Research and implementation of a non-supporting 3D printing method based on 5-axis dynamic slice algorithm

•A novel 5-axis dynamic slicing algorithm was proposed.•An integrated 5-axis printing system was developed.•The complex components can be easily manufactured by 5-axis printing apparatus.•5-axis dynamic slicing can save printing materials and time.•The novel manufacturing strategy can finish special hole or slot structures those conventional processes cannot. Conventional three-dimensional (3D) printing technology generates objects and parts layer by layer by depositing material along the Z-axis direction. However, when it comes to overhanging structures in the printing process, the conventional printing process needs the creation of additional supporting structures. So, this technique requires additional materials and increases the effective printing time. To overcome these issues, this paper proposes a novel 5-axis dynamic slicing algorithm to achieve non-supporting material printing (NSMP). The original model is sliced by a series of dynamic planes calculated by the skeleton extraction; the 5-axis printing G-code generated from the sliced layers can control the 5-axis printer to complete NSMP. Finally, a comparison between traditional 3D printing and 5-axis printing is presented to test the utility of this strategy.