Set up your plotter

The Wi-Fi model

The Inkpilot Wi-Fi box plugs into the plotter and makes its own Wi-Fi network. Your iPhone talks straight to the box, so there's no computer to set up, and you can plot even away from your home Wi-Fi.

1. Plug everything in. Plug the Wi-Fi box into the plotter's USB port. Then plug in the box's power and the plotter's power.

2. Find the sticker on the box. The box makes its own Wi-Fi network named Inkpilot- plus 4 characters. That name and a QR code are on the sticker.

3. Join the box's Wi-Fi. Point your iPhone camera at the QR code to join it. You can also do it in the app: open the Plotter tab, tap Connect, then tap Set up a Wi-Fi box.

4. Connect in Inkpilot. Open the Plotter tab, tap Connect, and tap your box.

Plotting doesn't need internet. The Claude features in Fill, Write, Letters, and Chat do.

Keep your phone on your home Wi-Fi (optional)

While your phone is on the box's Wi-Fi, it isn't on your home network. If you'd rather your phone stay on your home Wi-Fi, the Inkpilot app can put the box on your home Wi-Fi too. You can also switch the box back to its own Wi-Fi from the app.

The pen plotter with a Mac

The pen plotter plugs into your Mac by USB. The free Inkpilot Bridge runs on the Mac and passes messages between the plotter and your iPhone over Wi-Fi, while Inkpilot does all the work. This is also how to connect an AxiDraw you already own.

What you need

• An AxiDraw and its USB cable
• A Mac
• Inkpilot on your iPhone
• Your iPhone and your Mac on the same Wi-Fi network

The bridge runs on macOS and on Linux, including Raspberry Pi OS. It doesn't run on Windows.

1. Download the bridge. It's one small file. Save it to your Downloads folder.

   • inkpilot_bridge.pyThe Inkpilot Bridge, about 9 KB

2. Plug in the AxiDraw. Connect its USB cable to your Mac and turn on its power. If Inkscape's AxiDraw panel is open, quit it. Only one program can use the plotter at a time.

3. Start the bridge. Open Terminal (it's in Applications, then Utilities) and run these two lines:

   cd ~/Downloads
   python3 inkpilot_bridge.py

   If your Mac asks to install the command line developer tools, click Install, let it finish, and run the second line again.

4. Look for "Found AxiDraw". The bridge prints that, plus the address the app can use. Leave the Terminal window open while you plot. If your Mac asks whether Python can accept incoming network connections, click Allow.

5. Connect from your iPhone. With your phone on the same Wi-Fi, open Inkpilot, go to the Plotter tab, and tap Connect. Your AxiDraw shows up under Nearby. Tap it. If the app asks to find devices on your local network, tap Allow.

When you're done plotting, press Control and C in the Terminal window, or just close it.

Try it with no plotter

Inkpilot has a built in virtual plotter, so you can try every feature before you set anything up. Open the Plotter tab, tap Connect, then tap Virtual plotter. Jobs draw on screen at real speed, or 4 or 12 times faster if you'd rather not wait.

Before your first real plot

• In Plotter settings, pick your exact AxiDraw model so Inkpilot knows how far the pen can reach.
• Run Quick tests, 1 in square, to check the pen heights. The defaults are 60 for up and 30 for down, the same numbers as Inkscape's AxiDraw panel. Lower the down height if the pen skips, and raise it if it presses too hard.
• Every plot starts with a setup checklist and a diagram. It shows where the paper goes, which way the top of the page faces, and where to start the pen. Tape the corners of the paper so it can't slide.
• If a page is bigger than your plotter can reach, Inkpilot works out how it should go in, and the diagram shows you.

If the app can't find your plotter

With the Wi-Fi model

• Check that the box and the plotter are both plugged into power.
• Make sure your iPhone is on the box's Wi-Fi. Its name starts with Inkpilot- and it's on the sticker on the box.
• If you put the box on your home Wi-Fi, make sure your iPhone is on that same network.
• Make sure Inkpilot is allowed to use your network: iPhone Settings > Privacy & Security > Local Network.

With a Mac or a Raspberry Pi

• Make sure your iPhone and the bridge are on the same Wi-Fi network.
• On a Mac, check that the Terminal window says Found AxiDraw. If it says it's waiting, check the USB cable and the AxiDraw's power.
• Quit Inkscape or anything else that might be using the plotter.
• In the app, tap Add by IP address and enter the address the bridge printed, with port 7878.
• Make sure Inkpilot is allowed to use your network: iPhone Settings > Privacy & Security > Local Network.
• On a Raspberry Pi, check on the bridge from your Mac's Terminal: ssh yourname@inkpilot.local systemctl status inkpilot-bridge

Still stuck? Email support@inkpilot.co and tell us which setup you have and what the app or the bridge says. We'll help you figure it out.

Use your own Raspberry Pi

If you got the Wi-Fi model, you don't need any of this. This part is for building your own wireless setup for an AxiDraw you already own.

A Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W is a tiny computer, about the size of a stick of gum. It plugs into the AxiDraw, joins your Wi-Fi, and starts the bridge on its own every time it turns on. You set it up once from your Mac, and after that you never need a computer to plot.

What to buy

• A Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W. Make sure it says Zero 2 W, not just Zero W. A starter kit is the easiest way to get everything below in one box.
• A USB OTG adapter (micro USB male to USB A female), so the AxiDraw's USB cable can plug into the Pi. Many kits include one.
• A microSD card, 16 GB or bigger. If your Mac has an SD card slot, get a full size SD adapter too. If it doesn't, use a USB card reader.
• A 5V 2.5A micro USB power supply, if it isn't in the kit.

A Raspberry Pi 4 or 5 works too. Those have regular USB ports, so they don't need the OTG adapter. Keep using the USB cable that came with your AxiDraw.

Set it up (about 15 minutes, once)

1. Get Raspberry Pi Imager for your Mac from raspberrypi.com/software, and put the microSD card in your Mac.

2. Pick the basics in Imager. Device: Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W (or your model). Operating system: Raspberry Pi OS Lite, the 64 bit version. It's listed under Raspberry Pi OS (other). Storage: your microSD card.

3. Customize the settings when Imager offers.

   • Hostname: inkpilot
   • Username and password: anything you'll remember
   • Wi-Fi: the same network your phone uses, and its password
   • Services: turn on SSH with password login

4. Write the card and start the Pi. Put the card in the Pi and plug its power supply into the port labeled PWR. Give it about 2 minutes to start the first time.

5. Download these three files into the same folder on your Mac. Your Downloads folder is fine.

   • inkpilot_bridge.pyThe bridge itself
   • install-pi.shInstalls the bridge on the Pi and makes it start by itself
   • setup-pi-from-mac.shCopies the two files above to the Pi and runs the installer

6. Run the setup from Terminal. Swap in the username you picked in step 3:

   cd ~/Downloads
   zsh setup-pi-from-mac.sh yourname@inkpilot.local

   If it asks about connecting for the first time, type yes. Type your Pi password when it asks (it can ask more than once). When it says Done, the bridge is installed and starts every time the Pi turns on.

7. Plug in the AxiDraw. Connect its USB cable to the Pi's port labeled USB (through the OTG adapter on a Zero 2 W), then turn on the AxiDraw.

8. Connect from your iPhone. In Inkpilot, open the Plotter tab, tap Connect, and tap AxiDraw (wireless).

That's it. From now on, turn on the Pi and the AxiDraw and the app finds it.

bash install-pi.sh