7.1 Printer controls

There are two ways controlling the printer. You can use the LCD panel integrated with the printer or you can connect your computer with USB cable. We suggest the LCD panel because of its speed and reliability, and moreover you do not rely on a computer.

7.1.1 LCD screen

  • Main screen is an information screen displaying the most important details. These are the temperature of the nozzle and the heatbed (1, 2), printing time (3) and the actual Z-axis position (5).

Lcd_EN_descibed.png

Pict. 9 - LCD layout

  1. Nozzle temperature (actual / desired temperature)
  2. Heatbed temperature (actual / desired temperature)
  3. Progress of printing in % - shown only during the printing
  4. Status bar (Prusa i3 ready / Heating / model_name.gcode, etc.)
  5. Z-axis position
  6. Printing speed
  7. Elapsed printing time - shown only when printing

7.1.2 LCD layout

iconmonstr-info_v1.png

Items not mentioned below are not used for the common print setup - you should not change any of the unmentioned items unless you are absolutely sure what you are doing.

  • Info screen
  • Tune (during the printing process only)
    • Speed
    • Nozzle
    • Bed
    • Fan speed
    • Flow
    • Change filament
  • Pause print (during the printing process only)
  • Stop print (during the printing process only)
  • Preheat
    • ABS - 255/100
    • PLA - 210/50
    • PET - 240/90
    • HIPS - 220/100
    • PP - 254/100
    • FLEX - 230/50
    • Cooldown
  • Print from SD
  • Load filament
  • Unload filament
  • Support
    • prusa3d.com
    • forum.prusa3d.com
    • howto.prusa3d.com

7.1.3 Print speed versus print quality

Printing a small object takes a few minutes, but printing larger models is time consuming - there are prints taking tens of hours. The overall printing time can be changed by different ways. First way to alter the printing speed is changing layer height in Slic3r - upper right windows shows Print settings option. Default setting is 0.20 mm (NORMAL), you can speed up the printer by choosing the 0.25 mm (DRAFT) option. Raising speed will result the model to be less detailed with visible layer borders. If you prefer quality over speed, choose 0.10 mm (DETAIL) option. Printing time will double but the model gets the extra detail. Again, higher printing speed results in less detailed model.

Speed can be changed also while printing. LCD shows the FR 100 % item - it’s actual print speed (feed rate). By turning the LCD-knob clockwise you can increase the print speed up to 999 %. However, we do not advise to increase the speed over 200 %. Watch the results of increased speed on the printed model and adjust the speed eventually.

When increasing the speed always check the model is cooled properly - especially when printing small object from ABS increased speed causes the distortion (sometimes called “warping”) of the model. You can prevent this issue by printing more similar objects together - layer printing interval is long enough to prevent this issue.iconmonstr-info_v1.png

If the model shows lower quality than desired you can decrease the printing speed - turn the LCD-knob counterclockwise. Maximum usable printing speed is around 20 % of nominal speed.

7.1.4 USB cable and Pronterface

iconmonstr-info_v1.png

We strongly recommend to use LCD panel while printing on Prusa i3 1.75 mm - Pronterface doesn’t support all functions of a new firmware (e.g. filament change while printing).

Keep in mind that when printing from the Pronterface the computer must be connected to the printer during the whole printing process - computer must be prevented from sleep, hibernation or shutting down. Disconnecting the computer during the print ends the printing without the option to finish the object.

  • Connect the printer to the computer with the USB cable.

IMG_6271.jpg

Obr. 10 - You can find USB port here

  • Choose connection port in Pronterface (download available with the printer drivers, see the chapter Printer drivers): Mac users use /usbmodem port, PC Windows ports are COM1, COM2, etc.; the correct port is displayed in device manager, Linux users connect the printer using the virtual serial port. When the printer is connected click the Connect button. Right column shows the connection information.
  • Next step is loading the model with Load model button and choosing the model_name.gcode (no special symbols in file name).
  • You can control the movement of all printer axes at the control area.
  • Next you can preheat the printer and prepare it for the printing. Set the temperatures for the nozzle (heater) and heatbed (bed) and click Set button. Printer starts heating immediately. Always check that the temperatures set in Pronterface are correct according to our material guide!
  • You can check the actual temperatures of nozzle and bed in Pronterface.
  • When model is loaded right column shows the estimated print duration: Estimated duration (pessimistic)

pronterface.png

Obr. 11 - Pronterface

  1. Load file button is used to load the desired model.. Model must be in *.gcode file format.
  2. Choose the port printer is connected to computer. (mostly /usbmodem for Mac, COM1, COM2, etc for Windows PC).
  3. Print button starts the printing process.
  4. Disconnect button disconnects the printer from the computer.
  5. Printer controls. Here you can manipulate the printer axes.
  6. Setting the nozzle and bed temperatures.
  7. Thermometer.
  8. Confirming the set temperatures, heating start.
  9. 2D print process preview.
  10. Info panel. Estimated print time, axis position, etc. is displayed after loading the model.