CURA 4.2.1 Definittions for CreatBot DX series 3D printer

[ricardo66 5]

For those owning a CreatBot DX 3D printer and want to use Ultimaker CURA 4.2.1 instead of CreatWare; I have added here a zip file (CBDX_resources.zip) having a set of definition (json), and the configuration (cfg) files which will allow to include this 3D printer under the “Add a non-network printer” CURA’s category. This set also includes the platform/bed definition (STL file) that enables the 3D presentation of the CreatBot-DX 3D printer in the nice CURA GUI environment.

For more details about it, and download such files, just go to this thingiverse thing link: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3868940

Enjoy it!

CBDX_resources.zip

[ptro46 0]

Hello,

 

I'm new with Cura and i have a Creabot DX2 Plus, how can i include your definitions files to slice with cura for my creabot ?

 

thank you.

 

Patrice

 

[ricardo66 5]

Hello Patrice

 

I had provided a link to thingiverse where I explain there how to proceed,. anyway I'll put here an extract from that I published there.

 

The solution I had conceived consist in a zip file having a set of definition (json) and configuration (cfg) files whose has to be copied accordingly into the CURA 4.2.1 installation directories; after that, when we restart ULTIMAKER CURA and we intend to add a new 3D printer it will include, below its “Add a non-network printer” list, a radio button for CreatBot-DX as choice.
Once installed, CURA 4.2.1 stores all predefined 3D printer settings into a “resources” directory at the installation directory, by examble usually in Windows it would be in this path: “C:\Program Files\Ultimaker Cura 4.2\resources”. Below this path we’ll see several directories, but those which matter for what we needed, are:
• definitions - contains the 3D printer definitions (json) files
• extruders - contains definitions (json) files for each extruder set.
• meshes - contains the 3D representation (stl) files for the building beds
• variants - has configuration (cfg) files to define HW variations (e.g. nozzles sizes)
• quality - has one directory per 3D printer with predefined quality profiles (cfg files)
• materials - contains per printer or generic predefined filament material profiles (xml files)

The attached “CBDX_resources.zip” file contains 6 directories with these same names, so what we have to do after extracting them to a temporary folder, is to copy the content of each of these folders to its homonymous directory in “resources” at the CURA 4.2.1 installation path (e.g. “C:\Program Files\Ultimaker Cura 4.2\resources” if Windows). The Quality profiles I had provided have very few parameters predefined, the idea is to use them as starting point to elaborate others more complex.
Once these files are placed in their CURA respective directories, the next time it’s started it will let available able CreatBot-DX as selectable 3D printer under “Add a non-network printer” category, just choose it and press on the Add button.

From this moment the Creatbot DX bed is shown (like in 2nd. picture) and we can operate over, like any other supported 3D printer, taking all the powerful advantage CURA 4.2.1 offers, of course obeying allays to the HW limitations of this 3D printer. Machine Settings can also be modified according the different DX series options.

When a new Ultimaker CURA be released, if they do not include these settings files there, we’ll need to update into all the respective Creatbot “.cfg“ files of this set, the “setting_version” parameter to the right number (possibly setting_version = 9) then once installed the new CURA version, repeat the copy procedure defined above. Hopefully someday Ultimaker team may include these or other even better settings to include CreatBot DX 3D printer so we don’t need to proceed in this way every time a new release arrives.

 

Definitions for Cura 4.3:  Since Cura 4.3 was released recently, I added in this post a new zip with the respective CreatBot DX definition files. So you have to proceed in same way over the CURA 4.3 installation directories.

 

NOTE: Since you hade a DX2, in your case, once you finalized the procedure described above, you have to  configure in Cura (Settings » Printers » Manage Printers... » CreatBot-DX » Machine Settings) the value of Number of Extruders to 2, just that.

Let me know if you get success configuring your Creatbot DX2 in CURA.

 

CBDX_resources_4.3.zip

[ricardo66 5]

Hi, I forgot to mention in the final Note,  you also have to set, at the machine settings, the 'Z (Height)' value to 520 mm once you have a DX Plus.

