Losing communication

[SouthSideofdaSky]

I originally planned on printing from the SD card, and what you described is the reason I quit doing it. That and the fact that I like the monitoring features of S3D when connected to the PC.

The monitoring features are nice, but printing via USB means you're at the mercy of that connection. It's a trade off.

On further consideration, I agree with PcS that it's probably something on the computer end. I may look into the USB settings and/or try re-installing the driver.

[lem]

We could all lobby the S3D group to implement check sums. Marlin already supports them, S3D does not.

[MagicEngineer]

I am still fighting this issue, but I have at least found one partial fix. I no longer have to reboot the entire system. I have found that I can go into the device manager and disable then re-enable the com port. This unfortunately does not save the print since I also have to reboot the printer but at least it's a little quicker.

[jimc]

print from the sd card and as soon as the print gets going pull the usb cord from the printer. it will run without being connected to the pc. you can also pick up a raspberry pi and run it on octoprint. i have one printer setup like that and it is really nice.

[kyeakel]

I also have been having this problem. It seemed worse when running Windows 10, so I switched back to Windows 7. It happens less frequently now. The other thing I was doing was, I have multiple USB devices plugged in. I have the M2, a Robo3D, and a DeltaPrintr as well as a Darkly Labs Emblaser, and a K40 laser which I have retro fitted a controller I got from BigBear.dk. All work fine on their own, but when combinations of them are plugged in, I get disconnects, and programs not being able to find their ports. I have tried with and without USB hubs, powered and un powered. It is most reliable when only 1 of my devices is plugged in, and connected to USB 2.0 port and not USB 3.0 port.

Kipp

[MagicEngineer]

print from the sd card and as soon as the print gets going pull the usb cord from the printer. it will run without being connected to the pc. you can also pick up a raspberry pi and run it on octoprint. i have one printer setup like that and it is really nice.

I have been printing from the SD card lately because the problem seems to be getting worse. I don't pull the plug though because it only guarantees the need to disable and re-enable the com port. It seems to work fine that way. I miss the monitoring and the ability to pause the print (once the communication is lost) but at least the prints finish. I guess at some point I am going to have to buy the LCD screen upgrade.

[SouthSideofdaSky]

That's interesting that pulling the plug seems to cause more problems for you.

In a further attempt to help, I am going to spell out the exact process that allows me to avoid this problem every time. I apologize if this is exactly what you have already tried and it isn't working for you. I am presenting these steps in the exact order I do them. After having the same kinds of problems as you for a long time, I now do it exactly this way every time and I have never once had a problem since...except when I forget and don't follow this exact sequence.

1. Start a print via SD card.
2. After the print starts (e.g. while it is laying down the first layer), disconnect by pulling the USB cable from the printer, THEN the computer.
3. Close Simplify3D entirely (both the main window and the machine control panel).
4. When the print is done/you are ready to start another print, connect the USB cable to the printer, THEN the computer.
5. Open Simplify3D.
6. For me, when I do those five steps in this exact order Simplify3D automatically connects to the printer 5-10 seconds after startup every time without fail, regardless of whether I open the Machine Control Panel right away or not. I normally NEVER have to click Connect in the Control Panel. If I fail to follow the steps I listed in the correct order I almost always have to turn the printer off and on or something drastic along those lines (like you) to get it to connect again.

Good luck...

[jimc]

yes, even though your printing from sd card, if you dont pull the plug and you lose communication then the print will still stop. pull the plug and the print will always finish. are you totally losing communication or is the printer just freezing? are you running windows 10? windows 10 has usb com issues and will cause the printer to stop in the middle of a print every single time.

[ednisley]

the exact process

Sheesh...

Forgive me for ranting, but this has gotten absurd.

Pronterface and Linux Just Work™, with zero drama, if what you want to do involves sending G-Code to a 3D printer.

I run the model through Slic3r on the upstairs PC (the one with The Comfy Chair), toddle downstairs, fire up the M2, load the G-Code file from the file server into Pronterface, hit Print, and away it goes. An hour or two or three later, it's done. That's as exciting as it gets, ever.

Over the last five years, I've used half a dozen combinations of PCs and Linux flavors with two 3D printers, with exactly none of the aggravations you folks keep working around. Right now, there's old Dell laptop and Linux Mint connected to the M2 and various Arduino projects; everything stays plugged in all the time, because that's the way USB is supposed to work.

I get PCs from Dell's off-lease refurbished outlet, where the most recent desktop box set me back $200 delivered: Intel Core i3, 4 GB RAM, 250 GB drive, and a legit copy of Win 7 Pro that never sees the light of day. Laptops run about that much, maybe a bit more for a fancy screen.

Linux Mint / Slic3r / Pronsole are all Free Software: install 'em on as many PCs as you need, network them as you want, use them as you like. Software updates are free, bug fixes are nearly instantaneous, you can actually make a difference by reporting problems directly to the developers.

Yes, you'd have to (re)learn a few things to install & use Linux, but after that It Just Works... and you could get on with printing stuff, rather than putzing around with magic rituals.

OK, rant off...

[MagicEngineer]

yes, even though your printing from sd card, if you dont pull the plug and you lose communication then the print will still stop. pull the plug and the print will always finish. are you totally losing communication or is the printer just freezing? are you running windows 10? windows 10 has usb com issues and will cause the printer to stop in the middle of a print every single time.

Actually what is happening, is that the computer is registering that it is getting unplugged. I hear the usb unplug and replug sound. When it does that while printing from usb the printer stops and S3D gives an unable to open port error. I have to then go to the control panel and disable and re-enable the com port for it to work again. When it does it while printing from the sd card it keeps going so I assume it is just like unplugging it.