Afinia H480 3D Printer Version 1.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual 2
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction .............................................................................................................................. 5 Safety Precautions and Protection ...................................................................................... 5 Overview ................................................................................................................................... 6 Unpacking the Afinia H480 3D Printer ...........
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Afinia 1-Year Limited Warranty Below is the one-year limited warranty included with this Afinia product. Afinia prides itself on its outstanding product line and its technical support. If for some reason, your product fails, Afinia, a division of Microboards Technology, LLC, stands behind its warranties and assures you the best service possible in a quick and timely manner.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Introduction Congratulations on purchasing an Afinia H480-Series 3D Printer. The Afinia H480 3D Printers are designed with ultimate portability and simplicity in mind. The system and software allow you to print great models in a few easy steps, even if you have never used a 3D printer before. The Afinia H480 3D printers combine years of experience and innovation to make printing 3D models easy through its reliably simple hardware and software design.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Overview The Afinia H480 3D Printer consists primarily of the Extruder, Print Platform, Material Spool, and Filament, all supported by the Pedestal. The Printer is initialized with a single switch, and calibrating the position of the print platform is done using the included Afinia software. The Afinia 3D software sends the print data from a Mac or PC to the Printer over a single USB cable.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Unpacking the Afinia H480 3D Printer Remove the Installation Disc, Manual, Quick Start Guide, and Accessories Pack from the box. Next, lift the Afinia H480 3D printer from the box. Remove the foam from both sides of the Printer and set the Printer on its base with the back of the Printer facing you. There are 2 packaging clips that protect the Printer during shipping that need to be removed.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Installing the Afinia H480 3D Printer Attaching the Material Spool Attach the Material Spool with these steps: A. Connect the power adapter to the power interface and turn on the power switch. B. Install the ABS plastic spool holder and filament guide. Unscrew the lower right screw from the left side of the Printer.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Driver and Software Installation Mac Insert the Installation Disc into your Mac. Open the disc, go into the Mac folder, and double-click the Afinia Mac Setup.pkg icon. Follow the prompts through the installation. The drivers will be added and the Afinia software will be installed to the Applications folder. Windows Insert the Installation Disc into your PC. If the installer does not launch automatically, start the Afinia H480 3D Printer setup.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual C. Select the option to Search removable media; the drivers are located on the installation disc. If you are installing from a download, click Browse, then navigate to C:\Program files\Afinia\Afinia 3D Printer\Driver, then Next. D. If the following dialog box appears, click Continue Anyway, and the drivers will install automatically.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Getting Ready to Print Starting the Afinia 3D Program If the application is not already open, click the Afinia 3D icon on the desktop (Windows) or in the Applications folder (Mac). The program should open and appear as shown below: Windows version Mac version Initializing the Printer Before anything can be printed, the printer must be initialized. Click the Initialize option from the 3D Print menu. The printer will beep and the initialization procedure will begin.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Preparing the Platform Before you start printing, the platform must be prepared so that the model adheres to the platform enough to be printed without the model moving. At the same time, you will want the model to be easy to remove from the platform after printing. There are several options for preparing the platform: FR-4 Board (Glass-reinforced Epoxy Laminate) Many users have reported excellent results by using a piece of FR-4 Board to cover the build platform.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Leveling the Print Platform Before calibrating the nozzle height, always check the vertical nozzle distance from each corner and center of the print platform. Open the Maintenance dialog box from the 3D Print menu and click the Center button to begin the manual leveling process. Mac version Windows version If you already know the nozzle height, enter that height minus 2mm in the To: box, then click the To: button. If your nozzle height is 135.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Automatic Platform Level Calibration Platform Probe Attached To perform the Automatic Platform Level Calibration, follow these steps: 1. Attach the Platform Probe to the bottom of the extruder. a. Lower the platform to the bottom of the printer by clicking the To Bottom button in the Maintenance dialog box. b. The magnet at the top connects to the bottom of the Extruder Motor with the slot for the nozzle to the left and the connection for the data cable to the right.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual If the message to the right appears when you choose the Auto Level option, check that the data cable is securely connected to both the Platform Probe and the data connection on the back of the printer. After verifying the connections, select Auto Level again. Manual Platform Level Calibration You can also manually calibrate the Platform Level. Select Platform Calibrate from the 3D Print menu to open the manual utility.