Afinia H479 3D User Manual

Afinia

H-Series 3D Printer

Version 2.0

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction ............................................................................................................. 5

Safety Precautions and Protection ....................................................................... 5

Overview .................................................................................................................. 6

Unpacking the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer ............................................................ 7

Installing the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer ................................................................ 8

Attaching the Material Spool ................................................................................ 8

Driver and Software Installation ........................................................................... 9

Installing the Printer ............................................................................................. 9

Getting Ready to Print ........................................................................................... 11

Starting the Afinia 3D Program ........................................................................... 11

Initializing the Printer .......................................................................................... 11

Preparing the Platform ....................................................................................... 12

Leveling the Print Platform ................................................................................. 13

Calibrating the Nozzle Height ............................................................................ 13

Platform Level Calibration .................................................................................. 14

Loading the Print Material Filament ................................................................... 16

Other Maintenance Options ............................................................................... 16

Printing with the H-Series 3D Printer ................................................................... 18

Loading a 3D Model .......................................................................................... 18

View Options ..................................................................................................... 20

Model transformations ....................................................................................... 20

Placing Models onto the Build Platform ............................................................. 22

Print Setup Options ........................................................................................... 23

Printing .............................................................................................................. 26

Print Options ...................................................................................................... 27

Save as Project ...................................................................................................... 28

Model Removal ...................................................................................................... 29

Removing Support Material ............................................................................... 30

Maintenance .......................................................................................................... 31

Changing the Material ....................................................................................... 31

Vertical Calibration ............................................................................................. 31

Cleaning the nozzle ........................................................................................... 32

Removing / Changing the Nozzle ...................................................................... 33

Cleaning the Platform ........................................................................................ 33

Lubrication of bearings ...................................................................................... 33

Spare parts ........................................................................................................ 33

Tips & Tricks .......................................................................................................... 34

Status Indicator ..................................................................................................... 36

Troubleshooting .................................................................................................... 37

Solution for "Winusb.dll not found" problem (Windows) ..................................... 37

Updating the Printer ROM ..................................................................................... 39

Specifications ........................................................................................................ 39

Printer Physical Characteristics ......................................................................... 39

Specifications .................................................................................................... 39

Environmental specifications ............................................................................. 39

Technical Support ................................................................................................. 40

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

Afinia 1-Year Limited Warranty

Below is the one-year limited warranty included with this Afinia product. Afinia prides itself on its outstanding product line and its technical support. If for some reason, your product fails, Afinia, a division of Microboards Technology, LLC, stands behind its warranties and assures you the best service possible in a quick and timely manner. Afinia warrants to the original purchaser that this product is free from defects in material and workmanship. Afinia will for one year, at its option, repair or replace at no charge for parts and labor from the date you purchased the product from an authorized Afinia reseller. Nozzles and Cell/Perf Boards are warranted for ninety (90) days.

• Warranty registration must be completed within 30 days of receipt of the product in order to validate the warranty.

• Afinia, a division of Microboards Technology, LLC, reserves the right to determine the validity of all warranty claims.

• Warranty is void if the product serial number has been altered or removed.

• Warranty is void if the product has been misused or damaged or if evidence is present that the product was altered, modified, or serviced by unauthorized service people. The above stated warranty is exclusive and replaces all other warranties, express of implied, including those of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. Afinia, a division of Microboards Technology, LLC, will not be liable for any other damages or loss, including incidental or consequential damages and loss of profits or revenues from whatever cause, including breach of warranty or negligence. This product has been thoroughly tested and inspected at the factory prior to shipment. Nevertheless, inspect your product completely for any damage or loss of parts that may have occurred during shipment. Notify the delivering carrier promptly if damage claims are to be filed. Afinia reserves the right to modify or update its product without obligation to replace any equipment delivered prior to any such change.

To register your warranty, please visit www.afinia.com/register

FCC ID: 026-H479

This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following two conditions: (1) this device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) this device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.

