Sacrificial layers in selective deposition-based additive manufacturing of parts

A method of operating a selective deposition-based additive manufacturing system to build a three-dimensional (3D) part, the method comprising:

• analyzing a digital representation of the 3D part to identify at least one feature of the 3D part at or near a minimum feature size, wherein the digital representation includes a plurality of slices corresponding to a plurality of layers of the 3D part;
• developing a first layer using at least one electrostatographic engine, wherein the first layer is one of the plurality of layers, and wherein the first layer comprises at least one of a part material and a support material;
• conveying the first layer from the at least one electrostatographic engine to a transfusion assembly;
• determining an anticipated transfusion overlay error for the first layer;
• determining whether the anticipated transfusion overlay error exceeds an overlay error specification;
• determining whether discarding the first layer, in combination with a non-adjoining window to reprint a subsequent layer, would cause the at least one feature of the 3D part at or near the minimum feature size to fall below the minimum feature size;
• retaining the first layer, after determining that the anticipated transfusion overlay error exceeds the overlay error specification but would cause the at least one feature of the 3D part at or near the minimum feature size to fall below the minimum feature size;
• and
• transfusing the first layer on a part build surface using the transfusion assembly to build the 3D part in a layer-by-layer manner on a part build platform.

A method of operating a selective deposition-based additive manufacturing system to build a three-dimensional (3D) part in a layer-by-layer manner, the method comprising:

• analyzing a digital representation of the 3D part to identify at least one feature of the 3D part at or near a minimum feature size, wherein the digital representation includes a plurality of slices corresponding to a plurality of layers of the 3D part;
• developing a first layer using at least one electrostatographic engine, wherein the first layer is one of the plurality of layers, and wherein the first layer comprises at least one of a part material and a support material;
• conveying the first layer from the at least one electrostatographic engine to a transfusion assembly;
• determining an anticipated transfusion overlay error for the first layer;
• determining whether the anticipated transfusion overlay error exceeds an overlay error specification;
• ascertaining whether a non-adjoining window to reprint a subsequent layer exists, wherein the non-adjoining window is separated from an intended position of the first layer in the 3D part by a predetermined number of intermediate layers that are each part of the plurality of layers;
• determining whether discarding the first layer, in combination with the non-adjoining window to reprint the subsequent layer, would cause the at least one feature of the 3D part at or near the minimum feature size to fall below the minimum feature size;
• and
• ceasing building of the 3D part when either (a) the non-adjoining window to reprint a subsequent layer exists or (b) discarding the first layer would cause the at least one feature of the 3D part at or near the minimum feature size to fall below the minimum feature size.