nodeslicer/doc/NODES.md

Node & Socket Reference

Node Sockets

Socket ID	Type	Underlying Data Structure	Purpose
SLICESOCK_Object	bpy.types.Object	Blender RNA Object	Reference to a Blender Object
SLICESOCK_Float	float	Python float	Numeric value
SLICESOCK_Int	int	Python int	Integer value
SLICESOCK_String	str	Python string	Text/Path value
SLICESOCK_Vector	tuple	Python tuple (3)	XYZ or Euler rotation value
SLICESOCK_Mesh	SlicingObject	NumPy NDArray (Triangles)	Internal mesh data (Transformed/Scaled)
SLICESOCK_Paths	SlicePaths (list)	List of paths (N, 3) + groups	Generic toolpaths or slice boundaries
SLICESOCK_Gcode	str	Multi-line string	Generated G-code text

Detailed Data Types

SlicingObject (SLICESOCK_Mesh)

The SlicingObject class wraps a high-performance NumPy representation of a Blender mesh.

• .mesh: A NumPy ndarray of type float64 with shape (N, 3, 3).
  • N: Number of triangles.
  • [i, 0:3, :]: The three vertices of the $i$-th triangle.
• Coordinates: Transformed to world space and scaled by the Blender scene unit scale (multiplied by 1000 for mm-standard G-code).

SlicePaths (SLICESOCK_Paths)

A custom list subclass SlicePaths(list[np.ndarray]) containing toolpaths.

• Content: Each np.ndarray has shape (N, 3).
• Groups: Maintains a .groups list of integers mapping each path to a layer or logical group.
• Z-Awareness: Coordinates are stored as 3D (X, Y, Z) to maintain the correct layer height.
• Topology: Generated and cleaned using pyclipper.

Gcode (SLICESOCK_Gcode)

A standard Python string containing formatted G-code.

• Format: G0 for travels, G1 for extrusions.
• Extrusion: Calculated as absolute E values based on Euclidean distance and a configurable EXTRUSION_RATE.
• Metadata: Includes ;OFFSET_X= and ;OFFSET_Y= comments to allow reconstruction of original coordinates.

Nodes

All nodes are found in the Add (Shift+A) menu under the SliceNodes category.

Data & Input

• Object: Blender object picker.
• Float: Single float input.
• Integer: Single integer input.
• String: Single string/path input.
• Rotation: Input for Euler rotation vectors.
• Printer Intrinsics: Configures bed size and extrusion rates.
• Gcode Block: Manual text area for entering raw G-code.

Geometry Processing

• Get Mesh: Converts a Blender Object into internal SlicingObject format.
• Get Paths: Extracts existing edges from a mesh as paths.
• Slice Shells: Slices a SlicingObject into 2D SlicePaths at a given layer height.
• Buffer Shells: Offsets/buffers 2D SlicePaths. Supports rotated offsetting and multiple miter types.
• Infill: Generates a cross-hatch grid or parallel lines clipped by boundary paths.
  • Infill Type: Switch between Grid (cross-hatch) and Rectilinear (alternating parallel lines).
  • Density: Distance between lines in units.
  • Infill Rotation: Base rotation of the infill pattern.
  • Layer Rotation: Rotation of the entire slice to align infill with specific planes.
• Boolean Paths: Performs 2D boolean operations (UNION, INTERSECTION, DIFFERENCE, XOR) on multiple slice sets.

Utility & Joiners

• Join Mesh: Merges multiple SlicingObject instances into one.
• Join Paths: Combines multiple SlicePaths. Supports Sequential or Interleaved modes.
• Join Gcode: Concatenates multiple G-code strings.
• Integer Math: Simple integer operations (Add, Multiply, etc.).

Action & I/O

• Paths to Gcode: Converts SlicePaths into G-code blocks.
  • Header: Toggles the generation of standard NodeSlicer G-code headers and units setup.
• Load Gcode: Reads a G-code file from disk.
• Gcode to File: Writes G-code string to a file on disk.
• PrusaSlicer Slice: Exports the current mesh and configuration to a 3MF file and calls PrusaSlicer to generate G-code.
  • Executable: Path to the PrusaSlicer executable.
  • Object: The Blender object to slice.
  • Config: PrusaSlicer configuration (from the PrusaSlicer Config node).
  • Gcode: Output socket providing the generated G-code string.
• Gcode to Text Block: Creates a new Blender text block containing the G-code and opens it in any active text editors.
• Gcode to Mesh: Decodes G-code and creates a Blender mesh ("Debug" object) for visualization.
• Test: Triggers evaluation for debugging purposes.