Idea: Print objects straight from your web browser

[Lochemage]

As far as slicing goes, why can't the laser function much like a DLP television? It basically sweeps in rows from left to right, one row at a time until it gets to the bottom, whenever the laser passes through an area that needs to be solid (cured) it turns on. This way there is no need to generate gcode-like data, all you need is to get the current layer in blender and recognize all the solid areas on that slice. No pre-computing where the laser should move or anything very complex like that, and the only signals you need to send via sound port are timings for when the laser should turn on/off throughout its ray-cast movement cycle. This will also allow you to print very complex objects with minimal pre-calculation and result in a much less error-prone print.

I understand that this causes the mirrors to move much more than before, how much will that affect the longevity of the printer?

EDIT: In addition, you could also setup min and max angles for the mirrors to move per print. That way, if you are printing an object that is smaller than the total build area, the mirrors have no need to move beyond the scope of the object size.