Field Release: Dusty App & FieldPrinter

Fixing a misplaced obstacle on the iPad used to mean deleting it and drawing it again. Operators can now drag an obstacle into place or move it by an exact distance, and the FieldPrinter 2 avoids it at the new location. The Dusty App Measure Tool now snaps to layout geometry the same way the new Portal Measure Tool does, image printing handles larger files, and station verification fails less often.

• Wall Stationing (Beta): Station off existing walls. Contact your Dusty Support team to check eligibility.
• Move Obstacles: Drag, nudge, or offset an obstacle by an exact distance, then undo if needed.
• Measure Tool: Snap to endpoints, intersections, and points, matching the Measure Tool in Portal.
• Print Images: Place images on the canvas, print larger files, and use WebP images.
• FieldPrinter Improvements: More accurate points, fewer false cliff stops, and an ink storage reminder.

Field Updates

Wall Stationing (Beta): Station Off Existing Walls

Wall Stationing is now available in a Beta program. Operators station the FieldPrinter by scanning existing walls with the reflector, instead of relying only on surveyed control points.

Interested in the Beta? Reach out to Dusty Support at support@dustyrobotics.com or (510) 210-3658 to find out if your team is eligible and learn more. For setup steps, see Wall Stationing: How to Station Off Existing Walls.

Move Obstacles: Fix a Misplaced Obstacle Without Redrawing It

Operators can now move a custom obstacle drawn on the iPad instead of deleting it and drawing a new one. The FieldPrinter receives the new position and avoids the obstacle at its new location.

The Dusty App offers three ways to move a line, rectangle, or circle obstacle:

• Drag: Move the obstacle with a finger. The canvas shows the distance moved while dragging, and Cancel returns the obstacle to where it started.
• Nudge: Step the obstacle up, down, left, or right by a chosen amount.
• Exact offset: Enter a distance in the project's units. For a single line, the Dusty App also offers a perpendicular offset, for example moving a slab-edge obstacle 1.5" in to clear bolts.

All four sides of a rectangle move together, and a circle moves by its center. Tapping Undo reverses the last move, and Redo restores it. Moves made while disconnected from the FieldPrinter sync when the iPad reconnects.

To move an obstacle:

1. Tap a custom obstacle on the canvas to select it.
2. Tap Move to drag the obstacle, or tap Scoot to open Precise Move.
3. In Precise Move, pick a nudge step and tap the arrows, or enter Δx and Δy and tap Apply.
4. Tap undo in the Move Obstacle banner if the obstacle lands in the wrong place.

Obstacles detected by the FieldPrinter and obstacles that come from the layout file can't be moved.

Measure Tool: Snap to the Layout the Same Way as Portal

The Dusty App Measure Tool now works the same way as the Measure Tool in Portal, so a distance checked in the office and a distance checked on the slab use the same snapping.

The Measure Tool snaps to endpoints, midpoints, arc centers, intersections, positions along a line, perpendicular positions, control points, and MEP points. A mark at the snap location shows what the measurement locked onto, and an angle lock holds a 45° or 90° line. While placing each end of a measurement, a magnifier shows the snap point that a fingertip would otherwise cover. The distance label sits beside the measurement line instead of on top of it, so the number stays readable over busy geometry.

Print Images: Place Images on the Canvas and Print Larger Files

Printing a logo or graphic from the iPad is streamlined. The Dusty App now shows where a placed image will print on the canvas, and image files that are too large no longer get rejected.

• Images picked from Import from Files that are over the print size limit now resize automatically. PNG, JPEG, GIF, BMP, and WebP files are supported.
• The FieldPrinter now prints WebP images.
• A loading indicator appears while a large image converts, so a second tap doesn't start the process over.
• Images that are mostly solid black now print with a halftone pattern. This uses less ink on large dark areas and keeps the print cartridges from overheating. Black-and-white line art prints as before.
• Placed images now follow the rotation of the layer they belong to.

Station Verification: Fewer Failed Checks on Print-Only Jobs

Station verification is less sensitive on jobs that don't measure elevation, so Operators can verify a station without repeated failures.

When elevation measurement is off, small vertical angle errors no longer narrow the allowed radius. Only the horizontal part of the error counts, which reduces failed verifications without loosening layout accuracy.

The default tolerance is 1/16", and a new 1/32" option is available for tighter work. A 1/8" option is also available.

To change the station verification tolerance:

1. In Setup, open 3. Verify Station Location.
2. Tap Set Tolerance.
3. Choose 1/32", 1/16" (default), or 1/8".

FieldPrinter Improvements: More Accurate Points and Fewer False Cliff Stops

This release brings several FieldPrinter upgrades for printing accuracy and jobsite setup.

• Ink storage reminder: When the FieldPrinter is shut down with its power button, the Dusty App reminds the Operator to store the ink properly: remove the cartridges, replace the covers, and store them at room temperature.
• More accurate points and line ends: The FieldPrinter better accounts for its own acceleration when estimating tilt, which reduces errors in printed points and in where lines start and stop.
• Fewer false cliff stops: Cliff detection uses new tuning available in distance sensor firmware 1.6, improving detection and cutting down on stops caused by false cliff readings.

Additional UI Improvements

• Tools in the tool menu stay active after each use until the Operator switches back to Select.
• Layouts in the layout list and sidebar show which organization they belong to, and searching by organization name finds that organization's projects.
• Text and offset lines created on the iPad can now be deleted from the info bubble, so a typo or wrong offset no longer means deleting the whole layer.
• The custom offset field accepts standard formats, such as 5 1/2, 5.5, or 1/2, and reads 5 0.5 as 5.5".
• When the iPad has no network connection during FieldPrinter setup, the Dusty App now says to check the network connection instead of showing a generic error.
• A control point created at the Reflector is no longer added to the active stationing control points.
• Unlocking the station now stops Reflector tracking.
• The levelness check can be run again after it passes.

Bug Fixes

Dusty App

• Mark Printed and Mark Not Printed from the canvas menu now update the selected shapes.
• Deleting a control point from the canvas menu now works.
• The Dusty App reconnects to the FieldPrinter after the iPad wakes from sleep, instead of stopping at 92% "Finalizing robot state."
• The levelness check finishes correctly when the Dusty App is in the background during the check.
• SVG images without a set width and height now preview at the correct size.
• Locate centers the FieldPrinter on the canvas and no longer moves the view when the iPad is not connected.
• Zoom to Fit includes text that was moved outside the layout.
• Small shapes, control points, and obstacle lines are easier to tap when zoomed out.
• Point markers display at the same sizes as in Portal.
• A control point recorded from the canvas info panel now shows as checked in the control point list.
• The stationed control point list no longer appears empty because it scrolled out of view.
• A cliff converted to an obstacle no longer moves permanently to the locked Obstacles layer.
• A "Connected to fieldprinter" message no longer appears when nothing is reconnected.

FieldPrinter

• Text that contained a line break no longer prints small rectangles at the end of the line.
• The capital IJ character (IJ) prints correctly in Dutch.