Skip to content

Cross-Sections

In one sentence: Create multiple parallel cross-section wires through the mesh at regular intervals along a chosen axis.

Overview

Workbench: Mesh
Menu: Mesh → Meshes → Cutting → Cross-Sections
Command: Mesh_CrossSections
Shortcut: none

Creates a set of evenly spaced parallel section wires through the mesh. This is the batch version of Section by Plane — it generates multiple sections in one operation.

Intuition

Where Section by Plane gives you one cross-section, Cross-Sections gives you many — like slicing a loaf of bread. Each slice is a wire showing the mesh profile at that height. This is useful for terrain contour maps, layer-by-layer print planning, or systematic inspection of an object's shape.

When to use it

  • Generating contour lines of a terrain mesh for mapping.
  • Creating layer-by-layer profiles for large-format printing or CNC roughing.
  • Inspecting the internal shape of a closed mesh at multiple heights.
  • Building a stack of cross-sections for reverse engineering.

Step-by-step

  1. Select the mesh.
  2. Choose Mesh → Meshes → Cutting → Cross-Sections.
  3. Set the parameters (see below).
  4. Click OK. A set of Part::Feature wires appears.

Parameters

Parameter Description
Plane XY, XZ, or YZ — orientation of the cutting planes
Position (start) First cutting plane position along the normal axis (mm)
Position (end) Last cutting plane position (mm)
Count Number of sections between start and end
Connections Connect adjacent section contours with line segments

Common mistakes and pitfalls

Results are wires, not faces

Each cross-section is a set of line segments. To use them as sketch profiles, import the wires as external geometry in Sketcher.

Large count values generate many objects

Setting Count = 1000 creates 1000 Part::Feature objects in the tree. Keep counts reasonable for interactive use.

See also