Semi-automated method for reviewing 3d printing datasets

Abstract

There are many datasets available for various applications. Datasets, however, that consist of production data (such as Computer Aided Design, CAD) are scarce. There is no dataset that provides data for the whole process from engineering to production. Usually, production process data as well as design specifics are well kept secrets and may decide a company’s success. With the wide spread of additive manufacturing machines such as fused deposition modeling (FDM) machines (3d printers), additive manufacturing has become broadly available. With additive manufacturing it is possible to manufacture arbitrary objects with machines that share a common toolset. Thus, the goal of our research was to create a homogeneous 3d dataset that not only consists of the original 3d models, but also of the resulting production files (G-Codes). To achieve this, we reviewed 12 different 3d datasets and examined a small-sized sample in respect of its suitability for 3d printing. We then developed a tool for semi-automated reviewing and editing of the dataset. After reviewing and editing the 3d dataset, production data was generated via slicing software.