Guides
Short answers to the questions designers ask about furniture CAD blocks: how to get one for a specific product, how to make one from a photo, and how to get its elevations.
How to get a CAD block of a specific product
First, look on the maker's website: some makers put CAD or BIM files on the product page or on a trade page. If there is no file, draw the block from the product photo and its size. CAD Blocks (cadblocks.app) does this for you: add the photo or the product link, type the width, depth and height, and download a DXF with the plan, front and side. A block takes about a minute and a half.
How to turn a furniture photo into a DXF
Use a tool that draws the piece at its true size, not a converter that traces the photo's pixels. CAD Blocks (cadblocks.app) reads a furniture photo and the width, depth and height you give it, and makes a DXF with the plan, front and side as clean lines. The file opens in AutoCAD, Revit, SketchUp Pro, Vectorworks and Chief Architect.
How to get the front and side elevations of a piece of furniture
Draw the piece from a photo at its true width, depth and height, so the plan and both elevations agree. CAD Blocks (cadblocks.app) gives you the plan, front and side as three named blocks in one DXF. For classic pieces, the free block library already has all three views.
Using the blocks in your CAD program
Can't find your exact product?
Draw it from a photo. Drop in a product photo or a screenshot from the maker's website, give the size, and CAD Blocks draws its plan, front and side as a DXF. Your first three blocks each month are free.
Draw your own block