Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Posted · S3 Calibration Issue (nozzle offset probe failed)

My place of work has 3 Ultimaker S3s, often running simultaneously on different projects. However, routinely at least 1 of the machines will consistently fail to calibrate, most often "nozzle offset probe failed". I've run every possible diagnostic, cleaned the plate, bed, and nozzles, to no avail. This happens just about every day, to the point where I feel that our rate of failure is outside of the norm for such expensive machines.

My question is: is it possible that the machines are interfering in some way with each other? I have read that the printers have inbuilt measures to account for capitative sensor interference, but at this point I can't think of anything else that may be causing these problems.

Thanks for any and all replies.

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Posted · S3 Calibration Issue (nozzle offset probe failed)

    So the difference in nozzle height of the left core versus the right core (when down) should be 1.5mm+/- 0.7mm.  It could be that you are right on the edge.  Or it could be failing by a lot.  I would look at the logs.  If you look in the log file you can see exactly what the printer measured for the left and right cores.  This is from an old log file below - you can get these many ways - one way is to insert a USB flash drive and there is an option (I think in maintenance menu) to dump all the log files to the USB.  These log files on your printer will typically have the last few days (weeks?) of data.  You can very quickly locate just the "active level" portions by searching through the files for the word "peak" and "Preliminary" as shown here:

    Quote

    geo@geo-Wild-Dog-Pro:~/ultimaker/logs oct28 2020$ grep peak ultimakersystem-ccbdd3005b4c.5.7.2.boot0.log
    Oct 29 00:13:45 ultimakersystem-ccbdd3005b4c python3[1166]: 2020-10-29 00:13:45,662 INFO     probingController Found peak @ 8.623
    Oct 29 00:13:59 ultimakersystem-ccbdd3005b4c python3[1166]: 2020-10-29 00:13:59,315 INFO     probingController Found peak @ 7.173
    geo@geo-Wild-Dog-Pro:~/ultimaker/logs oct28 2020$ grep Preliminary ultimakersystem-ccbdd3005b4c.5.7.2.boot0.log
    Oct 29 00:13:59 ultimakersystem-ccbdd3005b4c python3[1166]: 2020-10-29 00:13:59,507 INFO     probeResultValidationStep Preliminary z offset for second nozzle: 1.45

    Actually first search for "height difference between nozzles is too large" as that is the message that occurs right when the error happens.  Write down the date and time and *then* search for "peak" and "Preliminary" and look to see if even the passing tests *almost* fail.

     

    So if it almost fails everytime and only fails by a tiny bit then your active leveling sensor is probably fine and you have other issues - maybe you need to regrease the core where it fits into the holder or maybe your cores are different heights!

     

    If it fails by a huge amount then maybe it is failing the lift switch change (unlikely as you would probably have many other errors if you did 2 filament prints?).

     

    First lets narrow the problem down to "only fails a little" to "fails by a lot".

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    • gr5 changed the title to S3 Calibration Issue (nozzle offset probe failed)
    Posted · S3 Calibration Issue (nozzle offset probe failed)

    If they are failing by a LARGE amount then yes, they could definitely be interfering with each other.  But I doubt it as Ultimaker and lots of places have these printers side by side. Interference goes down by the square of distance so if you can move them such that they are just 10% farther apart that might be plenty to make the problem go away.  Again - this is why you want to know if they are only slightly failing (probably one core somewhere is the wrong length) or if they fail by a lot.

  • Link to post
    Share on other sites

    Create an account or sign in to comment

    You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

    Create an account

    Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

    Register a new account

    Sign in

    Already have an account? Sign in here.

    Sign In Now
    • Our picks

      • Help Us Improve Cura – Join the Ultimaker Research Program
        🚀 Help Shape the Future of Cura and Digital Factory – Join Our Power User Research Program!
        We’re looking for active users of Cura and Digital Factory — across professional and educational use cases — to help us improve the next generation of our tools.
        Our Power User Research Program kicks off with a quick 15-minute interview to learn about your setup and workflows. If selected, you’ll be invited into a small group of users who get early access to features and help us shape the future of 3D printing software.

        🧪 What to Expect:
        A short 15-minute kickoff interview to help us get to know you If selected, bi-monthly research sessions (15–30 minutes) where we’ll test features, review workflows, or gather feedback Occasional invites to try out early prototypes or vote on upcoming improvements
        🎁 What You’ll Get:
         
        Selected participants receive a free 1-year Studio or Classroom license Early access to new features and tools A direct voice in what we build next
        👉 Interested? Please fill out this quick form
        Your feedback helps us make Cura Cloud more powerful, more intuitive, and more aligned with how you actually print and manage your workflow.
        Thanks for being part of the community,

        — The Ultimaker Software Team
        • 0 replies
      • Cura 5.10 stable released!
        The full stable release of Cura 5.10 has arrived, and it brings support for the new Ultimaker S8, as well as new materials and profiles for previously supported UltiMaker printers. Additionally, you can now control your models in Cura using a 3D SpaceMouse and more!
          • Like
        • 18 replies
    ×
    ×
    • Create New...