Session 1
- Time
- People
- Quentin + Sun, Eitan, Jacqueline, Matti, Tyler, Saetbyeol, Dimitar, Rui, Miranda, Edward, Ceci, Abby, ... sorry I dont know all your names :(, add yourself
Carvera Training
- Covered basics of the tool - how it operates, safety, automatic bit changing and sizes
- Walked through generating g-code with mods and how to import it into the Carvera software
- Learned how to mount stock on the cutting plate and set the XY offsets
- Set the z-height measurement grid and ran a job file
- Finished the PCB with wet sandpaper and inspected the traces
Design Rule Testing
- Used the g-code from the class site to cut the design rule board
- Can someone put the picture up?
Session 2
- Time
- People
- Kristof + Sun
Initial Observation
- Machine in crash state
- Probe lowered in contact with the bed (presumably battery 0)
- Several tools not fully inserted in the ATC tool holders
Attempted to Mill
During auto level probing, the probe failed to detect surface, and the laser was off, machine halted when it touched the bed. We realized the probe was not charged.
Machine, surprisingly, continued to probe with an uncharged probe, until it crashed into the bed.
Learning: when probe battery is low, it may still grab the probe to start level and may halt, crashing in the bed, in the middle of the probing.
When observed the probe was not properly inserted into the charge dock, just like the other tool, not fully inserted in the their holder. Upon closer inspection, we saw the collet was dragging the shank upwards on the way up, where the tool is supposed fully released.
We noticed a misalignment in X axis.
Modified Advanced Settings
- Tool Rack X Offset: 355.8 → 355.3
Tested, didn't help but visually the alignment improved.
Then we:
- ATC Motion / Action distance (how far the collet is being opened upon the tool release): 1.6 → 1.7, which is within the .3 range the manual advises the increment to be
Tested, helped but not consistently release.
Then we increased to 1.8, it works consistently.
Appendix
Troubleshooting guide: https://wiki.makera.com/en/carvera/troubleshooting/ATC
Session 3
People: Eitan, Sun, Rui, Matti, Ceci, Ben, Saetbyeol
JLCPCB Submission
We met up to go through the process of submitting a board to JLCPCB.
Ben made a board that we used as an example. He had experience with the export and submission process and taught the rest of us. See his board below! We exported the files through the File > Fabrication Outputs > Gerbers menu option.
We selected the layers that we wanted to export in the dialog that pops up. Note that we need to export some layers like the Silkscreen that isn't needed for the in-house fabrication process on the Carvera. JLCPCB is able to use that layer to print component IDs onto the board.
The exported gerber files need to be zipped. We did that and uploaded the resulting zip archive on the JLCPCB website. The FR-4 material is selected by default and JLCPCB updates the dimensions of the board based on the data in the zip file.
We were curious about the pricing and played with the different configuration options. Opting for the ENIG surface finish increases pricing from ~$6 to ~$22. Similarly, going for the purple color adds a surcharge putting us above $40 for the fabricated boards.
The black option seems to be more common and is cheaper than the purple.
We also discussed options for assembly and how the KiCAD project would have to be configured (adding part numbers for component values) for JLCPCB to know how to assemble the board.
