Design modification of additive manufacturing parts using texture information of 3d model

Additive manufacturing (AM) has been commonly used for the prototyping of three-dimensional (3D) models. The input model of the AM technology is a triangular model representing the surface shape of an object. The design features on a triangular model are generally not clear as the vertices are irregularly distributed. If design modification is necessary, it is difficult to segment and extract the meshes from the model. The objective of this study is to propose a method for extracting the design features on an object model by using the texture information. A 3D color model including a triangular model representing the object shape and a texture map describing the object texture is employed. The 3D model is generated by using a set of object images captured from different views surrounding the object. A texture mapping algorithm is then employed to generate the texture map corresponding to the 3D model. With both meshes and texture displayed in a texture mode, a region extraction technique is employed to extract the design features. All parts separated can then be fabricated with an AM machine, and assembled for checking the feasibility of design modification. Several products are employed to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed technique.