slicer

README

slicer

💡 Goal of this package

Slicer is a robust, lightweight, and embeddable 3D slicing engine written entirely in Go. It is designed to be easily integrated into any backend service or CLI application, allowing you to parse 3D models (STL, 3MF) directly from io.Reader streams, generate high-quality G-code, and serve interactive 3D layer visuals—all without relying on heavy external C++ binaries.

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🛠️ Installation

To integrate the slicer package into your Go project, use the standard go get command:

go get github.com/siherrmann/slicer

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🚀 Getting started

To read a 3D model and generate G-code, you just need a few lines of code. Slicer natively accepts io.Reader, so you can stream your files from disk, S3, or HTTP uploads directly into the engine.

package main

import (
	"fmt"
	"os"
	"github.com/siherrmann/slicer"
)

func main() {
	// 1. Create a new slicer instance with default configuration
	s := slicer.NewSlicer()

	// 2. Open an STL or 3MF file (or use any io.Reader)
	file, err := os.Open("example.stl")
	if err != nil {
		panic(err)
	}
	defer file.Close()

	// 3. Load the model into the slicer
	bm, err := s.LoadSTLModel(file, "example.stl")
	if err != nil {
		panic(err)
	}
	
	// Optional: Auto-orient and drop to the build plate
	s.Model = bm.CleanSize().CleanBottom(1).CleanPosition()

	// 4. Generate print paths (Perimeters, Infill, Supports, etc.)
	paths, err := s.GeneratePrintPaths(s.Config)
	if err != nil {
		panic(err)
	}

	// 5. Export to G-code
	gcode := s.GenerateGCode(paths)
	fmt.Printf("Successfully generated %d bytes of G-code!\n", len(gcode))
}

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⚙️ Configuration

Slicing parameters are easily customized by modifying the SliceConfig object attached to the engine before generating paths.

s.Config.LayerHeight = 0.2         // Layer height in mm
s.Config.LineWidth = 0.4           // Extrusion line width in mm
s.Config.ShellCount = 3            // Number of outer perimeters
s.Config.InfillDensity = 0.15      // 15% infill
s.Config.SupportType = model.SupportTree   // Enable organic tree supports

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⭐ Features

• Natively Embeddable: Pure Go implementation. No CGO, no Python wrappers, no heavy sub-processes.
• Stream Processing: Load meshes directly from any io.Reader out-of-the-box (Zero-FS footprints).
• Multi-Format Support: Reads raw ASCII/Binary STL meshes and modern compressed 3MF packages.
• Organic Tree Supports: Built-in dynamic vector-particle physics engine that generates incredibly smooth, flaring tree-supports targeting localized barycenters automatically.
• Advanced Infills: Supports complex infill patterns, including mathematical sinusoidal Gyroid structures.
• Automated Mesh Healing: Handles floating-point precision errors, clipping, and manifold adjustments automatically during poly-segment boolean operations.
• Built-in HTTP Debugger: Ships with a fast internal HTMX viewer for rendering specific layers and debugging toolpaths live in your browser.

Documentation

Index

• type Slicer
  • func NewSlicer() *Slicer
  • func NewSlicerWithConfig(config *model.SliceConfig) *Slicer
  • func (s *Slicer) GeneratePrintPaths(config *model.SliceConfig) ([]model.ContinuousPath, error)
  • func (s *Slicer) Load3mfFile(r io.Reader, modelName string) (*model.BaseModel, error)
  • func (s *Slicer) LoadSTLModel(r io.Reader, modelName string) (*model.BaseModel, error)
  • func (s *Slicer) Slice(bm *model.BaseModel) ([]*model.Slice, error)

Types

type Slicer

type Slicer struct {
	Config *model.SliceConfig // Slicing configuration
	Model  *model.BaseModel   // Loaded model (STL or 3MF)
}

func NewSlicer

func NewSlicer() *Slicer

func NewSlicerWithConfig

func NewSlicerWithConfig(config *model.SliceConfig) *Slicer

NewSlicerWithConfig creates a slicer with custom configuration

func (*Slicer) GeneratePrintPaths

func (s *Slicer) GeneratePrintPaths(config *model.SliceConfig) ([]model.ContinuousPath, error)

GeneratePrintPaths processes all slices to generate perimeters, infill, and classify layers

func (*Slicer) Load3mfFile

func (s *Slicer) Load3mfFile(r io.Reader, modelName string) (*model.BaseModel, error)

Load3mfFile loads a 3MF file from a reader

func (*Slicer) LoadSTLModel

func (s *Slicer) LoadSTLModel(r io.Reader, modelName string) (*model.BaseModel, error)

func (*Slicer) Slice

func (s *Slicer) Slice(bm *model.BaseModel) ([]*model.Slice, error)

Slice slices a model into layers