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Author Archives: gluckc

Replace JG Artist Extruder with Omnia Drop Effect Extruder

24 Sunday Jul 2022

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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So, I’ve been using a 3D printer to print out lots of different things for John. It’s a JG Artist-D Pro. Unfortunately, it’s required a bit of fiddling (I was hoping for fiddle free). Recently the extruder was under extruding so badly that it wasn’t even printing. So, I got a new extruder.

https://www.dropeffect.com/

And these are the steps to replace the JG Artist-D extruder.

Steps:

  1. Change Vref from .8V to .6V.

Follow this video to open the case: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kw4A6BgIjHU
Note that the case is glued down, so you have to use a good amount of force to peel it open. I bent mine a little and it took a little effort to line up the screw holes to put it back together.

Now, locate the stepper drivers and the potentiometers (see arrows and circle).

Change #4 and #5 potentiometers from the top of this reference picture. It is for extruder #1 and extruder #2.
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0406/3399/1320/files/artist_d_mainboard_1024x1024.png?v=1617851686&fbclid=IwAR2rsBmTZaPg5xXbV60fZtejofko86E-d8A4FMhkBVelTVZoo9MqU16VhKs
Here’s another picture for reference.

Search for ‘Vref’ in youtube and you’ll find a bazillion videos as a reference.

2. Take off old extruder and grab the circuit board from it.

This video is helpful just to understand how to take apart the extruder: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fIbvkzR5ew0&t=51s

While you’re at it… take off the cage.

Cage has 4 screws in the back.

3. Follow the Step 1 directions on the Drop Effect Site. https://www.dropeffect.com/omniadrop-assembly

When I initially assembled it, I did it incorrectly. The nozzle in this picture is flush with the Ring Heater. This should not be the case. There should be a gap between the nozzle and the Ring Heater. Screw the Ring Heater onto the Heatbreak on more turn so that there are no more threads visible on the heatbreak. This ensures that you tighten the nozzle against the heatbreak and that there is no gap between the nozzle and heatbreak. Otherwise the hotend could leak.

4. Plug Drop Effect into old JG Extruder circuit board.

Cables on the Drop Effect
JG Extruder circuit board (old cables still attached)

You cannot plug them in the wrong way, since there is only one way to plug them in, this is due the JST XHP connectors architecture. They will only allow you to plug them in one way.

We’ll plug in the fans in the next step.

5. Follow Step 2. of the Drop Effect Assembly

Note fan direction

The assembly may be mirrored from what is shown on the Drop Effect website since there is a right and left extruder. Also note that the fans have a slot on one side. Make sure to orient the fan so that the slot is blowing into the air duct for both the horizontal and vertical fan. There is an arrow that points to where that slot is located.

After putting on the fans you can plug them in.

The only thing you should look out for is that the part cooling fan and the hotend cooling fan are plugged in to the right connector. The easiest way to find out is to plug them in and see which fan turns on when you start the printer.

So the cooling fan that cools the aluminium heatsink should turn on, so the vertical fan. This fan ensures that the heatsink always stays cool when the hotend is heated up.

The horizontal fan is your part cooling fan. This fan is needed to cool your prints. This fan only turns on when you print something, because in your slicer you can set how much the fan cools your print. The part cooling fan is needed you print overhang and bridges and some material need more cooling than others.TPU needs a lot of cooling while PETG and PLA need a bit of cooling, ABS and ASA should not be cooled.

This is how the cables looked for me when I plugged them in.

6. Mount on to JG Mounting block

Mounting plate on Drop Effect — and back of JG Artist where it gets mounted.

7. Change the PID (tuning the heater)

Follow this video to correct the settings of the PID… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cl-B9SrlzMY

7. Calibrate the extrusion steps

Follow this article to make sure the extruder is extruding what you think it is:

https://all3dp.com/2/extruder-calibration-6-easy-steps-2/

Hand Warmer

17 Monday Jan 2022

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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Tags

accessible, adaptive, handwarmer

It is next to impossible to put either gloves or mittens on John’s hands. And even if I could manage that feat, it’s doubtful that he would then be able to control his joystick.

But in the wintertime, man, when the wind blows, his hands get cold. So, a new attempt at combating the cold.

So, introducing the handwarmer pouch. Slip a handwarmer into the pouch and then slide the whole thing around John’s hand.

