A build time estimator for Additive Manufacturing

Additive Manufacturing (AM) is a technology for quickly fabricating physical models, functional prototypes and small batches of parts, by stacking two-dimensional layered features, directly from computer-aided design (CAD) data. One of the most important challenges in this sector is represented by the capacity to predict in advance build time required for manufacturing a part because it's crucial to evaluate production cost. In this paper, an accurate method for obtaining build time is proposed. This method is based on an advanced GCode reader written in Python following an Object Oriented paradigm for scalability and maintainability. Some examples were used to demonstrate the reliability of the algorithm and possible uses of it are illustrated.