Changes or modifications not expressly approved by the party responsible for compliance could void the user's authority to operate the equipment. NOTE: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This equipment generates, uses, and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio communications. However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation. If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:

•

Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.

•

Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.

•

Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the receiver is connected.

•

Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

Introduction

Congratulations on purchasing an Afinia H-Series 3D Printer. The Afinia H-Series 3D Printer is designed with ultimate portability and simplicity in mind. The system and software allow you to print great models in a few easy steps, even if you have never used a 3D printer before. The Afinia H-Series 3D printer combines years of experience and innovation to make printing 3D models easy through its reliably simple hardware and software design.

Safety Precautions

Please read this section carefully before using the printer.

• The printer can only be used with the power adapters supplied by this company, or the product may be damaged, with a risk of fire.

• To avoid burning or model deformation, do not touch the model, nozzle, or the platform by hand or any other part of the body while the printer is working or immediately after it has finished printing.

• Protective glasses should always be worn when removing support material, especially PLA.

• The brown sections of the currently supplied gloves melt at around 200º C; please do not hold the extruder block with the gloves.

• There is a slight smell from ABS when it is being extruded. A well-ventilated room is recommended; however when printing, keep the printer away from any drafts as this can affect the warping of ABS prints.

• When ABS is burnt it releases toxic fumes. Never set the nozzle temperature high enough to burn the material.

The following classifications are used in this manual:

CAUTION: Indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, may result in minor or moderate injury.

WARNING: Indicates a potentially hazardous situation which, if not avoided, may result in serious injury.

GLOVES: When performing certain maintenance procedures, the machine may be hot and gloves are required to avoid burns.

SAFETY GLASSES: Wear safety glasses to avoid injury to your eyes.

Protection

• The printer must not be exposed to water or rain, or damage may occur.

• Do not shut down the Afinia H-Series 3D System or pull out the USB cable when loading a

digital model or the model data may be lost.

• When using the “Extrude” function, keep at least 50mm between the nozzle and the platform. If too close, the nozzle may get blocked.

• The printer is designed to work properly at an ambient temperature of between 60°F and 85°F and humidity of between 20% and 50%. Operating outside these limits may result in low quality models.

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

Platform

Tube

Overview

The Afinia H-Series 3D Printer primarily consists of the Extruder, Print Platform, Material Spool, and Filament, all supported by the Pedestal. The Printer is initialized with a single switch, and calibrating the position of the print platform is done using the included Afinia software.

The Afinia 3D software sends the print data from a Mac or PC to the Printer over a single USB cable. The Print Platform moves both vertically and front-to-back while the Extruder moves left-to-right, providing the necessary 3 axes of operation (see Figure 2). The Extruder delivers the Filament from the Material Spool into the Nozzle, which heats the filament to printing temperature and deposits it on the Platform.

Filament

Plastic

Filament

Material

Spool

Filament

Status

Indicator

Extruder

Guide

Nozzle

Initialization Switch

Figure 1: Front and Back views of the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer

Guard

Power

Pedestal

Figure 2: Axes of Operation

Connection

Power

Switch

USB Port

Z Axis:

Vertical

Extruder or Y Axis:

Left to Right

Platform or X Axis:

Front to Back

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

Unpacking the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer

Remove the Installation Disc, Manual, Quick Start Guide, and Accessories Pack from the box. Next, lift the Afinia H-Series 3D printer from the box. Remove the foam from both sides of the Printer and set the Printer on its base with the back of the Printer facing you.

There are 2 packaging clips that protect the Printer during shipping that need to be removed. Both clips should be saved in the event that you need to ship the Printer in the future!

The first clip to be removed is used to hold the Extruder assembly in place during shipping. Carefully peel the strapping tape down, and then slide the clip down and off the Printer.

The second clip is used to help keep the Platform Arm secure during shipping. To remove the clip, place your hand under the platform X-axis arm and gently lift. Do not lift the arm by holding onto the platform!

