¶ How does M1 work?
The M1 3D printer is a machine that uses plastic filament as the material for creating 3D objects.
Most of the time, printable objects are files with the .stl extension that contain the 3D model, which needs to be processed by a 3D slicer.
The slicer, in our case, is the Artillery Studio, which takes that .stl file and slices it into layers, which are then printed by the M1. All these slices are then converted into code, a type of language that tells the machine how to move its axes to print the model.
Besides the movement, the slicer is also able to integrate various other settings inside the generated file, such as the temperatures of the filament, printing speeds, and generate supports for specific sections of the print.
¶ CoreXY motion system
The M1 uses a CoreXY motion system controlled by two stepper motors. The X and Y stepper motors work together to move the printhead.
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Every stepper motor has an independent belt that is connected to the print head, so a pair of belts is used to control its position. Having a CoreXY motion system allows the M1 to print much faster compared to a traditional cartesian printer because the weight is lower, which is important when it comes to printing fast.
¶ Z-axis
The Z-axis is comprised of two lead screws that are connected to a single stepper motor using a timing belt.
Unlike most other 3D printers that use four knobs under the heated bed for manual leveling, the M1 is pre-leveled at the factory and works with the strain gauge leveling system on the tool head to ensure successful automatic leveling before printing.
¶ Extruder
The extruder is responsible for pulling the filament from the spool and feeding it to the hotend, where it is melted and pushed through a small nozzle to generate the printed model. It’s also one of the most important components of a 3D printer, as it needs to accurately control the amount of filament pushed through the hotend.
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¶ Print head
The hotend is a component of the printer, responsible for melting the filament that is deposited in thin layers to create the model. Different temperatures are used for various types of filament materials. For example, PLA filament can be printed at lower temperatures, around 210-220 °C, while other filaments, such as PETG and ABS, require higher temperatures, around 250-260 °C.
The M1 printer is equipped with an integrated hotend, which integrates the nozzle, heating block, and heat sink. The nozzle and heating block are connected via a threaded joint, and the heating block and heat sink are connected through a thin-walled titanium alloy tube to achieve optimal performance.
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Having this design allows the hotend to heat up much faster than a regular hotend, and the all-in-one design minimizes issues that might come up when swapping nozzles.
¶ Hotbed
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Usually, the printing surface needs to be hot to help the printed layers adhere so a heatbed is used. With the M1 3D printer, the heatbed can reach up to 120 °C but that can be controlled according to the filament used. For example, PLA can be printed on the Cool Plate at a temperature of 50 °C as PLA doesn’t have warping effects like other filaments like ABS or PC that require a much higher temperature at around 100- 110 °C.
If no heat is used for the printing surface, the filament deposited would cool too quickly, and the tension between the layers would cause it to warp.
¶ Build plate
The M1 series printers come with a textured + low-temperature PEI print bed as a bonus.
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Please check the Wiki Introduction to the Build Plates, to learn more about our build plates.
¶ Cooling system
Fast printing also requires good part cooling, and the M1 comes with 4020 & 4015 radial fans with three air ducts that direct the air underneath the nozzle.
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The M1 comes with an extra cooling fan located on the left side of the machine that can be used when printing filaments like PLA that benefit from good part cooling. An “airflow blanket” is created over the print helping to solidify the printed layers as fast as possible.
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¶ Belt tensioner, Air filter, Waste outlet and PTC heater
The rear of the M1 has an adjustable belt tensioner to adjust belt tension for optimal performance.
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Below is the PTC heating assembly, which actively heats the chamber, controls temperature, and offers significant benefits for printing high-temperature filaments.
Above, there's the Chamber Temperature Control Fan that automatically controls the amount of air expelled from the printer to ensure the correct temperature inside the chamber. The Excess Chute is next to it, where the purged filament is expelled out of the printer.
¶ Electronics
The M1 has many electronic components inside, but here are the most important:
¶ Logic Board
- The logic mainboard includes a host computer control board (including CPU) and a slave computer control board (including MCU).
- The CPU handles the smart capabilities of the M1, including the AI spaghetti detection, flow calibration, vibration compensation, and the connection between the Slicer and the printer.
- The MCU handles the actual movement of the printer after getting the stream of G-code from the CPU.
¶ Spaghetti Detection
Using the integrated camera and the AI capabilities of the M1 3D printer, we can monitor the printing process and detect if a print has failed or not. If that is the case, the print will be paused and the user will be requested to check on the print to confirm if the print has failed or not, and decide if the printing process can be resumed. There are some cases when the AI is not accurate and might detect false positives, but this is to be expected with this kind of system which will continue to be improved over time.
¶ Chamber Camera
The integrated camera in the front right corner of the printer is used for print defect detection, but can also be used for real-time monitoring of prints using the Artillery Studio.
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Besides the monitoring capabilities, the camera can also record a video of the print to the SD card, and generate a time-lapse video. There is no night vision present, but the LED light bar on the side illuminates the print.