UP Mini 3D Printer User Manual v 2013.1.
Legal Notice The information in this document is subject to change without notice. 3D PRINTING SYSTEMS LTD. MAKES NO WARRANTY OF ANY KIND WITH REGARD TO THIS MATERIAL, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. 3D Printing Systems Limited shall not be liable for errors contained herein or for incidental or consequential damages in connection with the furnishing, performance, or use of this Material.
1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................................. 6 1.1 HOW TO USE THIS MANUAL.................................................................................................................... 6 1.2 PRECAUTIONS ..................................................................................................................................... 6 1.2.1 Safety..........................................................
6.7 SPARE PARTS ..................................................................................................................................... 46 6.8 LEVELING THE PLATFORM..................................................................................................................... 46 7.0. TIPS & TRICKS ............................................................................................................................ 47 7.1 EXTRA STRONG PARTS ...........................................
1. Introduction 1.1 How to use this manual This User Manual is divided into four sections which cover the Introduction, Overview, Operation, and Troubleshooting. Please study this manual carefully before installation, and use the printer according to these instructions. Keep this manual handy and refer to it when necessary. 1.2 Precautions Please read this section carefully before using the printer. 1.2.
1.2.2 The following classifications are used in this manual. CAUTION: Indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, may result in minor or moderate injury. WARNING: Indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, may result in serious injury. Gloves: When performing certain maintenance procedures, the machine may be hot and gloves are required to avoid burns. Safety Glasses: Wear safety glasses to avoid injury to your eyes. 1.2.
1.2.5 Status Indicators LED State Indicates Solid Red Printer is not intilised Solid Green Printer is ready Flashing 10 times per second Computer is sending / spooling job to the printer. Flashing 5 times per second Extruder is heating Flashing 2 times per second Printing in progress Flashing about every 2 seconds Printing has stopped.
2. Overview 2. Overview The UP Mini 3D Printer is designed with ultimate portability and simplicity in mind. The system and software allow you to print great models with only a few keystrokes, keystrokes, even if you have never used a 3D printer before. The system uses a nozzle to deposit molten plastic, so printed print parts are strong and durable. Congratulations on purchasing your UP Mini 3D Printer. 2.1 Appearance Figure 1.
2. Overview Figure 2.
2. Overview Figure 3.
2. Overview 2.2 Specifications 2.2.1 Printer Physical Characteristics Printing Material ABS or PLA Material Color White Layer Thickness 0.20 0.35mm Print Speed (fine) 10 Print Bed Size 120×120×120mm Printer Weight 5 KG (11 lb) Printer Size 245 × 350 × 360 mm Extrusion Temperature ABS: 260-270c PLA:200 Platform Temperature ABS: 50c PLA:50c － － (fast) 100 cm /h 3 2.2.
3. Operation 3.1 Preparation 3.1.1 Quick Setup 1. Remove the two packing foams foam from the inside back wall and lift up the platform and remove the second from under the platform. 2. Clip on the roll holder onto the back of the printer. 3. Mount the Extruder Head, Head by clipping the Extruder head into its magnetic clip bracket. The fan sits on the left hand side as per image 3. Then plug in the ribbon cable connector on the top of the head. 4. Open the foil bag that contains the ABS filament.
5. Load the spool of filament onto the back of the printer. Check the diagram for the correct orientation of the spool.. 6. Feed the end of the filament through the filament guide. Feed the filament through the feeder tube and feed about 10cm out the other end of the tube. 7. Place the Filament ilament and tube inside the back of the top door. 8. Push the end of the filament into the print head feed hole. 9.
10. Plug the USB cable into the left hand side of the printprin er. 11. Plug in the power adapter into the left hand side of the printer. 12. Switch on at the wall socket and switch on at the back of the printer. 13. Visit www.3dprintingsystems.com/support to download and install the 3D Print Software. Soft 14. Installing the drivers (Windows) Chapter 3.1.2 Installing the software Chapter 3.1.3 Installing drivers (Windows) 15. Open the software, then click “3D Print” and then “Ini“ tialise”. e”.
