Hi all, so I'm the "client" lol!
The task at hand is to get g-code files off a DVD and onto an Arduino memory module, then use the arduino to emulate an SD card so that a 3D printer can read the g-code files as if it was reading from an SD card. I can handle the physical wiring and circuitry. I just need the team to develop the code. Don't ask why this is even necessary. It's not. The need only exists due to some silly cybersecurity rules and constraints.
To put this debate to rest so that these students can (hopefully) get some good advice; it is absolutely feasible to achieve this using an Arduino. The microcontroller only needs to transfer FAT32 data from a DVD drive, store the data on an onboard memory device as FAT32 data, and then enable a Prusa 3D printer to read that data.
A Prusa 3D printer, which is basically a well ordered mess of stepper motors, is driven by an Einsy RAMBo board, which is an Arduino Mega with some integrated stepper motor drivers. The fact that this product exists is proof that an Arduino can drive a DVD disk reader, which consists of a single stepper motor, a motor to spin the disk, a laser, and an optical sensor. These disk readers can be thought of as very (very) simple 3D printers, for which the students only need to make a driver. There are ample tutorials that show how to build CNC plotters from DVD drives, so we know driving the physical hardware is absolutely possible.
What they need to create is essentially an embedded control system that is purpose-built to read and record high and low signals from a fast spinning reflective disc using a laser, an optical sensor, a stepper motor, and an arduino. They are lucky in that the electro-mechanical assembly they need has already been built for them (with a few extra PCBs they can toss).
I thought you all liked building robots????
I have talked with capstone project students from the same school that have designed and programmed quad-copter flight controllers from scratch, developed custom digital camera drivers for machine learning applications, designed, built and tested fully autonomous robots deployed from drone mother ships, etc... These are not casual hobbyists. They are teams of highly skilled and highly capable engineering students. Furthermore, each project is screened by PhD faculty to ensure that the technical problems are feasible within the curriculum before they are proposed to students.
I don't appreciate a bunch of amateurs tearing down and discouraging a group of students just seeking help. If you have nothing helpful to add, please just move along. They're only students and they are very busy and under a lot of stress.
Team, let's talk more. I'm available to help. I'm confident you can get this done, or at least get far enough for me to finish what you start. Don't be discouraged by the feedback you have received here.
