mirror of
https://github.com/openglow-org/forgefirm.git
synced 2026-09-28 01:01:12 -07:00
ScottW514
ef2a8607c2
The recipe URLs, the release and install URLs, the vendor check and the CI checkouts name openglow-org, and the grblHAL core fork is openglow-org/grblHAL-core. No catalog change is owed: the recipe edits move the meta-forgefirm content hash, which every test fingerprint folds in through the platform block, so the whole catalog re-runs on its own.
87 lines
4.6 KiB
Markdown
87 lines
4.6 KiB
Markdown
# OpenGlow/ForgeFIRM Firmware for Glowforge
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> # ⚠️ BETA
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>
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> **ForgeFIRM is in beta.** Every release below 0.1.0 is a beta release.
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> Expect problems, and expect frequent updates. Upgrade whenever a newer
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> release is available, and report what you find on the
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> [community forum](https://community.openglow.org).
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Open-source firmware for Glowforge brand CNC lasers. ForgeFIRM replaces the
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cloud-dependent factory software on the **stock control board** — no hardware
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modification — and gives the machine a local controller, a local web control
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panel, and a standard Grbl interface.
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* [Latest Release](https://github.com/openglow-org/forgefirm/releases)
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* [Installation Instructions](https://docs.forgefirm.org/install/)
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* [Build Instructions](https://docs.forgefirm.org/developers/building/)
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* [Connecting LightBurn](https://docs.forgefirm.org/usage/lightburn/)
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* [How motion and the laser are driven](https://docs.forgefirm.org/technical/forgefirm/)
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* [How cooling and airflow work](https://docs.forgefirm.org/technical/forgefirm/cooling-engine/)
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* [The cameras and the video stream](https://docs.forgefirm.org/usage/cameras/)
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* [How the laser safing works](https://docs.forgefirm.org/safety/)
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* [How a release is tested before being accepted](https://docs.forgefirm.org/developers/acceptance/)
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* [Community Support](https://community.openglow.org)
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## What it does
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**Two controller modes, selected in the web panel and switchable while the
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machine is idle:**
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* **GRBL mode**: [grblHAL](https://github.com/grblHAL) runs on the machine and
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speaks Grbl 1.1 over TCP port 23, so LightBurn, UGS, cncjs, etc... drive the
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laser directly. Motion runs on the board's own hardware step engine (SDMA +
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EPIT), fed live by a local planner. M3/M4 dynamic laser power, coolant-flow
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verification, over-temp holds, and an operator button press to arm the laser
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for each job.
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* **Cloud mode**: The machine presents itself as a stock Glowforge to the
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Glowforge web service, so the phone and web apps work as they always did.
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Optional, and off by default. GRBL mode jogs and cuts without it; the one
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GRBL-mode function that still reaches the Glowforge service is
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camera-referenced homing (below), until limit-switch homing lands.
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* A **web control panel**: Machine status and position, coolant
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and fan telemetry, safety-switch states, live camera stream, machine settings, hardware diagnostics, firmware updates, and boot-slot management.
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* **Camera-referenced homing**: `$H` from any sender runs the factory-style
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camera homing cycle through the Glowforge service (a Glowforge account and a
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live service session are required for `$H`; everything else in GRBL mode
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runs without them).
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## Hardware
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The control board is common to Glowforge Basic, Plus, and Pro. The 5 MP
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(OV5648) camera modules are fully supported and hardware-validated. The 8 MP
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(OV8856) modules found in "HD" units have a complete capture path — the kernel
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patches, device tree and sensor-aware capture profile they need are all in the
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build, but it has never run on an 8 MP machine, so treat it as untested.
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## What this costs
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ForgeFIRM is free in both senses: free as in beer, free as in speech. All of
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it is public and released under MIT and GPL licenses. Read it, build it,
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change it, use it, pass it on.
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The work happens in public, including the parts that don't work yet, which
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are written up with more candor than flatters anyone.
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No paid tier. No license key, no subscription, no activation, no Pro edition,
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no feature parked behind a paywall. Nothing is held back for a rainy day,
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mostly because there's no plan for a rainy day.
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If someone offers to sell you this firmware, the licenses allow it and
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nobody's calling it theft. Just note that you'd be paying for something
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that's given away. Get it from the source. Same price everywhere, and here
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you get to read what you're running.
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## Safety
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**These machines contain a CO₂ laser: it burns, blinds, and starts
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fires.** Never defeat the lid switches or interlock. Never leave a
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running job unattended. Keep a fire extinguisher within reach. Read [this](https://docs.forgefirm.org/safety/) before you cut
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your first job, and read this [regulatory and legal](https://docs.forgefirm.org/install/#regulatory-and-legal) section before installing. [This](https://docs.forgefirm.org/technical/machine/safing-chain/) page describes the hardware safety chain and the software gates ForgeFIRM stacks on it.
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**THIS IS EXPERIMENTAL SOFTWARE
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Use of this software
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could seriously maim or kill you or others, and could void your warranty.
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Use it at your own risk.**
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This project is not affiliated with or endorsed by Glowforge.
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