True slicing vs depth maps

How it works

Depth maps. A depth map stores a model's height as shades of gray in a top-view image. An 8-bit map has 256 gray levels, so the engraved surface can have at most 256 terraces however it's run, and the outline of each terrace follows the image's pixel grid.

Slicing. Slicing cuts the 3D model itself at each height and marks the exact cross-section — smooth contours, no pixels. You choose the number of slices, so each pass can match your calibrated material removal per pass, however tall the model.

The comparison. Load a 3D model and the depth map you made of it. The tool aligns the map to the model, then compares them at every slice height: where the depth map misses detail and where it marks extra. The whole-job numbers count, for every pixel, how many passes the depth map would mark against the true model — the depth error you'd engrave. Everything runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded.

Files. 3D models: STL, OBJ or 3MF in millimetres, Z-up, up to 330 mm. Depth maps: grayscale PNG or JPG, top view; 16-bit PNGs are read at full precision.

FocuZ is fiber laser marking software for BJJCZ (EZCad2-type) controllers that slices 3D models directly. Guides: Staircase lines in relief engraving: slicing vs depth maps · Engraving STL and STEP models.