Feature request : better raspberry pi support in future models?
I'm two Prusa MK3s+ in already, and generally my experience with these printers has been nothing but positive. My biggest problem has been integrated Raspberry Pi's seamlessly into the printer, functionally and visually, and this is something I'd gladly pay for. I like that the MK3 now comes with a built-in slot for the Pi Zero 2, but it would be even better if there were even more options. Pi Zeros aren't always easy to come by and many of us already have the standard form factor Pi, it would nice if there as an official mount for this, as well as included GPIO header cable to tie the Pi to the Einsy, so we avoid ugly external cable clutter. My main request though would be having dedicated and reliable 5v power from the Prusa PSU that could drive a Pi 4, as I've had endless problems with undervolting and crashed prints, even after downgrading to a Pi 3. That's my 2 cents. Thanks for making awesome printers!
(I'm not looking for suggestions for mods or hacks, thanks)
RE:
Problem here is, that the raspberry device is a third party component out of reach of Prusa to be involved in development. So if there will be a rpi_5+ / rpi_zero_3+ .... and they may have different GPIO setup and suddenly you have people trying to connect it to Prusa printers with old GPIO layout.
Additionally, people most of the time are not skilled enough to have general idea what they are doing except following some manuals/youtube. On reddit you can see a lot of queries where people are asking, if rpi4 /rpi_zero2 will be able to handle Octoprint or queries like, can USB power LED strip. So it would be just a matter of time, until people would plugin to raspberry's GPIO other power-eating modules/devices or 5V devices that would affect quality of printing with PSU.
Anyway my question is ... what feature you are missing that via gcode query (from octoprint) you cannot get from printer, but need direct connection using GPIO ?
PS: Undervoltage is caused in most cases by way how motherboard is flashed. Printer is off and you provide energy via USB to motherboard, so motherboard expect flashing. But the energy output is higher as RPI can deliver, so you get undervoltage issue. Can be fixed by cutting power cable in USB cable (red one), so rpi will not deliver energy to it.
RE: Feature request : better raspberry pi support in future models?
I would be shocked if they changed the GPIO layout--they have specifically kept it the same across all generations and models. It is a consideration though.
I initially looked at integration on my Mini, but in the end I just printed up the Z-box case and left it at that. At least for now. I'm new at the hobby, and that looked like a more involved mod than I want to tackle right now.
Mini+ (kit) - Revo Micro | Antler Cooling | WiFi (4.4.0RC1)
RE: Feature request : better raspberry pi support in future models?
The GPIO pin layout has been fixed since the Pi was launched. Anyway, the point is largely moot, as the MK3 Einsy already has pin-ins for Pi GPIO's, and that's great, that's exactly what I'd like to see more of. The problem is that the Einsy's pin-ins don't carry enough power to reliably drive a Pi, and it would be great if they did, up to 5A for a Pi4 ideally, as that's what a lot of people are using now. Maybe add protection to keep the Einsy stable when the Pi overdraws. And seeing as there are already pin-in's, why not go one step further and throw in a convenient ribbon cable extension. And please keep the current no-external-wires aesthetic of the whole solution.
I guess the point I'm tying to make is, many people have started integrating Pi's as a standard network interface to their printers, it would be nice if we moved beyond hack/mod solutions and got a solid integration with all the good user experience we see on the rest of the printer.
RE: Feature request : better raspberry pi support in future models?
I agree with you there. It would be nice to have some way built in with the Prusa boards to integrate a Pi. Power would be good, even better would be power AND serial connection.
Mini+ (kit) - Revo Micro | Antler Cooling | WiFi (4.4.0RC1)