SD Card Printing gone wild

AJT3d 2018-01-15 14:41:46 UTC #5

Not to derail this thread, but the mention of a scrambled LCD screen piqued my interest. I got my kit together and printing just last week (purchased during '16 black friday deal lol) and I find that sometimes my screen is scrambled and unreadable and disconnecting and reconnecting the long cables to the LCD helps slightly, but the screen will still be slightly scrambled. This only happens sometimes, and more often it goes from good to scrambled during a print. Is there a known cause for this or do we know why the fix you mentioned (moving LCD to the back and using short cables) helps?

Also, somewhat more inline with the topic of this thread, my LCD will not read an SD card. I put the card in and the screen either reads no card installed or it shows a card installed, but I can't access the files on it via LCD screen (just has the return screen folder icon at the top). I have tried 2 separate SD cards, one I absolutely know works because I use in on my delta all the time without issue. Any idea why the SD card reader wouldn't read an inserted card, or allow me to access the files on it via LCD screen when the SD reader recognizes a card is installed?

Sorry if this is off topic, but I was browsing and noticed info related to my issues, I can start a new thread if it would be more appropriate.

csorrows 2018-01-15 17:32:28 UTC #6

No, this was to check if the cables were good.

The screen scrambling is more often than not caused by interference. On the original FT-5, the solution was to move the ribbon cables as far away from the Z steppers and wires as possible. Some even wrapped the ribbon cables in foil with varying success.

Please do start a new thread, lets get this thread back OT.

ChrisHenry 2018-01-15 18:45:33 UTC #7

Thanks for the good ideas everyone. I'll do some additional testing tonight and post my results.

Ron 2018-01-15 22:23:22 UTC #8

Oh, to be clear, when having the SD card troubles the screen did not scramble.
The entire firmware (and the display) reset itself back to a power-up idle condition.
Quite bizarre.

heartless 2018-01-16 01:59:14 UTC #9

@Ron - i have an idea of why you have issues trying to print from USB, but this is not the place.. let's not detract from the original issue.

ChrisHenry 2018-01-16 03:38:40 UTC #10

Okay. I've done some more testing to address some of the above questions.

Used RH to slice using the same process as when printing directly, but saved the gcode to a folder, then copied to a new flash drive. Did not use the "Save for SD Card" option, although I used that very successfully before. Print started and got through the first three layers with no issue, then went squirted a bunch of filament and went on a walkabout.
Sliced the exact same object in Cura, then exported the gcode, and saved to same flash drive as in #1. Didn't even get through the skirt before it went on a walkabout
For giggles and grins, I loaded the gcode created by Cura into RH and initiated a print. No issues with the print head going on a walkabout, but I interestingly did start having build plate adhesion issues. That's almost certainly unrelated to this, but worth noting for the sake of completeness.

As for the question about the display appearing garbled when this is going on, nope. It appears to be just fine. I haven't had any garbled display issues. Other than the cracked screen at the beginning, the only thing close to a display issue has been the strange flickering I described in the original post.

As for Z cable routing, I have the Z cable routed down the center of the base into the cutout below the power supply. The ribbon cables for the display run along the right-hand edge of the bottom, and into the electronics box through the hole below the logic board. Since I had no issue printing from the SD card after replacing the display and using my friend's step sticks, I don't think this is the issue, as nothing has changed on this front.

Any other ideas?

Thanks!
-Chris

ChrisHenry 2018-01-16 03:49:51 UTC #11

OT in my own thread, but build plate adhesion issues were solved by re-leveling the bed. Realized that the 0.2 setting in RH allowed for a slight gap in the print head, and the 0.1 setting in Cura was not so forgiving. Now printing from RH with Cura-sliced G-Code with no issues. No resolution on SD Card issue though. I'll probably contact FT's support tomorrow and see if they've got any ideas. They've been super helpful so far.

-Chris

csorrows 2018-01-16 06:34:12 UTC #12

Yea, that's probably the next step. Feel free to link this thread in the email to FT support to outline what has already been tested and gone through. Make sure you scroll to the top before copying the address or it will link to the reply you are viewing at the time.

