Note: Please also see the solution Upgrading Makerware and your Firmware
Having trouble Upgrading Your Firmware?
One of the best things about Makerbot is their constant commitment to improvement. The firmware upgrades are a perfect example….but what if your machine does not want to take the upgrade…don’t freat we have the solution ;)
Especially on the older Replicator 1’s but occasionally on the Replicator 2’s (more likely with a Mac than PC) some people have had the firmware upgrade stop mid point. You may then get an error message on your LED screen, or more likely see two rows of black pixels.
There are two solutions we have for you.
1. Using Replicator G
Go into MakerWare and go to Services -> Stop Conveyor, then close Makerware and open ReplicatorG 0037.
Then turn the bot on, in that order.
Now go to Machine -> Connection (Serial Port) and select the appropriate port. If it doesn't show up, hit Rescan Serial Ports, then go back to Machine -> Connection (Serial Port) and select the port.
Next, go to Machine -> Upload New Firmware. Select board version (eg board v1.5 for The Replicator 1, OR v1.7 for The Replicator 2), and firmware (Eg v7.0 - at the time this was written these were the latest versions) You might have to hit the reset button anywhere from one second before to up to five seconds after hitting Upload. The timing might be a bit tricky, but keep trying at it, and you'll get it eventually!
Once that's done, close ReplicatorG and re-open MakerWare, then go to Services -> Restart Conveyor.
Replicator 1 users note: Now, in order to upgrade the firmware on an original Replicator, the process is a bit different than how the prompts say to do it:
1. MakerWare has to show the Replicator is connected.
2. Go to Bots -> Upload Firmware -> Replicator Dual/Single -> 6.2. Press Next.
3. Press Upload immediately before pressing the reset button and holding it for 1-2 seconds, then release it.
2. Using the BotTools
30 April 2013 update : the new 7.2 firmware was released after this tool was developed. We have attached the .hex files for you. Put these in your bot tools firmware folder . Also "run_BotTool.vbs" is the run file. We have also attached an alternative bot tool also, however we find high success from the older one in the linke below.
We have two little apps, one for Mac users and the other for PC’s.
winBotTool_v1.01.zip
macBotTool_v1.0.zip
We can email them to you if required and will have them online under technical support
Open MakerWare and, from the services dropdown, select "Stop Conveyor." Then extract the files.
For Windows, run "run_botTool". Select your bot's COM port and the firmware version you want to upload, click next, and follow the instructions on screen.
For Mac, hold down control and run "bot_tool_v1". Select your bot's COM port and the firmware version you want to upload, click next, and follow the instructions on screen.