Orbitool O2 v2.72 Author: Dr.

Róbert Lőrincz

Should a tool-board magic smoke come out Protection Features

because of user error? Why?
• Active short circuit protected Hot-end
Should a tool-board be destroyed by a fault output
in your 3D printer? Why? • Active short circuit protected fan
driver outputs
My answer is NO! And this is what this tool-
• Active Protection circuit against
board is all about!
reverse power supply connection
We are hobbyist and professionals, and let’s • Protection against loss of GND supply
face it, we make mistakes, and when the • Analog and digital inputs protected
magic smoke shows up, everybody is against short to +24V supply voltage
disappointed, even if we know it’s a user’s • USB data lines are protected against
fault. In this board, I promise you the magic short circuits to GND and +24V
smoke is kept inside extremely tight! • RGB LED power supply pin protected
against short to GND
Smokeless Features
• EMI interference and ESD protection
• Optimized for Orbiter v2 shape and for all inputs and outputs
features • Heater thermal runaway protection in
• STM32F042 microcontroller running case of a short between heater and
at 48MHz sense thermistor wires
• Automotive USB communication with
a Raspberry Pi
• Onboard LIS2DW12 accelerometer
• TMC2209 extruder stepper driver
• Direct connection to the Orbiter v2
sensor
• 2x PWM controlled fan outputs
• DC-DC converter based hot-end fan
driver, compatible with 12/24V fan
types with RPM speed input signal
• Hot-end temperature sensor input
compatible with standard NTC or
PT1000 temperature sensor types
• I/O for bed level sensing
• X-Stop sensor input
• RGB LED driver output
• Onboard temperature sensor
• Advanced thermal management
1 Block Diagram
Block diagram for Orbitool 02 v2.72

+5VP
24V Reverse supply +24VP
protection
Power Supply +5V
GND GND
Toolboard
+3V3
Connector
XT30(2+2)
D+ P_D+
USB AUTO nEN A1 A1

JST_XH_1x4
D-
STEP StepperDriver A2 EMC A2
DIR TMC2209 B1 ESD B1
JST_XH_1 HT HOT_TEMP
H_TEMP
x2 GND NTC / PT1000 UART B2 B2

JST_XH_1 H_HEAT Heater +24VP TB

End Stop X_END
x2 GND H_PWR Driver HD Heater

+5VP JST_XH
X2.54 Filament Sensor & F_UNLOAD STM32F042K6T6/7 RGB RGB LED Driver
RGB _1x3
4x +3V3 Unload
GND
HF_nPWM 0..24V
JST_XH
HF_TACHO Hotend FAN DCDC GND
_1x3
SERVO
TACHO
X2.54
Servo interface
5x +5VP
PROBE Part Fan 24VF JST_XH
GND PF_PWM
Driver LSP _1x2

Acceleration Sensor 24VF JST_XH

SPI1 TF_PWM Toolboard FanDriver
LIS2DW12 LST _1x2
ORBITOOL O2 V2.72 12/14/2024

2 Pinout definition
Tool FAN Orbiter v2 Sensor
1 +24V 4 FIL_UNLOAD PA14
2 PB1 3 FIL_SENZ PA13
2 3.3V
POWER & USB 1 GND
1 D-
2 D+ 3 GND 4 +24V Part FAN
1 +24V
2 PA10
1
3
BLTOUCH 2 1 HOT FAN
1 GND 2 3 SPEED !PA9
2 +5V 3 2 2 GND
3 PROBE PA15 1 2 1
4 1 Tacho PA8
4 GND
5 SERVO PB3 5
BOOT

4
TMC2209 EXTRUDER 3
STEP PB7 4 B2
DIR PB6 3 B1 2 RESET
nEN !PB4 2 A1
1
UART PB5 1 A2
HOT TEMP
1 2 1 PA3
1
2 GND
LIS2DW12 – SPI1 1 2 2 X STOP
nCS !PA4 1 PB0
CLK PA5 3 1 2 2 GND
SDO PA6
SDI PA7
HOTEND RGB
1 +24V 1 +5V
RUN LED 2 PA0 2 PA1
PB8 POWER PA2 3 GND

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3 Features description
3.1 Introduction
For me, the electrical robustness of a design is part of the requirements. One of my main
design goals was to integrate protection against common user errors and 3D printer defects.

In the end, nothing is more frustrating than powering up your new board and letting the magic
smoke out. Even if it is due to user fault, the disappointment will still be present.
This design is based on automotive technology, where protection from all kinds of hazards is
a state-of-the-art a long time ago.

