Agreed - I think it is possible to do a fair amount of parallel printing using existing slicers by manually splitting objects into mirrored and duplicate parts - and telling the slicer to differentiate between them by using different virtual colours, ultimately the best way ahead would be for the slicer to automatically pick out parts of shapes than can be parallel printed - either mirrored or duplicated.
@@8MEKAN8 agreed that it would be nice is a slicer could do the segmentation automatically, I have included a few single object 4 extruder prints in part 3 and 5 of the series. I also think it wouldn't be too hard to write a gcode post processor that splits each layer of symmetrical print plates into parts that can be targeted at multiple extruders at the same time. Will explain more and demonstrate in a later video in the series.
@@dwuk99 O i see, you did it already. I agree, simultaneous work for extruders on the separate gantry wouldn't be hard to slicer. I mean two extruder on the same part simultaneously but these extruders not on the same gantry. Doesn't matter how complex part is in my opinion it would be easy. But i think simultaneous working for extruders on the same gantry can be really challenging for the complex parts.
@@8MEKAN8 I agree that producing completely different tracks and extrusions on the different print heads - even on the different gantries is a challenge to work out and avoid head clashes - particularly in this design where all of the gantries share the same Z axis. So they wouldn't be able to do anything like Z hopping and also they would need to coordinate with each other in terms of layer times etc - with some maybe going slower than the others so that they all start and finish at the same time. I thought I would defer this issue for now and concentrate only on things like segments of mirror and duplicate mode - probably with some variations like rotating the same shape across the two gantries and distorting on the X axis within the two heads on the same gantry. I think all of these modes would mean pretty much every individual line of filament extruded is the amount and all Z axis hops would be needed at the same time.
Only limit is slicer, these four extruders can built same part by working synchronously.
Agreed - I think it is possible to do a fair amount of parallel printing using existing slicers by manually splitting objects into mirrored and duplicate parts - and telling the slicer to differentiate between them by using different virtual colours, ultimately the best way ahead would be for the slicer to automatically pick out parts of shapes than can be parallel printed - either mirrored or duplicated.
@@dwuk99I meant that four extruders can print on one piece simultaneously. Not different piece for every extruder.
@@8MEKAN8 agreed that it would be nice is a slicer could do the segmentation automatically, I have included a few single object 4 extruder prints in part 3 and 5 of the series. I also think it wouldn't be too hard to write a gcode post processor that splits each layer of symmetrical print plates into parts that can be targeted at multiple extruders at the same time. Will explain more and demonstrate in a later video in the series.
@@dwuk99 O i see, you did it already. I agree, simultaneous work for extruders on the separate gantry wouldn't be hard to slicer. I mean two extruder on the same part simultaneously but these extruders not on the same gantry. Doesn't matter how complex part is in my opinion it would be easy. But i think simultaneous working for extruders on the same gantry can be really challenging for the complex parts.
@@8MEKAN8 I agree that producing completely different tracks and extrusions on the different print heads - even on the different gantries is a challenge to work out and avoid head clashes - particularly in this design where all of the gantries share the same Z axis. So they wouldn't be able to do anything like Z hopping and also they would need to coordinate with each other in terms of layer times etc - with some maybe going slower than the others so that they all start and finish at the same time. I thought I would defer this issue for now and concentrate only on things like segments of mirror and duplicate mode - probably with some variations like rotating the same shape across the two gantries and distorting on the X axis within the two heads on the same gantry. I think all of these modes would mean pretty much every individual line of filament extruded is the amount and all Z axis hops would be needed at the same time.