21. Scale the bunny by 50%, click “Scale” and select “0.5”. Chapter 3.2.4 Model Transformations 22. Click “Place” this will centre the model or models on the base of the print area on the software. 23. Click the “Print” icon and click “Preferences” 24. Select the following: Z Resolution: “0.2mm” Fill: Hollow Honeycomb (bottom right) Support Angle: 30 degrees Typically these are the only values you’ll need to change. Click “OK” Chapter 3.3.6 Print Preferences 25.
28. Make sure the extruder vent door is closed (turn lever to the right). This is located on the left side of the exe truder print head. Having the door closed with speed up pre-heating heating time on both the extruder head and the heated platform. Chapter 4.1 Extruder Vent 29. Close the top and front door of the printer. It is best to keep the doors closed during preheating and printing.
Advanced Startup Restart now On reboot pop up menu will appear Select “Troubleshoot” On the next menu select Advanced Options Startup settings Restart Disable Driver signature Enforcement Done Now you should be able to install the drivers without any issue. wse”, and choose C:\Program C: Files\UP\Driver, then “Next”. Click “Browse”, The following dialogue box pops up. Choose “Continue Anyway”, and the drivers will install aua tomatically.
If you have any problems installing the drivers, or get a "Winusb.dll not found" error, please refer to the driver section in the troubleshooting section of this manual. Sometimes “3DPrint@FreeMC” is referred as “Free Motion” depending on your model number. Here is a video on the driver iinstallation http://www.youtube.
3.1.4 Updating your ROM Even if your printer is brand new, it is best to check you have the latest ROM version number ini stalled on your printer. Currently the ROM update can only be updated using the Windows software.. If you have a MAC it’s best to get access to a Windows PC to just do the ROM update. update In the UP software click “Help” and “About UP”. 1. Compare “Rom: Vx.xx” in the about page to the file located in to “C:\Progr “C: Program files (x86) \UP\System” System” “UP Mini x.xx.ROM” 2.
3.1.5 Initialising the Printer Before anything can be printed, the printer must be Initialised. Click the “Initialis Initialise” option under the “3D print” menu. The printer will beep and the Initialisation procedure will begin. The printer will then return the platform and print head to the printer’s origin and beep again when it is ready.
3.1.7 Setting the Platform Height This section is probably the most important import of the entire manual and only needs to be done seldom. seldom Please read it carefully to ensure that you understand the platform height setup procedure, as it is vital for successful 3D printing. To print successfully, the platform should be set to start at a distance of 0.2mm (A piece of paper folded over) from the nozzle.
1.) Now click “Goto Bottom” in the Maintenance screen. NOTE: Once you have setup the nozzle height once, you should do not need to do it again as it is now saved in the printer. TIP: You may need to regularly recalibrate nozzle height after moving the printer, or if you find the models are not adhering to the platform properly, or are warping.
3.2 Using the basic functions 3.2.1 Start the program Click on the UP FILE icon on the desktop. desk 3D Print Edit View Tools Help 3.2.2 Loading a 3D model Click “File / Open” or on the toolbar and select the model you want to open. open UP Software only supports STL files (which is the standard ard input format for 3D printing files), and the UP3 file format mat (which ( is UP’s proprietary compressed STL format) TIP: There are thousands of free 3D printable models available at www.thingiverse.
Move the mouse pointer onto the model, and click the left mouse key. Some model odel information is presented in a floating window, as shown below: (Windows version) (Mac version) TIP: You can open several models and print them all at the same time. Just repeat the open model procedure for each model you want to add. See the “Placing models on the build platform” section for more information.