This document describes the main specific features of the tool-board.

3.2Power supply concept

The board is supplied via an XT30 (2+2) connector, which includes +24V, GND, USB_DATA+
and USB_DATA- signals.

From the connector, the board is supplied via a reverse power supply protection circuit. This
prevents tool-board damage. In the event of an accidental reversed supply by user error, the
board will not start up and will behave like it’s not powered.

The microcontroller is supplied from a 3.3V LDO supplied from the onboard 5V DC-DC buck
converter for the highest power supply efficiency and lowest possible power consumption.

The RGB LED and the bed level sensor outputs are supplied from a short-to-GND protected
power supply.

3.3 USB communication interface

The tool-board is equipped with an automotive grade USB interface. The main difference is
the higher electrical robustness of the automotive USB, still maintaining highest possible
communication speed. Therefore, if the USB data lines are short-to-GND or up to +28V, it will
not cause any destruction and will work properly after the short circuit is removed.

The same circuit offers protection in case of GND connection loss, which will lead to biasing
all the communication signals to the supply positive line (in our case, +24V).

The USB interface of the Raspberry Pi is not robust against these electrical hazards that may
occur in a 3D printer. Therefore, the tool-board shall be supplied and connected to the
Raspberry Pi using the supplied adapter board, which has onboard protection circuits to
protect the Raspberry Pi USB port.

The next picture presents the tool-board wiring connection principle.

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USB

+24V

GND

3.4 Hot-end temperature sensor

The hot-end input circuit accepts two types of
thermistors, 100k NTC type similar to the ATC Semitec
104GT-2 and PT1000.

Pull-up resistor value: 2200Ω.

The senor input is protected against short circuits to GND

and supply voltage of 24V.

The GND connection of the sensor is current limited to

avoid thermal runaway of the hotend in the event of a
short circuit between the sensor and heater wires.

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3.5 Driver circuit for hot-end heater

The hot-end heater driver circuit is implemented with
active protection against short circuits.

The circuit measures the heater current and in case the

current rises over a predefined threshold iOC_HOT, it
switches off the heater MOSFET until the next PWM
cycle to prevent damage.

The heater max power shall be limited to 99.5%,

meaning max_power: 0.995 to avoid driver stuck in
protection mode due to an unlikely event of a fake error
detection.

The heater current is fed to Klipper, which can calculate

the actual power consumption of the heater element. This can be used to detect failures of
the heater element, like a short circuit or a loss of heating power.

You may say yes; other boards also have protection with onboard fuses. Well, that is simply
not enough to protect MOSFETs from being damaged because fuses have a long reaction
time, about 1-2s range. Their mission is to protect the circuit from catching fire in case of a
defect, but it cannot protect the heater driver MOSFET from getting destroyed. This active
protection reacts within 10ms, ensuring the driver stage is switched off before it gets
damaged due to a short circuit or overload event.

To display the actual power of the heater, include the following section:

The hot-end power or current can be displayed based on preference. The power is calculated
considering a 24V power supply.

To improve the heater power calculation accuracy, the heater PWM is forced to 100Hz
(instead of the 10Hz default of Klipper).

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It is highly recommended to use ferules to connect the heater wires to the tool-board screw
terminal block.

3.6 Fan driver outputs

The fan drivers (part fan and aux / tool-board fan)
have a similar protection circuit to the hot-end driver;
in case of overcurrent, the fan driver is switched off
until the next PWM cycle.

The PWM duty cycle of the fan driver shall be limited

to 99.5%, meaning max_power: 0.995, to avoid the
fan driver being stuck off due to an unlikely event of
a fake error detection.

Suggested configuration of the part fan driver:

3.7 Hot-end fan output

The hot-end fan circuit is implemented using a
microcontroller-controlled DC-DC converter.

PWM control of three wire fans will destroy the

speed signal. PWM (Pulse Width Modulation)
control means switching on and off the fan power
supply several times every second. This means
there are moments when the fan is actually not
supplied with power. In those moments, the speed
sensing electronic circuit is not supplied, therefore
it cannot generate a reliable speed signal.
Practically, the PWM signal will be superimposed
over the speed signal.

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Another advantage of this control circuit is the possibility of limiting the maximum voltage
according to the fan type the user has.

This output supports 12V or 24V fan types configured by the max power value in the fan
configuration section:

• 12V fan – max_power: 0.5

• 24V fan – max_power: 1.0

Since the fan driver is based on a DC-DC converter, the PWM frequency required for correct
operation is defined by the converter design, not by fan properties. Fan PWM speed control
frequency shall be set to 10 Khz, cycle time = 0.0001 – do not change this to a lower
frequency.

