New software feature for saving AMS waste with multicolor prints.
Problems:
- Multicolor prints generate too much waste even with all settings optimized and when using a purge item.
- Purge items are printed by layer along with the main print thereby using much extra filament and severely limiting the size and shape of objects that are useful as flush objects. They must be at least as tall as the last color change, and they must have adequate size and volume at those levels.
Summary of new idea that addresses these problems:
New feature would be a hybrid between print “by object” and “by layer” where the software does not use new filament to build a purge object, but only builds the purge object when purging.
Description of how it would work:
When printing a multicolored object along with flush object(s), the printer would start the main object “by layer” and continue printing until it needs to purge material. At the first color change, the AMS would change the color and then purge by starting the purge item and printing until the set amount of purge material is met. The system would then move up and back to the main item and print the new color until the next required color change. The main print might be at a much higher layer number than the purge item. Collisions would be avoided with software similar to the by object settings.
Current limitations
- When using “by layer”, additional items must be as tall as the color changes in the main item, and much of the purge item must be made using virgin filament thereby massively increasing the time and filament used. Put another way: the system will print extra purge items using fresh filament except at purge layers - that’s all filament I didn’t want to spend. What’s more - if the item isn’t large enough for one layer to use all the purge, then the system must still purge yet more
- My purge/flush items are usually mostly new filament because they have to be printed “by layer”
- With my idea (by item priority except for object purge). The printer would mostly print the additional items out of purge material and not new material (unless new filament is needed to finish the item). That way extra items could be virtually 100% purge material, be much smaller, less numerous, and not waste additional filament. It would be much faster too.
Benefits of new method:
- Much less total filament spent on purge and/or purge items
- Purge items can be smaller and shorter than the multicolored main print object
- Much faster and more efficient multicolor print jobs utilizing optimized purge items
Additional features that would enhance the option but might be harder to implement:
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Allow the software to automatically choose purge items to add from a user-selected list of purge items. Software could choose both the number and size of items needed.
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Ability to select the quality level needed for purge items. Example: if only low quality is needed, then flow rate issues would not need to be accounted for with a purge tower, for example.