Latest MatterControl Update Details

MatterControl 2.21.10 (October, 7, 2021)

You can download the latest versions of MatterControl 3D printing software here.

MatterControl 2.21.10 is out and packed with great new features and fixes. Below is a quick list of the things that have been created, updated and fixed.

Thanks for all the positive feedback and contributions to MatterControl. It is with the help of the amazing 3D Printing community that this software just keeps getting better. Thanks for all the contributions on GitHub, supporting development with subscriptions to the Pro Edition, and reporting feature requests and bugs.

New Features

Monotonic Infill

G-Code paths for Monotonic Infill always add to the same side

Here is a great example of the difference Monotonic Infill can make. The part on the left is printed with normal infill and z-lift. You can see that line bunch up on each other and there are artifacts that show through from the previous layer. The part on the right has all lines printed in the same direction and a much cleaner surface. How can you get better 3D printed parts? This MatterControl feature is literally making your 3D printed parts cleaner!

Monotonic Infill gets rid of some top surface artifacts

You can turn on Monotonic Infill in the advanced settings. Note: Monotonic is a new feature and is off by default, if you have issues with it please report them on GitHub.

It is easy to turn on Monotonic Infill

Image Editor Improvements

Auto detection of best image mode
Improved histogram slider

New sliders make image editor easier to use

Editor Sliders are Everywhere

Exploring the interface and tools in MatterControl is easier and more fun than ever with the addition of sliders on most of the editor controls. Scaling objects, modifying rotations, and moving objects are now more intuitive and they enhance the understanding and exploration with the design tools.

Property sliders make editing faster and more fun

The Cube object now support rounding

If you click on advanced within the cube object you can adjust the rounding of the cubes edges. Both the radius and the number of segments can be modified.

You can now round the edges of cube objects

You Can Now Expand and Collapse Toolbar Groups

The toolbar in MatterControl is better than ever with this addition. If you are only interested in printing you can reduce the clutter or if you love to create you can expand all the tools and have everything at your fingertips. Customize your MatterControl experience!

The tool bar has more customization options

Not only can you adjust the individual tool bar groups, you can also choose to completely hide them from the overflow menu on the far right of the tool bar. Opening this menu allows you to collapse, expand or hide any or all of the items.

You can collapse, expand or hide any of the toolbar panels

New Seam Modes

MatterControl has always done a great job with seams, hiding them in concave turns when possible, and placing them in the back when no good hiding spot could be found. With this update there are even more options for what to do with seams. Let's break them down:

Furthest Back - This is the legacy mode and will first look for a good hiding spot and if none can be found move the seam to the back of the perimeter being printed.
Centered In Back - First tries to hide the seam then places it at the center back of the perimeter.
Always Centered In Back - Does not look for a good hiding place but instead always put the seam centered in the back.
Randomized - First hide the seam, if no good hiding place exists, place the seam randomly on the perimeter
Fastest - First hide the seam, if no good hiding place exists, move to the closest point from the printhead's current position.

More control of the seam position has been added

New 'Autopilot' Allows for Automatic Bed clearing

Available in MatterControl Pro

Autopilot is a new experimental feature of MatterControl Pro and requires a purchase or subscription to use. The Autopilot allows you to automate multiple printings of the same bed. You can find the new Autopilot in Open -> Library -> Pro Tools.

There are 2 ways to use Autopilot:

1. Write custom G-Code for bed clearing: With this method, you can write any G-Code you need to ensure your bed is ready for the next printer. Just add the code to the Printer -> G-Code -> Clear Bed G-Code section of your settings. Make sure you are very careful with this process as many things can go wrong when you command your printer directly.

2. Turn on 'Push With Hotend' and let the automatic bed clearing do the work for you.

You can turn of push with hotend from the part editor

Make sure you watch this work a few times before you leave and trust your printer to clear the bed on its own. And always be sure you are available to intervene in the case of any hardware problems that your printer might have.

Once you turn on 'Push With Hotend' you can set the bed size and push direction easily with visual hints shown on the bed.

The editor shows exactly what 'Push with Hotend' will do

UI improvements

Added F2 rename to objects and folders
Added back button support to library
Improved Sheet Editor

Bugs Fixed

Web image cache misses
Fixed bug with culling back faces
Crash on invalid bounding box
Bug with wrapping on right side
Bug with image comparisons

What are you waiting for? Download the latest version of MatterControl here, and check out MatterControl Pro to gain access to additional efficient design tools such as Gear Creator, Mesh Repair, Mesh Hollowing, and Polygon Reduce for a more convenient digital fabrication process.

Thanks, and happy printing!