Z-Axis Endstops Usually Fail, Not Always

I just got the newer R1 printer and I'm working on troubleshooting and learning to use it. I have no prior 3D printing experience, so I'd like to solve one thing at a time for now.

Quick Explanation:
The Z-axis endstops don't work properly when using MatterControl. The endstops usually fail to stop the Z-axis on manual control and during print-leveling, but they always work properly on "home all." I'm using the 6-10 firmware and the issues have been inconsistent.


Long Explanation:
I've had issues with the Z-axis endstops while using MatterControl. The axis descends even after the switches have disengaged. In most cases, the switches don't seem to have any effect, but sometimes they stop the z-axis on manual controls then fail during the print leveling.

Originally, it worked fine on my desktop and I made a successful print. Next I tried to get the printer working with my laptop, but I ran into this z-axis issue. I tried updating the firmware to the 6-10 version and I checked the wiring, but the problem persisted. After switching computers and checking/calibrating several times, the endstops are now having issues on both computers.

The issues have been inconsistent, especially on the desktop computer. For example, the endstops weren't working at all, so I turned off and disconnected the printer, then reconnected it. Once the printer was reconnected, the manual controls didn't work until I hit "home all." Then the manual controls and the endstops worked, but the manual controls were unresponsive at first. After a second "home all," the manual controls worked fine but the endstops didn't work. The strange thing is the endstops seem to always work on "home all" on both computers, but they rarely work with any other function.

 

Thanks for the tip. It reported z min as "triggered" while the extruder was fully down and "open" everywhere else. The endstops seem to be working with the software on some level, so I'm not sure where to go from here. Given that I wanted to keep things simple and stick with MatterControl for now, do you think my best option would still be to switch to Repetier or something similar?

 

There's a decent chance that I've misreported something. I didn't mess with the gcode, so here's what's been running:

Start gcode:
G28 ; home all axes
G1 Z5 F5000 ; lift nozzle
M109 S[temperature] ; set the extruder temp and wait
G28 Z0 ; Home Z again in case there was filament on nozzle
M565 Z0
G29 ; probe the bed

My laptop definitely had this issue before I updated the firmware, so I'm not sure if it's the issue.

 

After disconnecting then reconnecting the printer, it started with all axis reporting open. After I homed it with G28, it reported the x and y axis as open and the z-axis as triggered.

I'm not sure whether or not the x and y axis are supposed to go to zero during the homing process, but they move to within a few mm of zero. Once zeroed manually, they reported as triggered on the endstop status. I also noticed during this test that the x and y axis had the same issue as the z-axis where the motors would run if I tried to manually reduce them below zero. On the slicer options, I verified that "Z Can Be Negative" was unchecked, in case could have been the issue.

Is there a chance that both the new firmware and the original V1 firmware that came with it were both bad?

 

First I tried on my desktop computer. I tried running the code as a .gcode print as well as manually. When printed, it works until the part where it's supposed to center. Instead of stopping in the center, it continues to the corner but stops just short of the corner. When entered manually, it seemed to work fine. Using a piece of paper to measure, the extruder was closer to 0.1 mm above the bed.

When trying on my laptop, I ran into a few problems with the code. When running G1 Z10, the extruder tried to lower below the bed level. I tried G1 Z15 and it stopped a little above the bed. A little bit later, I tried M114 and it reported z=-2.00 at the bed level. I tried reconnecting then I tried G1 Z15 again and it attempted to lower to around 1 mm below the bed level. I tried G1 Z18 and it went a couple of mm above the bed. I tried M114 again and it reported z=-53.1, so I've got no idea what's going on. On my first manual test, I did try continuing past the G1 Z15 step and the z-axis failed to stop at the bed on G29.

I checked from my desktop again and I also initially got z=-2.00 when bottomed out. I tried setting G1 Z-2.00 and it reported a position of z=-0.73. I might just be misunderstanding things, but shouldn't the value it reports be the same as the value that it goes to?

Another issue I noticed that may or may not be related is that when the x-axis endstop is triggered, the z-axis locks up and reports and endstop trigger.

In summary:

On the desktop computer: It doesn't center properly when run as a print, the z-axis is a bit off, and the reported position doesn't match the destination position. It also still has the issue of not stopping at bed level when moved manually.

On the laptop computer: The reported z-axis value varies, the destination position on G1 and the reported position from M114 don't match up, and the z-axis fails to stop at the bed level on a G29 probe. It also still has the issue of not stopping at bed level when moved manually.

 

I got the firmware from this post:

http://forums.robo3dprinter.com/index.php?threads/endless-firmware-updates.1938/#post-26117

I used arduino to update it and I used trial and error with a few different board settings before I got it to upload properly. At first I just hit "upload" and it gave me an error for the incorrect board. I believe selected the mega 2560 board next and it gave me another error. I tried the mega 1280 board and I got another error about the file being too large. I tried the mega 2560 board again and it worked. After I updated the firmware, MatterControl listed it as V3.

I don't have access to the zip file at the moment but it should be identical to the one in that link.

 

I've got the standard Auto Leveling. I tried switching that value anyway and uploading the firmware, but it didn't seem to work as well so I changed the firmware back. When I changed it back, the printer started working better than before but still has issues.

The endstops initially work when using manual controls. When I hit "home all," it works fine but afterwards the endstops no stop the z-axis on manual controls until I disconnect/reconnect. On the laptop computer, the auto leveling feature also bottoms out the z-axis regardless of whether or not I hit "home all" first. On the desktop, the auto leveling feature seems to work.

Should I try to get the V5 firmware? Is there a good way to find this firmware?

 

Both computers have the same version of MC: 1.1.5.2797. Automatic print leveling is disabled on both. I'm not sure which configuration settings I should be comparing, but the settings under the configuration tab appear to be identical between the two. I tested auto leveling again and it still works on the desktop but doesn't work on the laptop.

I've read a post that mentioned getting the V5 firmware via email from support, so I might try there.

 

Could it be the laptop can not provide enough power to the USB port?

 

I think that the reinstall may have fixed it. I tried reinstalling before, but I failed to notice that the settings were being stored in a separate folder which was being retained after uninstalls (Users\NAME\AppData\Local\MatterControl). On the laptop, the printer survived the first step of a quick print leveling test so it's certainly working better than before. I'll post if this issue comes up again after I've had more time to test it. Thanks for all of your help.