MeshCraft

Browser-based 3D mesh generator and toolpath compiler for CNC machining.

Try it live  |  Built by Sawyer Design

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What It Does

Generate 3D meshes from procedural noise or depth map images, tuned for CNC machining. Export watertight STL, OBJ, or heightmap PNG -- or compile ShopBot .sbp toolpaths directly, bypassing CAM software entirely.

Features

• 16+ noise algorithms — Simplex, Perlin, OpenSimplex2, Value, FBM, Ridged, Billow, Turbulence, Hybrid, Hetero, Domain Warp, Voronoi, Worley, Gabor, Wavelet, Voronoi Relief (3D cellular relief with attractor masks)
• Depth map import: Upload any image as a relief, or a .mcrelief master at full resolution
• Drape: Hang a silk veil over a 3D figure (the bundled Venus de Milo bust or your STL, OBJ, PLY, glTF or USDZ, scaled to fit) and carve the front view as a relief from 3 x 4 to 18 x 24 in in up to 4 in of material, simulated in the browser. Presets for the gathered and plain silk drapes, and controls for the pose, figure size, cloth size, resolution, thickness, bending, clearance, crown attachment, damping, attraction to the figure (overall and on the face), wind or pressure on a target area, their timing, a post-solve surface fit, solver accuracy and display smoothing
• CNC presets — 18 presets tuned for the ShopBot Desktop Max ATC (36" x 24", 6" Z)
• STL-to-SBP toolpaths — Two-pass roughing + finishing .sbp generation from any binary STL (CLI + web)
• Watertight export — Bottom face + side walls for CNC-ready meshes
• Multiple formats — STL (binary/ASCII), OBJ, 3DM (mesh or point cloud), heightmap PNG, SBP
• Real-time 3D preview — Orbit, pan, zoom with mouse or touch
• Shareable configs — Copy Link encodes your mesh settings into a URL

View Modes

Solid, Wireframe, Both, Points — switch between render modes to inspect your mesh.

Usage

Visit the live site — no install required:

https://meshcraft.sawyerdesign.io

Local Development

npm install        # First time
npm run dev        # Vite dev server with HMR (http://localhost:5173)
npm run build      # TypeScript + Vite production build → dist/
npm run preview    # Preview production build locally

Export Workflow

1. Adjust noise parameters or upload a depth map
2. Choose your export format (STL, OBJ, 3DM, Heightmap, or SBP)
3. For 3DM, optionally enable Export as point cloud to output vertices only (Rhino/Grasshopper)
4. Enable Watertight for CNC milling (adds bottom face + side walls)
5. Click Export to download

Exported STL/OBJ files are ready for CAM software like VCarve, Aspire, or Fusion 360. SBP files run directly on ShopBot CNCs -- no CAM software needed.

Architecture

Vite + TypeScript + Three.js. Hardware-accelerated WebGL rendering with Phong shading, depth buffer, and MSAA anti-aliasing.

src/
├── main.ts              # Entry point, URL state, demo preload
├── state.ts             # Typed STATE singleton, URL serialize/deserialize
├── types.ts             # Shared interfaces (Vertex3D, Triangle, MeshData)
├── noise/
│   ├── generators.ts        # 16+ noise classes + factory
│   ├── voronoi-relief.ts    # 3D Voronoi cell relief sampler (grid-aware)
│   └── presets.ts           # 18 CNC presets, 6 texture profiles
├── mesh.ts              # Mesh generation + smoothing
├── render.ts            # Three.js WebGL rendering (Phong shading, custom camera)
├── export.ts            # STL, OBJ, heightmap PNG, SBP export dispatcher
├── sbp-export.ts        # Web UI bridge: MeshCraft STATE -> SBP pipeline -> download
├── ui.ts                # Sidebar, sliders, depth map upload, SBP config panel
├── interaction.ts       # Mouse/touch orbit, pan, zoom
├── toolbar.ts           # Mode tabs, toolbar, Copy Link, format-aware controls
├── stats.ts             # Stats overlay (format-aware: triangles or SBP moves)
├── toast.ts             # Toast notifications
├── sponsor.ts           # Sponsor modal
└── sbp/                 # STL-to-SBP pipeline (shared between web + CLI, zero Node deps)
    ├── types.ts         # ToolDef, SbpConfig, ToolpathMove, ToolpathSection
    ├── tools.ts         # Embedded ATC tool database (18 tools, 3 material profiles)
    ├── stl-parser.ts    # Binary STL -> Float32Array + bounding box
    ├── heightmap.ts     # Triangle mesh or STATE vertices -> regular Z grid
    ├── compensate.ts    # Tool compensation (separable morphological erosion)
    ├── roughing.ts      # Z-level stepdown raster
    ├── finishing.ts     # 45-deg continuous zigzag
    ├── writer.ts        # OpenSBP file builder
    ├── generate.ts      # Pipeline orchestrator
    └── worker.ts        # Web Worker for STL upload pipeline

cli/
├── stl-to-sbp.ts        # CLI entry point (Node-only: fs, process)
└── vtdb-reader.ts       # SQLite vtdb reader (better-sqlite3)

STL to SBP

Generate ShopBot .sbp toolpath files directly from any binary STL -- no Vectric Aspire or other CAM software required. Two-pass pipeline: roughing (Z-level raster) + finishing (45-deg continuous zigzag with tool compensation).

How it works

1. Parse binary STL into a triangle mesh
2. Rasterize to a heightmap (Z grid at configurable resolution, default 200 cells/inch)
3. Apply morphological erosion for tool compensation (separable 1D passes, handles tapered ball nose geometry)
4. Generate roughing toolpath: Z-level stepdown, serpentine raster, skip empty rows
5. Generate finishing toolpath: 45-deg bidirectional zigzag, continuous M3 path with entry/exit retracts
6. Write OpenSBP with full ATC support (tool changes, spindle control, feed rates)

CLI

./stl-to-sbp.sh <input.stl> [options]

# or
npm run stl-to-sbp -- <input.stl> [options]

Options:

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