FreeCAD
Original author(s) | Jürgen Riegel, Werner Mayer, Yorik van Havre[1][a] |
---|---|
Initial release | 29 October 2002 |
Stable release | 0.21.2
/ November 14, 2023 |
Preview release | 0.22.0dev
|
Repository | |
Written in | FEM |
License | LGPL-2.0-or-later |
Website | freecad.org |
FreeCAD is a general-purpose
Features
General
FreeCAD features tools similar to
As with many modern 3D CAD modelers, FreeCAD has a 2D component to facilitate 3D-to-2D drawing conversion. Under its current state, direct 2D drawing (like AutoCAD LT) is not the focus for this software, and neither are animation or 3D model manipulation (like Blender, Maya, or Cinema 4D). However, the modular nature of FreeCAD allows the user to adapt its workflow for such environments via the use of plugins.
FreeCAD uses open-source libraries from the field of
There are moves to expand FreeCAD in the architecture, electrical, and construction (AEC) engineering sectors and to add building information modeling (BIM) functionality with the Arch Module.[6]
As of late 2020,
Supported file formats
FreeCAD's own main file format is FreeCAD Standard file format (.FCStd).[8] It is a standard zip file that holds files in a certain structure.[8] The Document.xml file has all geometric and parametric objects definitions.[8] GuiDocument.xml then has visual representation details of objects.[8] Other files include brep-files for objects and thumbnail of drawing.[8]
Besides FreeCAD's own file format, files can be exported and imported in
DWG support
FreeCAD's support for the proprietary
As of 2014 the 0.14 release of FreeCAD, including the new LGPL release of Open Cascade, the BSD-licensed version of Coin3D, and the removal of PyQT, FreeCAD is now completely GPL-free.[14] However, LibreDWG has not been adopted. FreeCAD is able to import and export a limited subset[15] of the DWG format via the ODA File Converter (the former OpenDWG library).[citation needed]
Promotions during events
FreeCAD was notably presented at FISL 16 in 2015, in Porto Alegre,[16] as well as at the Libre Graphics Meeting in London in 2016.[17] These two exhibitions can bring together both developers and users. In 2020, it was during FOSDEM in Brussels that two of these developers, Yorik Van Havre and Brad Collette made the presentation.[18]
Release history
- GitHub Files section (github
.com /FreeCAD /FreeCAD )
Version | Release date | Information | |
---|---|---|---|
0.0.1 | October 29, 2002 | Initial release | |
0.1 | January 27, 2003 | ||
0.2 | August 9, 2005 | ||
0.3 | October 31, 2005 | ||
0.4 | January 15, 2006 | ||
0.5 | October 5, 2006 | ||
0.6 | February 27, 2007 | ||
0.7 | April 24, 2009 | ||
0.8 | July 10, 2009 | ||
0.9 | January 16, 2010 | ||
0.10 | July 24, 2010 | ||
0.11 | May 3, 2011 | sketcher, part, 2D and robot modules[19] | |
0.12 | November 20, 2011 | architecture Module[20] | |
0.13 | January 29, 2013 | ship design module, openscad module, 3D mice support[21] | |
0.14 | July 1, 2014 | License changed to LGPLv2+, spreadsheet module, render to LuxRender[15] | |
0.15 | April 8, 2015 | Oculus Rift support, updated ifc importer in Architecture module[22] | |
0.16 | April 18, 2016 | FEM workbench, path module[23] | |
0.17 | April 6, 2018 | add on manager, surface module, tech draw module[24] | |
0.18 | March 12, 2019 | new start view, extended arch module, many improved modules[25] In 0.18.5 Addon-Manager broken, so 0.18.4 is stable release. | |
0.19 | March 20, 2021 | modules to Python 3 and Qt5 mostly ported,[26] actual 0.19.4 | |
0.20 | June 14, 2022 | completely rewritten Addon Manager, more than 30 new tools in TechDraw, persistent section cuts, many improvements of existing tools[27] | |
0.21 | August 2, 2023 | planned as the final release before patches for the topological naming problem introduce performance regressions. Various user interface and workbench improvements.[28][29] | |
0.22/1.0 | 2023 | development version with weekly builds[30][31] | |
Legend: Old version Older version, still maintained Latest version Latest preview version Future release |
See also
- Comparison of computer-aided design software
- Boundary representation
- Constructive solid geometry
- Open CASCADE Technology
- Parametric modeling
- List of BIM software
- List of 3D printing software
Notes
- ^ Jürgen Riegel no longer participates in the active development of FreeCAD since the end of 2015.
