CHANGELOG PRUSASLICER

This release introduces several UI improvements, Prusa Account login and Prusa Connect integration, improved G-code viewer, better seams, single perimeter for top and bottom layers, and more many more improvements and bugfixes.

Improved UI

We have decided to do several tweaks to the user interface. It is by no means a complete redesign, so the controls are mostly where you are used to find them. The most visible change is the top bar. The system menu was removed (on Windows and Linux only) and it is now accessible through a separate button at the very left of the top bar. The settings tabs are now larger and styled. The larger top bar allowed us to integrate the Search field into it, so it is readily accessible and it looks the same regardless of which tab is active (unlike in previous versions). The right part of the top bar features the Simple/Advanced/Expert switch (which is newly a dropdown) and the PrusaAccount login box.

Next, both sliders in the Preview have been completely reworked and are now part of the 3D scene, instead of being placed in a neighboring panels. Apart from looking nicer and more modern, removing the side panels means that the canvas size is larger. It also comes with a nice benefit that switching back and forth between the 3D view and Preview no longer shifts the view, the views are now perfetly aligned.

Credits go to BambuStudio, whose sliders were used a starting point for the implementation (although we later ended up rewriting most of it to fit current PrusaSlicer architecture).

Topping the list of the UI improvements, the spacing and icon size in the toolbars in the scene was slightly changed. The toolbars are now nicer and look less cramped.

Prusa Connect integration

Prusa Connect is our online system to control printers from the browser and distribute print jobs among them. Starting with this release, Prusa Connect is accessible directly from PrusaSlicer to streamline the workflow. A login box was added to the right of the top bar. When the login is successful, one more tab (Prusa Connect) will appear in the top bar. This tab will present your Prusa Connect dashboard and all features that you are used to.

When logged in, PrusaSlicer keeps track of the status of your printers and it also knows with which of your printer profiles they are compatible (printer model, MMU capabilities and nozzle diameter are checked). When a printer compatible with a given printer profile is in Prusa Connect, a little colored dots will appear in the printer profile dropdown in the right panel, displaying current status of that printer. The summary of the state of connected printers is shown just below the dropdown.

When a G-code is ready to be exported, a ‘Send to Connect’ button appears in the right panel. Clicking this button will open a dialog window presenting all your Connect printers compatible with the current project and allowing you to send the generated G-code to one of them.

To streamline the workflow in the other direction, there is an extra button in Connect labeled “Set as current”, which is shown for every printer. Clicking it will switch back to Plater tab and select first compatible printer profile automatically. The language settings and light/dark mode in the Prusa Connect tab is automatically switched so they match what is currently selected in PrusaSlicer.

Previous way of sending G-codes to Prusa Connect using a physical printer profile is deprecated. Users should stop using physical printers for Prusa Connect, although the support will be maintained for some time. Nothing changes with regard to PrusaLink or the other print hosts.

Note that logging in or using Prusa Connect is completely optional. PrusaSlicer will work fine without the login, as it has worked before. We are considering to add a Preferences checkbox to hide the login box completely to not bother people who intend to never use it anyway.

Improved G-code Viewer

The integrated G-code Viewer has been significantly reworked to improve its performance. Less data are now transmitted between the CPU and GPU and more of the work is now performed on the GPU side.

Furthermore, G-code Viewer is now able to visualize actual speed. The printer accelerates and decelerates when direction changes, so even though the required speed is set to a given value, it takes some time to reach it (if it is reached at all). The acceleration limits are (as they always were) configurable in Printer Settings -> Machine limits and PrusaSlicer always calculated with the acceleration and deceleration phases to get precise time estimate, but it did not allow to visualize them.

Note that the same disclaimers as for precise time estimates hold. If the machine limits are set incorrectly (in the sense that the printer uses different values), both the time estimate and the real speed visualization will not align with reality. Also, the actual speed visualization is not available for firmware flavors for which slicer does not allow setting the machine limits.

In addition, when moving the horizontal slider, there is a new popup dialog showing the data that G-code Viewer has about current segment, including the actual speed profile:

Single Perimeter for top and bottom layers

We have ported an option to use single perimeter for (top) solid infill layer. The feature can be configured in Print Settings -> Only one perimeter and based on the configuration, it results in single perimeter on all solid infill layers, on top solid infill layers or on topmost solid infill layers. This generally leads to improved visual look of the printed object, without sacrificing structural rigidity.

This is a frequently requested feature, which was first implemented in SuperSlicer, ported over to OrcaSlicer and then reimplemented in BambuStudio. We have ported the code from BambuStudio with only small changes. Even though we ended up not using the original SuperSlicer implementation, we would like to thank to everyone who implemented the feature there and who worked on a PR with the port (#10648), namely @supermerill, @vovodroid, @mjonuschar. Thanks also go to @bambulab for rewriting the feature later.

New system profile updating system

Since Slic3rPE 1.40 (released six years ago), PrusaSlicer has a built-in profile updater. Its task is to deliver read-only “system” profiles, which are fine tuned for the given printer and filament, sparing the user from having to tweak the individual parameters. The database of profiles has been growing ever since, and it contains many profiles, both for Prusa products and products from other vendors.