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual The adjustments in the example shown, for instance, indicate that the print surface is warped, with the center higher than both the front and back edges. Using the Platform Level Calibration utility, you can correct for this warping. This process is not intended to replace manually leveling the platform. It should only be used if your print surface itself cannot be leveled due to warping or an inconsistent thickness.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Manual Nozzle Height Calibration To manually determine the correct nozzle distance, please follow these steps: 1. Open the Maintenance dialog box from the 3D Print menu and click the Center button. The current nozzle height is indicated as shown in the Maintenance dialog images below. In the Windows example, the platform is currently at the bottom of the printer; the Mac example has the platform 135.5mm from the bottom. Mac version Windows version 2.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Loading the Print Material Filament This process will be the same on both Mac and Windows. A. Launch the Afinia 3D Software (refer to the software install procedure if you have not already installed it), and select Maintenance from the 3D Print menu. Click the Extrude button. After the printer nozzle has warmed up to 260° C, the printer will beep; you can also monitor the nozzle temperature in the Maintenance window under the 3D Print menu. B.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual TIP: An empty Afinia Premium spool weighs about 280 grams. If you are installing a partially used Afinia Premium filament spool, weigh it, and subtract 280 grams from the weight. Enter that value into the material Weight text box. Status This area displays the current temperature of the nozzle and platform and if either element is currently being heated.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Printing with the H480 3D Printer Loading a 3D Model Click File / Open or the Open icon on the toolbar (Windows only) and select the model you want to open. The Afinia 3D Printer software only supports STL files (which is the standard input format for 3D printing files), the UP3 and UPP formats. Windows version Mac version You can open several models and print them all at the same time.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Saving the model Choose the model and select Save from the File menu. The file is saved in UP3 format with the file size being 13%-18% of the original STL file size. This is a convenient format for users to archive or transfer files. Saving the model as a project Choose the model and select Save As Project from the File menu. All of the settings within the Setup or Preferences will be saved, as well as the Quality and No Raft settings.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual View Options To observe the target model in different ways, use the mouse to control the view. Rotate Press the middle mouse button and move the mouse. The view can be rotated and observed from different angles. Pan Press Ctrl and the middle mouse button at the same time and move the mouse. This causes the view to pan. You can also use the arrow keys to pan the view. Scale Rotate the mouse wheel. The view will zoom in or out.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual For example: To move the model -5mm along Z axis (or down 5mm): Windows 1. Click Move 2. Input -5 in the text box 3. Click the Z axis button Windows TIP: Mac 1. Select the Move option 2. Input 5 in the text box 3. Click the Z- button If you hold down the Ctrl key, you can drag the model to a position. Rotating the Model Click the Rotate button on the toolbar, choose or input how many degrees you want to rotate in the text box, and then choose the axis of rotation.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Example 3: Scaling to convert inches to mm. Occasionally an stl file may appear much smaller or much larger than designed. This is due to the design software saving the units of measure as inches rather than millimeters; the Afinia 3D software uses millimeters only, so a 1 inch model would appear as 1 millimeter. This is simple to resolve using the following steps: Windows Mac 1. Click Scale 2. Select or input 25.4 in the text box 3. Click the Scale button 1.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Print Setup Options Click the Setup option in the 3D Print menu or the Preferences button on the Print and Print Preview windows. The following dialog box will appear: Mac version Print Settings Windows version Z Resolution This setting specifies the print resolution or layer thickness of the printer. Options are 0.15mm to 0.40mm per layer, in 0.05mm increments, with the most current Printer ROM version applied.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Fill Settings There are four ways to fill the interior of the parts, as described below. The part is nearly solid plastic, giving you the strongest structure. This Fill setting is recommended for functional engineering parts. The interior of the part is filled with a reasonably small scaffold structure. This is the default Fill setting.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Support Settings Dense This represents how many layers of dense support material is printed directly beneath the model. The greater the number of dense support layers, the more stable the print will be but the support will be more difficult to remove. Angle The Support Angle setting specifies the maximum Angle at which support material will be printed.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Two special options for the Support Area setting are available. The Only Base setting will use a minimum of support material. In many cases, no support material other than that needed to 2 support the base of the model will be used. The 0 mm setting will create support material when the Angle criterion is met regardless of the surface area.