Summary: The cutting and stamping process is often used to divide stock plates into circular items. A guillotine machine cuts the plates into strips at the cutting phase. A stamping press stamps out the items from strips at the stamping phase. Normal patterns have been proposed for the case of equal circles. They consist of sections that contain strips of the same direction. The cutting process can be simplified if the number of sections is reduced.
This short communication presents a simple algorithm for selecting from the optimal patterns the one that has the minimum number of sections. It assumes that the pattern value equals the value of the produced items minus the cost of the sections. The expected solution can be obtained by using an adequate section cost. The algorithm is faster and much simpler to design than a recently published algorithm.