3D Print Filament Sample Generator

Samples	Samples Box (by Zahg)

We've all encountered dozens of 3D print filament samples, but most require you to either request new ones from the creator or use a specialized commercial CAD tool to adjust the parameters and change the text.

This generator, however, is built on OpenSCAD, a completely free 'programmable' CAD tool. Now, OpenSCAD can be intimidating for most users since it involves programming your CAD model. While that's usually not how I work either, for this type of sample creation, it's the perfect approach.

Prerequisites

1. Go Installed:

Ensure you have Go installed on your machine. You can download it from the official Go website. Follow the installation instructions for your operating system.

2. OpenSCAD Installed:

The application depends on OpenSCAD to generate STL files. Make sure it is installed and accessible in your system's PATH. You can download OpenSCAD from the OpenSCAD website.

• Depending on your operating system, the installation path will vary:
  • Windows: Typically C:\Program Files\OpenSCAD\openscad.exe.
  • Linux: Can be installed via your package manager (e.g., apt, yum, etc.).
  • macOS: Installed through a direct download or Homebrew (brew install openscad).

3. CSV File:

Create a CSV file with the necessary parameters. The format of the CSV file should include the columns expected by the script, typically:

BRAND,TYPE,COLOR,TEMP_HOTEND,TEMP_BED,BRAND_SIZE,TYPE_SIZE,COLOR_SIZE

Ensure this file is placed in the same directory as the Go application or provide its path as a command-line argument.

4. Directory Structure:

The Go application will create an stl directory in the same location as the CSV file to store the generated STL files.

Building and Running

Build the Application

Using Make (recommended):

make build

Or using Go directly:

go build -o filament-samples ./cmd/filament-samples

Running the Application

Basic usage:

./filament-samples                    # Uses samples.csv in current directory
./filament-samples -csv myfile.csv    # Use custom CSV file
./filament-samples -help              # Show all options

Advanced options:

# Use custom settings
./filament-samples -csv samples.csv -output ./stl -workers 8 -verbose

# Dry run to see what would be generated
./filament-samples -dry-run

# Show version
./filament-samples -version

Command Line Options

• -csv string: Path to CSV file (default: "samples.csv")
• -output string: Output directory for STL files (default: "stl/" relative to CSV file)
• -scad string: Path to OpenSCAD file (default: "FilamentSamples.scad" relative to CSV file)
• -workers int: Maximum concurrent workers (default: number of CPU cores)
• -verbose: Enable verbose logging
• -dry-run: Show what would be generated without creating files
• -version: Show version information
• -help: Show help information

Testing and Development

Running Tests

# Run all tests
make test

# Run tests with coverage
make test-coverage

# Generate detailed coverage report
make coverage-report

Coverage Reports

The project includes automated coverage reporting:

• HTML Report: coverage.html - Interactive coverage visualization
• Markdown Report: COVERAGE_REPORT.md - Detailed coverage breakdown
• Terminal Output: Real-time coverage percentages during test runs

Development Commands

# Build the application
make build

# Run tests with verbose output
make test-verbose

# Clean build artifacts
make clean

# Run linting and formatting
make lint
make fmt

Troubleshooting

• OpenSCAD Not Found: If you see an error about OpenSCAD not being found, ensure it is correctly installed and accessible via the command line.
• CSV Format Errors: Make sure the CSV file does not contain empty lines or improperly formatted lines, as they will be skipped.
• Permissions: Ensure you have the necessary permissions to create directories and files in the specified output location.

Acknowledgements

This was originally a fork of Markus Krause's FilamentSamples that was written in python. I forked that repository and made significant changes to it including a complete rewrite and basic unit tests. You can find that in the legacy-python directory.

I have since rewritten that completely in Golang.

Recent Improvements (v2.0)

The application has been significantly improved with the following enhancements:

Code Quality & Organization

• Proper Go project structure with separate packages for different concerns
• Comprehensive error handling with proper error propagation
• Extensive unit test suite with 80.3% overall coverage 🟢
• Structured logging with configurable verbosity levels
• Mock interfaces for external dependencies enabling better testing

Test Coverage Results

Package	Coverage	Status
pkg/models	100.0%	🟢 Excellent
internal/config	96.4%	🟢 Excellent
internal/generator	95.8%	🟢 Excellent
internal/csv	95.5%	🟢 Excellent
internal/openscad	74.4%	🟡 Good
Overall Project	80.3%	🟢 Excellent

Testing Infrastructure

• Comprehensive unit tests for all core functionality
• Integration tests for CLI workflows
• Benchmark tests for performance validation
• Mock implementations for OpenSCAD and CSV parsing
• Edge case coverage for validation and error handling
• Concurrent processing tests with proper synchronization
• Platform-specific path testing for cross-platform compatibility

Performance & Reliability

• Concurrent STL generation using worker pools for faster processing
• CSV validation with proper field checking and temperature range validation
• Robust OpenSCAD path detection across different platforms
• Better file handling with proper cleanup and error recovery
• Dependency injection for better testability and modularity

User Experience

• Rich command-line interface with comprehensive flag support
• Dry-run mode to preview what will be generated
• Verbose logging for troubleshooting
• Progress tracking for large datasets
• Improved Makefile with multiple build targets including coverage reports

Technical Features

• Header row detection in CSV files
• Comment support in CSV files (lines starting with #)
• Configurable worker count for optimal performance
• Cross-platform compatibility improvements
• Better module naming following Go conventions
• Interface-based design for better testability and extensibility

Development Tools

• Automated coverage reporting with HTML and markdown output
• Comprehensive Makefile with build, test, and coverage targets
• Structured project layout following Go best practices
• Proper .gitignore for Go projects

This was derived this OpenSCAD model from blazerat over at printables: https://www.printables.com/de/model/356074-filament-sample-card/files

Your Support

If you like what you see, you can leave me a like and a comment here:

https://makerworld.com/en/models/16866#profileId-24328