PNG -> Silhouette -> 3d Printer

[bryantwalley]

I am wondering if it is possible to create a way so that when an image is imported into the sketch view, the outline of the image can be detected automatically so that a silhouette can be created based on the outline of the image imported? After the outline of the image was created we could extrude it to the height we needed and saved it for 3D printing. Think of having a sticker that you want to put on a 3D background. Import the sticker, detect the edge, extrude it 3mm (or whatever), print it on the 3d printer and put the sticker on it. Seems like this program is pretty close to being there already and it would save me hours of manually having to do it.

[henmedia]

@bryantwalley, welcome, and thank you for the clear example. layerling cannot find the outline of a PNG by itself. The way that works today goes through an SVG: make an SVG from the picture with a free tracer such as picsvg.com or Inkscape's "Trace Bitmap" (a sticker with a clear edge traces well), then drop the SVG into layerling. It comes in as a sketch body, and the Silhouette switch in its properties leaves out the holes so that only the outer outline stays. Then extrude it to the height you need. The guide describes it under "Fill and silhouette". If you would rather draw the outline yourself, Add Image in the sketch puts the picture under your points to trace.

If you find layerling useful, you can help it along with a small gift at https://layerling.com/support.html.

[henmedia]

@bryantwalley, a note on your idea: a contributor has offered to build exactly that, tracing a PNG or JPG to an outline inside layerling, so it may be here soon. If it gets in, it will show up in the release notes. Until then, the way through an SVG described above works.

[henmedia]

@bryantwalley, it is in 1.75.0: the import window takes PNG and JPG files. The picture is traced into an outline and comes in as a sketch body 50 mm wide, which you can resize afterwards; the Silhouette switch in its properties leaves out the holes, and then you can extrude it. It works best with a picture that has a clear edge, like a sticker. Reload the page to get it; the installed app needs a restart.

[bryantwalley]

I cannot express how grateful I am to see that this has other interest and that your team was able to get this going so quickly. I must say I am unsure If I am doing it correctly. I clicked the Manage Import and then drug the png of the cat onto the screen to the box as directed and this appeared.

I am attaching the original image also.

Can someone tell me where I went wrong on this?

[henmedia]

@bryantwalley, you did nothing wrong, this was a mistake in layerling. Your cat is dark on a transparent background, but a few black pixels of its tail touch the border of the picture, and layerling took the dark part for the background. So it traced the light details instead (whiskers, eyes, the buckle), which is what you saw. I fixed it: when most of the edge of a picture is transparent, the transparency counts as the background now. It comes with the next release; I will write here when it is out.

After that, import the cat again. The whiskers and the golden buckle are light inside the dark cat and stay as holes: switch on Silhouette in its properties, and only the outer outline remains. Then extrude it.

[henmedia]

@bryantwalley, the fix for your cat is in 1.81.0: when most of the edge of a picture is transparent, the transparency counts as the background, and the figure is traced. Reload the page to get it; the installed app needs a restart. Please try your cat again and tell me if it comes in as one outline.

[bryantwalley]

This is the message

and this is what is on the board

So the transparency is the problem? I can probably fix that. The transparency is because it is the actual sticker that my wife made that will be sticking on top of what we are trying to make. I had another one, a sunflower and was able to drag it in and even duplicate it before converting one of them to a silhouette and was able to create a printable ridge on the top. It came out great so you are on the right path for sure.

Unfortunately due to the nature of stickers they will have transparency in some places. Also to show I do appreciate you I have set up a sponsor through GitHub. Hope it helps some.

[bryantwalley]

Ok. I widened the empty space around the original cat and hat and it imported. I will make sure to do that in the future.

[henmedia]

@bryantwalley, good that it works now, and thank you for the sponsorship, that is very kind of you.

You do not have to leave extra space around the picture any more. The message you got comes from the way outlines were built before: when parts of an outline touched, one shape could not be made into a solid and was left out. Since 1.84.0 layerling builds these outlines in a way that joins touching parts, and I tried your original cat here (the PNG with the transparent background, without the wider border): it comes in as one outline, 50 mm wide. Reload the page to get it; the installed app needs a restart. Please tell me if it still says that a shape was left out with the newest version.