Before it’s possible to turn images into instructions to the machine, those instructions need to be understood. Luckily, G-code, the name and format of those instructions, is very easy to get into. G-code is plaintext and somewhat human readable. Reminiscent of assembly language to a degree, but, as far as I can tell, contains no …
This post briefly discusses my choices regarding language and frameworks for building the Slicer GUI. It contains little technical information. My first instinct in building the application was to use Qt with C++. I’ve used this a little bit before and always found it quite pleasant. This idea was thrown into the wind when I …
Placing the laser onto the moving head of the printer was about as easy as expected. I printed this pen holder, which conveniently has a maximum diameter exactly equal to that of my laser. Thus, attaching it physically was achieved with ease. Electrically, I wanted to power the laser from the fan control (in the …
This project is mostly driven by a desire to expand my CNC-capabilities as cheaply as possible. I already had an Anet A8 Printer (as far as I know, the cheapest one available on the market when I bought it. Spot the pattern!) and figured I could hijack the frame/motors/controller and turn it into a laser …