We have now split the profile database into several profile “repositories”. Profiles are updated only from repositories that PrusaSlicer is subscribed to. The repositories are selected at the beginning of the Configuration Wizard. The transition of your previous configuration requires no action on the user’s side, the repositories are automatically selected based on your currently installed profiles.

This brings the following benefits:

• Configuration Wizard loads faster, because it generally processes less data.
• Notifications informing about an existing update are only shown for your active repositories. E.g. if you only use SL1 printer, you are not disturbed by notifications about updated filament profiles, which are not relevant to you.

Offline updates

We have also covered the problem of updating system profiles on computers without internet connection. Not connecting a computer to the internet is an obvious security measure in environments where data leaks would pose a problem. However, the profile updater in PrusaSlicer relied on internet connection and there was no way of updating the profiles on such off-the-grid stations. They had to rely on undocumented and very user-unfriendly copying of configuration folders, transferring settings as config bundles, etc.

It is now possible to download a file containing the configuration update for a given repository from our website (note that the URL and the website are also in an alpha stage). This file can then be loaded as an “Offline repository”, and the configuration process treats is the same way as it would use an online update. This gives the user a possibility to update profiles by transferring this file to the off-the-grid computer on a removable drive, distribute it using a local network storage, etc.
These files can be loaded (and removed) also in the Configuration Wizard. PrusaSlicer remembers path to the loaded files and it tries to use them anytime when configuration update is triggered.

Seam improvements

Placement of seams is not a very well defined task, and it has many solutions. After the last big batch of changes in the seam placing algorithm (in 2.5.0-alpha2), the placing of seams was detrimental on various models.

In this release, the seam-placing algorithm was significantly changed to improve the results. We also did some other changes which allow the seam placing algorithm to do a better job. To name the most visible improvements:

• The ordering of perimeters was optimized to avoid unnecessary long travels between individual loops.
• To further reduce long travels, in some special cases where there are two external perimeters the seams are placed in roughly the same spot.
• The previous algorithm for aligned seams produced the seams from discontinuous “seam chains” picked heuristically on the object’s surface. Consequently, the old algorithm needed to fit a curve through the resulting seam points to achieve an aesthetically pleasing result. This worked for some models but produced worse results on others, where a strange “wiggling” appeared in places where a straight line was expected. This was particularly noticeable on very simple cylindrical models. The new seam aligning algorithm avoids this issue by employing a simpler strategy, more similar to the one used before 2.5.0-alpha2. It plans the seam from the bottom up, snapping to sharp corners. This approach generates several possible seams and selects the best one based on visibility criteria.
• One of the improvements in 2.5.0-alpha2 was the use of a seam visibility metric for seam placement. This worked well for seam hiding and the new algorithm still uses the visibility metric as the main criterion to pick the best seam possible.
• Previously, a single algorithm with different optimization criteria was used for both the aligned seam and the rear seam. This meant that the rear seam placement suffered from the same issues as the aligned seam algorithm (notably the artifacts produced by curve fitting). Another reported issue with the rear seam algorithm was that it had no notion of object center. In many use cases it is desirable that the seam is not only in the rear part of the object but also centered. Now there is a completely new separate algorithm for rear seam placement that tries to satisfy both criteria (rear and center).
• The nearest seam algorithm is now fully separated. It now simply first searches for the nearest corner to the previous position. If there is none it picks the nearest point on the perimeter.

Questo è un piccolo rilascio di patch:

• Gli oggetti dei 3MF generati da BambuStudio ora mantengono la pittura multimateriale quando vengono caricati
• È stato risolto un problema per cui il download di file da Printables non funzionava quando era abilitato nelle Preferenze.

Questa è la versione stabile, con miglioramenti minori e diverse correzioni di bug.

Miglioramenti alla stampa multimateriale

Abbiamo implementato le modifiche alle impostazioni del volume di stampa e le nuove routine per la punta del filamento utilizzate dalla MMU3 sulla MK4.

Lisciatura della modalità vaso

Quando si utilizza la modalità vaso a spirale, i percorsi degli strumenti vengono generati come di consueto e le estrusioni risultanti vengono poi estruse aumentando gradualmente z. Questo approccio ha portato ad artefatti simili a giunzioni sulla stampa nei punti in cui normalmente si troverebbero le transizioni di livello. Inoltre, l’ultimo layer terminava bruscamente, creando un “bordo” netto nel punto in cui terminava l’estrusione.

Entrambi i problemi sono stati affrontati da @andrewboktor mediante interpolazione tra layer adiacenti e riducendo gradualmente il flusso di estrusione alla fine della stampa. Il miglioramento è stato recentemente inserito in OrcaSlicer e abbiamo ricevuto una richiesta di pull con un porting su PrusaSlicer. Dopo aver valutato la funzionalità, abbiamo deciso di unirla perché è ben scritta, ben funzionante e molto utile.