Based on a specific printer design, the maximum power can be limited to reduce fan noise.
Increase this to a higher level in case you experience hot end clogs.

The connection of a three-wire fan should respect the following wiring:

Klipper configuration example:

The connection of a two-wire fan should respect the following wiring:

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In the Klipper configuration, the tachometer related definitions shall be commented out as
follows:

3.8 BQ microprobe connection

The following diagram shows how to connect the BQ microprobe to the toolboard. Note that
the wiring is slightly different from the standard pinout the probes come with. The white and
yellow wires must be swapped in between them.

For the probe definition, do not activate the pull up in the microcontroller, use it without the
‘^” pull-up activation command!

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Klipper configuration:

Important disclaimer! We have found out that with these changes some microprobes would
still not work properly. Even if with other boards these probes might perform better our
investigation shows the real root cause of the probe not working correctly together with our
toolboard is the microprobe poor electrical and mechanical design quality. Considering all of
this result we do not recommend the usage of the BQ Microprobe together with the orbiter
toolboard series.

3.9 Thermal considerations

Closed printer chamber requires tool-board operation in high ambient temperature
conditions. In addition, this tool-board is mounted on the backside of the stepper motor,
which transfers a considerable amount of heat. Therefore, the circuits of this tool-board are
designed to have low temperature drift and efficient thermal management to make sure none
of the components heat up over their maximum allowed operation temperature.

I performed lots of thermal simulations using finite element simulations and real-life
measurements using a Flir thermal camera.

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The simulation result show that in a 60°C chamber temperature environment, the tool-board
components do not heat over their maximum junction temperature rating.

To reduce heat transfer from the stepper towards

the tool-board a minimum distance of 4-5 mm
shall be maintained. Orbiter V2 equipped with
the LDO-36STH20-1004AHG steper and the
Orbiter sensor, standoffs of 18 mm length are
recommended. This way, the distance between
the toolboard PCB and the stepper back side is
about 5 mm.

Without the Orbiter sensor, the standoff length

shall be minimum 20 mm.

The toolboard is designed for passive cooling,

but even with the most optimized thermal
design, stepper current derating over
temperature still applies. This is mainly because there is simply not enough space for a bigger
heatsink. Even if the heatsink size were doubled, it would still not be enough.

Therefore, we have two possible solutions:

1. Reduce stepper current for high ambient temperature operation. Example down to
0.55A for chamber temperature above 60°C.
2. Use active cooling to improve the thermal behavior. Adding a small 20x20mm or
25x25mm fan on the back of the toolboard that blows air toward the heatsink will
improve a lot.

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4 Microcontroller programming
1. Connect the board to the host Raspberry Pi via a USB adapter cable.
2. This step depends on whether your board has firmware on it or not:
a) If your board is pre-flashed with Klipper, first must enter DFU mode as follows:
• press the BOOT and RESET buttons,
• release the RESET while keeping the BOOT button pressed,
• release the BOOT button after about three seconds.
b) If your board is a new, un-flashed board:
• The MCU is already in DFU mode; confirm this at step 4

BOOT

RESET

3. Connect to your host Raspberry Pi via SSH

4. Run lsusb from the command prompt
• Make sure you see an STM32 in DFU mode listed
5. Run dfu-util --list from the command prompt
• note the text inside the [xxxx:yyyy] (default is -> 0483:df11)
6. Run cd ~/klipper from the command line to enter the Klipper directory
7. Run make menuconfig settings should be:
• Cristal oscillator – 8Mhz

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• Set custom USB ID to OrbitoolO2

• Optional features (to reduce code size):

• Hit Q to Exit and Save

8. Run make clean to clean up the make environment
9. Run make flash FLASH_DEVICE=0483:df11
If you encounter some errors but still have the message of File downloaded
successfully, you are good to proceed to the next step.

10. Press the RESET button to restart the MCU and enter normal operating mode
11. Run ls /dev/serial/by-id/* should return a device with
/dev/serial/by-id/usb-Klipper_stm32f042x6_OrbitoolO2-if00
Copy this virtual serial port name to the OrbitoolO2 config file in the MCU section

Manual definition of USB ID, flashing the MCU with Klipper will always result in the same
serial ID.

Your tool-board should now be usable with Klipper. Use the example config file to get started.
The best option is to copy the config file into the same directory as printer.cfg.
Add [include OrbitoolO2.cfg] to the beginning of your printer.cfg to include the file.
Comment out the unused I/O features of the OrbitoolO2 config section.

