At this point, the cnc painter satisfies the proof-of-concept requirements I defined for it last fall. It is time to look back on what has been accomplished and layout where this project is going next.

At face value the cnc painting system I have developed so far isn't that impressive. A machine that takes up 2ft x 4ft of my living room and requires software that took me over three years to develop can only create paintings that are at most 5in x 7in and look like a toddler made them. So maybe the paintings themselves are not yet interesting enough that someone would buy them, but that hasn't been the main focus of this project.

The main goal of this project has been to solve and simplify many of the previously unsolved technical challenges of cnc painting. Under this direction, I feel like I have been able to contribute many new technologies to cnc painting as a whole. The most valuable new technologies being a fully automated paint management and dispensing system, a generalized algorithm for developing paint stroke paths from bitmap images, a low cost six axis cnc machine, a branch of grbl-Mega-5X for controlling up to six micro-step stepper motor drivers with grbl, a low cost tool change system, and a methodology for controlling brush operations during the cnc painting process.

The fun part is that all that I have developed so far with this project is really just the tip of the ice berg. I would say I am only 30% complete with my vision of cnc painting technology. The next major challenges to tackle are a full implementation of the paint color mixing strategy (automated paint mixing) and refining brush control during paint dipping and canvas painting operations with B and C axis movements (origin and axis orientations). Once these challenges are complete, the mechanical capabilities of the current machine may be the biggest hurdle for future development. In which case, it will be time to redesign the six axis brush control system for increased speed and a larger work space.