Z-SUITE 2.15.0 released

Dear users,

Thanks to yours, our vibrant community, cooperation, we can now introduce Z-SUITE 2.15.0, which has been preceded by the most extensive open beta testing program in Zortrax history.

Most significant changes implemented in this version: fine-tuned printing profiles (15 either significantly improved or entirely new printing profiles for our LPD Plus 3D printers, Zortrax M300 Dual, and Zortrax Inventure), hybrid supports for dual-extrusion 3D printers, tree supports for Inkspire, 23 new resin profiles.

See the full changelog below.

M300 Dual & Inventure:

  • New printing profiles and layer thickness values:
    Single-extrusion mode: Z-FLEX 0.15; 0.20; 0.30 mm / Z-HIPS 0.15; 0.20; 0.30 mm / Z-ULTRAT Plus 0.15; 0.20; 0.30 mm
    Z-ULTRAT 0.30 mm / Z-PLA Pro 0.15; 0.20; 0.30 mm / Z-PLA 0.30 mm / Z-PETG 0.30 mm / Z-GLASS 0.30 mm / Z-NYLON 0.30 mm,
    Dual-extrusion mode: Z-SEMIFLEX 0.15; 0.20 mm / Z-PLA Pro 0.15; 0.20; 0.30 mm / Z-PLA 0.30 mm / Z-PETG 0.30 mm / Z-GLASS 0.15; 0.20; 0.30 mm / Z-ESD 0.15; 0.20 mm,
  • It is now possible to enable the Hybrid Support option when printing in the dual-extrusion mode. The feature has been added to the Support step in the Advanced print settings menu. Selecting this option makes the printer use the soluble material only for those layers which will adhere to the model or will be built on the model’s surface. The remaining part of support structures will be printed with the model material. This way, you can save the support material and speed up the printing,
  • Added the Replicate .zcodex option,
  • Increased printing speed for Z-PETG, Z-PLA and Z-ULTRAT Plus in the dual-extrusion mode,
  • Improved quality of supported overhanging walls for Z-ULTRAT Plus (dual-extrusion mode) and Z-PLA (single-extrusion mode).

M Series Plus, M300 Dual & Inventure:

  • Introduced a new tool which allows you to enable or disable Smart Bridges (short bridge-like structures) in the Support step. This tool gives users more control over spots which require support: enabled bridges do not require support, whereas disabled ones can be supported using standard editable support,
  • Introduced the new Contour-top gap option in the Offset section in Print Settings – it is now possible to change the distance between the top layers of a model and outer contour (the bond between the top layers and the outer contour can be increased, but the model’s dimensions may slightly change),
  • Added the May not print notification in the Thin Walls Analysis tool, which informs users about cases where the device may not be able to print too thin elements,
  • Added the Only from raft option in the Support step. After selecting this option, the program will generate only those support structures which do not adhere to any part of the model. This allows you to avoid surface imperfections that can appear on models once you remove the support,
  • The generated .zcodex files will now have a smaller size when you do not use the Replicate .zcodex option,
  • It is now possible to change the Offset outer contours and Offset holes values up to -1 mm, which allows users to decrease the size of models and holes.

Inkspire:

  • Introduced a new manual supports type: Tree, available in the Support step. The tree-like structures can be easily customized and are recommended when 3D printing elements rich in details. Also, you can edit a tree structure when it collides with the model by dragging and moving the yellow joints around,
  • Added support for 23 resins delivered by third-party manufacturers: ApplyLabWork, HARZ Labs, Dreve. The new printing profiles are available to use after changing the Material group to External,
  • Increased speed of operation and reduced consumption of RAM while generating supports and working with .zcodex files (generating, saving and loading previews),
  • The way of generating spots that require support has been optimized. The program can now better detect little, overhanging elements and edges. This improvement provides more stability and a decreased failure rate. The overall efficiency of generating supports and the default parameters have been improved so that supports now better adhere to 3D printed items,
  • It is now possible to add and delete support only for a selected model when preparing multiple projects. Also, it is possible to select many models and generate support for all of them at once,
  • The Size correction tool has replaced the Overgrowth correction tool. It is now possible to increase or decrease your model’s dimensions by 1 or more pixels in the X or Y axis. This tool is available in the Print settings step in the Advanced menu,
  • The support settings are now saved even when leaving and going back to the Support step,
  • Added the Real View mode – it represents the real view of a bottom up print (the option can be found in the navigation cube in the top right corner of the workspace),
  • The Model lift option has been limited to decrease the failure rate of prints: the minimum value for lifting models is now set to 5 mm.

All devices:

  • You can now cancel the process of sending a .zcodex file to the printer in the Preview step – an adequate button has been added.

Bug fixes:

  • Improved performance of the Place by face tool and Editable support after using the Mirror Flip option,
  • Fixed an issue where the wrong notification would appear when slicing a model that is too low,
  • Improved process of generating Bridges – empty spaces should no longer appear in generated bridges,
  • Inkspire: Fixed problems where it wouldn’t be possible to slice a model that contains more Bottom layers than the overall number of layers,
  • Fixed problems with assigning colors to model/support blocks in the Support step (the Preferences menu),
  • Inkspire: Improved process of detecting collisions between objects and supports,
  • Improved movement pattern when finishing prints – minimized risk of leaving nozzle marks on models,
  • Fixed an issue where using the Replicate .zcodex option would improperly replicate models that have been generated without the raft or in the shell mode,
  • M300 Dual: Fixed an issue where the program would become unresponsive when sensing files that have been prepared for a difference material than the loaded one,
  • M300 Dual: Fixed an issue where the program would crash when sending files directly to the printer,
  • Loading multi-element .3mf files should no longer cause problems where only first element would be loaded,
  • Inkspire: Cases where raft would get through models have been eliminated,
  • Opening Z-SUITE from several user accounts simultaneously on Windows should no longer cause problems with blocking other accounts,
  • M200 & M300: Improved Editable support option’s icon.

You can download Z-SUITE 2.15.0 here. Feel free to provide your feedback.