What is G-Code and its importance in 3D printing

In this post we will see what G-Code is, one of the fundamental components of 3D printing and that is sometimes more unknown within the process.

As we saw in the introduction to the 3D printing process post along with the drawing program, the slicer software and the printer itself, G-Code is one of the integral parts of the 3D printing process.

We start by remembering that our printer is “dumb” and does not understand or know anything about 3D files, surfaces, or triangulated meshes. Our 3D printer “only knows” how to move to the X, Y, Z coordinates and deposit a certain amount of material.

Precisely, the G-Code is the file that contains that programming as a list of simple instructions that the printer has to follow to print the part correctly.

The G-Code is obtained from the Slicer process, where the 3D geometry is taken into account through the STL file, as well as the different parameters and configuration such as, for example, the material and printer.

The result is a plain text file that we finally pass to the printer, either by cable, SD card, or WiFi, to perform the printing.

If we open this file with a text editor, we will see a very long list of instructions that looks like this.

M140 S65
M105
M190 S65
M104 S246
M105
M109 S246
M82
G21
G90
M82
M107
G28 X0 Y0
G28 Z0
G1 Z15.0 F9000
G92 E0
G1 F200 E3
G92 E0
G1 F9000
M117
G92 E0
G1 F1320 E-3
G0 F3600 X84.088 Y79.686 Z0.3
G1 F1320 E0
G1 F1440 X84.796 Y79.083 E0.0464
G1 X85.354 Y78.663 E0.08124
G1 X86.273 Y78.068 E0.13586
G1 X87.654 Y77.305 E0.21458
;.... many more lines

Fortunately for us, most of the time we won’t have to do anything with the G-Code. Our function will be limited to taking it and passing it to the printer to execute the job.

Only in rare cases where we want something very advanced (vary the temperature between layers, add a pause to put an insert) should we modify it. And always with care, because the machine will do what we say, and we can damage it.

However, although most of the time the G-Code will be transparent to us, given its fundamental role in 3D printing, it is worth it for us to understand what it is and how it works.

What is G-Code?

G-Code, also known as RS-274, G programming language, or ISO-Code, is the most widely used programming language in numerical control (CNC) machines.

The G-Code is not exclusive to 3D printing. On the contrary, it is widely used in all kinds of machines such as lathes, milling machines, laser cutting, from very small to industrial-sized.

A G-Code file is formed by a set of simple instructions that indicate to a machine the operations it must perform. For example, moving a part (head, claws, stops), performing a tool change.

Although the set of instructions is “more or less” standardized, there are different implementations such as ISO 6983, DIN66025, Siemens, FANUC, Haas. It is also common for some manufacturers to add some instructions to work with their machines.

Each line (called a block) of a program written in RS-274 has the following form,

N , G , X , Y , Z , F , M , S , T ;

Each block can have some or all of these addresses although, if they exist, the order must be maintained. In addition, comments can be made starting with ’;’

The meanings of each of these letters are as follows

G-Code in 3D printing

As we can see, G-Code is a programming language for CNC machines and its different implementations are designed to control different types of machines, which is why they contain a very wide set of instructions to be able to control all of them.

Our 3D printer is no more than a CNC machine. In this case, the firmware is responsible for interpreting each line of G-Code and executing the appropriate actions in the printer.

However, logically, not all standard instructions are applicable in a 3D printer. Here is a list of some of the most important and most frequently found in the field of FFF/FDM printers.

In this way, the file we saw before means the following.

G21                                    ;work with millimeters
G90                                    ;use absolute positioning
M82                                    ;set the extruder to absolute positioning
M107                                   ;turn off fan
G28 X0 Y0                              ;move the extruder to the 0,0 position on the plane
G28 Z0                                 ;lower the extruder to the 0 position in height
G92 E0                                 ;start extrusion at 0
G1 F200 E3                             ;extrude 3 mm of filament
G92 E0                                 ;reset extrusion to 0
G1 F9000                               ;set speed to 9000 millimeters/minute
M117 Printing...                      ;write message on the LCD
G0 F9000 X58.972 Y85.198 Z0.300        ;rapid positioning at 58.972,85.198,0.300                                
G1 F1200 X60.320 Y84.421 E0.02927      ;set speed to 1200 millimeters/minute, position at 60.320,84.421 and extrude at 0.02927
G1 X61.800 Y83.771 E0.05967            ;position at 61.800,83.771 and extrude at 0.05967
G1 X63.363 Y83.286 E0.09046            ;position at 63.363,83.286 and extrude at 0.09046
...                                    ;code removed up to first layer for the example                                     
M106 S127                              ;turn fan on at half power (127)
G0 F9000 X62.284 Y90.092 Z0.400        ;rapid position at 62.284,90.092,0.400
G1 F540 X61.718 Y90.448 E4.19702       ;position at 61.718,90.448 and extrude at 4.19702
G1 X61.271 Y90.723 E4.20031            ;position at 61.271,90.723 and extrude at 4.20031
G1 X60.679 Y91.092 E4.20468            ;position at 60.679,91.092 and extrude at 4.20468
                                       ;code removed up to end of extrusion for the example
M104 S0                                ;turn off extruder
M140 S0                                ;turn off heated bed
G1 E-1 F300                            ;retract filament (to release pressure)
G28 X0 Y0                              ;move to 0,0
M84                                    ;turn off motors

Conclusion

We have seen what G-Code is, a programming language for CNC machines, widely used in the industry, and of which there are different implementations for all kinds of machines, including our 3D printers.

G-Code is made up of a set of simple instructions that indicate to the printer the tasks to be performed to achieve printing the part correctly.

Most of the time, our function with it will be only to transfer it to the printer to execute the job. Although, on occasion, we can make manual modifications to add certain functions.

That’s all for the post about G-Code in 3D printing. In the next post we will start to see the parts of an FFF/FDM printer. See you soon!