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5 Assembly instructions
Based on the user setup, we can have several assembly combinations, as described below.
As a recommendation, some kind of bracket with strain release for the USB cable is a must.
Fixing the cable is necessary to prevent constant bending forces over the PCB during
printhead movements. Even if the forces are not very high, it still stresses the PCB, and it
could develop component or solder cracks. A well-designed strain release will avoid this
issue.

5.1 Orbiter v2 + Orbitool + Bracket

Mount the two M3 L=18mm standoffs to the Orbiter v2
stepper’s backside.

Print the braket and the wire lock (downloadable from

GitHub).

Insert the toolboard into the bracket, and using the two
M3 L=8 mm and two washers fix it to the two standoffs.

Insert the USB cable and fix it into place using the printed
wire lock.

5.2 Orbiter v2 + Orbitool

Change the two screws holding the Orbiter v2
together with the longer ones provided in the
toolboard package (M3 L=25mm).

Add two M3 nuts over the screws on back side of the

stepper, after which mount the two M3 L=18mm
standoffs as shown in the picture.

Attach the toolboard and secure it in place with the

M3 L=8mm screw sets and washers provided in the
toolboard kit.

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5.3 Orbiter v2 + Orbitool + Orbiter sensor

Mount the Orbiter sensor over the top of the
Orbiter v2, using the two longer M3 screw sets
provided in the sensor kit.

Insert the small interconnection part between the

sensor and the toolboard into the sensor
connector.

Screw on the two M3 standoffs with 18mm length

over the sensor back side.

Attach the toolboard and secure it in place with

the M3 L=8mm screw sets and washers provided
in the toolboard kit.

5.4 Orbiter v2 + Orbitool + sensor + bracket

Mount the Orbiter sensor over the top of the Orbiter
v2, using the two longer M3 screw sets provided in
the sensor kit.

Print the braket and the wire lock (downloadable

from GitHub).

Insert the small interconnection part between the

sensor and the toolboard into the sensor
connector.

Screw on the two M3 standoffs with 14mm length

over the sensor back side.

Insert the toolboard into the bracket, and using the

two M3 L=8 mm and two washers, fix it to the two
standoffs.

Insert the USB cable and fix it into place using the
printed wire lock.

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5.5USB adapter board bracket

To fix the small USB adapter board to the printer frame, you may use my simple mount, as
shown in the next picture. All you need is to print the mount, an M3 heat insert (L = 4~5 mm),
and an M3 screw (L = 6 mm). The PCB mount can be fixed to the printer frame using two M3
screws and nuts, or attach it simply using strong foam tape.

5.6 Toolboard pack list

Orbiter v2 Toolboard pack list
Nr pieces
Item Description / length Type LCSC
1 Orbitool v2.72 1 v2.72
2 USB adapter board v2.6 1 v2.6
3 24V USB cable 150cm
4 24V power supply cable 50cm
5 Short USB A to USB C cable 30cm
6 Orbiter Sensor connecting bridge 1 C2718488
7 5 pin Dupont female connector housing 1 A2541H-5P C339333
8 Dupont connector pins 6 A2541-TB C339354
9 XH-2 pin connector housing 4 XH-2 C144401
10 XH-3 pin connector housing 2 XH-3 C144402
11 XH-4 pin connector housing 1 XH-4 C144403
12 XH crimp pins 25 SXH-001T-P0.6N C385122
13 Ferules for 1mm^2 4 VE1008
14 M3 threaded aluminum spacer L=18mm 2 M3 L18
15 M3 screw L = 8mm 2 M3x8
16 Me screw L = 25 2 M3x25
17 M3 washers 2 M3
18 M3 nut 2 M3

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6 Tips and tricks

Correct operation of the toolboards and basically any 3D printer electronics depends on the
environment they are used. Even if these toolboards have lots of protection circuits, it does
not mean that improper installation or usage cannot cause damage or malfunction.

Below is a list of recommendations when wiring DIY 3D printers:

1. The printer frame must be connected to mains earth and GND.

2. Aluminum bed shall be connected to frame and GND. A severe crash of the toolhead into
the bed or print piece causing the toolhead to brake may cause short circuits between
the bed and any input or output of the toolboard (like heater, fan outputs or end-stop,
temperature sensor inputs, etc.). If the bed is not connected to GND, then it can have
any voltage potential level even in the range where the toolboard protection circuit is not
effective anymore, leading to loss of functions or total damage.

