Three-dimensional object division output apparatus and its application

An operation method of a three-dimensional object division output apparatus including an extraction unit, a division position search unit, a division unit and an output unit, the method comprising:

• an extraction step in which the extraction unit extracts, from volume data, a three-dimensional object having a tree structure including a plurality of end points, a plurality of branch points, at least one edge each connecting one of the plurality of end points and one of the plurality of branch points to each other, and at least one edge each connecting two of the plurality of branch points to each other;
• a division position search step in which the division position search unit searches for a division candidate position that maximizes, with respect to an output range of a three-dimensional object creation apparatus, the size of at least one of division objects obtainable by dividing the three-dimensional object at the division candidate position on one of the edges of the tree structure of the three-dimensional object;
• a division step in which the division unit divides, at a position on the one of the edges on which the division candidate position is present, the three-dimensional object into division objects the size of at least one of which is within the output range;
• and
• an output step in which the output unit outputs the at least one of the division objects to the three-dimensional object creation apparatus.

A non-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing therein a three-dimensional object division output program causing a computer to execute:

• an extraction step that extracts, from volume data, a three-dimensional object having a tree structure including a plurality of end points, a plurality of branch points, at least one edge each connecting one of the plurality of end points and one of the plurality of branch points to each other, and at least one edge each connecting two of the plurality of branch points to each other;
• a division position search step that searches for a division candidate position that maximizes, with respect to an output range of a three-dimensional object creation apparatus, the size of at least one of division objects obtainable by dividing the three-dimensional object at the division candidate position on one of the edges of the tree structure of the three-dimensional object;
• a division step that divides, at a position on the one of the edges on which the division candidate position is present, the three-dimensional object into division objects the size of at least one of which is within the output range;
• and
• an output step that outputs the at least one of the division objects to the three-dimensional object creation apparatus.