Hardware as code

Design machines the way you write software.

Machinewright is a graph-native framework for mechanical design in Python. Declare parts, ports and connections once, then project CAD, bills of materials and print plates from the same resolved graph.

Download 0.2.0 for macOS Install guide Create a project

The Machinewright macOS app showing the ironless-actuator project: Python source, 3D viewport, inputs and diagnostics.

The Machinewright app with the ironless-actuator sample project: a 154-part planetary-geared actuator.

Everything from one source of truth

Stop keeping CAD, BOM spreadsheets and assembly notes in sync by hand. They all derive from the same code.

Parts and assemblies as code

Subclass PartDefinition and AssemblyDefinition. Constructor arguments are the design parameters; CadQuery builds the leaf geometry.

One canonical graph

Typed ports, containment, transforms and connections resolve once into a ResolvedHardwareGraph. Every output is a projection of it.

Everything a build needs

STEP, STL, previews, structured BOMs, Graphviz graphs and provenance manifests from a single evaluate.

Native macOS editor

Edit Python with LSP completions and diagnostics beside a live 3D viewport. Tweak inputs and watch the model re-evaluate.

Purchased-parts BOM

Track supplier, SKU, cost, spares and order status per line, stored in a plain JSON file you can commit.

Print-ready plates

Orient, pack and export printed parts onto plates per material, ready for your slicer.

Parametric by construction

Parts take typed parameters. Assemblies place them and declare how they connect. Change a number, re-evaluate, and everything downstream follows.

154parts in the sample actuator

8artifact formats per evaluate

1canonical graph

class Plate(PartDefinition):
    material = MATERIALS["PLA"]

    def __init__(self, width_mm: float):
        self.width_mm = width_mm

    def geometry(self):
        return cadquery.Workplane("XY").box(
            self.width_mm, 20, 4)

class Machine(AssemblyDefinition):
    def define(self, builder):
        builder.part("base", Plate(40))
        builder.part(
            "cover", Plate(40),
            transform=Transform.translated(z=12))

Inspect it from every angle

Explode the machine to check fit and assembly order, and isolate parts by group. Printed and purchased parts are colour-coded, with all 154 parts in a filterable list.

Exploded view of the ironless actuator with a filterable parts list grouped into printed and purchased parts

From design to workshop

Plan print plates per filament for your slicer, and track every purchased part from supplier to delivery, all derived from the same design.

3D Print tab laying printed gears and rings onto plates, one plate per filament — Print plates: one per filament, packed to your bed

BOM tab listing 14 purchased-part lines with suppliers, quantities and costs — Purchased-parts BOM with suppliers and costs

Start in a minute

With uv installed, scaffold a design and evaluate it from the command line, then open the folder in the macOS app.

Starter project guide Read the docs

machinewright project init indexing-table --starter basic
cd indexing-table
uv sync
uv run machinewright project evaluate \
  indexing-table.main 0.1.0 inputs.json artifacts/