Problem uploading Marlin with ramps connected to arduino

Hello guys,

I'm trying to set up a printer for arduino study reasons and so on. Bought the parts on ebay and while waiting the delivery, I literally read everything that i could in the "literature" that I could find. Yesterday I started to do an assembly, I made connections to test the motors and so on, and I came across a problem: every time I try to upload the marlin firmware with ramps connected in the mega arduino 2560, the following error appears:

Avrdude stk500v2_receivemessage () timeout
(Several times)
Avrdude: stk500v2_getsync (): timeout communicate with the programmer

The strangeness that is when I take off the ramps, I can do the upload to the arduino without problems... Other thing: conecting ramps again to arduino and conecting to it via pronterface, I can make a connection, but when trying to move any engine, it does not work

Here are my questions: Should ramps be conected to arduino to upload the software? If not, what could be the problem if the motors are not moving via pronterface? The wiring setup must be all motors endstops and whatoever or can i do a minimum setup to test only one motor?

Thanks in advance for whoever respond!

Should be able to flash firmware with ramps attached. I do this all the time

I would check you don't have you endstops around the wrong way causing a short

Or perhaps your pololu modules around the wrong way

motors is one of the last things to test..

My testing order is

plug in the mega and ramps via usb, no other power, check thermistors and endstops, ie thermistors should read room temps, and M119 should show correct triggered or open, depending on if your manually triggering the endstop or not.

Then move on to higher current devices

Plug in the 12v into the two power plugs on the ramps. Now check hot end and heated bed work.
Now check motors move

Finally if you have a Lcd check that out.

I think my problem might be the power supply... I did another try a few minutes ago and was able to see that the thermistor is actually working, via LCD display (when i grab the thermister with my fingers, the temperature rises in the LCD display).

Other fact is that it don't recognize X, Y and Z, at least this is what the LCD display is telling me (the letters for each one are blinking with a question mark). The funny thing is that when i turn on the atx power supply(and yes, i have it defined as a atx power supply in configuration.h), the display/thermister works, but nothing from motors and hotend.

My question was about make a minimum set up so i could be sure that i was not missing anything, it seems proper to do things step by step... But i still dont understand why i cant upload the marlin firmware with ramps attached to my arduino. Everytime i take ramps off the set, i can do the upload properly. Does this means that maybe my ramps board or arduino are damaged in some way? Should i try other ones?

I don't have a multimeter in hands right now (dead batteries =/), so ill make other tests during the week.

Oh, by the way, how can i test the endstops? I can get a blink from them when i click them, but don't have any clue how to test them without testing the motors...Sending M119 only returns me "SENDING:M119" at the pronterface console and stops right there, nothing more...

I think my problem might be the power supply... I did another try a few minutes ago and was able to see that the thermistor is actually working, via LCD display (when i grab the thermister with my fingers, the temperature rises in the LCD display).

Other fact is that it don't recognize X, Y and Z, at least this is what the LCD display is telling me (the letters for each one are blinking with a question mark). The funny thing is that when i turn on the atx power supply(and yes, i have it defined as a atx power supply in configuration.h), the display/thermister works, but nothing from motors and hotend.

My question was about make a minimum set up so i could be sure that i was not missing anything, it seems proper to do things step by step... But i still dont understand why i cant upload the marlin firmware with ramps attached to my arduino. Everytime i take ramps off the set, i can do the upload properly. Does this means that maybe my ramps board or arduino are damaged in some way? Should i try other ones?

I don't have a multimeter in hands right now (dead batteries =/), so ill make other tests during the week.

Oh, by the way, how can i test the endstops? I can get a blink from them when i click them, but don't have any clue how to test them without testing the motors...Sending M119 only returns me "SENDING:M119" at the pronterface console and stops right there, nothing more...

blinking Axis are not "not found" this is axis has not been homed.
The controller has no way to know if you have pololu modules installed or not

back up a bit...

remove pololus and endstops

try now, if m119 responds.

If it does slowly add things back in.

did a quick test right now hehe =)

without pololus and endstops, M119 still dont give me any feedback...
(it only displays "SENDING:M119" and nothing more at pronteface console, same as i described above)

Ramps fryed/malfunctioning?

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/02/2017 11:47PM by gregmlopes.

could be

I would removed everything form the ramps that is removable... and try that

If that still fails check the ramps board for blobs of solder that are out of place

Hi to all, suffering from a cheap ebay ramps 1.4 batch.
I bought several ramps cards a couple of months ago. I was unable to upload firmware whenever a ramps1.4 card from this order was attached to the Arduino.
If you carefully observe the PCB layout you can see that under the Z axis motor diver socket there goes the route between the Arduino RX pin and the AUX D1 pin, very close to the VMOT pin (usually 12V) of the Z axis motor driver. You can check the short circuit with a multimeter. (12V-RX)
I cut the copper route before and after the VMOT pin and the problem disappeared.. I did not remove the socket itself to see the short circuit between the route and the pad, because it's a 24 pin long socket. Not too easy to remove without damage.
Quick and dirty solution:
(On the ramps pcb)
If you do not plan to use the AUX header simply cut the copper route right beside the RX pin which comes from the Arduino.
If you do use the AUX header, cut the copper before and after the Z axis VMOT pin and with a thin wire connect RX and AUX D1 pins.
Good luck

I can confirm that the ramps is the problem, because I acquired other board and all looks fine.

tojape, can you post a picture or something like that? I would really appreciate, I took a quick look and did'nt understand where the problem is...

I read and re-read tojape's post and I can see the area he means..

As he says with a multimeter check continuity from +12v on the 5amp line and the pin D1 of the aux-1 plug (while ramps is off of the mega and completely unplugged from everything)

It should be open circuit. But his egs where shorted.