Buildstation 5.4 SLA Machine Control Software Release Notes

Transcription

1 Buildstation 5.4 SLA Machine Control Software Release Notes Overview The changes contained in the Buildstation 5.4 software are primarily directed at providing compatibility with the corresponding release of 3D Lightyear 1.4 software. Included in this document is information regarding: Compatibility with previous versions Changes in functionality since the Buildstation 5.3 software release Issues that have been resolved in this version Issues that are still outstanding in this version Installation and licensing Instructions System Support and Compatibility With Previous Versions Buildstation 5.4 software supports the Viper, SLA 500, SLA 350/3500, SLA 5000, and SLA 7000 systems. It does not support SLA 190 or SLA 250 systems. 3D Systems recommends that you use the corresponding release of 3D Lightyear software, version 1.4, to create BFF files for SLA systems running the Buildstation 5.4 software. However, the format of the BFF files has not changed between versions 5.3 and 5.4 of the Buildstation software. Therefore, a BFF file created with versions 1.3 or 1.4 of 3D Lightyear software will successfully build on SLA systems running Buildstation 5.4 software. Buildstation 5.4 software requires Windows NT4 O/S with Service Pack 3 or later, running on the system controller. Buildstation 5.4 software will not run on earlier versions of the Windows O/S, and has not been certified to run on Windows 2000 Professional or Windows XP Professional. Feature-Function Changes There are no major feature-function changes in this new release. P/N N13-00

2 ii Resolved Issues The Add Resin prompt no longer interferes with Delayed Builds. The Adjust Resin Volume process no longer takes an inordinate amount of time to complete on Viper SLA systems. Jumping to the rest position from a profiler on a Viper SLA system no longer cures resin. The installation errors that occurred if a prior version was moved or deleted have been resolved. The installation program now backs up critical files before installing a new version and re-installs them for use with the updated version. The installation program now installs resin files for 3D Systems Accura SL materials. Issues with the Remote function have been resolved. Issues with supporting some SLA 500 system configurations have been resolved. Outstanding Issues Under certain circumstances on a Viper SLA system, adding and building a Normal-Res platform immediately following a High-Res platform can cause an erratic build exhibiting longer-than-normal build time and overexposed supports. Clear the job tree, or keep High-Res and Normal-Res builds in separate job trees. Starting a build on a Viper SLA system with the resin well below the lower metal tab on the vat and with the vat near the top limit has resulted in the system failing to prompt for added resin and eventually encountering a leveling error during the build that does not respond to an abort command. Always check the resin level before a build and if it is below the lower metal tab, add resin so that the level is between the tabs, but not close to the upper tab. Following this procedure resolves multiple build start and leveling issues on a Viper system. A Delayed Build on a Viper SLA system can take a very long time during the Checking Resin operation with no indication that the system is doing anything. Depending on how far the system is from level, the process can take five minutes or more. Continue to monitor the system until the Delayed Build window appears. If the system loses its network connection and Network Broadcasting is enabled, the system repeatedly displays the message Incorrect Function. Check and reset the network connection. Various errors can occur if the operating system s Screen Saver function is enabled. Instead of using Screen Saver, power the monitor off during unattended periods. There have been several cases where the Buildstation clock is off by exactly one or two hours even though the operating system s clock is correct. The workaround is to calculate Delayed Builds based on the apparent time as displayed in the Buildstation software.

3 iii Systems with a Coherent 328 laser can have difficulty with the restart delay routines following a Continue Build command. Manually turn the laser on using the Field Service functions, and then restart the build. In certain cases, creating numerous multiple copies of a part in 3D Lightyear software using a PHD style can take longer to build than when those copies are created in the Buildstation software. The message area in the Motion Control dialog is not cleared properly when a new motion is initiated after stopping a previous motion. There are significant issues with the accuracy of the Build Time Estimator (BTE). For High-Res builds on a Viper SLA system, the BTE does not take into account the fact that applying Best Surface Finish significantly increases build time. Also, the BTE does not properly account for the post-hatch delay in PHD styles. Other factors as well can significantly affect the accuracy of the BTE. There are intermittent issues with the Autodrain function on SLA 350 and SLA 500 systems. If the system is directed to use an invalid resin file (e.g., a file with D p =0 and E c =0), the build will stop without displaying an error message. An application error can occur if you stop a build preview before completion. (This has been observed when previewing on the SLA 7000 system, but could occur on other system types as well.) Builds with numerous short vectors can cause the laser to frequently jump to the rest position, thus increasing build times. Ignoring the message Need to Add More Resin at the start of a build (particularly on the Viper system) may cause the system to eventually reach a point where it cannot level and issue the confusing message Layer Thickness Out of Range. The true condition is that the system doesn t have enough resin to continue. Adding resin will allow the build to continue. Opening multiple build windows (which should not be done to preview another build) while the system is building can cause the system s Max Laser Power to drop considerably. This has been observed on the SLA 7000 system with large BFF files (which take a long time to preview), but could happen on any system. Preview builds on a desktop version of the Buildstation software. The Square Layout option does not follow a square pattern in every situation. For example, for three copies the layout is square, which is one above two. However, when adding a fourth copy the system creates a one-above-three layout, and when a fifth copy is added, the system correctly creates a two-above-three layout, and so forth. Selecting a job in the build tree that has no associated BFF file (i.e., it has been deleted or moved using Windows Explorer) can lead to application errors. One such situation is when you highlight a job with a non-existent BFF file, then press Defaults. The system does not beep to signal the user to stop adding or removing resin if the door interlock is defeated. The system displays the non-descriptive error message Database write error if a file is added to the project tree with a file name greater than 47 characters.