Once the platform arm has been lifted a few inches, rotate the top of the clip towards the front of the printer. Once in the correct position, the clip will slip over the Z-axis arm.

Next, open and check the contents of the Accessory Pack:

• Reel of Filament (1, Natural/White)

• Power Supply

• Power Cable

• USB Cable

• FR-4 (Perf) Board

• FR-4 Board Clips (6)

• Filament Guide Tube

• Filament Hanger

You will need the Power Supply and Cable, Hex Wrenches, Filament Spool, Filament Hanger, Filament Tube, and USB Cable to complete the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer installation.

• Nozzle Wrench

• Hex Wrenches

• Spare screws & washers

• Gloves (1 pair)

• Putty Knife

• Exacto Knife and blades

• Snipping Pliers

• Tweezers

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

Installing the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer

Attaching the Material Spool

Attach the Material Spool with these steps:

A. Connect the power adapter to the power

interface and turn on the power switch.

B. Install the ABS plastic spool holder and filament guide. Unscrew the lower right screw

from the left side of the Printer. Use this same screw to attach the spool holder with the bottom right lip of the spool holder locked onto the printer’s corner and the top of the holder mounted over the upper left screw.

C. Put the ABS Material Spool onto the holder with the end of the filament pointing up from

the back. Thread the filament through the Filament Guide at the top of the spool holder.

D. Insert the end of filament into one end of the Filament

tube. Feed the filament through the tube until about 4 inches of filament protrudes from the tube.

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

Driver and Software Installation

Mac

Insert the Installation Disc into your Mac. Open the disc, go into the Mac folder, and double-click the Afinia Mac Setup.pkg icon. Follow the prompts through the installation. The drivers will be added and the Afinia software will be installed to the Applications folder.

Windows

Insert the Installation Disc into your PC. If the installer does not launch automatically, start the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer setup.exe file in the PC directory on the installation disc and install to the specified directory (default is Program files\Afinia\Afinia 3D Printer).

Note: This installs the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer software, the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer drivers, and the Afinia H-Series 3D Printer sample files into your Program files\Afinia\Afinia 3D Printer folder.

Follow the instructions in the Installer to be sure the drivers and software are all in place before attempting to use the Printer. The instructions below will follow the same order as those in the Installer.

Installing the Printer

Mac

Simply connect the Printer to your Mac using the USB connection on the back of the Printer.

Windows Vista, and Windows 7

As part of the installation, the 3D Printer drivers are pre-installed and you will be prompted to connect the Printer to your PC. The Printer will be recognized and automatically installed when it is connected to your PC.

Windows XP

Since XP does not have the driver pre-installation ability, the drivers must be manually installed when the Printer is connected to the PC. Follow these steps:

A. Connect the printer to a computer with the USB

cable. If the computer displays the “Found New Hardware Wizard” window, choose No, not this time, and click the Next button.

B. Choose Install from a list or specific location

(Advanced) and click Next.

USB Connection

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

C. Select the option to Search removable

media; the drivers are located on the installation disc.

If you are installing from a download, click

Browse, then navigate to C:\Program files\Afinia\Afinia 3D Printer\Driver, then

Next.

D. If the following dialog box appears, click

Continue Anyway, and the drivers will install automatically.

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

Getting Ready to Print

Starting the Afinia 3D Program

If the application is not already open, click the Afinia 3D icon on the desktop (Windows) or in the Applications folder (Mac). The program should open and appear as shown below:

Windows version Mac version

Initializing the Printer

Before anything can be printed, the printer must be initialized. Click the Initialize option

from the 3D Print menu. The printer will beep and the initialization procedure will begin. The printer will return the platform and print head to the printer’s origin and beep again when it is ready.

Windows version Mac version

The front Initialization Switch can also be used for initialization. Hold down the Initialization Switch for one second to trigger the initialization procedure.

TIP: If your printer is not responding properly, the first thing to try is to re-initialize the printer by

clicking the Initialize option from the 3D Print menu.