Fixing STL Files: If you load a model and parts of it are highlighted in red, then the model has h some errors. The Up software has an option that attempts to fix models with bad surfaces. Under the “Edit” menu you will see a “Fix” option. Select the model with inverted surfaces, and click the “Fix” option to try and fix it. Also saving the model as a UP3 file, then reopening the file can also fix it. If you still cannot fix, just try printing a rough version to see if it comes out.
Scale: Rotate the mouse wheel: wheel The view gets zoomed in or out. View: The system has 8 preset standard views stored under the “View” button on the toolbar.
3.2.4 Model transformations transformation Model Transformation can be achieved through the Edit menu or the toolbar: (Windows version) Moving the model: Click the he “Move” button and choose, or input, the distance you want to move in the text box. Then choose the axis (direction) in which you want to move. Each time you click the axis butbu ton the model will move again. again For example: Move the model -5mm 5mm along Z axis (or down 5mm). Procedure: 1. Click on “Move”; “Move” 2.
Scaling the model: Click “Scale”, “Scale” choose or input a scaling factor in the text box, box and then either scale the model uniformly by clicking the scale button again, or choose the axis around which you want to scale if you only want to scale in one direction. Example1: Scale up the model uniformly by 2.0 times. Procedures: 1. Click “Scale”; 2. Input 2.0 in the text box; 3. Click “Scale” again. el by 1.2 times along the Z axis only. Example2: Scale up the model Procedures: 1. Click “Scale”; 2.
TIP: In general, try to place your model in the centre of the platform. Place: Click the “Auto Place” button, on the far right of the toolbar, to automatically place the model on the platform.. When there is more than one model on the platform, using “Auto Place” is recommended. By Hand: Press the Ctrl key and choose the target model by pressing and holding the left mouse button.. Move the mouse and drag the model to the desired position.
the value of how many grams of material you have on the current spool. If it it is a new spool, the quantity should be set to 700 grams. You can also specify whether the material you are printing with is ABS or PLA. TIP: An empty spool weighs about 280 grams so, if you are installing a partially used spool, weigh it, and subtract 280 grams from the weight. This gives you the value to enter into the matemat rial text box. Status: Displays the temperature of the nozzle.
3.3.5 Preparing the Platform Before printing, the platform must be prepared so that the model adheres to the platform enough to be printed without the model moving. Use the two clips in the box provided, these are used to clip the front of the Perfboard onto to the platform. For large models the warping force can be so strong that it will cause the Perfboard to warp as well, in these cases you will need to use more clips to hold it down.
3.3.6 Print Preferences Click menu “3D Print->Setup >Setup” or Click “print” and select “Preferences’ and the he following dialog dial box opens: Recommended Settings in red and in most cases are the only values that require changing ded pending on the model you are printing. Windows version Mac version Z Resolution: Sets the print resolution (layer thickness) of the printer. This can be between 0.2mm 0.2 per layer to 0.4mm per layer.
Semi-Hollow Honeycomb Hollow Honeycomb: The Part is made mostly hollow, which gives you the weakest part but faster print time. Parts with flat top surfaces can slightly droop with this setting. Support Options (Smart Support) The software’s Smart Support is where the software will automatically calculate where it requires support material. The Bunny on the left was printed with 80 degree support and then the support material is broken broke away to reveal the end result on the right.
There is always a delicate balance between minimizing the amount of support material, versus the quality of the part, versus the difficulty of removing support mam terial. The orientation of the part on the print platform is also critical in determining both how much support material gets used, and also how difficult the support material will be to remove. As a general rule, it is easier to remove support material from the outside of a part than from the inside.
Base Height: This is the thickness of the raft of material before the support support layer is printed under the part. When the printer starts printing, it first prints a raft of non-solid non solid material in which all the lines of support material are horizontal (along the Y axis). It keeps building up horizontal rows of support material forr as many mm as you have chosen.
properly on the virtual platform of the software window. Check if there re is enough material for the model (the software will, generally, tell you if there is not enough material when you begin the print). print) If not, change the reel to a new one. For large models results can be improved by preheating the build platform. Click the “Preheat” option on the “3D Print” menu and the printer begins to heat the platform forr 15 minutes.