I made one for each hand. We’ll see how well they work. It’s probably self-explanatory how I made it, but for more details, go to my gluckc instructables site.

https://www.instructables.com/Hand-Warmer-for-Wheelchair-User/

3D Printed Wheelchair Bracket and tray

06 Friday Dec 2019

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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IMG_0534.JPG

 

This was a pretty simple project to try to attach a tray to John’s wheelchair.  For details go to instructables

This is handy now to have the capability to 3D print any type of bracket I want to be able to connect to the wheelchair.

Amazon Alexa Controlled Elevator

03 Thursday Oct 2019

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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IMG_0460

I am revisiting controlling the elevator with an Alexa command.  This version is clean, (relatively) easy, and works well.  The secret is using a relay with a microprocessor and connecting directly to the button.

 

For details, go to instructables.

Wheelchair Prep for Airplane

30 Friday Aug 2019

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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wheelchairairplane4

So recently we took a trip cross country for John’s Make-A-Wish.  We were very nervous about flying since we read that nearly 2,000 wheelchairs were damaged over a 3 month period!!!  (See this article) 

So, we tried to come up with a solution we felt comfortable with to protect the wheelchair.  Here is what we did…

wheelchairairplane1

 

A — We have a Permobil.  Along the side of the seat is a rail that you can attach to.  Just slide a nut into the rail and you can screw a bolt into the nut.  As you can see in the picture, we attached an L-bracket to the rail.  (Note, the holes in the L-bracket didn’t line up with the rail, so we had to drill a hole through the L-bracket.)  So, we attached 2 L-brackets front and back and then we attached a 2×4 onto the two L-brackets.

B — We used bungy cords to keep the footrests in an upright position.

C — The cable to the joystick didn’t easily unplug.  So what we did was pull the joystick off the armrest and put it inside a shoebox.  We put bubble wrap all around the joystick.  Then we used the seatbelt to hold it in place.

D — Here’s where the magic happens.  We went to a place that makes iron railings and asked them to bend two bars for us.  They also cut a straight piece for us to join the rods together.  We bolted the bars onto the 2×4’s.  We figured these would act as roll bars to help protect the wheelchair.

E — On the permobil, you can lift off the seat back easily.  We lifted it off and took it into the plane with us.  Then in our case, the wheelchair couldn’t be higher than 33″, so we tilted the back until it fit the regulations.

F — We also took off the seat cushion and brought it into the plane with us.

After we got everything in place, we put a cover over the whole thing to protect it from weather.  (I just made the cover out of garbage bags that I duct-taped into the right size and shape.)

wheelchairairplane2

As far as procedure goes… John stayed in his wheelchair until we got to the gate.  We carried everything we needed to work on the wheelchair.  So, we had to send the wood, the metal bars, tools, nuts/bolts through security which was interesting.  When we explained what it was for they let us through.

At the gate, we sat John in another chair and worked on taking the wheelchair apart.  We definitely had to leave ample time to check in, get through security, and take the wheelchair apart.  We had instructions on the chair for common things they asked about — battery type, weight, and how to unlock/lock the wheels.  We talked with a technician about how to move the wheelchair and they took it away to load it on the plane.  I think they liked the way we packaged the wheelchair because they felt it was safer and they didn’t have to worry about not damaging it.

wheelchair3

All in all, we are very pleased.  We traveled across the country and back and there was no damage to the wheelchair — which was the plan !!

The Amazing Zipper Pants

23 Tuesday Jul 2019

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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This past winter John’s back began hurting.  Every time we would lift him it would hurt.  I could no longer transfer him myself from his bed or bath chair to his wheelchair.  I had to start using a lift.  I also could not lift him over my leg anymore to pull up his pants.  Getting dressed and going to the bathroom became a much longer task.  I had to use a lift to go from wheelchair to bed.  From the bed, I had to roll him back and forth while pulling down his pants.  Then use the lift to go from bed to bath chair.  After he used the toilet, I reversed the process to get back in the wheelchair.  His school didn’t have the resources set up to be able to handle this change, so for several months, we were picking him up from school and taking him home whenever he had to go to the bathroom.

I found a friend, Terry,  who sews and initially asked if she could put a long zipper in some pants with an elastic waist that we already owned with the thought that we could try to use a urinal instead of transferring out of the chair every time.  It didn’t work as well as we hoped.  There just wasn’t enough space to maneuver.  We went back and forth playing around with different ideas until we discovered the benefits of having a separating zipper down each side of the pants.

