About slice properties

Applies to 2020 Update and later

Exposure parameters per slice stack, available for printjob file generation during export

Slice properties are individual parameters like laser power that are written into printjob files. In machine-specific slicing, toolpath generation, and printjob file export, these parameters are set through the build configurations. Slice stacks generated through the Slicing sections, however, have no exposure instructions initially. They are purely geometric instructions about drawing lines and polygons, and their properties are defined separately.

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Setting slice properties during export

When exporting to certain formats (buildfiles for SLM, LSR, NSP, AI, or ILT), a section in the export dialog is available to adjust these. The export loads built-in defaults that you can modify here for this instance of exporting, and are not saved when you close the dialog.

Example: Slice properties set for export to SLM buildfile. (The parameter Build Style here is format-specific and only available in this export dialogue.)

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Setting slice properties in the project tree

Setting the properties through the project tree registers them ahead of export, and any properties set this way also override their respective defaults that the export formats would have.

Slice properties defined in the tree appear as nodes under their slice entries (left), and propagate to the export where defined (right).

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Modifying slice properties

During export

  1. Prepare slice stacks for contours, hatchings, support, and any others needed for your build.
  2. Select all stacks.
  3. From the main menu, choose Export > Export.
  4. Choose the desired output format.
  5. In Specific Export Settings, double-click the slice to modify.
  6. In the <format> Export Settings dialog, adjust the properties as required by your build.
  7. Click OK.

    The adjustment is now saved to the properties you modified.

  8. Click OK to export the printjob file with the modified properties.

In the project tree

  1. Prepare slice stacks for contours, hatchings, support, and any others needed for your build.
  2. Right-click a slice stack you want to adjust the properties of and choose Add property > <property> where <property> is "Laser speed", for example.
  3. Adjust the value for the property, then click OK.

Properties added through the project tree are saved in the FABBPROJECT file and can be adjusted at any time.

Tip: To manage all supported properties at once, right-click the slice stack and choose Add property > Manage all properties. Here you can not only modify them all at once, you can also disable them so that they don't override their defaults during export. The value remains saved in the FABBPROJECT file even when the respective property is disabled. Additionally, this dialog supports settings management where you can store and retrieve values and disabled/enabled states for the whole dialog at once.
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Slice property reference

Property Project tree SLM LSR NSP AI ILT

Tag

Yes

WaitFor

Yes

Mark speed

Yes Yes ("Laser Speed") Yes ("Deposition speed") Yes ("Deposition speed") Yes ("Laser Speed") Yes ("Laser Speed")

Jump speed

Yes Yes Yes

Premark delay

Yes Yes ("Deposition delay") Yes ("Deposition delay")

Postmark delay

Yes Yes ("Jump delay") Yes ("Jump delay")

Polygon delay

Yes Yes Yes

Jump delay

Yes

Pipeline delay

Yes

Laserindex

Yes Yes

Power

Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Laser focus

Yes Yes Yes Yes ("Focus shift")

Laser diameter

Yes Yes ("Radius", 0.5×diameter) Yes ("Radius", 0.5×diameter)

Build style

Yes

Point distance

Yes

Exposure time

Yes
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