New features and improvements
Introduced the MethodX and MethodXL printers with it's materials and the option to write to .makerbot
A year after the merger of Ultimaker and MakerBot, we have unlocked the ability for users of our Method series printers to slice files using UltiMaker Cura. As of this release, users can find profiles for our Method X and Method XL printers, as well as material profiles for ABS-R, ABS-CF, and RapidRinse
Prime tower base settings increase the stability of large prime towers
New settings have been released that let you modify the base of your prime tower. The new settings are:
- Prime Tower Base Size
- Prime Tower Base Height
- Prime Tower Base Slope
- Prime Tower Raft Line Spacing
You can modify these settings to help improve the reliability of your prime towers. You can also use them to calibrate how well your prime tower adheres to the build plate for increased print success, or to avoid over-adhesion that may damage your build plate.
The Start and End gcodes now accept variables and math including the variables
Cura can now accept more start and end gcodes that include math, for example:
G0 X{prime_tower_position_x - prime_tower_size/2} Y{prime_tower_position_y-prime_tower_size/2} F6000
M109 S{material_final_print_temperature}
This hopefully also solves issues like #14111 (comment) and #16012 (comment)
Other Improvements
- Introduced the setting for Raft Line Spacing, but for the prime tower
- Updated the Support Z Distance to allow for more different values, no longer only multiple layerheights, solves #6105
Bug Fixes
- Fixed a crash for some Linux users when trying to open the file menu
Bugs resolved since the Beta Release
- Introduced Balanced and Solid profiles for 1C extruders to UltiMaker Method X and Method XL
- Improved self-support for UltiMaker MethodX and MethodXL printers so the support extruder will not be used
- The prime tower is now always enabled when the second extruder is used for the MethodX and MethodXL printers
- Updated the default prime tower position so it doesn't prevent slicing for some printers
- Fixed an issue where raft layers were partially printed
- Slice information template variables were not available through start-end code formulas
- Resolved an issue with 100% support roof for tree support, contributed by @ThomasRahm
Printer Definitions, and Community Translations
- Introduced Ender 3 V3 SE, contributed by @dim1triy
- Updated bridge flows for UltiMaker PLA, TPLA and ABS to address pillowing in AA 0.8 for UltiMaker printers
- Updated Spanish translation for Lightning infill, contributed by @Pelochus
- Updated German translation for Laying object flat on buildplate, contributed by @gluetolf
- Updated Brazilian translations, contributed by @Patola
Known Issues
- The predicted printing time for dual extrusion printjobs on the Method series are deviating from the actual printing time.
- It’s not possible yet, to use Method series printers with Digital Factory. We hope to resolve this for the next release.
New Engine Plugin
Not related to this release but nice to mention is that there is a new plugin has been created by the Cura team that makes use of the improved engine plugin capabilities introduced in Cura 5.5 (as mentioned #15629). The plugin is called CuraEngine Tiled Infill Generation and it allows users to select from an expanded list of infill patterns, as well as allowing users to add their own infill pattern by uploading a *.wtk file.
This plugin is just a taste of what is now possible when creating Cura plugins. We look forward to seeing what the Cura community creates next!