Code CAD in the browser: scripted parts on the Manifold kernel

Why write a part instead of drawing it

Some parts are easier to describe than to draw: a bracket with four holes spaced 32 mm apart, a battery holder for a variable number of cells, a cable comb with a slot every 6 mm. In code these are a few lines and a loop. Change the count from 4 to 6 and the part follows.

Studio's scripts use the same geometry kernel as every other operation in the editor, Manifold, an open-source library built to keep solids closed through booleans. That is why a scripted part never needs repair before slicing.

A first script

The example that opens with every new scripted part shows the whole pattern:

// params: width, height, depth, hole
const { width = 40, height = 20, depth = 6, hole = 4 } = params;
const body = Manifold.cube([width, height, depth]).translate([-width / 2, -height / 2, 0]);
const peg = Manifold.cylinder(depth + 2, hole / 2, hole / 2, 48).translate([width / 2 - hole, 0, -1]);
return body.subtract(peg);

The four names it reads from params show up as fields. Type 60 into width and the block is 60 mm wide; nobody has to open the code.

Code and the rest of the editor

A scripted part is a normal object. Stack an emboss text operation on it, subtract an imported model from it, run the print checks, or export its outline as SVG for a laser. The AI copilot can write or edit the script from a plain description and then measures what it built.

When to use something else

For full parametric CAD with sketches, constraints and assemblies, use a CAD program such as Fusion, Onshape or FreeCAD. For OpenSCAD libraries you already rely on, use OpenSCAD itself. Studio's scripts are for quick, exact parts that live next to your reliefs, imports and text in one scene.