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Print Options Nozzle Height You can make changes to the Nozzle Height using this setting, but it is not recommended unless you know that the value you are entering in is correct. If the nozzle is too far from the platform during printing, the material may not adhere correctly to either the platform or to the previous layer. If the nozzle height is set too high, the platform can raise up into contact with the nozzle itself, potentially damaging the nozzle.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Calculating model costs The easiest way to calculate the cost of the material that will be used for your model is to use the Print Preview option under the 3D Print menu. The application will calculate the total weight of material used, including the raft and any support material.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Model Removal When the model has finished printing, the printer will beep, the nozzle and platform will stop heating, and the printer platform will lower. You should never attempt to remove the finished model from the print surface while it is still in the printer. Doing so may affect the platform leveling or bend the entire platform assembly so that it is no longer perpendicular to the printer head.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Removing Support Material Printed models are composed of two parts. One part is the model itself, and the other part is the support material used to support any overhanging parts of the model. The support material is the same physical material as the model material, but printed at a much lower density. Support material is very easy to distinguish from the model material, making it is easier to remove.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Maintenance Changing the Material First withdraw the leftover material from the printer. Initialize the printer and choose Maintenance from the 3D Print menu. Click the Withdraw button and the nozzle will start to heat. When the nozzle reaches the correct temperature, the printer will beep and you can gently withdraw the material.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Open the Calibrate dialog from the 3D Print menu. Measure the X1 and X2 length, as shown in the pictures below. IMPORTANT NOTE: Before you enter any new calibration values, always click the Reset button, otherwise the new values get added to the old ones. Before you enter any new values, the bar at the very top of the screen should read: XY: 0.00 deg / XZ: 0.00 deg.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual With the material between the pliers and the nozzle, apply gentle pressure with the pliers and turn the pliers to remove the oxidized filament material. Do not apply heavy pressure! Remember, the nozzle heats up to 260° C (500° F) – that’s over two and a half times the boiling point of water.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Tips & Tricks Preheat the platform before printing Large parts can sometimes have their corners lift from the platform, which causes the part to distort. This is caused by uneven heat across the surface of the platform. Preheating the platform (see page 28) to at least 90 degrees C when printing with ABS is a step you don’t want to miss. Having the platform heated before print starts helps ensure that the model will remain adhered to the platform during printing.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Shell Setting Tips The Shell option for the print Fill setting can be used to create truly hollow prints, saving time and material. However, not all models can be printed with this fill setting. Models with relatively small horizontal or near-horizontal surfaces are potential candidates for shell printing, as these surfaces require little or no internal support to be successfully printed.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Status Indicator The table below explains what each Status Indicator state means. LED State Indicates: Solid Red Printer is not initialized; initialize printer either using the software or the initialize button on the front. Solid Green Printer is Ready Flashing 10 times per second Data is transferring to printer Flashing 5 times per second 1. Extruder is heating or 2.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Troubleshooting Problem or Error message Solution No power Verify power cord is securely plugged in Extruder or platform fails to reach operating temperature Material not extruding Verify printer has initialized. If not, initialize the printer (see page 11) Heater is damaged.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual 6. There should now be a new driver section in the device manager as shown to the right. Option 2: Update the driver manually 1. Install the latest Afinia H480 3D Printer software. 2. Find the 3DPrint@FreeMC driver in the Device Manager dialog box (it should be located in the USB section). 3. Right click the entry and select Update Driver. 4. Select the Afinia H480 3D Driver folder (the default is C:\Program Files\Afinia\Afinia 3D Printer\Drivers). 5.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Updating the Printer ROM Note: This is a function that should only be performed if necessary. The H480 Printer ROM can only be updated using the Windows version of the Afinia Software. Follow these steps to perform the update: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. With the H480 Printer on and initialized, select Update ROM from the Tools menu. Click the OK button in the dialog asking you to confirm that you want to update the ROM.
Afinia H480 3D Printer User’s Manual Technical Support For technical questions or support issues, contact Afinia Technical Support: PH: 952-279-2643 support@afinia.com www.afinia.com Please have the Model and Serial Number of your Afinia H480 3D Printer available when contacting Technical Support.
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