| CPC B29C 64/393 (2017.08) [B33Y 10/00 (2014.12); B33Y 30/00 (2014.12); B33Y 50/02 (2014.12)] | 15 Claims |
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1. A method comprising:
receiving, by a processor of a 3D printing apparatus, a file including:
a digital model representing an object, an instance of which is to be printed by the 3D printing apparatus;
a selected location on a surface of the object at which a label is to be formed including a part identifier that uniquely identifies the instance of the object when printed by the 3D printing apparatus; and
a label displacement map associated with the selected location;
generating, by the processor of the 3D printing apparatus, the part identifier;
generating, by the processor of the 3D printing apparatus, the label, including the part identifier, to be formed at the selected location when printed;
determining, by the processor of the 3D printing apparatus, material-specific parameters associated with a selected material to be used when printing the instance of the object;
applying, by the processor of the 3D printing apparatus, the label displacement map to the digital model during a voxelization process of the digital model to generate a voxelized model of the object, including adding the label at the selected location on the surface of the object, and taking into account the material-specific parameters; and
printing, by the 3D printing apparatus, the instance of the object using the selected material, in accordance with the voxelized model,
wherein the label displacement map is applied to the digital model by the processor of the 3D printing apparatus during the voxelization process such that the label is visible when the instance of the object is printed using the selected material.
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