Ordered my Kit around 5/18. JuKu shipped it instantly and I was very surprised to see that FedEx said it would be here Friday 5/20 before 10:30 AM. Then it got snagged in USA customs!! So it is sitting at the FedEx hub in Tennessee.
Bummer!! Cest La Vie... Therefore, I did a few preparation steps this weekend instead of building the kit itself.
My LitePlacer is intended to be used to semi-automate boards that my wife and I are PnPing by hand. These boards ultimately go into a commercial product that we've shipped about 100 units, and the demand is scaling up a little. Not yet enough to justify a commercial PnP, and right on the boundary of simply having a service make them. We can make about 10 per hour with two people working to dot solder and PnP. However, this requires covering our good table and spreading boards, parts, tweezers, magnifiers, reflow oven shelves, and etc. all over the place. This is a big disruption to the house.
The ambition is to do this with the LitePlacer out in the shop. Said shop is small though... and getting full of CNC equipment, reflow ovens, and more.
Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
Last edited by Danal on Mon May 23, 2016 4:18 am, edited 2 times in total.
Re: Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
Because of the small shop, I wanted the LitePlacer to be somewhat move-able. To be able to store it between runs. Therfore, I wanted the table to be lightweight, low mass. I also wanted all the electronics to be very self-contained. All of this led to selecting an Ikea tabletop for the LP table. Specifically the "Linmon" at 100x60 CM seemed just about perfect. Here's the Ikea US link: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/00251135/
To keep the electronics hidden away and clean, I purchased two of them and also purchased some Poplar (wood) boards pre-cut at a local home store. US lumber marked 1" x 4" is actually 3/4" by 3.5", and I purchased two 24" and one 48" pieces. A bit of trimming to length and they became spacers to go between two Linmon pieces, forming a 3 sided box, open at the back. The space between the two Linmon Layers will be 3.5 inches, about 9 CM. I also purchased some pre-made feet, and a handle for being able to pick the whole machine up and carry it hanging down longways, a power switch, and a few other bits and pieces. I realize this makes the whole base much bulkier up and down than it needs to be... nonetheless, it is still light, VERY stiff, and overall a clean setup.
The spacer boards are epoxied to the bottom of the top table; this keeps the top of the top table absolutely clean and fastener free, for the later application of anti-static mat. The spacers will have through bolts/screws from the bottom of the bottom table to allow dis-assembly for access to wiring, maintenance, etc.
In the photo, what will ultimately be the top is upside down, showing the 3 sided box. Also, I had a TinyG on hand to begin the mounting/fitting process (I've converted my CNC to TinyG and absolutely love it).
To keep the electronics hidden away and clean, I purchased two of them and also purchased some Poplar (wood) boards pre-cut at a local home store. US lumber marked 1" x 4" is actually 3/4" by 3.5", and I purchased two 24" and one 48" pieces. A bit of trimming to length and they became spacers to go between two Linmon pieces, forming a 3 sided box, open at the back. The space between the two Linmon Layers will be 3.5 inches, about 9 CM. I also purchased some pre-made feet, and a handle for being able to pick the whole machine up and carry it hanging down longways, a power switch, and a few other bits and pieces. I realize this makes the whole base much bulkier up and down than it needs to be... nonetheless, it is still light, VERY stiff, and overall a clean setup.
The spacer boards are epoxied to the bottom of the top table; this keeps the top of the top table absolutely clean and fastener free, for the later application of anti-static mat. The spacers will have through bolts/screws from the bottom of the bottom table to allow dis-assembly for access to wiring, maintenance, etc.
In the photo, what will ultimately be the top is upside down, showing the 3 sided box. Also, I had a TinyG on hand to begin the mounting/fitting process (I've converted my CNC to TinyG and absolutely love it).
- Attachments
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- IMG_3604.JPG (95.57 KiB) Viewed 6162 times
Last edited by Danal on Mon May 23, 2016 4:24 am, edited 3 times in total.
Re: Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
Here is the bottom with the feet, and a few detail shots. The white squares are hold-downs for Wire-Ties that will be used to strain relieve everything that attaches to a screw terminal on the TinyG.
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- IMG_3607.JPG (111.26 KiB) Viewed 6162 times
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- IMG_3606.JPG (78.86 KiB) Viewed 6162 times
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- IMG_3605.JPG (79.01 KiB) Viewed 6162 times
Re: Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
I thought I had a power supply... turned out it was 12V... so ordered this one:
http://www.amazon.com/DMiotech%C2%AE-Po ... B018TG7I4W
I realize it is rated 5A and JuKU recommends about 6. I plan to run fans in my 3 sided enclosure, we'll see if this works or if I need something more robust.
http://www.amazon.com/DMiotech%C2%AE-Po ... B018TG7I4W
I realize it is rated 5A and JuKU recommends about 6. I plan to run fans in my 3 sided enclosure, we'll see if this works or if I need something more robust.
