PlyAnzahl

PlyAnzahl is a German term used to denote the number of plies in a layered construction or in a game-tree search. In woodworking and plywood manufacturing, the term refers to the number of veneer layers bonded to form the panel. Each ply contributes to overall stiffness, strength, and resistance to warping. Common plywood products use odd numbers of plies, such as 3, 5, 7, or 9, to create a symmetrical cross-ply structure. Increasing the ply count generally improves dimensional stability and strength, at the cost of weight and material price. The exact performance also depends on veneer quality, adhesive, and the orientation of the plies (grain direction).

In the context of computer games and artificial intelligence, PlyAnzahl describes the depth of lookahead measured in half-moves (plies) rather than full moves. For example, a 4-ply search analyzes two moves by each side from the current position. Deeper plies usually improve decision quality but require more computational resources; the practical choice balances accuracy and available processing time. Path-search algorithms such as minimax, alpha-beta pruning, or Monte Carlo methods use ply depth to structure their evaluation.

The term is commonly used in German-language documentation and industry literature. In English, the same concept is often referred to as "ply depth" or "depth (in plies)."