design-reference

Design references

Research the Internet before selecting a construction design. Use authoritative sources for specifications and licensed analogous designs for construction patterns; never replace the user's reference image, dimensions or requested exterior with the nearest-looking result.

Boundary

• Use this skill for shape archetypes, feature ordering, parametric CAD idioms, mechanism construction examples, and sourced design constraints.
• Use manufacturer documentation, standards, or an official technical source for numerical specifications. A third-party analogous model is not authority for the user's dimensions, ratings or scale.
• Use step-parts for a bought motor, bearing, fastener, board, connector or other standard component the model must physically fit. Download its canonical STEP into <project-dir>/ref/, derive the seat with $cad's cadmount, declare it in measure/mounts.json, and run check_mount.
• Use $electromechanical-integration when the question includes power, control, wiring, electrical ratings, exact lamp/socket contacts or removable powered interfaces. A design repository is not electrical authority.
• A design reference is not proof of likeness, manufacturability, assembly or physical fit. Those claims remain with the project gates.

Internet research workflow

1. Read and measure the user's evidence first. Name the one or two exact design questions research must answer; do not browse with only a product-category query.
2. Write a research contract for each question: required facts, acceptable source authority, geometry or operation uncertainty, packaging constraints, license needs, and the condition that would reject a candidate.
3. Search the Internet with form, feature and operation terms. For example, search tapered shell vent slots parametric CAD, not merely enclosure.
4. Review no more than five strong candidates. Prefer, in order:
   • manufacturer documents, standards and official technical pages for dimensions, ratings and compatibility facts;
   • repositories with source CAD or build123d/CadQuery/OpenSCAD code, an explicit license, and an immutable commit or release for construction patterns;
   • authoritative CAD/kernel documentation for operation-specific questions.
5. Record every used result and meaningful rejection: query, stable URL, repository plus commit/release when available, license/use, exact claim or specification taken, relevant feature, construction lesson, and status (used, rejected, miss, or unavailable).
6. Compare the evidence against the research contract, select the design, and re-measure every user-specific dimension from the user's image/spec. Do not copy an analogous model's placement, scale or silhouette.