3. Toolhead made with metal parts shall be connected to GND with extra wire using proper
electrical connection washer (washer with ribs or teeth, and hole for wire soldering). Not
grounded toolheads will build up static charge, eventually, this will arc over the toolhead
which may cause electrical damage to the toolboard (less likely) or disturb
communication between the toolboard and RPI causing disconnection errors (very likely
scenario).
4. When connecting wires to printer frame or any aluminum parts, special washers with
toots or ribs shall be used! Aluminum oxide is very good electrical insulator, therefore
using only a flat washer connector will not ensure proper electrical contact.

5. The small adapter board must be supplied with 5V, not less! The adapter
board version v2.xx is taking the 5V supply from the USB-C connector.
This voltage is used to supply the onboard USB protection circuit. If this
voltage is less than 5V, the protection circuit may disturb the USB
communication, causing toolboard disconnection failures. Note that
using an improper power supply for the RPI (especially RPI 3 & 4) will
lead to a lower USB voltage than 5V. The original power supplies of
these PRI boards are actually providing 5.5V to compensate for the
voltage loss over the internal voltage regulator and protection circuits of
the RPI.

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6. USB cables are not the best choice to supply the RPI due to high drop voltage over them.
The best is to supply the RPI with 5V via the GPIO pin header pins with a proper cable.
This ensures the supply voltage of the RPI is stable during sudden current load increases.
Remember that when the adapter board is connected to the RPI, the supply voltage of
the USB protection circuit is taken from the RPI, any disturbance in that is a potential
communication disturber.

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7 Electrical characteristics
7.1 Absolute maximum ratings
Important Note: The Orbitool O2 board can withstand these limits without electrical damage;
however, long-term exposure to these limits is not recommended. The absolute maximum
rating is not the same as the functional range.

The maximum ratings may not be exceeded under any circumstances!

Table 1. Orbitool O2 absolute maximum ratings

Nr. Parameter Min Max Unit

A1 Ambient temperature range -20 85 °C
A2 Supply voltage -30 30 V
A3 Extruder stepper current 1 A
A4 Hot-end heater current 6.8 A
A5 Part fan output current 1 A
A6 Hot-end Fan 1 A
A7 RGB LED 5V supply current 0.5 A
A8 RGB data line output -1 7 V
A9 USB Data lines -1 28* V
A10 Hot-end temperature sensor input -1 28* V
A11 End stop sensor input -1 28* V
A12 Z sensor I/O interface -10 +15 V
A13 Orbiter v2 sensor interface inputs -1 3.3 V
A14 ESD-Protection level for handling (Human Body Model, HMB) -8 8 kV
*Should not exceed the supply voltage

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7.2 Full functional operational limits

Table 2. Orbitool O2 electrical characteristics

Nr. Parameter Symbol Min Typ Max Unit

General
P1 Operating temperature range to -20 60 °C
P2 Max ambient temperature with active cooling to_cooled 80 °C
P3 Power supply voltage vPWR 22 28 V
P4 Power supply voltage measurement accuracy aPWR -3 3 %

Extruder stepper
P5 Extruder stepper current (max 60°C chamber temp) iMOT_60 0.85* A
P6 Extruder stepper current (max 80°C chamber temp) iMOT_80 0.5 0.6 A

Hot-end heater
P7 Hot-end heater nominal current iHEATER 5 A
P8 Hot-end heater overcurrent switch OFF threshold iOV_HOT 5.9 6.8 7.2 A
P9 Hot-end overcurrent detection time tOV_HOT 10 ms
P10 Hot-end power measurement accuracy aP_HOT -6 6 %

Part Fan, Tool FAN

P11 Part fan output current iPART_FAN 1 A
P12 Part fan overcurrent switch OFF threshold iOC_PART 1.2 2 2.5 A
P13 Part fan overcurrent detection time tOC_PART 5 ms
P14 Part fan PWM frequency fPART_FAN 100 Hz

Hot-end Cooling fan

P15 Hot-end fan output current iHOT_FAN 0.5 A
P16 Hot-end fan current limitation iCL_HOT_FAN 2 3 3.9 A
P17 Hot-end fan PWM frequency fHOT_FAN 9 10 20 Khz

External 5V supply
P18 RGB LED + bed level sensor supply current i5V_Prot 0.5 A

Internal supplies
P19 Internal 5V supply protection current limitation iSC_5V 2 3 3.9 A
P20 Internal 3.3V supply protection current limitation iSC_3V3 220 350 550 mA

P21 Weight 18 g
*Parameter derating with ambient temperature

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