Choose exposure settings before calculating time
Start with Anycubic's resin settings tables for the exact printer and resin. Copy normal exposure, bottom exposure, bottom layer count and layer height from the same profile. A resin family label alone does not identify that combination. Keep bottom exposure as its own input instead of multiplying the normal exposure by a fixed ratio.
Read how the exposure numbers are derived for the parameter definitions, printer-specific reference rows and Anycubic RERF procedure. The calculator adds up the times you supply. It cannot determine the dose needed to cure an unknown resin or select a profile for a different layer height.
Inputs and units
Use the full height of the sliced job, including a raft or supports below the model. Dividing that height by the chosen layer height gives the number of layers, rounded upward. Use millimetres for both heights and seconds for every time field. Bottom layers must be a whole number no greater than the calculated layer count.
Enter stationary rest time separately from the combined lift and retract time. If a slicer's delay field already includes motion, separate those components before entering them here so the same seconds are not counted twice. CHITUBOX's print settings documentation distinguishes light-off delay from the rest-time controls. Check which timing mode your profile uses instead of assuming every slicer label has the same meaning.
The exposure and print-time formulas
Let N be total layers, B bottom layers, E normal exposure, Eb bottom exposure, R rest time and M combined movement time. This estimator assumes a constant layer height and the same rest and movement time for every layer.
- Layer count: N = ceil(total sliced height / layer height).
- Total UV-on time: (N - B) × E + B × Eb.
- Estimated print time: total UV-on time + N × (R + M).
UV-on time is the sum of all exposure intervals; it is not a setting to paste into the normal-exposure field. Print duration adds the time spent waiting and moving between those intervals. All displayed durations are rounded to the nearest second after calculation.
Worked example: a 120 mm sliced job
The example uses 0.05 mm layers, 2.8 s normal exposure, five bottom layers at 25 s each, 0.5 s rest and an illustrative 3 s of movement per layer. These are arithmetic inputs, not a recommended profile for every Photon or a measured machine cycle time.
| Contribution | Calculation | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Layers | 120 / 0.05 | 2400 layers |
| Normal-layer exposure | 2395 × 2.8 s | 6706 s |
| Bottom-layer exposure | 5 × 25 s | 125 s |
| Rest and movement | 2400 × (0.5 + 3) s | 8400 s |
| Estimated duration | 6706 + 125 + 8400 s | 4h 13m 51s |
Increasing only normal exposure from 2.8 s to 3 s adds 2395 × 0.2 = 479 seconds, or 7 minutes 59 seconds. Adding one second of movement per layer instead adds 2400 seconds, or 40 minutes. Those differences show why exposure alone cannot predict the finish time of a tall print.
What can change the actual finish time
This estimate excludes transition layers, variable layer heights, different bottom-layer movement timings, acceleration, automatic checks, heating and pauses. Compare it with the sliced-file estimate when those features are active. Washing and post-curing are separate stages and are also outside the displayed duration.
For exposure calibration, use the model-specific file described in Anycubic's RERF instructions. Changing a time in this calculator does not verify adhesion or feature detail. If a print detaches, use the Photon resin sticking to FEP guide; for islands and trapped resin in a sliced file, use the Photon File Validator and UVtools guide.