mach3 being able to handle the delta positioning. I've heard EMC2 on Linux does, but not Mach (not yet!)

Here's a quick clip for you guys to take a peek at

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhqgu5sYLQM&feature=plcp

[timothysvec]

That is so cool! Is your extruter going to be located down on the business end or on the side......and I have to comment on what's propped up in the corner behind you guy's. Proper complaint department problem solver?

[johnoly99]

Oh tim, you noticed our complaint dept. eh?

Bowden extruder, but using our "Steve's extruder" with a modification to use push-to-connect fittings

[Eric]

Oh tim, you noticed our complaint dept. eh?

Bowden extruder, but using our "Steve's extruder" with a modification to use push-to-connect fittings

Which implies that eventually you will be able to offer a Bowden upgrade for any Steve's extruder, no matter what printer it's on?

[johnoly99]

Yup!

[jbinion]

Where did you get the Cheapskate linear slide?
I have some hardened steel pars about 4 foot long that should work.
jim

[kilroyo]

WOw!! that thing is beautiful .... and huge .. But the price , any chance you guys going to be offering an el-cheapo bargain build kit? Trying to figure out how I can sneak this one past the wife is going to be tuff

[timothysvec]

Just for laugh's....could you please show this to some mastercam people..........
cheers,
tim

[johnoly99]

Chad at cas cam tech (our mastercam dealer) was wqmting to maybe work on a toolpath dll for printing. Hahah

[timothysvec]

sweeet!

[tom10122]

Nice, Do you guys ever think that you will build a printer/cnc that uses threaded rods instead of belts? I saw that a group is designing one that used trapezoidal threaded rods for more movement per steps and it looked pretty cool.

[Polygonhell]

for something moving relatively light weights, with no side loads, belts are a really good solution, they can be tightened to provide effectively 0 backlash, and they are much more "efficient" than anything short of a ball screw.
There is the additional advantage in the reprap space because speed is important and belts with pulleys are generally in the 0.5 to 1 TPI range.

To do the same with screws, you need expensive screws with multiple starts to get close to the same TPI, and to get rid of backlash you either need acme screws with matched delrin nuts, or a pair of nuts/screw with some preload between them.
If you were going very large it might be worth it, or if you wanted something that could act as a light milling machine.

There is a company called Qube that is making a printer/milling machine that uses replaceable custom leadscrews, you use the Low TPI screws when printing and swap to the higher TPI screws if you want to mill something trading speed for torque, but AFAIK it's still not available.

[tom10122]

for something moving relatively light weights, with no side loads, belts are a really good solution, they can be tightened to provide effectively 0 backlash, and they are much more "efficient" than anything short of a ball screw.
There is the additional advantage in the reprap space because speed is important and belts with pulleys are generally in the 0.5 to 1 TPI range.

To do the same with screws, you need expensive screws with multiple starts to get close to the same TPI, and to get rid of backlash you either need acme screws with matched delrin nuts, or a pair of nuts/screw with some preload between them.
If you were going very large it might be worth it, or if you wanted something that could act as a light milling machine.

There is a company called Qube that is making a printer/milling machine that uses replaceable custom leadscrews, you use the Low TPI screws when printing and swap to the higher TPI screws if you want to mill something trading speed for torque, but AFAIK it's still not available.

Hmm Well I was thinking that there would be no having to adjust the belts, Didn't know it had backlash though, I was thinking of the Makibox, the only competitor really for the H-1 Pricewise

[johnoly99]

Or? What if you had a gearbox, where in one configuration, your motor pulley is X teeth, and your screw pulley is Y teeth, and that provided 4:1 reduction for torque. And, let's say maybe, perhaps, it was easy as pie to maybe? oh, dunno, loosen a setscrew on those same pulleys, and put Y pulley on the motor, and oh my! Put X on the screw, and BAM, you now have 4:1 increase in your drivetrain? Although, you'd prob. not need to do that swap in Z, just X and Y.


FYI, quick change rear-ends in the race cars I'm involved with have similar principles. Each pair of gears has two possible gear ratios, the input and output shafts of the rear ends are fixed, and the tooth count on the gears create the mesh. Too bad gears have backlash, otherwise skip the belts?

[BrainSlugs83]

If you're worried about backlash with gears, have you considered using a Herringbone gear? All the cool kids are using them.

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