References
- ^ "FreeCAD History". wiki.freecad.org.
- ^ "Testing FEM Workbench of FreeCAD". jolahde.kapsi.fi. Retrieved 2020-05-31.
- ^ "Feature list - FreeCAD Documentation". wiki.freecadweb.org. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
- ^ "Open Cascade at FOSDEM 2020". opencascade.com. Archived from the original on 2020-06-19. Retrieved 2020-06-01.
- ^ Okoi, Martins (December 1, 2017). "FreeCAD – A 3D Modeling and Design Software for Linux". FOSSMint. Retrieved May 2, 2019.
- ^ "Arch Module". FreeCAD wiki. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
- ^ "3DfindIT.com Directly Integrated into FreeCAD". Digital Engineering. 2020-12-21. Retrieved 2021-04-08.
- ^ a b c d e "File Format FCStd - FreeCAD Documentation". freecadweb.org. Retrieved 2015-09-03.
- ^ "Feature list". FreeCAD wiki. Retrieved 15 December 2013.
- Phoronix. Archived from the originalon 2016-11-09. Retrieved 2013-08-22.
- ^ Prokoudine, Alexandre (26 January 2012). "What's up with DWG adoption in free software?". libregraphicsworld.org. Archived from the original on 2016-11-09. Retrieved 3 November 2013.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions about the GNU Licenses – Is GPLv3 compatible with GPLv2?". The official site. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
- ^ Prokoudine, Alexandre (2012-12-27). "LibreDWG drama: the end or the new beginning?". libregraphicsworld.org. Archived from the original on 2016-11-09. Retrieved 2013-08-23.
- ^ "License". freecadweb.org. 2014. Archived from the original on 2016-12-04. Retrieved 2015-03-25.
- ^ a b "Release notes 0.14 - FreeCAD Documentation".
- ^ van Havre, Yorik (2015). "FreeCAD at FISL16" (PDF). yorik.uncreated.net.
- ^ van Havre, Yorik (2016). "Yorik van Havre at LGM 2016" (PDF). yorik.uncreated.net.
- ^ "Open-source design ecosystems around FreeCAD". archive.fosdem.org. Retrieved 2020-11-12.
- ^ "Release notes 0.11 - FreeCAD Documentation".
- ^ "Release notes 0.12 - FreeCAD Documentation".
- ^ "Release notes 0.13 - FreeCAD Documentation".
- ^ "Release notes 0.15". Retrieved 19 February 2019.
- ^ "Release notes 0.16". Retrieved 19 February 2019.
- ^ "Release notes 0.17". Retrieved 19 February 2019.
- ^ "Release notes 0.18". Retrieved 15 March 2019.
- ^ "Release notes 0.19". Retrieved 31 March 2021.
- ^ "Release notes 0.20". Retrieved 17 June 2022.
- ^ "Coming Soon: FreeCAD 0.21". FreeCAD News. 2023-04-28. Retrieved 2023-04-29.
- ^ "Release notes 0.21 - FreeCAD Documentation". wiki.freecad.org. Retrieved 2023-04-30.
- ^ "Release notes 0.22". Retrieved 2023-08-07.
- ^ "FreeCAD 1.0 Development Cycle".
Further reading
- Falck, Daniel; Collette, Brad (2012): FreeCAD [How-to]. Solid Modeling with the Power of Python, ISBN 978-1-84951-886-4.
- Hinchliffe, Jo; van Havre, Yorik (2022): FreeCAD for Makers. From The Makers of HackSpace Magazine, Raspberri Pi Press, PDF (CC BY-NC-SA 3.0).