Re: Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
I also ordered some 3 conductor shielded cable (Limit Switches) and 4 conductor shielded cable (steppers). It seems like most people are going simpler than this... but the expense of this wire is very small and I want the machine to be rock solid. For anyone who hasn't worked on CNC (or other low voltage based machine control), it is counter intuitive as all heck, and absolutely true, that shields MUST be grounded AT ONE END ONLY. Therefore, my layout will have a "Star Ground" where all the shields attach to the same bus-bar or point.
Also, I have some E-Stop switches in a box around here somewhere...
And once I put those few bits in, that's pretty close to all I can do until the kit arrives.
I did order two Logitech C270 cameras to play around with; can't really do much with them until the kit is here. In particular, I am unwilling to drill my up camera hole until I see exactly how the LitePlacer frame fits on this table.
Also, I have some E-Stop switches in a box around here somewhere...
And once I put those few bits in, that's pretty close to all I can do until the kit arrives.
I did order two Logitech C270 cameras to play around with; can't really do much with them until the kit is here. In particular, I am unwilling to drill my up camera hole until I see exactly how the LitePlacer frame fits on this table.
Re: Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
The shielded cables are a good take!
I run in trouble with non shielded cables first and had to change to shielded ones later.
Rainer
from Hannover, Germany
wood-walker.com
I run in trouble with non shielded cables first and had to change to shielded ones later.
Rainer
from Hannover, Germany
wood-walker.com
Re: Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
Danal, just three advice:
a) don't forget a fan for the TinyG stepper drivers.
b) don't forget to bring the tinyG RESET with a handy push button to an accessible place. Bet ya... you WILL use it more often than you'd expected!
b) keep in mind that your shielded cables will be bent thousands of times. Most commercially available shielded cables are not constructed for this kind of use. I just had to fix a cable break on my CTC 3D printer and believe me, the wires seemed to be elastic enough but nevertheless one broke all contained cable veins. A quick pull an the cable was in two.
So if you really want a rock solid solution consider using special cable material.
Please take a look at this thread http://liteplacer.com/phpBB/viewtopic.p ... p=700#p700
a) don't forget a fan for the TinyG stepper drivers.
b) don't forget to bring the tinyG RESET with a handy push button to an accessible place. Bet ya... you WILL use it more often than you'd expected!
b) keep in mind that your shielded cables will be bent thousands of times. Most commercially available shielded cables are not constructed for this kind of use. I just had to fix a cable break on my CTC 3D printer and believe me, the wires seemed to be elastic enough but nevertheless one broke all contained cable veins. A quick pull an the cable was in two.
So if you really want a rock solid solution consider using special cable material.
Please take a look at this thread http://liteplacer.com/phpBB/viewtopic.p ... p=700#p700
best regards
Manfred
Manfred
Re: Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
Mawa, Dampfboot,
Thanks for the tips! I do plan to run a fan on the TInyG, and that is one reason for the somewhat high nylon standoffs. TinyG documentation states that the majority of the heat comes off the "bottom copper". I wanted plenty of space for airflow to these bottom copper pads.
Good advice on the reset button. I handn't really thought about that, I will mount a dedicated button on the front panel. Also, I plan to have a real E-Stop switch on the front panel, and I plan to wire that into the power supply line to the TinyG. That's what I did on my CNC machine, E-Stop actually removes power.
Keep the advice coming everybody, I do appreciate it.
Danal
Thanks for the tips! I do plan to run a fan on the TInyG, and that is one reason for the somewhat high nylon standoffs. TinyG documentation states that the majority of the heat comes off the "bottom copper". I wanted plenty of space for airflow to these bottom copper pads.
Good advice on the reset button. I handn't really thought about that, I will mount a dedicated button on the front panel. Also, I plan to have a real E-Stop switch on the front panel, and I plan to wire that into the power supply line to the TinyG. That's what I did on my CNC machine, E-Stop actually removes power.
Keep the advice coming everybody, I do appreciate it.
Danal
Re: Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
Oh by the way, the LitePlacer kit arrived this morning.
For those in the USA, if you get a "Customs Exception" on a FedEx shipment, it turns out you need to contact "FedEx Trade Networks" (not FedEx Express). It took me two business days of calls to figure this out... but once I talked to Trade Networks, everything was resolved in a single 5 minute call. And it went Memphis to my house overnight.
For those in the USA, if you get a "Customs Exception" on a FedEx shipment, it turns out you need to contact "FedEx Trade Networks" (not FedEx Express). It took me two business days of calls to figure this out... but once I talked to Trade Networks, everything was resolved in a single 5 minute call. And it went Memphis to my house overnight.
Re: Danal's Build, part 1 - Before the kit arrives.
Good tip. I was pushing it from this end as well, but sometimes when dealing with customs feels like pushing with a rope.