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

Preparing the Platform

Before you start printing, the platform must be prepared so that the model adheres to the platform enough to be printed without the model moving. At the same time, you will want the model to be easy to remove from the platform after printing. There are several options for preparing the platform:

FR-4 Board (Glass-reinforced Epoxy Laminate)

Many users have reported excellent results by using a piece of FR-4 Board to cover the build platform. FR-4 Board is a perforated, glass-reinforced epoxy laminate sheet.

When using FR-4 Board, the first layer of the raft pushes plastic into all the perforations, and this provides a strong mechanical bond with the surface that prevents it from later lifting. The FR-4 Board can be either taped down (with masking tape or double-sided tape), or clipped to the platform as shown in the picture to the right. Make sure the clips are on the front and back of the platform only to avoid interfering with the platform movement!

It can be easier to remove the model from the FR-4 Board after the model has cooled down. As the plastic cools, it shrinks away from the perforations, which make it easier to pull out.

Some FR-4 Boards may work better than others. For consistent printing, it is recommended that you use the FR-4 Board included with the Printer.

Borofloat Glass

Many users have reported success using Borofloat glass as the print surface. In this method, an ABS and acetone slurry is made in advance, which is lightly brushed onto the glass and allowed to dry into a thin film of ABS.

The ABS film will hold the model to the heated glass, and will release from the glass as the glass cools. If the model does not easily release, spray a small amount of an ammonia-based glass cleaner around the model.

The same glass cleaner can be used to easily clean the film from the glass.

You will need to clean and recoat the print surface after each print if you will be printing the next model in the same location. Allow the slurry to dry fully before placing the glass on the print platform!

Whichever platform preparation method you use, the two factors that most reduce the risk of warping on large prints are ensuring that the platform is well leveled and well pre-heated.

Afinia H-Series 3D Printer User’s Manual

Leveling the Print Platform

Before calibrating the nozzle height, always check the vertical nozzle distance from each corner and center of the print platform. Open the Maintenance dialog box from the 3D Print menu and click the Center button to begin the leveling process.

If you already know the nozzle height, enter that height minus 2mm in the To: box, then click the To: button. If your nozzle height is 135.3, for example, enter 133.3.

If you do not yet know the nozzle height, Click the To: button to bring the platform to the displayed height, then slowly increment the height until the platform is about 2 mm from the nozzle, clicking To: after each increase.

Use the five position buttons to check that the platform at all four corners and the center are the same distance from the nozzle.

If the platform is not the same distance from the nozzle at all five points, you will need to adjust the platform until it is level. There are 3 thumbscrews under the platform that are used to level the platform.

Loosening a thumbscrew will raise the related corner of the platform, while tightening the thumbscrew will lower the same part of the platform. Adjust the thumbscrews as needed until all four corners and center of platform are the same vertical distance from the nozzle.

Always recalibrate the nozzle height after leveling the platform.

Windows version

Mac version

Leveling screws

Calibrating the Nozzle Height

This section is probably the most important of the entire manual. Please read it carefully to ensure that you understand the nozzle height setup procedure, as it is vital to successful 3D printing.

To print successfully, the platform should be set to start at a distance of 0.2mm from the nozzle. As each printer is slightly different, this distance needs to be calibrated before starting to print.

To determine the correct nozzle distance, please follow these steps:

1. Open the Maintenance dialog box from the 3D Print menu and click the Center button. The current nozzle height is indicated as shown in the Maintenance dialog images above. In the Windows example, the platform is currently at the bottom of the printer; the Mac example has the platform 135.5mm from the bottom.

2. Enter the height to which you want the platform to move to into the textbox and click the To button. In the above Windows example, the platform will move to 121 mm above the platform’s origin. In the Mac example, the platform is already at the height selected.

+ 30 hidden pages

Afinia H479 3D User Manual

Specifications and Main Features

Frequently Asked Questions

User Manual