Optimization

Smart2DCutting comes with an improved optimization engine which provides much better results and is still very fast.

The optimization direction can be set to:

• Along width - if parts needs to be arranged only along the width of the panel
• Along length - if parts needs to be arranged only along the length of the panel
• Automatic - if direction is not important and you are interested in maximum material yield
  

There are 3 optimization levels :

• Level 1 - for fast and well optimized cutting layouts. For quick jobs the level 1 optimization will do the job.
• Level 2 - it is slower than level 1, but it can provide better cutting layouts. It's worth trying it.
• Level 3 - it is the best optimization level and provides the most optimized cutting layouts and the best material yield.

It is a good idea to try all 3 levels of optimization for your projects. Because there are so many different jobs with many different parts sizes, it is impossible to tell which optimization is best for a certain job. Only testing all 3 levels you can be sure you get the best material yield.

When the "Select best" option is checked under optimization direction, all 3 directions of optimization will be executed for the selected optimization level.
When the "Select best" option is checked under optimization level, all 3 levels of optimization will be executed for the selected optimization direction.
When the "Select best" option is checked for both optimization direction and optimization level, all possible combinations are executed. That means the optimzation process will be executed 9 times. Please note that this option may be time consuming for larger jobs.

To start the optimization process click the "Optimize" button or press the F7 key.

To configure optimization related settings click the settings button next to the "Optimize" button.

When pre-cutting is enabled the optimization engine will split the panel by adding pre-cuts at the specified length.

During optimization, a status panel is displayed showing the progress of the optimization. If the "Select best" option is checked for optimization direction or optimization level, the optimization results are displayed in a table for each executed algoritm. When the optimization is done, the best cutting layout is automatically highlighted in the list. To view the selected cutting layout click the "OK" button.