8. Open-Loop Toolpath Generation

Abstract

Open-loop paths, as opposed to closed-loop paths, have start and end points that are at different locations. Open-loop paths, commonly called “skeletons,” can be generated through multiple approaches. Most approaches utilize a shape's medial axis transform and build appropriate pathing around this representation. In this chapter, a specific implementation consisting of three major steps will be discussed. These steps are Voronoi diagram generation, skeleton pruning, and path consolidation. With the major components of the implementation covered, two additional optimizations will also be described. These two optimizations, chamfering and smoothing, will be highlighted as ways to improve overall pathing quality.