• Status bar: The bottom status bar shows the current layer that is currently being printed and the remaining time to complete the job. • Intilise Switch: The switch on the front of the printer can also be used to abort the current print job, print the platform down down and then put the printer into sleep mode. • Lights On/Off: By pressing the Intilise Switch twice, will toggle the internal lighting on or off. Print Options: Speed: Fine, Normal or Fast..
4.1 Extruder Vent “wind barrier” The lever that is located on the extruder vent “Wind barrier” and does the following: Door Closed Door Open • Each printed layer bonds to the previous layer better, making for a stronger part. • The under sides of printed curves have a rougher finish. • • • Recommend for large parts. parts Support material is harder to remove. The heated platform is not affected by the airflow, so reduces warping of the raft from the platform.
including the raft and any support suppo material. The price as 6/10/12 /12 for ABS plastic from www.3DPrintingSystems.com was AU$59 per 1KG working out to be 0.06 cents per gram. 5. Model Removal When the model hass finished printing, the printer will beep, and the nozzle and platform stop heating. Open the door, remove the clips and sslide the Perfboard out from the printer platform. platform Slide the spatula under the model and slowly wiggle it back and forth to pry loose the model.
5.1 Removing the raft The first part that the printer lays down is referred to as the Raft. In order to remove the raft from the model if the base of the model is flat is easiest using the spatula by sliding it between bet the raft and the model and then sliding left and right in between the model. Pulling the raft off by hand will normally cause ABS fatigue marks (were the ABS plastic goes white from stress).
Acetone (nail varnish remover). CAUTION: ALWAYS WEAR SAFETY GLASSES WHEN REMOVING SUPPORT MATERIAL, ESPECIALLY WITH PLA MATERIAL. CAUTION: The support material and the tools are sharp. Wear gloves and safety glasses when removing the part from the printer or support material material.
6. Maintenance aintenance 6.1 Changing the Material To change colours or different materials it’s best to first f withdraw the leftover material from the extruder head. Initialisee the printer and choose “3D “ print->Maintain” and click lick “Withdraw” and the system automatically begins begin to heat the nozzle. When the nozzle reaches the correct temperature, the printer will beep, and you can gently withdraw the material.
After the calibration model is printed, measure the X1 and X2 length, length, as shown in the pictures below. Open the “Calibrate” box form the “3D Print” menu. menu Then enter the measured X1 and X2 values into the appropriate boxes. IMPORTANT NOTE: Before you enter any new calibration values, always click the “Reset” button, otherwise the new values get added to the old ones. Before you enter any new values, the bar at the very top of the screen should read: XY: 0.00 deg / XZ: 0.00 deg.
Firstly, move the platform to the bottom, then do a “Withdraw” in order to heat the nozzle to melt the oxidized ABS. Lastly, use some heat-resistant resistant material, like 100 percent cotton cloth or soft paper. A pair of tweetwe zers will also be required. Then clip paper or some other heat-resistant heat resistant things with tweezers tweezer to clean up the nozzle. TIP: Many users also soak their nozzle in acetone to clean them, or even use an ultrasonic cleaning bath to help clean their nozzles 6.
6.7 Spare parts Almost all the plastic parts on the printer are printed by the UP U printer itself. If you need to print spare parts for your printer, the files for all spare parts can be found in the C:\Program C: Files (x86)\UP\Example\ Spare Parts Part folder. 6.8 Leveling the platform The UP Mini platform can be simply adjusted using the software software calibration or manually adjusted.
height. A dialogue will pop up when the calibration is sucsu cessful. Close the platform calibration dialogue and do a test print with this file http://3dprintingsystems.com/boarder-print.UP3 http://3dprintingsystems.com/boarder 7.0. Tips & Tricks Large parts can sometimes have their corners lift from the platform, which causes the part to disdi tort. This is caused by uneven heat across the surface of the platform.
