I just ask it for what I’m looking for (doing very simple “spare part” level at home 3d printing, nothing fancy or elaborate) and it gives me a starting point. Then I sometimes just edit the scad code by hand, and some times I ask the AI to revise, sometimes a mix (many iterations).
For very simple geometries it works great, but it very quickly becomes apparent that there’s a bit of a disconnect between “LLM views image” and “LLM emits scad that looks like that image” when it comes to anything non-trivial.
Still gives me a starting point I can mess with, which is great since I have zero CAD training or experience.
Tbh that sounds harder than just learning CAD, which is really not that difficult if you use a proper parametric editor - I would recommend SOLIDWORKS first. It's got the easiest UX so is ideal for learning. They actually have a vaguely reasonably priced subscription now, but IMO it's still way too much for occasional hobby use so I'd recommend just pirating it (which is easy).
Once you have learnt a bit then the only FOSS options that are worth a damn are a) SolveSpace which is quite good and light, has a slightly quirky UI (but not in a bad way) but unfortunately has some critical missing features at the moment - notably bevels/chamfers. Although I did see someone made a sloppy PR to add them so we'll see where that goes.
Or b) FreeCAD which is actually good now and fairly close to SOLIDWORKS (at least for the basic stuff you're likely to use) and has a reasonably good UX. Some rough edges still but overall it's very usable. Good enough that I reach for it instead of pirating SOLIDWORKS these days.
The basic workflow is pretty simple:
1. Make some planes, referenced from existing geometry.
2. Make sketches on the planes.
3. Extrude/revolve them (either adding or subtracting from the existing geometry).
4. Repeat until you have the right shape.
5. Add a load of chamfers to make it pretty.
Not OP but I just ask Claude Code to make me an openscad file. If I need changes I ask for them in plain english. If you are specific, it's not the quickest loop but it works. I usually ask it to parameterize the model enough so that I can quickly print small prototypes in my 3d printer. Once I am happy with the mini version I print the full-size model.
I’ve been using cadquery and build123 with Claude code and I find it incredibly painful.
What is your workflow for llm integration to openscad?
I just ask it for what I’m looking for (doing very simple “spare part” level at home 3d printing, nothing fancy or elaborate) and it gives me a starting point. Then I sometimes just edit the scad code by hand, and some times I ask the AI to revise, sometimes a mix (many iterations).
For very simple geometries it works great, but it very quickly becomes apparent that there’s a bit of a disconnect between “LLM views image” and “LLM emits scad that looks like that image” when it comes to anything non-trivial.
Still gives me a starting point I can mess with, which is great since I have zero CAD training or experience.
(I’m not the commenter you replied to)
Tbh that sounds harder than just learning CAD, which is really not that difficult if you use a proper parametric editor - I would recommend SOLIDWORKS first. It's got the easiest UX so is ideal for learning. They actually have a vaguely reasonably priced subscription now, but IMO it's still way too much for occasional hobby use so I'd recommend just pirating it (which is easy).
Once you have learnt a bit then the only FOSS options that are worth a damn are a) SolveSpace which is quite good and light, has a slightly quirky UI (but not in a bad way) but unfortunately has some critical missing features at the moment - notably bevels/chamfers. Although I did see someone made a sloppy PR to add them so we'll see where that goes.
Or b) FreeCAD which is actually good now and fairly close to SOLIDWORKS (at least for the basic stuff you're likely to use) and has a reasonably good UX. Some rough edges still but overall it's very usable. Good enough that I reach for it instead of pirating SOLIDWORKS these days.
The basic workflow is pretty simple:
1. Make some planes, referenced from existing geometry. 2. Make sketches on the planes. 3. Extrude/revolve them (either adding or subtracting from the existing geometry). 4. Repeat until you have the right shape. 5. Add a load of chamfers to make it pretty.
Tell it to use the existing libraries. https://openscad.org/libraries.html, in particular BOSL2
I've one shotted a light saber hilt with threaded parts and it worked flawlessly.
Not OP but I just ask Claude Code to make me an openscad file. If I need changes I ask for them in plain english. If you are specific, it's not the quickest loop but it works. I usually ask it to parameterize the model enough so that I can quickly print small prototypes in my 3d printer. Once I am happy with the mini version I print the full-size model.