4 iv Under certain circumstances, a build can start without completing the leveling operation. Two known circumstances are: o o When beginning a build with the vat at the upper limit and No Init selected, the system issues the message Limit reached during leveling leveling aborted. Clicking OK clears the message, but the build continues without completing the leveling operation. If you open a door during the check resin or leveling operation at the start of a build, the system issues the message door opened during leveling leveling aborted. Just as in the scenario above, clearing the message continues the build without performing the leveling operation. Pressing Stop Build when the system is drawing the first layer can hang up the system. Only stop a build during a period when the system is not drawing. Opening a door when a Vat Unload is in progress can lead to loss of vat control and/or the system to issue incorrect and misleading status messages. The system does not check the BFF file for completeness before it begins the build. The system will start building, then issue an error message when it reaches a bad end-of-file. The Restart Build icon is enabled after a build is finished. If you click this icon following a completed build, the system resets the platform and draws the last layer again. Installation and Licensing Instructions NOTE: If you normally use a virus protection program on your Buildstation software controller, turn it off, or override its monitoring of the system before installing the Buildstation 5.4 software. Virus protection should always be run manually between builds. Running virus protection continuously can cause build failures. Also, add virus protection updates between builds. Important! During the installation of Buildstation 5.4 software, the system automatically creates a backup of the latest cal, geo, calibration.ini, license.dat, params.dat and procyon.mbd files before writing any new files to the hard drive. Installing the Software 1. If you are installing from a CD, insert the CD into the CD-ROM drive on your SLA system controller and proceed to step 2. If you are installing the software from a zip archive, unzip the installation files to a temporary directory. 2. Using Windows Explorer, locate the drive and directory that contains the installation files. This would be the CD-ROM drive if loading via CD-ROM, or the temporary directory to which you unzipped the files in step one. Doubleclick the setup.exe file to launch the automatic installation program. 3. When the Welcome dialog appears, click Next.

5 v 4. Read the licensing agreement in the Software License Agreement dialog and select Yes to accept the terms of the agreement. 5. Review the Readme file in the Information dialog box and click Next. 6. When the Choose Destination Location dialog appears, choose Browse to display the Choose Folder dialog. Type in a valid folder name, or use the Browse button to select a folder. If you type in a non-existent folder name, the dialog will ask if you want to create the folder. When ready, accept the location and continue the installation by clicking Next to bring up the Select Components dialog. 7. From the list of machine types, select the one that matches your system and click Next. 8. When the Select Program Folder dialog appears, click Next to place the Buildstation software launch icon on your Start>Programs menu. Click this program icon whenever you wish to launch the Buildstation software. 9. When the Setup Complete dialog appears, click the checkbox if you wish to view the readme file, then click Finish. Obtaining and Installing Your Buildstation 5.4 Software License To use the software, you must obtain a valid software license for each SLA system on which you intend to run the software. You obtain the license files from the 3D Systems website. Before visiting the website to obtain your license files, have your License Authorization Code (LAC), which was included in the customer letter mailed to all eligible customers, and the HostIDs of the SLA systems for which you wish to obtain license files. The HostID (sometimes referred to as the physical address of the Ethernet card, or the MAC address) can be determined as follows: 1. Open a Command Prompt (DOS) window. 2. Use the DOS Change Directory command and navigate to the \bin directory where the Buildstation 5.4 software is installed. If you accepted the default installation directory, type the command C: and press <Enter>, then cd c:\program Files\3D Systems\WinSLA54\bin (or the appropriate path), and press <Enter>. 3. From the \bin directory, type the command lmutil lmhostid and press <Enter>. This command queries your system and returns a unique serial number (HOSTID) from your network card. 4. Record the HOSTID code. NOTE: You will be required to install the resulting license file on this SLA system. License files are SLA system-specific; so if you are installing Buildstation 5.4 software on multiple machines, take steps now to identify this machine with its unique host identification code. 5. Repeat Steps 1-4 for each machine. 6. Go to the 3D Systems web site at and navigate to the software licensing page. In the first screen of the licensing page, type in the

6 vi License Authorization Code provided to you in the customer letter and click Next. The Authorization Code is case sensitive and must be entered in all capital letters. 7. In the second screen, type in the HOSTID you obtained from the computer. The HOSTID is case sensitive and must be entered in lower case letters without hyphens or spaces. 8. The license generator will return the text of the license file. You can either Copy and Paste the displayed license text from your browser into a text file using Notepad (NOT Word or Wordpad) and save it as license.dat, or you can follow the Save-License-To-File instructions found on the web page to download the file, naming it license.dat. 9. Repeat steps 6-8 for each machine for which you need a license. Remember that each machine requires a unique license, so make sure you have a way of distinguishing between them if you obtain multiple licenses. 10. Copy the appropriate license.dat file to the \bin folder of each machine. ************************************** 2003 by 3D Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Specifications are subject to change without notice. The 3D logo, Accura, and SLA are registered trademarks, and Buildstation and Lightyear are trademarks of 3D Systems, Inc. All other product names or services are registered trademarks or trademarks of their respective companies.