multi tool

yuval

hey guys, im a bit newbie, trying to finish other student project he left behind

im using 2 print head diy printer, and had used configorator by duet

i can see, that the new toolhead is moved by using the command
g1 u100

for example

my problem is, that the slicer im using(prusa,cura) doesnt know how to send commands like that

instead, if it uses print head 1 it just add t0
and print head 2 just add t1
and all the gcode remain the same

is there unique slicer i should use?

jay_s_uk

@yuval i believe when setting up the second tool, RRF knows use the X axis values plus the additional offset you configure.
More information on setting up an IDEX machine can be found here https://docs.duet3d.com/User_manual/Machine_configuration/Configuration_IDEX

@oliof is also a good source of information

yuval

@jay_s_uk the problem is not offsets, its the way duet define toolheads
it defines them as new axis instead of new extruders/tool heads

jay_s_uk

@yuval it also defines them as new tools. I think you're better off reading the way tools are setup
i.e. as long as you've setup the tool correctly, it'll respond to X movements and apply the applicable offset

dc42

@yuval said in multi tool:

it defines them as new axis instead of new extruders/tool heads

No, it doesn't define them as new axes; however it allows the X and Y coordinates in GCode commands to be mapped to different axes, for example to map X to the U axis on a IDEX machine.

yuval

@dc42 thanks

oliof

@yuval prusaslicer "just works" with the multi tool configuration that reprapfirmware does.

the first tool is T0, the second is T1. the tool definition and tool offsets are enough for things to sort themselves out.

The tpre#/tpost# macros make sure a toolhead is prepared before/after activation. tfree# makes sure a tool is properly prepared for not being used, for example by moving it out of the way.

The confusion about G1 Xnn / G1 Unn comes from the ambiguity of whether X means the machine axis or the tool position along a coordinate system.

To make a bit of a diversion, in a delta printer or a corexy system "G1 Xnn" moves the active toolhead to position nn. In both cases there is no single otor that directly drives something along the X axis, but two or three motors need to cooperate for this move.

Now, when you want to address a motor in these motion systems directly, you can apply the H2 parameter to drive them, but this will cause a motion that does not map to the coordinate system. In a delta the printhead will make some diagonal move on the Z plane, in a corexy, it will make a 45 degree mode

In an IDEX system, G1 Unn moves will work even if the second print head is not the active tool because the axis assignment is unambiguous. But if you command T1 a G1 Xnn will move the seconf tool head. the H2 parameter mentioned above may work to move the first toolhead even if the second is active. (I cant currently test this, so please take with a grain of salt).

So, when choosing the second tool, the first tool (if active) is deselected, tfree0.g is runn, then tpre1.g, then tpost1.g. After that, any G1 Xnn move applies to the second toolhead, applying the defined offset, to move it within the coordinatr system, until T0 or T-1 is run.

Running T-1 is special because it deselects any active tool without selecting a new one. Good to do this at the end of a print to make sure the machine is in a well known state and all tools are parjed where they are depending on their tfree# macro

I hope that clarifies things a bit. Please refer to
https://docs.duet3d.com/en/User_manual/Machine_configuration/Configuration_IDEX as well as the M563 and G10 documentation for official word. If you have more questions, please ask.