Our life changed dramatically!  For real.  We can now open up the pants and sit them on the wheelchair.  We can use the lift to sit John on the pants.  Then we just zip the pants up.  Amazing.  We don’t have to lie him on the bed and flip him from side to side while trying to yank up the pants.  And I’m sure this is much safer than when I used to lift him up and rest him over my leg while I pulled his pants up.  This has been such a timesaver for school.  He doesn’t need to transfer over to a toilet since he has plenty of access to use a urinal.  This has been such a help for when we are away from home, too.  Even if we have to transfer to a toilet, we still don’t have to worry about pulling pants up and down.   Because we worked from scratch we were able to add in a couple additional features.  The back of the pants are higher than the front.  It was hard to find pants that covered all of John’s behind.  I don’t know if it’s his body shape, or if it’s just because he’s always in a sitting position, but these pants cover everything they need to J  Also, it was helpful to make the pants lower in the front.  We found this to be more comfortable for him and it stays clear of his G-tube.

Visit instructables ( zipper pants ) for directions on how to make these pants.  There are two sections.  One for getting the pattern in the correct size and one for sewing the pants together once you have the pattern.  Thank you to Terry for providing the instructions on how to sew the pants together!!  I recognize that not everybody can simply run a python script to get a pattern, so if you are interested in making the pants, but don’t know how to run python, contact me and I can run the script and send a PDF of the pattern to you.  After that, if you don’t know how to sew, hopefully with the instructions and the pattern you can hire someone to make them for you.

Heated jacket liner thingy

17 Thursday Jan 2019

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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img_3479

Continuing in the quest to keep John warm, I made this carbon fiber heated cloth.  I have found it difficult to modify a warm coat that I can actually put on him due to contractures in his elbows.  I do have a coat I can get on, but it’s not that warm.  (Actually I also have a warm coat – but it’s sooo puffy that he can barely drive the wheelchair.)  So, the idea is to put this liner on first, then put on the jacket.  It is heated using a lithium battery that is used for power tools.

After I made it, I tested it out on myself while taking the dog out for walks in 36 degree weather.  Ahh!  toasty warm.  It sucks the battery up pretty quickly, though.  I’m thinking I’ll just keep a couple in his backpack and switch them out if we’re out for long periods (which isn’t often).

Today instead of putting it over his head, I laid it on his wheelchair seat before putting him in it.  He had a nice and toasty bum — kind of similar to a heated car seat.

For details on how to make it :   https://www.instructables.com/id/Carbon-Fiber-Heated-Liner/

Alexa Controlled Elevator Button Pusher

25 Friday May 2018

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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I’ve just uploaded an instructable that shows how to use an Alexa echo to control a button pusher.  There are button pushers that you can buy, but this one was cheaper for me to make and it does exactly what I want it to.

Updated – Jacket Modification

25 Friday May 2018

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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jacket-1
jacket

I posted awhile back an attempt to make a winter jacket more accessible.  I put a zipper down the back with the idea that it would open wider and be easier to bring around the back of John.  Well, it was only a minor improvement.  Here is my second attempt on a light jacket.  This time I effectively made the arm-holes much bigger so that we didn’t have to try to contort John’s arm into a small arm-hole.  This, so far, seems to be working much better.  See here for more details…

Updated Alexa controlled door

25 Friday May 2018

Posted by gluckc in Uncategorized

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remotecontrolwired

I’ve made some major advancements in figuring out voice control.  Initially, I was using an independent module — but I’ve discovered the WEMO micro-processor which has made it easy to communicate with an Alexa echo.  Now you can give the Alexa a command which it sends to the WEMO — and the WEMO can then control all kinds of sensors, motors, lights, etc.

Here are instructions for how to use a WEMO to control a garage door remote.  For us, we have a garage door remote to control the front door.  So, by giving Alexa a simple command we can open and close the front door.

← Older posts

Recent Posts

  • Replace JG Artist Extruder with Omnia Drop Effect Extruder
  • Hand Warmer
  • 3D Printed Wheelchair Bracket and tray
  • Amazon Alexa Controlled Elevator
  • Wheelchair Prep for Airplane

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  • Baseball Bat Accessory
  • Bathtub Booster Seat
  • Buy A Walker
  • Changing Table Modification
  • Ideas
  • Make Your Own Walker
  • Monster Truck WheelChair
  • Remembering Ruth
  • Solutions
  • Solutions
  • Songtificate
  • Swim Platform Images
  • Table Lift
  • Testimonials
  • Tips
  • Walker Images
  • Zipper Pants Request Form

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