Ron 2018-01-16 13:32:15 UTC #13

PM me? Thanks.

tom920 2018-02-13 23:10:46 UTC #14

I have the same problem with a new FT-5-R2 build. The controller crash and garbage display is likely due to static charge build up while printing or just sometimes walking up to the machine and touching the frame.
I have used the same 2 line LCD chinglish part in other non printer projects and the part is sensitive to outside glitches nearby.
The FT frame parts are all floating and may not get grounded to the mains line. The use of metal laminated sheet in the R2 complicates any method used to tie everything on the frame to ground.
The garbage read from the SD card is likely caused form cross talk from the Z axis motor and cables.( you also will see X and Y axis jumps while printing). I am trying to locate a schematic on the display assembly to see how they have designed the ribbon cable drive circuits.
I had garbage displayed in other brand printers that was resolved by replacing the ribbon cables with shorter ones. Long unshielded ribbon cables and stepper motors do not mix very well. The FT5 has extra extra long ribbon cables and that is an issue. I am sure I will find a fix but I am just starting to do some testing on the R2. More later...

csorrows 2018-02-16 09:50:57 UTC #15

The LCD mounting plate on the R2 was switched to acrylic very soon after first release because of one instance of this on only 1 test machine. Did you get one of the few with the ACM panel?

Dave 2018-02-16 22:31:33 UTC #16

Question for anyone:
Should the FT5's frame parts be electrically grounded to anything?

I too had the LCD corruption issue, and mostly (though not completely) resolved it by re-routing the display ribbon cables and the stepper motor wiring. I've never had any issues printing from SD cards even if the display does go wonky, so I haven't spent a great deal of time troubleshooting it... I have definitely noticed that static can trigger the issue though.

For the melamine R1 FT5s, it would probably take some dedicated wiring to connect each extrusion to the others electrically, and then I'd have to think about what the safest way to ground that set would be...

Ron 2018-02-16 23:06:05 UTC #17

Yes.
IMHO they should be connected to the mains connection (power cord) ground.
You can also use anti-static spray on the non-metallic parts.
Industrial versions would be better, but even "clothing" versions should help, such as-
https://www.target.com/p/static-guard-antistatic-spray-5-5-oz/-/A-13294243

Some people have mentioned on the forum to wrap the ribbon cables in foil and to ground that.
Because the SD signals are running through them of course, that should help if noise is the issue.

There is yet another possibility.
The SD card socket contacts are probably not rated for more than a few hundred insertion/withdrawal cycles (they are hardly considered to be "high end").
That many cycles is very easy to accumulate for many people.
You can buy SD card extenders to help prevent such an issue.
So you wear out the extender socket and not the display socket.
Throw the extender away and buy another one.

Papatinker 2018-02-18 05:57:48 UTC #18

My FT-5 R2 also goes on walkabout when printing from SD card. It has done this since the first insertion of an SD card. It does not go on walkabout when using USB. I have removed my large wiring harness and twisted all the components' wiring and separated them all. I have ran one of the ribbon cables on the top of the printer and one on the bottom and separated the z axis motor wiring. I have not yet twisted the dual motor harnesses for the Y axis. I still have the SD card problem, sometimes it does not recognize a card, or it does then it doesn't. The printer still goes and checks end stops randomly, or slows WAY down during the print, and cannot finish a print without doing this many times. The garbled screen has not shown it's ugly face in the few short prints I've tried, so I'm hopeful that that issue is resolved. Still looking for help on the SD card situation.

Ron 2018-02-18 16:39:12 UTC #19

Wow, that is pretty bad.
Have you tried re-loading the firmware and/or reverting to an older version of firmware?
Mine reports 1.1.0-RC6 at the splash screen, for what it may be worth.
I routed my stepper wiring fairly far from the display cables, but don't have the cables shielded at all, nor are my stepper wires twisted to any extent or braided.

The only real issues of this sort for me have been a result of heavily used SD cards.
They do have a finite lifetime for writes, and for some brands that lifetime is shockingly short.
Oddly, I have experienced the same sort of issue when using them as music media.
I get skips, jumps or hangs in .mp3 file playbacks to the point where I have had to actually discard some cards.
This, I presume, is a result of memory cells not "remembering" properly.
Enough to be written and verified, but not stable enough longer term.

