The GraffitiBot is now fully functional for printing graffiti although there is still a lot of room for improvement of the print head nozzles. It took quite a bit of work to get the hoses to curl properly without kinking. The kinks were making it difficult to purge air bubbles from the hoses.
It was also very difficult to get each individual nozzle to be clear and smooth. The pores are so small, any tiny whisker of plastic completely messes up the output. I have some tiny drills, but they can leave small whiskers and they are so delicate, I broke 2 of them in the manifold (and couldn't remove the broken bits).
I had printed and tested the manifold and nozzles early in the project so I knew they would be problematic. I ordered proper dispenser nozzle tips when I discovered the issues, but they have not arrived yet, so the machine is stuck with a pretty low performance nozzle arrangement until they arrive.
Here is a little video showing that the software is all working well and the pumps are working under software control:
I will try to squeeze in a couple of runs trying to print graffiti just to show what this nozzle set up can do, before doing a wrap up blog as this is the last day I can work on this design challenge.
Relevant Links
Sixth Sense Design Challenge: About This Challenge
Sixth Sense Design Challenge: Technical Documents
GraffitiBot Project Blogs
Sixth Sense GraffitiBot - blog 1
Sixth Sense - Kit Unboxing and Other Parts - GraffitiBot blog 2
Sixth Sense - Sensor Circuits - GraffitiBot blog 3
Sixth Sense - Interfaces - GraffitiBot blog 4
Sixth Sense GraffitiBot - System Interconnect - blog 5
Sixth Sense GraffitiBot - Wheels & Motors - blog 6
Sixth Sense GraffitiBot - ST Sensor Tile App - blog 7
Sixth Sense - Load Cell PCB - GraffitiBot blog 8
Sixth Sense - Magnetic Angle Sensor - GraffitiBot - Blog 9
Sixth Sense - LCD Interface - GraffitiBot - blog 10
Sixth Sense - Pump Controller - GraffitiBot Blog 11
Sixth Sense Main Drive Motor - GraffitiBot - blog 12
Sixth Sense Motor Controller Mods - GraffitiBot blog 13
Sixth Sense - RTD - GraffitiBot Blog 14
Sixth Sense Mechanical Design - GraffitiBot Blog 15
Sixth Sense GraffitiBot Motor Wiring - Blog 16
Sixthe Sense GarffitiBot - First Dry Run - Blog17
Sixth Sense GraffitiBot Hydraulics - Blog 18
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