Generate a labeled cage around a selection of parts to prevent losing them in the buildroom volume after printing
The cage generator does not optimize the arrangement of the parts to pack, so we recommend manual or automatic packing of those parts before using the cage generator.
- Select the parts to put into a cage.
- From the main menu, choose
Arrange > Packing >
Generate cage.
- Adjust the configuration values in the context view.
- Click Generate cage.
Cage generator reference
| Geometry | ||
|---|---|---|
| Cage type | Shape of the cage. Bounding box of all parts together, or a shape somewhat closer to the actual part arrangement. | Currently, only the bounding box of all parts together is available. |
| Name | The text used to name the cage part in the project tree and to optionally generate a text label on the mesh. Type into the field directly, or use the […] button to select from a list of suggestions. | |
| Bar thickness | The thickness of the walls formed by the bars across the cage faces | Cannot be thicker than the bars along the edges |
| Bar width | Thickness of the bars along the cage edges. Also, the width of the bars across the cage faces, but not their thickness. | |
| Bar-to-part spacing | The distance between the bar wall centerline and the collective part bounding box | |
| Grid size X/Y | Determines hole size of cage's top and bottom faces | Width of one bar width plus one hole width |
| Grid size Z | Determines hole size along the cage's side faces | Width of one bar width plus one hole width |
| Automatic update | Refresh the generated cage preview immediately | |
| Merge parts |
Merges copies of the parts and the cage mesh as shells into one single new part. The original parts remain in the buildroom and have their visibility switched off. When unchecked, the selected parts and the cage part are put into a locked group. |
|
| Labeling | ||
| Font | See which font is currently selected | |
| Change font | Choose the font to use | |
| Enable labeling | Select whether to generate the text mesh | |
| Unify cages | Boolean-merges multiple cages | Legacy, does not do anything. |
| Recalculate preview | Manually request recalculation when the Automatic update is disabled | |
| Generate cage | Start generating the cage mesh | |
| Cancel | Close the cage generator without any further action |