[Dicopy 0]

On 10/4/2019 at 8:41 AM, ricardo66 said:

For those owning a CreatBot DX 3D printer and want to use Ultimaker CURA 4.2.1 instead of CreatWare; I have added here a zip file (CBDX_resources.zip) having a set of definition (json), and the configuration (cfg) files which will allow to include this 3D printer under the “Add a non-network printer” CURA’s category. This set also includes the platform/bed definition (STL file) that enables the 3D presentation of the CreatBot-DX 3D printer in the nice CURA GUI environment.

For more details about it, and download such files, just go to this thingiverse thing link: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3868940

Enjoy it!

CBDX_resources.zip 334.12 kB · 15 downloads

Is there a chance of tuning this file for creatbot DE plus? I'm guessing that just changing de width and height wouldn't do it.

[ricardo66 5]

7 hours ago, Dicopy said:

Is there a chance of tuning this file for creatbot DE plus? I'm guessing that just changing de width and height wouldn't do it.

Hi Dicopy

Your guess is rigth, as much this set of files could serve as a base to create a new one adequate for CreatBot DE series. It's not enough just editing the width and height parameters, since that machine has different hardware features (max. speeds/accelerations, extruders offsets, temperatures ranges, etc.) also the bed's shape file should be adapted... so is a lot of work!

[Dicopy 0]

2 hours ago, ricardo66 said:

Hi Dicopy

Your guess is rigth, as much this set of files could serve as a base to create a new one adequate for CreatBot DE series. It's not enough just editing the width and height parameters, since that machine has different hardware features (max. speeds/accelerations, extruders offsets, temperatures ranges, etc.) also the bed's shape file should be adapted... so is a lot of work!

Adding a Custom printer does work very well...

[ricardo66 5]

On 2/21/2020 at 7:46 PM, Dicopy said:

Adding a Custom printer does work very well...

I Paid a look on the Creatbot DE HW features, it seems much more the same than the DX series, despite the volume the printing volume size and maybe other minor issues. So May be I had overestimated in in my quote "...so is a lot of work"!!

If I get some time may be I do another version covering the DE series.

[Joubarani 0]

Hello, Is there a chance to any help add my Creatbot F430 to Ultimaker CURA 4.**.

 

thanks in advance

 

sorry to my poor English language 

[rjprint 0]

Hi @ricardo66, any chance you would be interested in contributing these to the official Cura repository? If not, would you mind if I attempted it?

 

Thanks for the work.

[Joubarani 0]

It would be highly appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

[Guest maht]

There are details of how to do this here: https://github.com/Ultimaker/Cura/wiki/Adding-new-machine-profiles-to-Cura

Submit it to our repo as a pull request.

 

**Please make sure the profile is tested first! We have no way to test third party printers but people always like to blame us when they don't work.

[rjprint 0]

I have one in my workshop so it will be tested.

 

I will check out the guide. Thanks. I believe @ricardo66 has done all the hard work already.

Edited May 19, 2020 by rjprint

[Guest maht]

Ok great. I'd suggest sharing it between some other Creatbot F430 users before submitting it too, just so it's properly validated.

[rjprint 0]

16 hours ago, maht said:

Ok great. I'd suggest sharing it between some other Creatbot F430 users before submitting it too, just so it's properly validated.

 

It'll be a DX Plus, I do not have a F430.

[ricardo66 5]

On 5/19/2020 at 4:54 AM, rjprint said:

Hi @ricardo66, any chance you would be interested in contributing these to the official Cura repository? If not, would you mind if I attempted it?

 

Thanks for the work.

Hello @rjprint, 

Sorry by my Late answer, but working from home now (because of Covid19 confinement) free time is more complicated do manage...

Yes my intention was always to contribute with this profiles for Cura, I didn't commit them yet, because I didn't test them (and by QA rules I should not test them, someone else should).

I'm in same page than @maht suggestion regarding testing such profiles (DX and DE)

 

[ricardo66 5]

Actually in this attachment CreatBot_Def.zip

I let the DX/DE profiles updated for the Cura Version 4.6.

I'm thinking now about the amount of quality levels (9 in total) is a bit in excess, so maybe I should reduce them to as much 5 levels... what's your opinion on that?

Please let me know about you observations. And thanks by your feedback.

 

Edited May 25, 2020 by ricardo66
doing it more readable

[ricardo66 5]

On 4/30/2020 at 4:29 AM, Joubarani said:

Hello, Is there a chance to any help add my Creatbot F430 to Ultimaker CURA 4.**.

