ABSTRACT
Rapid Prototyping (RP) is a manufacturing process based on a layer by layer addition principle. In general, a software for RP process planning has to read the part geometry, usually in STL (STereoLithography) format, slice it electronically, generate the information to process each layer and send the data to the RP machine (Beaman et al. 1997, Chua et al. 2003). There are many RP processes in the market, amongst them: Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM), which deposits an extruded polymeric filament and Selective Laser Sintering (SLS), which works with a laser beam to selectively sinter powder material (Beaman et al. 1997, Kai et al. 2003).
