Anet A8 (Anet V1.

0 Board) Proximity Switch Installation

Download files in my Google drive - https://drive.google.com/open?id=0BzJhbIBcf3g3aV9TMTFYQjJQZjg

Hi, I thought I would share the process of installing the proximity switch to the Anet a8
printer with the standard Anet V1.0 board as there aren’t many clear guides out there
and I believe that this would save people a whole load of time!

Parts List

- Anet A8 printer with Anet V1.0 (standard board)

- Proximity switch (more info on which one below)

Software List
- Arduino
- Repetier Host

Firmware list
- Skynet Alpha V1 (I used this specific software but you can use others)
- Anet auto level firmware

Proximity Switch Information

The switch that I bought was an NPN switch which basically means that you can attach
the switch straight onto the printer without any resistors. A PNP switch will need resistors
soldered onto the circuit to make it work.

So this is the link to the exact switch that I bought.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008FZ9UNA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_
s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

This is from an English seller however I’m sure they will probably sell more like this in
America.
I bought a 4mm NPN switch as I heard that they seem to work a bit better. Also another
thing to take into account is whether the switch is an NC type or NO type. This means
that the switch is either Normally Closed (NC) or Normally Open (NO). I bought an NO
however I’m pretty sure they both work fine as they can be tweaked in the firmware very
easily.
Proximity Switch Mount

It is a good idea to print out the mount before actually installing the mount so don’t take
off your z axis endstop until you have printed a mount. There are lots of mounts out there
on Thingiverse so I guess it’s more of a personal choice as to what you go for. I have
made this stl file just to get me up and running however I will be developing it to make it
stronger and placed better.

http://www.thingiverse.com/thing:1766043

Proximity Switch Wiring

This is how the switch should be wired to the board. You can either use the crimps with
the plug like the original endstop or you can solder the wires to the board. More Info
about wiring on the next page.
This is a diagram of what each pin does just to give you an idea why things are going
where they are.

This is the place where the wires will be connected. They simply replace the old endstop
plug!

It does say on the side of the plug which one is the z endstop plug but here is a close
up just to make it clear where the wires should be. Also the black wire should always be
the one on the outside of the board just to avoid confusion
IF YOU HAVE AN PNP SWITCH

A PNP switch will need resistors added into the circuit. I have never done it this way
however I was shown a diagram that may work.

15k
10k

Like I said I’m not 100% sure that this is the way to doit. If that doesn’t work then try
swapping out the brown wire and place into the green power plug positive side which is
the red wire. I tried that first with mine however that may give you too much voltage as
the plug is 12v whereas the z plug is 5v. I found that an NPN switch was so much easier
as you literally have to just plug it in.

Next Page
Software

In the folder there is two pieces of software

- Arduino
- Repetier Host

Arduino will be the software used to flash the Anet v1.0 board so install that!
Repetier host isn’t necessarily needed for this however you can control the printer
through usb and you can send g codes that help define whether the switch is working or
not.

Firmware

Skynet
I’m not a master at with firmware or coding however the firmware that I personally like
best is Skynet however I will add some other firmware files in this folder like the Anet a8
leveling one and Marlin.

So I will talk you through the way I got my printer working!

Firstly open the Arduino software in the folder.

Go to File/Open

Then open the skynet folder and find the Arduino file that says SkyNet3D_V1.1Alpha

It will open a new box with a bunch of crazy words that I can barely understand but I
managed to work it out.

Basically if you want to change anything you want to be looking in the configuration.h
tab this will bring up a some commands and controls that can be manipulated.
Luckily this Skynet firmware is already set for auto leveling so we don’t need to mess
with that.
I found that you can edit the startup up screen to say what you want, so mine now
says Hi to me. You can literally key in what ever you want on the right where it says
#define MARLIN_VERSION (or just all of the blue writing I think). You can find this in the
configuration.h tab if you scroll down a little bit. Have fun with that ;)

NC SWITCH ONLY

If you have a NC (Normally closed) switch, I believe you can tweak the firmware to make
the switch open when there is no metal under it and triggered when there is metal under
it. (If you have an NO (Normally Open) switch then this doesn’t apply to you). So scroll
down in the configuration.h tab until you come across
#define DISABLE_MAX_ENDSTOPS

- Find the line that says “const bool Z_MIN_ENDSTOP_INVERTING = true”

- Change the “true” to “false”

I think that would work but I’m not too sure because I don’t have an NC switch.
BACK TO EVERYONE

If you used my sensor mount then find these lines further down in configuration.h and
copy this. If you are using your own mount then basically measure where your sensor is
away from the hotend and change the values to fit your own. I believe negative values
will be left and behind the hotend and positive values are in front and right of the hotend.
I would keep the z offset set to zero as you can tweak that manually! My sensor is sat
-43mm which means it is sat around 43mm to the left of the hotend. This lets the printer
know where abouts the sensor is sat in relation to the bed so it doesn’t come off.

TIME TO FLASH THE BOARD

Okay so plug your usb cable into the 3d printer and into your computer. You should have
the software that lets you connect the printer to a computer if not then I’ll drop it in this
folder so you can use that.

Once you have that sorted go to tools in Arduino at the top of the program and then click
on board. Choose the Anet V1.0 at the bottom of the list.

After that go to tools again, click port and choose the printer COM. Mine is COM4 but
I’m not sure if that changes for other people.

After the settings are correctly set then click the upload button.

This should then start flashing the board!

Anet Official Auto Level Firmware

This firmware is just another to try if you don’t fancy skynet. It has a different process to
flashing but it’s easy. (You may need to download the latest version of Aduino for this but
I’m not too sure.)

- Open up avrdudess in the folder, I think it just opens and you don’t have to install it.

Copy everything in this picture into your avrrdudess program then click the go where
I’ve highlighted. (The COM may vary I think) Also in the flash box just find the “files for
flash folder” in the avrdudess folder, this is where you will find the “A8_l Firmwareupdate
for auto level file”.

This should start flashing the board and will tell you when it is completed. I haven’t
personally used this firmware but I can’t see why it wouldn’t work. Unfortunately I don’t
think this file can be edited so there may be a specific mount for this so the sensor
doesn’t come off the bed.
Repetier Host

This isn’t necessarily needed for the switch installation however it is good to have
and also could potentially save some printers from getting damaged if the switch isn’t
working properly. Firstly install the software and open it up. Go into Config at the top of
the program and then go into printer settings. Copy everything on the image below. (The
COM may vary). after copying the settings click apply.

Now come out of the window and click Connect in the top left corner of the program.
This should let you command your printer from your computer.

Go into the manual control tab on the right hand side. This is where you can control your
printer. Click on the controls just to make sure your printer is responding.
After that type in the Gcode bar above the controller “M119” and then enter. This will
tell you what your endstop statuses are. (This is visible in the bar at the bottom). They
should all be open if there is no metal under the switch. Do the Gcode again but with
some metal under the sensor. The z endstop should now say triggered. If it doesn’t then
you should probably go through the guide again and check wiring and firmware ect. If
it is working well then set your sensor to a close height to the hotend nozzle and keep
homing and tweeking the height of the sensor until the nozzle can fit a piece of paper
under it with some resistance to it.
Cura or Slicer program

All you need to do now is place the Gcode “G29” after the “G28” code like in this image
below. Also make sure your g28 is just a g28 and not a g28 x0 y0. Happy Printing!

I hope this guide helped with the installation of the switch. I had an absolute nightmare
when trying to install mine so I hope this makes it a bit clearer for everyone!. Thanks