filament-meter

Measure 3D-print filament usage from sliced .3mf / .gcode files — grams, metres, print time and cost — from a single file or a whole library of models. OrcaSlicer is provisioned automatically when a model still needs slicing.

filament-meter answers one question and answers it well:

given a path (a file or a directory), how much filament will this print consume?

It reads the numbers that slicers already write into sliced files (Metadata/slice_info.config, or the G-code footer as a fallback), aggregates them per plate, per file and per run, and prints them — or writes them to a file in JSON / CSV / Markdown. If a model has not been sliced yet, filament-meter finds (or downloads) OrcaSlicer, slices it in a throw-away directory, and reports the result without ever touching your model folder.

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Highlights

• One flat command — filament-meter PATH. A file, a directory or a glob pattern; no subcommands to remember.
• Fast path first — already-sliced .3mf files are parsed locally; OrcaSlicer is never launched when it is not needed.
• Automatic OrcaSlicer provisioning — a portable build is downloaded lazily into the user cache on first slice, or eagerly with --install-orca. No admin rights, no pip install-time downloads.
• Never pollutes your models — slicing happens in a temporary directory (or --keep-sliced DIR); no large files are written next to your sources.
• Battle-tested slicing — the same two OrcaSlicer workarounds proven on real Bambu Studio exports: --allow-newer-file and the adaptive --<key>=<min> retry for not in range errors.
• Four output formats — human table, JSON, CSV (;-separated, Excel-friendly) and Markdown.
• Pure stdlib + uvx — the only runtime dependency is platformdirs; run it anywhere Python 3.11+ exists.

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Table of contents

• Requirements
• Installation
• Quick start
• Usage
• Output formats
• Configuration
• How it works
• Project layout
• Troubleshooting
• Roadmap
• Contributing
• Releasing
• License

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Requirements

• Python ≥ 3.11
• uv / uvx for the recommended install (install guide)
• OrcaSlicer — optional. If it is not installed, filament-meter downloads a portable build into its cache the first time it needs to slice something. Pre-installed locations are auto-detected.
• Outbound HTTPS to api.github.com and github.com only when OrcaSlicer has to be downloaded.

The project is Windows / macOS / Linux friendly.

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Installation

From PyPI (recommended for users):

uv tool install filament-meter
filament-meter --help

Requires uv (or substitute pipx / pip).

For a one-shot run from a local checkout, uvx builds a temporary, isolated environment that does not pollute the global Python:

# From the repository root
uvx --from . filament-meter "D:/models/part.3mf"

To install the checkout as a long-lived tool:

uv tool install .                # installs the `filament-meter` binary
filament-meter --version

For development, install in editable mode with all extras:

git clone https://github.com/nimblemo/filament-meter.git
cd filament-meter
uv sync --all-extras
uv run filament-meter --help

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Quick start

# 1. A single, already-sliced file — instant, no OrcaSlicer needed
filament-meter "D:/models/Gesha_sliced.3mf"

# 2. A whole folder, with cost estimation
filament-meter "D:/models" --price 2200 --currency RUB

# 3. A folder of *unsliced* projects — OrcaSlicer is fetched on demand
filament-meter "D:/projects" --price 2200

# 4. Machine-readable output to a file
filament-meter "D:/models" --price 2200 -o report.csv

A typical table run looks like this:

========================================================================
Gesha_Bambu_sliced.3mf   (25.40 MB)
  D:\WOOD\locus-products\sliced\Gesha_Bambu_sliced.3mf
  Plate 1 | objects: 1 | layer: 0.20 mm | nozzle: 0.4 mm
      bed: textured_plate
      #  type      color         grams   metres
      4  PLA       #8E9089       96.54    31.85
      plate total: 96.54 g | time: 5h 57m
  TOTAL: 96.54 g, 31.85 m, time ~5h 57m
  cost at 2200 RUB/kg: 212.39 RUB
========================================================================
files: 1 | sliced: 1 | failed: 0
TOTAL: 96.54 g, 31.85 m, time ~5h 57m
TOTAL cost: 212.39 RUB

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Usage

filament-meter PATH [options]

PATH is the only positional argument. It may be:

• a file (.3mf, .gcode, .stl, .obj, .gcode.3mf) — an explicitly named file is always processed, whatever its extension;
• a directory — scanned recursively for the default model masks *.3mf, *.stl, *.obj (disable the walk with --no-recursive, replace the masks with --glob);
• a glob pattern such as "D:/models/*.3mf".

