Relief map generator Pro

A layered topographic map from a heightmap or a terrain model.

Open Relief map in the app Pro generator: explore its settings in the app; cut files come with the Pro plan (coming soon).

A laser-cut relief map of an island: stacked contour layers on a base, with place names, roads and a river engraved on it

In short: A layered topographic map: a heightmap image or a 3D model of a landscape cut into stacked contour layers, with contour lines engraved between them and hidden pins that line the stack up for gluing.

Layered relief maps are a classic laser-cut gift: a hometown's hills, a favourite mountain, an island. Give the generator a heightmap image (lighter is higher) or a 3D model of a landscape, and it cuts it into stacked contour layers, one per sheet thickness, on a base in the shape of a rectangle, a circle or the coastline.

Contour lines are engraved between the layers. Add an SVG or PNG of place names, roads and rivers, and each marking is engraved on whichever layer is on top at that spot, so a road climbs the hills with the terrain. Hidden pins in blind holes keep the stack in line while it is glued.

You choose the map size, the height of the relief and the sea level. Start from the built-in island sample to see how it works. Your files are read in your browser and never uploaded.

You need: plywood (or card), glue, and short pieces of dowel for the pins.

Settings

All of these can be changed in the app, and the 3D preview updates as you type. The name under each setting is its key in a share link, e.g. https://laserpuzzle.app/app/#/relief?source=…; a link only needs the settings that differ from the defaults.

Model

Setting	Default	What it does
Heightmap or 3D model `source`	your file	A greyscale PNG heightmap (light = high, transparent = off the map) or a 3D model of the terrain (a closed mesh, STL recommended).
Dark is high `invert`	off	For heightmaps that use dark for high ground.
Up axis `up_axis`	z	3D models: which axis of the file points up. 'auto' = the longest one. Options: auto, x, y, z.
Upside down `flip`	off	3D models: flip if the model comes out inverted.

Map

Setting	Default	What it does
Map size `size`	150 mm	Length of the map's long side. From 30 to 1000 mm.
Relief height `height`	24 mm	From sea level to the highest point, rounded to whole sheets. 0 keeps a 3D model's own proportions. From 0 to 300 mm.
Sea level `sea_level`	0%	Everything lower than this share of the height range is flat (sea, lakes, valley floor). From 0 to 90 %.
Shape `shape`	rectangle	The map's outline. 'outline' follows the coast: the land at sea level (or the image's opaque pixels). Options: rectangle, circle, outline.
Base sheets `base_layers`	1	Solid sheets in the map's shape under the relief. From 1 to 4.

Layers

Setting	Default	What it does
Smallest feature `min_feature`	2 mm	Narrower bits and smaller islands are left out of a layer (they break when cut). From 0.5 to 10 mm.
Smoothing `smooth`	1 mm	Heightmaps: blur radius on the map, evens out noise and pixel steps. From 0 to 10 mm.
Contour lines per layer `contours`	1	Engraved lines at heights between one layer and the next, like on a printed map. From 0 to 4.
Engrave next layer outline `engrave_next`	on	Score where the next layer goes onto each layer (hidden once it is glued).

Markings

Setting	Default	What it does
Markings `overlay`	your file	Optional: an SVG or PNG the shape of the map with place names, roads, rivers... Engraved on whichever layer shows there. SVG: filled shapes are engraved filled, strokes as single lines (text must be converted to paths). PNG: dark on white or transparent.
PNG markings `overlay_style`	outline	A PNG's marks engraved as outlines, or filled with close hatching (darker, slower). Options: outline, filled.

Pins

Setting	Default	What it does
Alignment pins `pins`	2	Hidden pins in blind holes that line up the layers while you glue them. From 0 to 4.
Pin diameter `pin_diameter`	3 mm	Measure your dowel or skewer. The hole is this + clearance. From 1 to 10 mm.

Plus the material and machine settings every generator has: material thickness, kerf, slot clearance, sheet width, sheet height, part spacing, engrave part labels, cut line colour, engrave line colour.

Related generators

Two chess pawns made of stacked plywood layers