This post can be considered a work in progress. It'll be upgraded as I discover new problems that other users are having. Last update: Aug 20th, 2015
I use a fork of the 3D printer firmware called "Marlin" on my Arduino
MEGA to control my laser. Specifically, I use a fork by the user Turnkey
Tyranny
available here. I use
Inkscape for all of my design work, as well as
Turnkey Tyrannys fork of an Inkscape plugin designed to export G-code suitable for his firmware.
If you have never used the Arduino IDE (software to upload firmware
to Arduino boards) before please take the time to go through a few of
the tutorials on the
arduino.cc website.
This
will tell you how to install the IDE, and give you a general idea of
how to upload new firmware. Once the Arduino IDE is installed, navigate
to the folder where you unzipped
Turnkeys fork of Marlin.
Double click on "Marlin.ino" and it will open in the Arduino IDE with
all of its associated files. If you use File > Open it may not load
all the required files. Connect your Arduino via USB, make sure you have
the right board selected in the IDE, and click upload. If you get a
u8glib dependency error, you'll have to download the
u8glib library
and install it. U8glib is required if you are using an LCD panel. I
highly recommend using an LCD panel as this allows you to use an SD card
to run the machine, rather than have a USB cord running to your
computer.
Once
you have Turnkeys fork of Marlin installed, and the RAMPS board and LCD
stacked up, your LCD screen should turn on and look similar to this:
Now
you're ready to start plugging everything into the RAMPS board, but
FIRST and most important.. look on the RAMPS board for diode D1. You
MUST remove this diode before wiring the laser cutter up. It will
suffice to just clip the leads and remove the diode, but its a bit of a
tight fit so I desoldered it from the back.
If
you do not remove D1, then the RAMPS board will attempt to route 24v
from the stepper circuits to the 5 volt regulator on the Arduno. It's not rated to step that much voltage, so it will fry and possibly ruin your Arduno MEGA.
Some buildlogs have suggested removing the yellow Polyfuses from the
board as well, and bridging their connectors. I did not do this, and
have not noticed any trouble even after running the machine for more
than an hour one one design. You're mileage may vary. If you have issues with brownouts or the machine shutting down randomly, I would suspect the fuses may be causing some issues.
