Flood port availability....?
Hello,
In this article there is mention of a 'Flood port': https://awesometech1.wpengine.com/mini-gerbils-peripherals/
Is this something available on the mini gerbil board v1.1RevB?
Alternatively is there a copy of the firmware previously mentioned (https://awesometech1.wpengine.com/k40-forum/topic/pin-out-for-air-assist/) which remapped one of the pause/cycle pins to handle the M7/M8/M9 command actions, and does this have to be flashed via a ST-Link programmer, or is it possible to use Arduino as ISP or similar...?
Thanks for your help.
Matthew
Hi there amasses. I was the one that first tested this function as I ordered an IOT switching relay power strip and I wanted my air to be turned on when a job started so the pump wasn't always on. What exactly are you looking to do? It is recommended that you use the ST-Link programmer as it is meant for the "ST" style microcontrollers and they are fairly cheap on Amazon.
I have a relay board I’m looking to trigger when the coolant commands are handled by the board, which will then toggle on the air assist pump.
Looks like I should have ordered that programmer during the week instead of just waiting and hoping ISP was also supported. Hopefully the eBay shipping time isn’t too bad ????
Anyway I guess it’s not a massive deal for me to flick the switch by hand for now, I’m sure there’s other things I can work on while waiting.
So you are basically looking to do the same thing I have done with the air assist?
More or less, yes, but I’m using a 12v pump with a simple relay controller.
I was hoping with mention of a flood port in the blog post that this would be already available on one of the headers like JP6, JO7, JP9 etc but I can’t find anything on those pins either docs wise or different signal levels when toggling M7,8,9.
At this point I suspect flashing the firmware is my best bet.
Do you know if there’s any details on what those pin headers are for...?
And can the chip be flashed using the Arduino IDE if I were to compile the firmware myself?
Hi amasses,
M7,8 and 9 commands do work but are mapped to pins that are not broken out. The alternative firmware has remapped these to the existing pins for other functions that you will need to give up. The Feed Hold pin is now swapped with the Flood port (3rd pin of the most right connector J1)
The other pin headers jp10 = uart (add a bluetooth, jp6 selects usb or uart), jp8=programmer port, jp9=bootloader selection.
The chip needs to be flashed with a ST LINK v2 dongle and ST link software (free download from ST.com)
The firmware is already compiled with Feed Hold pin remapped to the Flood port. SO you cannot use physical pause and resume buttons wired to the controller anymore but can use the software buttons in LightBurn or any other laser G-code sender.
Uploaded files:Thanks Paul. I’ll give it a go when my programmer arrives in the mail.
Do I need to set the JP9 jumpers for this process, or maybe has this already been documented somewhere that I haven’t seen?
No you don't need to set jumper 9. It has pull up resistors so that's taken care off.
Thanks Paul!
Will this output 5V or 3.3V?
It's sourcing 3V3 so you might need a level shifter when using a solid state relay with 5V level inputs.
That was my line of thinking 🙂 cheers!