Ringraziamo @andrewboktor per il tempo e l’impegno profuso nell’affrontare il problema, e ad entrambi @vovodroid e @tg73 per aver presentato una richiesta di pull per un port da OrcaSlicer

Supporto per i file 3MF generati in BambuStudio

PrusaSlicer è ora in grado di aprire i file 3MF generati da BambuStudio e di caricarne la geometria. (#10718, PR #10808, ringraziamo @cmguo). Si noti che BambuStudio consente di salvare un 3MF contenente solo G-code, che non è supportato da PrusaSlicer e il caricamento di tali 3MF non riuscirà.

Metadati con il poligono di confine di ciascun oggetto

I metadati del G-code binario hanno una nuova voce denominata objects_info, che elenca tutti gli oggetti della stampa e i loro poligoni di confine. Le stesse informazioni sono state aggiunte nei commenti alla fine dei G-code ASCII. Questo è utile per controllare la funzione Annulla oggetto da remoto tramite Prusa Connect.

Questa è la versione stabile, che apporta miglioramenti minori e diverse correzioni di bug.

Pittura multimateriale migliorata

Abbiamo implementato diversi meccanismi per rilevare un diagramma di Voronoi non valido e, manipolando l’input, abbiamo potuto garantire che il diagramma di Voronoi fosse valido. Abbiamo anche reimplementato da zero una parte significativa della pittura multimateriale che, insieme alle modifiche di cui sopra, dovrebbe risolvere tutti i problemi di fuoriuscita dei layer per la segmentazione multimateriale.

Cambio di colore (M600) Miglioramento su iniziativa della Community

In precedenza, PrusaSlicer posizionava il cambio colore (M600) subito dopo il completamento del layer precedente. L’implementazione predefinita del cambio colore in quasi tutti i firmware riporta l’ugello esattamente nella stessa posizione in cui si trovava prima dell’inizio del cambio colore. Come risultato di questo comportamento, un piccolo blob di filamento con il nuovo colore caricato rimaneva attaccato alla stampa.

La nostra community, in particolare @Nohus, ha trovato una soluzione che consiste nell’inserire il cambio di colore dopo lo spostamento al layer e alla posizione successivi, che si è rivelata molto più semplice e universale rispetto alla modifica dell’implementazione di M600 sul lato del firmware. Grazie a Nohus per la sua implementazione e a tutti coloro che hanno partecipato al test della sua modifica.

Movimenti di spostamento a rampa: Più fluidi e più efficienti

Abbiamo sostituito le modifiche ai layer elicoidali introdotte nella versione 2.7.1 con un profilo di ramping più raffinato. Sebbene i cambi di layer elicoidali abbiano contribuito a ridurre lo stringing, a volte causavano bolle di colore e artefatti. Con il nuovo e raffinato profilo di rampa lo stringing è comunque attenuato senza gli svantaggi dei movimenti elicoidali.

Sovrascrittura SLA

Per la stampa SLA, abbiamo introdotto le sovrascritture del materiale. Questa nuova funzione, che rispecchia la flessibilità dello slicing FDM, consente di sovrascrivere le opzioni di configurazione selezionate dalle Impostazioni di stampa o dalla Stampante in Impostazioni materiale. In Impostazioni materiale è presente una nuova pagina di parametri che consente di controllare i parametri da sovrascrivere e di ridefinirne il valore.

Addio a Perl

L’origine di PrusaSlicer si basa sul progetto Slic3r, originariamente scritto in linguaggio di scripting Perl. Nel corso degli anni, abbiamo riscritto quasi tutto il codice. Prima il nucleo di slicing, poi l’interfaccia utente. Ora abbiamo riscritto in C++ tutti i restanti test unitari che dipendono ancora dal Perl. Addio, Perl. Non ci mancherai.

Questa è la versione stabile, che apporta miglioramenti minori e diverse correzioni di bug.

Impostazioni del G-code binario

L’opzione Esporta come G-code binario è stata rimossa dalle Impostazioni di stampa. Al suo posto è stata inserita una nuova opzione in Impostazioni stampante, denominata Supporta G-code binario, che può essere impostata a livello di stampante. C’è anche un nuovo interruttore globale in Preferenze->Altro, che controlla se il G-code binario verrà generato per le stampanti che lo supportano. Ora è molto più facile attivare o disattivare questa funzione senza dover apportare modifiche ai profili.

Peso della torre di pulitura

Il peso della torre di pulitura è stato aggiunto ai metadati G-code in modo che possa essere facilmente visualizzato nelle statistiche di stampa sul display della stampante.

Bug risolti rispetto alla versione 2.7.0

È stato risolto il problema per cui, quando venivano abilitate le rampe, a volte mancava un perimetro nel layer in cui iniziava la spirale.
Corretto un arresto anomalo quando si seleziona un testo in rilievo mentre è aperto uno strumento SVG.
È stato risolto un caso in cui le modifiche allo strato elicoidale potevano causare spostamenti fuori dal piano.
Corretto un caso in cui il cambio di strato elicoidale era abilitato anche quando non c’era alcuna retrazione sul cambio di strato.