New Ilios 3D Software Release Offers Updates for Calibration, Support Removal & Platform Modifications

While serious 3D printing enthusiasts and businesses are responsible for keeping companies like Ilios in business, this is a direct result of the Cyprus-based company giving them everything they could want or need in top quality hardware and software—and when we don’t hear them for a while, we know the team is hard at work developing something highly useful to wow their dedicated following of designers.

In the past, Ilios has impressed us with their feature-filled Ilios Ray SLA 3D printer, then the Photon, with tweaks to software and electronics, and then the emergence of the more compact and affordable Ilios Beam 3D printer.

Now, once again, they’ve made updates to their Ilios 3D Suite software, releasing a host of new features for users—all thanks to their feedback—to include ways to make 3D printing easier, such as:

Project Calibration – This was at the top of the list as an addition, thanks to countless discussions and requests. The Ilios team states that because most projectors are made to project images on a wall, deformation is calibrated to be very little. That can cause issues in 3D printing however, as the projector is working with a build area that can indeed be quite close, allowing for distorted images if the projector’s lens was made for wide angles.

In building 3D printers, Ilios states that they always have the goal of providing high resolution and a large build area. As they point out, however, sometimes providing one of those features can really affect the other negatively. They warn users to avoid the barrel effect when the projector is moved too close.

“Since this is such a big deal, we took upon us to develop the tools to correct this error through software so very little is required from the user to achieve the best results,” states Demetris Zavorotnitsienko of Ilios. “Now you can calibrate the projected layer shape without resorting to complex solutions directly from the Ilios 3D Suite.”

You can also easily adjust other features which help you avoid barrel distortions (crucial, as this affects ‘each and every layer’ during printing), tweak alignment, and shape. All of the settings can be saved, allowing you to basic parameters ready.

“The feature has been requested by many and is one of the most important functions and abilities for printing with a DLP projector so we hope this helps all our users to improve their results and provide even more accuracy to the final print,” says Zavorotnitsienko.

Support Brightness – The Ilios 3D Suite makes using supports easy, but as we all know, sometimes they are in awkward places and removing them can be detrimental to the integrity of the print. By allowing you to adjust the brightness of structures alone, those areas can be made weaker, separately from the model, and can be easily removed. It’s suggested that you work with the settings and experiment with them before printing so that you get the best result, as each setup and resin may be require different settings.

You shouldn’t expect to have a huge difference in intensity between the model and the support.

“Make small adjustments for each print so you do not have problems during a support creation and dim the intensity just enough to do what you need,” states Zavorotnitsienko.

Platform Unification and Shape – The platform is critical to your 3D model as it supports the model during its print, allowing for firm adhesion during the process. The shape of the platform is also critical, often requiring a more rounded shape or better thickness, depending on the project. With automated platform creation, you can modify the shape using only a few slide bars.

“This is definitely going to make your life a lot easier and give you the ability to concentrate more on the print rather than its preparation,” states Zavorotnitsienko.

It is recommended that if you plan to download this version of Ilios 3D Suite, you should first uninstall the existing version. Ilios emphasizes that if you install one version on top of the other, you may experience issues. They do also highly recommend installing the update as this will match many of the additions to their electronics. You will find the latest version of Ilios 3D Suite in the Ilios Download section.

Are these features and tips that will help you further in your 3D printing? You can always stay up to date on the latest developments and improvements to Ilios 3D Suite in their forum—including even the smallest issues—from visual fixes to typos. Discuss further here in the Updated Ilios 3D Suite forum over at 3DPB.com.