I am however seeing some indications of contact wear or contamination on my SD card socket lately.
It sometimes takes two firm insertions of the card for it to be recognized as present.
However once recognized I do not have trouble with them.

On the other hand, I have had problems when using the USB port, which is merely a phantom serial port to the computer.
Thanks to a suggestion from @heartless I set the baud rate to 115200.
I also set the receive buffer size in the printer firmware to 256 bytes rather than the default 128.
Prior to doing that it would exhibit the same sort of symptoms you describe for the SD card including randomly moving to one or the other of the home limits, skipped print segments, and stalling out completely.

FWIW.......

Dave 2018-02-19 00:33:22 UTC #20

I'm believing the same, the open question is just one of safety, and how to do it properly to avoid making a nuisance issue (static) into one that is potentially much more serious for the operator.

For example, any anti-static wrist strap worn while working on static-sensitive electronics will have a resistor in series. This allows the strap to dissipate static, but provides some current limiting to prevent a lethal shock if the user happens to touch a live wire while wearing it.

Something like this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antistatic_device

The wrist strap is usually worn on the nondominant hand (the left wrist for a right-handed person). It is connected to ground through a coiled retractable cable and 1 megohm resistor, which allows high-voltage charges to leak through but prevents a shock hazard when working with low-voltage parts. Where higher voltages are present, extra resistance (0.75 megohm per 250 V) is added in the path to ground to protect the wearer from excessive currents; this typically takes the form of a 4 megohm resistor in the coiled cable (or, more commonly, a 2 megohm resistor at each end).

There is also some concern if the location's service wiring is incorrect... missing the ground wire (common in old houses) or the ground contact wired to neutral at the outlet. Taking away the static issue but potentially making the frame "live" could be a significant concern...

Ron 2018-02-19 01:59:18 UTC #21

Incorrect house wiring is not at all an idle concern.
The houses in our development were wired by a person or persons who were-
* drunk
* stupid
* high
* lazy
* cheap
* outright malicious
* or some combination of the above
We have lived here for over 20 years and are still finding things that are dead wrong occasionally and which could not possibly have passed even a cursory but real building inspection.
And there have been many instances of wall outlet box fires and two garage fires due to wiring mistakes that resulted in the actual destruction of both garages. No joke.
I wish I were exaggerating but I am not.
Enough of that.

Fortunately there is a very simple way to check at least the outlet that the printer is plugged into-
https://www.lowes.com/pd/Southwire-Analog-Voltage-Detector/50129728 (or equivalent)
Everyone should keep one in their toolbox.

Assuming that the indications when using such a tester are all good, then the ground should be OK to use as a safety connection.
In that case the frame should be connected directly to it to act as a "safety" system, with a side benefit that it will also dissipate static charges.
However if all you want is a static shield, then yes you can connect the framework to "a" ground through a 2-4 megohm resistor.
But even then you still need a reliable ground, so we are right back to using a tester such as the one above or finding a reliable ground of some form.

phiatt 2018-10-29 19:50:22 UTC #22

Hello Everyone,

My name Philip, I am new to the forum. I have been fighting the same issue as ChrisHenry for some time now.

Please, before anyone starts going on about home wiring; I have been electrician for over 25 years, from industrial, commercial, and residential; and after too many years of feast than famine; I now work as an Electronics/Electrical controls technician. My issue is not related to mains voltage.

I am searching for a resolution to the continued failed SD card prints, and the occasional walk-about from the axis, just as Chris has explained already.

I am still using the 12v setup. I have no need to go to 24v; it may be faster and more efficient, it's just a non-issue right now.

I did have a power supply fail; it was replaced; I have monitored the power supply during several prints; it does not waiver. I am beginning to feel like a controller failure is imminent, or this has to be firmware related???

Does anyone else have this issue? Let's work together and figure this out?

Thanks

csorrows 2018-10-30 04:11:13 UTC #23

csorrows 2018-10-30 04:12:28 UTC #24

Please start a new thread. The prior post was 8 months ago.