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Ripple Texture

A cylindrical part with radial ripples printed in vase mode. A high-frequency sinusoidal ripple wraps around the perimeter, the whole profile can twist and bulge, and optional star tips extend the base circle outward at regular intervals for a petal or cog-like silhouette.

See Predefined Models for the general workflow and how to select this model.


Parameters (sliders)

Parameters

Inner Radius
Radius of the inner (unrippled) circle in mm. The ripples sit on top of this radius.
Height
Total height of the vase in mm.
Twist
Twist amount in %. 100 % means one full rotation from bottom to top; negative values twist the other direction; 0 keeps the pattern vertical.
Star Tips
Number of star tips around the perimeter (0 = plain cylinder). Try 4–8 for classic flower shapes.
Star Tip Length
How far each star tip extends outward in mm. Negative values invert the tips (petals point inward).
Bulge
Radial bulge (mm) — positive values swell the middle outward, negative values pinch it inward. Controlled by a smooth cosine over the height.
Ripples Per Layer
How many ripples wrap around the perimeter per layer (20–100). Higher = finer texture.
Ripple Depth
Peak-to-trough depth of each ripple in mm. Start at 1 mm; 0 disables the ripple entirely.
Star Shape Factor
Pointiness of each star tip (0.5 = soft lobes, 3 = sharp needles). Interacts with Star Tip Length.
Nozzle Diameter
Nozzle diameter in mm used to compute layer height and extrusion width (0.4 is standard).
Quantity
Number of parts generated side by side (1–5).

How it works

  1. Each layer is a polar curve: R(θ) = innerRadius + starTip(θ) + rippleDepth * sin(ripplesPerLayer * θ).
  2. Bulge modulates R(θ) by a cosine over the height — smooth at the ends, maximum at mid-height.
  3. Twist rotates the pattern by a constant angular offset per layer so ripples and star tips spiral around the axis.
  4. The toolpath is a single continuous spiral — no seams, no travel moves.