Why .gcode is not a default directory mask. When a model is sliced the slicer drops a plate_N.gcode (or <model>.gcode) next to the .3mf. Scanning *.gcode together with *.3mf would therefore report the same object twice. If the default scan of a directory finds nothing but *.gcode files are present (e.g. a folder of slices downloaded from Printables), the tool automatically retries with *.gcode and notes falling back to *.gcode on stderr. Pass --glob "*.gcode" to opt into G-code explicitly.

For every file the tool decides between two paths:

• fast path — the .3mf is already sliced (slice_info.config has a real <plate> entry, or a Metadata/plate_N.gcode exists): it is parsed locally and OrcaSlicer is never started;
• slice path — otherwise (an unsliced project, or a bare .stl / .obj) OrcaSlicer is located, downloaded if needed, and the model is sliced in a temporary directory.

Flags

Flag	Description
-o, --output FILE	Write the report to a file. Format from the extension (.json / .csv / .md / .txt); unknown extensions fall back to txt.
-f, --format {table,json,csv,md}	Stdout format (default: table).
--price FLOAT	Filament price per kilogram, for cost calculation (persisted).
--currency STR	Currency code (persisted; default: RUB).
--no-recursive	Do not walk directories recursively.
--glob PATTERN	File mask(s) used when PATH is a directory (repeatable). Overrides the default masks (*.3mf, *.stl, *.obj).
--orca PATH	Explicit OrcaSlicer executable.
--orca-version STR	OrcaSlicer version to download (default: latest).
--install-orca	Only download OrcaSlicer and exit (does not need PATH).
--no-auto-install	Never download OrcaSlicer automatically.
--no-slice	Parse only; never slice. Unsliced files are reported as "no data", not as errors.
--force-slice	Slice again even if the file is already sliced.
--machine / --process / --filament STR	Profile file names (default: Bambu Lab A1 profiles).
--use-project-settings	Do not pass profiles; rely on settings embedded in the project.
--jobs INT	Number of files to slice in parallel (default: 1).
--timeout INT	Per-file slicing timeout in seconds (default: 3600).
--cache-dir PATH	Override the OrcaSlicer and result-cache directories.
--no-cache	Disable the persistent result cache (neither read nor write).
--keep-sliced DIR	Copy freshly-sliced .3mf files into DIR (default: temp dir, removed after parsing).
-q, --quiet / -v, --verbose	Adjust logging.
--version	Print the version and exit.
--check	Run environment diagnostics (OrcaSlicer, cache, write access) and exit.

Exit codes

Code	Meaning
0	Success — every file produced filament data.
1	Partial success — some files could not be processed.
2	Usage / environment error (bad path, OrcaSlicer missing with --no-auto-install).
3	Total failure — not a single file yielded filament data.

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Output formats

Format	Flag	Notes
table	-f table	Human-readable ASCII, the default.
json	-f json	Full RunReport, ensure_ascii=False, 2-space indent.
csv	-f csv	;-separated, written with a UTF-8 BOM for Excel.
md	-f md	Markdown table plus a totals block.

The CSV columns match the legacy filament_report.csv exactly:

файл;нарезан;плашка;id филамента;тип;цвет;граммы;метры;время, с;цена, ₽
Gesha_Bambu_sliced.3mf;да;1;4;PLA;#8E9089;96.54;31.85;21439.0;212.39

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Configuration

filament-meter is configured through flags and environment variables. Besides the report you ask for and the OrcaSlicer cache, two small files are written to disk:

• a result cache (results.json) that remembers the filament figures of every model already analysed — keyed by its absolute path and file size — so an unchanged model is never sliced or re-parsed twice;
• a settings file (settings.json) that persists the last --currency and --price values so they become the defaults on later runs.

