Adaptive direct slicing of a commercial CAD model for use in rapid prototyping

Slicing a 3D graphic model into layers of 2D contour plots is an essential step for all rapid prototyping (RP) machines. Various methods are available, such as stereo lithography (STL) file slicing, direct slicing and adaptive direct slicing. Amongst these, adaptive direct slicing is the most advanced for its capability of adapting the slicing thickness according to the curvature of any contour. In this study, an adaptive direct slicing method complete with the algorithm for calculating the thickness of each layer is proposed. As an illustration of the method, the algorithm was programmed within the commercial CAD software package, PowerSHAPE. The method was shown to be fast and accurate in comparison with STL file slicing and direct slicing, which both used a constant layer thickness.