The Impact of the Adaptive Slicing Integration on the AM Cost

The manufacturing industry has been revolutionized by additive manufacturing (AM) by allowing the creation of complex geometries that were once impossible to manufacture using traditional methods. However, the layer-by-layer approach of additive manufacturing can result in dimensional and geometric errors due to the staircase effect, particularly in parts with complex shapes. Hence, achieving a balance between the quality and the cost is one of the most AM challenges. In this context, Design for Additive Manufacturing (DFAM) and adaptive slicing have emerged as promising approaches to reduce these errors while establishing a balance between the AM quality and cost. This work focuses on the importance of the adaptive slicing in minimizing the AM time and cost during the DFAM phase. A method for adaptive slicing is proposed based on minimizing errors due to the staircase effect caused by shape curvatures in the part. The results demonstrate that the proposed method can in some cases significantly save more than 80% of building time and cost in order to obtain the same surface quality comparing to the standard slicing method. Moreover, this slicing technique also improves the parts dimensional and geometrical tolerances, hence, reduces errors and improves the overall quality. The presented approach has the potential to enhance the capabilities of additive manufacturing, allowing the creation of parts with higher accuracy and precision, and reducing the need for post-processing.