4. Troubleshooting 8. Troubleshooting Problem or error message Solution No power Verify power cord is securely plugged in. Extruder or platform fails to reach operating temperature 1. Verify printer has Initialised. if not, Initialisee the printer 2. Heater is damaged, replace the heater Material is stuck in the extruder.. See 3.3.3 Maintain (Extrude) Material not extruding The gap is too wide between the bearing and wire feed rollers. roll Cannot communicate with printer 1.
4. Troubleshooting 8.1 Air Printing If the printer is just printing in thin air and nothing is coming out, or has only completed half a model. Then hen you most likely have one of the following problems. • The roll of filament has a knot in it. Check by unspooling about 10 meters always keeping tension on the spool. • The filament feed guide on the back of the printer needs to be at about 10 degree angle. EnE sure the extruder can pull the filament filame without any stress.
4. Troubleshooting 8.3 How to clean the nozzle • • First intilise the printer, then click “Withdraw” in the maintenance screen. Once the printer beeps, using the gloves and nozzle spanner, unscrew screw the nozzle. You might need to gently push the nozzle down while unscrewing the nozzle to remove it, as the remaining plastic will act like a soft glue holding it in place, hence the reason to “withdraw” to heat up the residue plastic in the nozzle. • • Soak the nozzle for 24hrs in acetone.
4. Troubleshooting 8.4 How to clean the extruder column • • Remove the head cover, unplug the extruder fan from the top of the head. “Withdraw” the filament from the extruder. Once the printer beeps remove the filament from the extruder head. • • • Remove the nozzle. (Read the How to remove the Nozzle) Click “Withdraw” again, when the printer beeps. Using the gloves and a 1–1.5mm 1 1.
4. Troubleshooting Using a brush, clean away the plastic dust that has built up on the cog and the bearing. Reassemble all parts.
4. Troubleshooting 8.6 How to remove the drive cover and extruder block First “Withdraw” the filament from the extruder. Once the printer beeps remove the filament from the extruder head. If you only need to remove the extruder block, then just follow the last step below. Switch off at the back of the printer and wait for the extruder to cool down. Remove the extruder head from the printer’s magnetic mount and set on your desk. Unplug the yellow extruder block cable.
4. Troubleshooting 8.6 Solution for "Winusb Winusb.dll .dll not found" problem If you encounter a “Winusb.dll .dll not found” error message, please follow the steps below: Option 1: Uninstall Older Driver and Automatically Install New Driver 1. Open the Windows control ontrol panel, go to the “System Properties” dialog box and then select the “Hardware” page. 2. Click “Device Manager” button, and the following dialog box will popup. Find the “3DPrinter@FreeMC” in the USB section. 3.
4. Troubleshooting 4. Install the latest UP software. oftware. 5. Unplug the USB cable, then plug again. Windows will find a new device. Manually select driver folder (Default is C:\Program Program files\UP\Driver files or C:\Program files(X86)\UP UP\Driver); 6. There should now be a new driver section in the device manager as shown below: 8.7 Update the driver manually. Here is a video on the driver installation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGYTCRYkJr4 ?v=hGYTCRYkJr4 1. Install the latest UP software.
4. Troubleshooting 4. Select the up driver folder (the default is C:\program C: files\UP\Driver). 5. A “Free Motion Card” section should now have been inserted into the Device Manager.
4. Troubleshooting Appendix A - Support To get support for your product please contact 3D Printing Systems Australia New Zealand Phone: +61 (0)3 9099 0225 Phone: +64 (0)9 281 4206 support@3DPrintingSystems.com support@3DPrintingSystems.com Appendix B – 3D Software There are many great free or low cost 3D CAD programs that can be used for design, scanning and cleaning up files to 3D print. 3D CAD Software • www.tinkercad.
