IFChili

A browser-based 3D CAD application for authoring IFC5 (IFCX) building models.

Overview

IFChili is an open-source, browser-based CAD application for creating and editing building information models following the buildingSMART IFC5 standard. Built on Chili3D, it compiles OpenCascade (OCCT) to WebAssembly and integrates with Three.js for near-native 3D modeling performance — all in the browser, with no local installation required.

Features

IFC5 Authoring

• IFCX Document Model: Entity-Component system aligned with the buildingSMART IFC5 TypeSpec standard
• Spatial Hierarchy: Automatic wrapping of geometry in standard IFC structure (Project / Site / Building / Storey)
• IFC Spatial Panel: Visual hierarchy display with inline editing of level names
• Schema Registry: Bundled schemas including Swiss BIM standards (SIA 416, eBKP-H, KBOB LCA, Building Permit)
• IFCX Export: Serialize documents to the IFCX format with default IFC class assignment and USD mesh tessellation

3D Modeling Tools

• Basic Shapes: Boxes, cylinders, cones, spheres, pyramids
• 2D Sketching: Lines, arcs, circles, ellipses, rectangles, polygons, Bezier curves
• Boolean Operations: Union, difference, intersection
• Advanced Operations: Extrusion, revolution, sweep, loft, offset surfaces, sections
• Editing: Chamfer, fillet, trim, break, split, move, rotate, mirror

Snapping and Tracking

• Object snapping to geometric features (points, edges, faces)
• Workplane snapping for accurate planar operations
• Axis tracking for precise alignment
• Automatic feature point detection with visual tracking guides

Measurement

• Angle and length measurement
• Sum of length, area, and volume calculations

Document Management

• Create, open, and save documents
• Full undo/redo stack with transaction history
• Import/export of STEP, IGES, and BREP formats

User Interface

• Office-style ribbon interface with contextual command organization
• Hierarchical assembly management
• Dynamic workplane support
• 3D viewport with camera controls and position recall
• Multi-language support (English and Chinese)

Technology Stack

Layer	Technology
Language	TypeScript
3D Rendering	Three.js
Geometry Kernel	OpenCascade (WebAssembly)
Bundler	Rspack
Testing	Rstest + Happy-DOM
Linting/Formatting	Biome
Deployment	Vercel / Docker + Nginx

Project Structure

packages/
  chili-core/       Core interfaces, document model, shapes, materials
  chili/            CAD commands and operations (66+ commands)
  chili-three/      Three.js rendering integration
  chili-wasm/       OpenCascade WebAssembly bindings
  chili-ui/         UI components (panels, ribbon, dialogs)
  chili-builder/    Application builder and dependency injection
  chili-controls/   User input and interaction
  chili-geo/        Geometry utilities
  chili-vis/        Visualization layer
  chili-i18n/       Internationalization
  chili-storage/    Document persistence
  chili-web/        Web application entry point
  ifcx-core/        IFCX document model, serializer, and bridge
  ifcx-schemas/     Schema registry with bundled BIM standards
cpp/                OpenCascade WebAssembly module (C++/CMake)

Getting Started

Prerequisites

• Node.js >= 22
• npm

Installation

git clone https://github.com/louistrue/ifc5cad.git
cd ifc5cad
npm install

Development

npm run dev       # Start dev server at http://localhost:8080

Building

npm run build     # Production build

Building WebAssembly

To rebuild the OpenCascade WebAssembly module from source:

npm run setup:wasm   # Install WASM build dependencies (first time only)
npm run build:wasm   # Build the WebAssembly module

Testing

npm run test      # Run all tests
npm run testc     # Run tests with coverage

Code Quality

npm run check     # Biome linting and auto-fix
npm run format    # Format all code (Biome + clang-format)

Development Status

Early Development — IFChili is in active alpha development.

• Core CAD modeling features are functional (inherited from Chili3D)
• IFC5 authoring support is at Phase 0: spatial hierarchy, document model, and basic IFCX serialization
• APIs may undergo breaking changes
• Documentation is being progressively developed

Acknowledgments

IFChili is built on Chili3D by xiangechen. The 3D CAD engine, modeling tools, and application framework are from the upstream Chili3D project.

Contributing

Contributions are welcome — code, bug reports, or feedback. Please submit pull requests or open issues.

License

Distributed under the GNU Affero General Public License v3.0 (AGPL-3.0). The C++ WebAssembly code is licensed under LGPL-3.0. See LICENSE for details.