Both can be disabled / relocated with --no-cache and --cache-dir.

Variable	Purpose	Default
FILAMENT_METER_ORCA	Path to an OrcaSlicer executable.	—
FILAMENT_METER_CACHE_DIR	Override the OrcaSlicer + result-cache directory.	platform cache dir
FILAMENT_METER_CONFIG_DIR	Override the settings-file directory.	platform config dir

The cache location (unless overridden) is:

• Windows — %LOCALAPPDATA%\filament-meter\Cache\orca\<version>\
• macOS — ~/Library/Caches/filament-meter/orca/<version>/
• Linux — ~/.cache/filament-meter/orca/<version>/

(platformdirs appends the Cache component on Windows, hence the …\filament-meter\Cache\orca\… layout.)

OrcaSlicer discovery order

1. --orca PATH
2. FILAMENT_METER_ORCA
3. orca-slicer / OrcaSlicer on PATH
4. Well-known install locations (%LOCALAPPDATA%\Programs\OrcaSlicer, /Applications/OrcaSlicer.app, …)
5. The download cache

If none is found and --no-auto-install is not set, a portable OrcaSlicer build is downloaded automatically (no admin rights required).

Diagnostics

filament-meter --check prints the resolved environment and exits without touching any model. A real example on Windows:

filament-meter 0.3.0
python: 3.12.14
platform: windows
cache dir: C:\Users\mikhe\AppData\Local\filament-meter\Cache\orca
cache writable: yes
OrcaSlicer: C:\Users\mikhe\AppData\Local\Programs\OrcaSlicer\orca-slicer.exe
OrcaSlicer version: unknown (system install; no VERSION marker)

A system OrcaSlicer install does not ship a VERSION marker file (and the CLI does not answer --version), so the version line reads unknown — this is expected, not an error. Builds downloaded by filament-meter itself write a VERSION file next to the binary, so those do report a version.

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How it works

        ┌────────────┐      sliced?       ┌───────────────┐
PATH ─▶ │ discovery  │ ───────────────▶  │ parser        │ ─▶ FileReport
        └────────────┘   yes ┌───────────│ (slice_info / │
             │                │           │  gcode)       │
             │ no             │           └───────────────┘
             ▼                │
        ┌────────────┐        │
        │ orca       │ find / download OrcaSlicer
        └────────────┘        │
             ▼                │
        ┌────────────┐        │
        │ slicer     │ slice into a temp dir ──▶ sliced .3mf
        └────────────┘        │
             └────────────────┘
                      ▼
               ┌────────────┐
               │ report     │ table / json / csv / md
               └────────────┘

• discovery — turns a path/glob into a de-duplicated, sorted file list.
• parser — reads Metadata/slice_info.config first, then the Metadata/plate_N.gcode footer, and enriches plates with object / bed / nozzle data from Metadata/plate_N.json. A rough length→mass estimate is used only when nothing better exists.
• slicer — builds the OrcaSlicer command line and drives the adaptive retry loop.
• orca — locates, downloads and provisions OrcaSlicer.
• report — renders the aggregate RunReport.

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Project layout

.
├── pyproject.toml
├── README.md
└── src/filament_meter/
    ├── __init__.py          # version + public API re-exports
    ├── __main__.py          # python -m filament_meter
    ├── models.py            # frozen dataclasses + SliceSource enum
    ├── errors.py            # exception hierarchy
    ├── discovery.py         # path (file/dir/glob) -> file list
    ├── cache.py             # persistent result cache (path + size keyed)
    ├── settings.py          # persisted currency / price settings
    ├── parser.py            # sliced 3mf / gcode parsing
    ├── slicer.py            # OrcaSlicer CLI invocation
    ├── orca.py              # find / download / provision OrcaSlicer
    ├── report.py            # table / json / csv / md renderers
    └── cli/
        ├── __init__.py
        ├── app.py           # argparse + main()
        └── _common.py       # exit codes, console setup, logging

