Just to make sure I understand the system correctly. When a firmware update is announced, for example, “RealTime Redline Controller Firmware 1.6.3”, does that mean both the HMI controller (Raspberry Pi) and the hardware controller (STM32F401) are updated ?
If, for example, the firmware in the controller (STM32F401) is corrupted for some reason, can I use the firmware in question to restore the controller?
Please reach out to www.realtimecnc.com with your query.
Hi @Andlit,
Our software and firmware are tightly coupled. The current software will always make sure that the firmware on the motion control hardware is up-to-date and in sync. Our hardware/firmware ecosystem is designed to be “unbrickable” so that it can recover even from a failed firmware update (e.g. power failure or disconnect). This assumes you are using the stock, unmodified firmware for our controllers. Up to this point, we have never had an instance where firmware has become corrupted on our controllers. If you have a specific issue, please reach out to us at support@realtimecnc.com and we will make sure everything is running smoothly.
This next part may not relate to your situation or question specifically, but may be of general interest to others on the forum. We are aware of a few cases where users have attempted to flash their own firmware or have used our hardware platform as a development system. We fully support the notion that users purchasing our RTCNC controllers own the hardware and can do with it as they please. However, this comes with the caveat that modifying the controller or its firmware is at the user’s own risk and voids any warranty or guarantee of functionality. Third-party modifications often rely on reverse-engineering our proprietary hardware or firmware design and can, in some cases, cause damage or other unintended consequences.
Let me know if you have any other questions and I will do my best to answer.
James @RealTime CNC
Thank you James for the detailed response.
As an electronics engineer, I’ve often modified hardware or redesigned it through reverse engineering for specific applications. I do this solely for my own use. You should know that I’m not a social media creator; everything stays within my own circle.
In fact, the idea was to flash your controller with different firmware to unlock the system, gain more options, and be able to program more flexible workflows.
However, the risk of using your hardware as a development environment is too high.
It would have to be guaranteed that I could reinstall the original firmware at any time. Your letter does not provide a clear answer on this point. With a different hardware environment, I would dare to do it, it’s both educational and exciting.
I’m sure your goal is to continue developing your system and to meet the needs of the CNC community with new updates.
The Redline system is a truly impressive piece of engineering, with the minor drawback that it’s too proprietary.
Best regards,
Andreas
It’s just an R-Pi, there’s no reason you couldn’t reflash it in any way possible even going back to the proprietary firmware. They’d have to have some significant code in their firmware to not allow it to be flashed on top of other firmware (including a base image as a raw R-Pi).
You are also not limited to just using the HMI to host their software. They released builds to allow alternative OSes you could explore using for either your proprietary additions or as a backup in case you brick the HMI’s Pi.
I’m talking about something else. The HMI with the integrated Raspberry Pi is actually open-source. I’ve flashed a few Raspis. Ultimately, that’s the computer that controls the Realtime controller.
What I’m referring to is the Realtime controller itself. Inside this box is a motherboard with an STM32F4xx microcontroller. It controls the closed-loop steppers, the VFD, sensors, buttons, etc. It requires its own firmware, and that firmware isn’t open. Although it’s a well-known architecture, similar to what competitors offer and it’s possible that the firmware is also well-known, such as an xHALx system. We (I) simply don’t know for sure.
If I were to make the OF Gen2 CNC open source, as things stand today, I would use a well-known controller and the existing HMI. But that’s not easy either and requires some deep research. I would keep the original RTS-2 controller so I can use it when needed. I’ll wait and see what Redline offers in the future.