 

thanks in advance

 

sorry to my poor English language 

Hi @Joubarani

I paid a look into the F430 specifications and this 3Dprinter is very different than Creatbot DX/DE  (which are chamberless and bouden/far extruded). I could create a set of definitions for F430 based on that work I did for the DX, I would expect a lot of issues because of the differences, so if you agree I'll provide such definitions set with the condition you then test it and provide the need feedback to fix the issues you may find. 

[Joubarani 0]

Ok. Thank you in advance👍

[rjprint 0]

Thanks a lot @ricardo66 . I will try these profiles when I get a moment. And then maybe we should author a pull request so it becomes visible to other to try?

 

I intend on doing some print tests using the Autodesk-kickstarter test as I am new to 3d printing. Any thing I should be aware of?

 

What is considered a "tested" profile @maht ?

[ricardo66 5]

Yes @rjprint, that's the idea! to put such request to make "official" these definitions", but for that it's important they have to grant a QA minimum...! But now, looking myself on the huge testing work it will require due to the 9 levels of quality + 8 nozzle variants + 9 materials (surely I was  crazily ambitious!!) I think I should reduce something there, like up to 3 to 5 quality levels and just 3 or 4 materials to start, so in this way we could begin with a feasible/manageable  amount of tests by now, then in the coming version we could add/commit more tested quality/material/variant profiles!

This is my proposal for profiles reduction:

* 5 levels quality profile to: ExtraFine; Fine, Normal, Draft, Low.

* 5 material profiles: PLA; PLAwood; PLAmetal; PETG; PVA

* 4 brass Nozzle Variants: br0.4; br0.6; br0.8; st0.6

This is an open topic... (give me few days and I'll provide this reduced version set)

Each combination of the profiles needs to be tested, with an object we choose, (e.g the ultimaker robot, or the benchy boat) her @maht can help if Ultimaker has a standard object defined for that.

[rjprint 0]

Turns out my printer isn't in great working order at the moment, I tried to fire it up and I'm getting a clicking power supply, so I believe there's an issue or a short somewhere. I'll likely have to order a few bits for it 😪

 

I don't think it's really feasible to test each permutation.. that's a very large number!

Edited May 27, 2020 by rjprint

[Jacon 0]

Hi, ricardo66 I have a problem with my DX02.

Cura 4.8 does not handle printer parameters correctly.

I cannot choose the nozzle size.

The program cuts only 0.1 mm layer. There are no print profiles available. :(

I set layer height 0.26mm. The object is 40mm high, number of layers 398 is 0.1mm / layer.

What am I doing wrong ?

[ricardo66 5]

On 12/24/2020 at 1:48 PM, Jacon said:

Hi, ricardo66 I have a problem with my DX02.

Cura 4.8 does not handle printer parameters correctly.

I cannot choose the nozzle size.

The program cuts only 0.1 mm layer. There are no print profiles available. 😞

I set layer height 0.26mm. The object is 40mm high, number of layers 398 is 0.1mm / layer.

What am I doing wrong ?

Hi Jacon

Sorry for my late answer, I was in vacation unplugged!

Those definitions files I had attached before are not prepared yet for cura 4.8, and they are not 'officially' embedded into CURA, so for any new version we have to adequate those files... Probbably the issue you're facing is due to that.

To  workaround this,  you need to edit the respective quality and variants creatbot-dx*.cfg files, modifying on each one the setting_version value to 16 in the metadata section. So once done, you should see in all these cfg files something like this:

...

[metadata]
setting_version = 16

...

 

NOTE: In my free time I'm actually doing some improvements on those files and addapting them for cura 4.8.x, when I finish it I'll publish result here

Edited January 6, 2021 by ricardo66

[Davidjt 0]

Hello Ricardo,

I have inherited a Creabot Dx.

I did have Cura 4.13, and successfully installed, per your excellent process, the Creatbot profile.

 

This is my second printer (I also have an ender 3 S1), and like the Creatbot for the large size.

I have just installed Cura 5.2 (as it has the ender 3 S1 profile). Your explanation for the previous version, will not work, as the new version 5.2 does not have a "resource" directory. Is there a way to manage the profile installation? or is this a whole new process?

Regards, David