Runtime artefacts:

<cache-dir>/orca/<version>/...     # downloaded OrcaSlicer build (if needed)
<temp-dir>/filament-meter-*/       # per-file slicing workspace (auto-removed)

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Troubleshooting

"OrcaSlicer was not found" Either install OrcaSlicer, pass --orca <path>, set FILAMENT_METER_ORCA, or drop --no-auto-install so the tool downloads a portable build for you.

The download seems to hang The first slice downloads a ~50 MB archive from GitHub into the cache. Subsequent runs reuse it. Use --install-orca to fetch it up front, or --check to see the cache location.

Numbers differ from Bambu Studio For project .3mf files the settings embedded in the model always win over --load-settings / --load-filaments; the flags only take effect for bare .stl / .obj inputs. This is a slicer behaviour, not a bug — and it means the reported numbers reflect the model author's intent.

--export-3mf swallowed my file name Internally the export flag is always the last argument before the input file. If you drive OrcaSlicer yourself, keep it last: it consumes the next token as the output name.

"not in range" errors from OrcaSlicer Models exported from a newer Bambu Studio can carry out-of-range values (e.g. tree_support_wall_count: -1). filament-meter detects these in the log and retries with --<key>=<min> automatically.

A .3mf reports "not sliced" The file has only a slice_info.config header — it was never sliced, so it physically contains no filament data. Drop --no-slice to let the tool slice it first.

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Roadmap

• Optional machine-readable --profile presets beyond the Bambu Lab A1 defaults.
• A persistent usage registry (append-only CSV) with de-duplication, like the legacy filament-log.csv.
• Multi-plate batch arrangement for large model libraries.
• Cost profiles per material (PLA / PETG / …).

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Contributing

Issues and pull requests are welcome. See CONTRIBUTING.md for the local workflow. In short:

uv sync --all-extras
uv run ruff check .
uv run ruff format --check .
uv run mypy src
uv run pytest -q

Keep changes minimal and respect the existing module boundaries (discovery, parser, slicer, orca, report, cli).

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Releasing

Releases are fully automated via GitHub Actions (.github/workflows/):

• ci.yml — runs on every push to main and on every pull request. Matrix-builds the sdist + wheel on Python 3.11 / 3.12 / 3.13, lints, type-checks, tests, and smoke-tests the built wheel.
• release.yml — runs on a published GitHub Release, or manually via the Run workflow button. Builds the wheel, smoke-tests it, and pushes it to PyPI (or TestPyPI) using PyPI Trusted Publishing (OIDC). No API tokens are stored in GitHub secrets.

One-time setup: register the trusted publisher on PyPI

The pypi and testpypi environments referenced by release.yml are already configured in this repository.

1. Add a pending publisher on PyPI at https://pypi.org/manage/account/publishing/ with:
   • PyPI project name: filament-meter
   • Owner: nimblemo
   • Repository: filament-meter
   • Workflow filename: release.yml
   • Environment name: pypi
2. (Optional) Repeat on TestPyPI (https://test.pypi.org/manage/account/publishing/) with environment testpypi if you want a dry-run target.

A pending publisher creates the project on the first successful upload; it does not reserve the name in advance, so publish soon after registering it. No API tokens are stored in GitHub secrets.

Cutting a release

1. Bump version in pyproject.toml and src/filament_meter/__init__.py.
2. Add .release-notes/vX.Y.Z.md and update CHANGELOG.md.
3. Commit, push, and publish a GitHub Release tagged vX.Y.Z against main. release.yml builds the wheel, smoke-tests it and uploads it to PyPI.

For a manual upload instead of CI, use a PyPI API token:

uv build
UV_PUBLISH_TOKEN=<your-token> uv publish dist/*

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License

MIT — see the LICENSE file for the full text.