Loosing connection intermittently?

LightBurn Software Questions
1

I have been using the software now for a week or two with my new K40, love the workflow!

I have installed the Cohesion3D Laserboard replacing the M2 Nano.

Occasionally I suddenly no longer have control of the machine, the console shows no errors and the only thing that seems to fix it is restarting Lightburn.

Powering down the machine entirely, unplugging and replugging the USB doesn’t help.

Is there a way to get logging of what is going on to help debug the issue?

I thought it might be the USB cable, so I have tried another one and the issue persists.

Sometimes the machine is fine for long periods and other times it will loose connection several times in a matter of minutes.

Curious if others have had this happen before?

The laptop running Lightburn is macOS 10.9 Mavericks.

2

I can help with not needing to re-start LightBurn after a connection loss. Right-click the “Devices” button and it will reset and reattempt the connection.

You might also want to check if your computer system has USB sleep enabled, the port will often turn off if unused for a while.

3

Thanks for the right click tip, that will be handy.

Pretty sure it’s not a USB sleep issue as I have had it loose connection during a job once.

So odd…

6

If you are having a communications issue and already using a high quality USB Cable + ensuring your computer’s USB sleep and selective suspend settings have been set to off, then all that is left is an electrical issue. Do you have any appliances kicking on such as a fridge or compressor? Is the LaserBoard’s power brick plugged into a power strip with other things? Try to give it its own direct port in a wall outlet, and if that persists, run an extension cord to a completely different outlet/ circuit.

And even though the LaserBoard is well isolated, you may still have an issue with your K40 not being grounded.

7

Thanks for the response, I was away for a week and was able to test some things when I returned.

I swapped things around so that I am now using a USB hub to connect the Laserboard and a C920 camera.

I also plugged the electronics into a filtered power bar I have and the issue seems to have been resolved.

I did check for proper ground with a multimeter, all good there :slight_smile:

Cheers!

8

I have read some reports of boards not liking to be connected via a hub. Possibly due to high data rates. Just a thought to try direct to the USB port?

9

I was using it direct before, it was a temporary setup to get familiar with the laser and workflow.

Now I have moved everything to where it will remain and setup all the wiring etc in a much nicer way.

Not having any issues now, but will keep a suspicious eye on it all.

The camera setup is an incredibly useful workflow improvement, especially while testing things and placing designs on scraps.

In truth I bought Lightburn before I had a laser, knowing I was going to get one of course. It’s outline tool is something that isn’t as easily done with other design software oddly, maybe I just don’t know all the tricks of Affinity Designer.