Part orientation and build cost determination in layered manufacturing

As more choices of materials and build processes become available in layered manufacturing (LM), it is increasingly important to identify fundamental problems that underlie the entire field. Determination of best build orientation and minimizing build cost of a part are two such issues that must be considered in any LM process. By decoupling the solution to these problems from a specific LM technology, not only can the solution be applied to a variety of processes, but more realistic cost comparisons of parts built on different machines become possible.