Using ChiliPeppr to Mill and Program the Zipwhip Text Messaging Notifier IoT Device
This video shows you how I made the Zipwhip Text Messaging Notifier IoT Device, which is an animated LED light that shows you when you have a waiting text message inside the Zipwhip business texting software. The device runs standalone over Wifi so it can be placed anywhere. It is powered by an ESP32 which is programmed using the ChiliPeppr ESP32 for Lua workspace (http://chilipeppr.com/esp32). The CAD/CAM was done in Fusion 360. The ChiliPeppr TinyG workspace (http://chilipeppr.com/tinyg) was used to send the Gcode to my 3040 CNC milling machine.
An Onsrud single flute 1/8" upcut end mill (http://www.onsrud.com/product/Item/m/...) was used to mill the acrylic. A 1/16" single flute upcut end mill (http://www.onsrud.com/product/Item/m/...) was used to mill the logo on the top.
Using a single flute upcut end mill is important on hard plastic to reduce melting of the plastic. Make sure you use blowing air too for clearing the chips. When running your spindle at 10K RPM, the single flute effectively halves your spindle speed from your normal double-fluted end mill, which takes bigger chips, which becomes important when correctly milling plastic. I've had too many problems melting acrylic during milling, which ruins your work piece, breaks your end mill and makes life miserable. This is the best end mill I've ever used for acrylic. The 1/8" end mill should be run at 1500mm/min and depth of cut should be no more than the width of the end mill, so about 3mm deep. However, when using adaptive clearing from Fusion 360 you can likely take a 6mm depth of cut.
Zipwhip Business Texting (Text enable your business phone number) - http://zipwhip.com
Programming your ESP32 - http://chilipeppr.com/esp32
Sending Gcode to your TinyG and CNC 3040 - http://chilipeppr.com/tinyg
Buying the end mill from Onsrud - http://www.onsrud.com/product/Item/m/...
Fusion 360 CAD File - https://gallery.autodesk.com/fusion36...