Cabinet Studio is a browser-based cabinet design tool for quickly modelling cabinet carcasses, doors, drawers, shelves, hardware drilling, and exportable panel geometry.
It is focused on turning cabinet dimensions and construction choices into a visual 3D preview, panel previews, and DXF output for fabrication.
https://petervanderwalt.github.io/cabinet-studio/
Cabinet Studio gives you a single browser workspace for cabinet sizing, front configuration, drilling decisions, 3D review, and fabrication exports.
Planned enhancements and beta feedback are tracked in TODO.md.
- Parametric cabinet dimensions for width, height, depth, materials, overlay, reveal, toe kick, and construction style.
- Door and drawer configurations with animated 3D preview.
- Shelf pin, hinge plate, drawer runner, and drawer slide reference hole generation.
- Panel preview sidebar with 2D previews for each generated part.
- Individual panel DXF export and full cabinet ZIP export.
- Local-only static app: no build step required.
You can switch between open shelving, door-based cabinets, and drawer stacks without leaving the same design flow.
Material-aware nesting helps separate parts by sheet stock so machining output stays organized when a project uses more than one board type or thickness.
The Hardware library includes cup/plate patterns, 5 mm and ¼-inch shelf supports, metric/imperial pull centres, knobs, Accuride 3832E runner fit and matched carcass dowels. Presets retain custom overrides and saved-project dimensions. Pocket screws are a manual-jig assembly option.
Select Hettich Anzio 1160018 — 128 mm / stainless steel under Handles / knobs for the first manufacturer CAD model in the 3D view. Its fixing axes follow the generated holes, and it moves with the door or drawer. The kitchen view also displays it. Generic pulls retain their existing drilling settings. More hardware variants remain planned; see model provenance.
The Accuride 3832E preset includes manufacturer CAD for all supported 250–700 mm lengths (3832-E10 through E28), aligned to its panel drilling, with separate fixed, intermediate and moving rails. Opening follows each supplied CAD pose; for 500 mm this is 505.9 mm versus nominal 508 mm. Each size uses its own CAD and mounting pattern. The 250/300 mm patterns differ from the older family drawing; check supplied hardware before machining. Physical fit and clone compatibility remain unverified.
Blum TANDEM 563H — box + rear-hook preparation supports 229, 305, 381, 457 and 533 mm drawers in frameless cabinets. It derives width from actual side thickness, adds an inner front, recessed bottom with side grooves, raised back, rear-hook bores and cabinet pilot centres. DXFs identify the groove face/depth. Locking-device pilots require Blum's angled drilling template; hardware CAD and physical fitting remain pending.
Blum MOVENTO 763H — box + rear-hook preparation supports 305, 381, 457 and 533 mm drawers with its own 16 mm lower clearance, 7 mm upper clearance and 38 mm cabinet mounting row. Its BOM uses MOVENTO locking devices and includes thin-front spacers when needed. This covers BLUMOTION soft-close preparation; hardware CAD, TIP-ON and physical fitting remain pending.
The Hettich Sensys 9071205 — 18 mm frameless set automatically selects its 9071575 D0 plate. For 18 mm frameless carcasses and doors with full overlay and a 3 mm gap, it adds the 52 × 5.5 mm cup-fixing pilots and matched plate pilots, plus manufacturer CAD for both parts. The plate remains fixed; hinge CAD hides during opening because its articulated motion is not yet modelled. Other constructions receive a warning and no Sensys CAD/fixing pilots. Physical fit is pending.
Manufacturing ZIPs include hardware counts and a separate machining-schedule.json for mating face/edge operations. Explicit face/depth holes use separate DXF layers; edge bores require a separate setup and are never exported as face circles. Accuride fit does not generate mounting holes. Undermount and connector families are tracked for model-specific implementation.
See hardware research, supported patterns and export setup.
Pocketed connectors now include Hettich Rastex 15 + Twister for 18 mm stock, with cam pockets, bolt pilots and separate edge passages. The connector guide includes supplier pictures and datasheets for Rastex, Minifix, Rafix, Cabineo and Clamex. Other connector families remain reference-only.
Large pull patterns move within the panel bounds with a notice; impossible patterns produce a warning. Click a part thumbnail to open a larger preview.
Joinery presets include supplier pictures for dowels, pocket screws and Cabineo, plus a dado illustration. Through dados extend the carcass bottom into both sides, while shelves remain adjustable on pins; their cut widths, 3D solids, nesting and DXFs include that engagement. Cabineo 8 / 12 (surface mounted) generate Lamello's overlapping housing bores and mating pilots. Nesting accounts for their open-edge machining. Other Cabineo mounting variants remain unsupported.
Hardware settings are configurable at project level, including drawer sliders, handles, and hinges, so drilling and clearances track the construction method you plan to build.
Larger jobs can be assembled as multi-cabinet projects, with copy counts for repeated units so one design can drive a full run of matching cabinets.
An upcoming layout-planning view will extend Cabinet Studio from single-cabinet configuration into room-level arrangement, making it possible to place cabinets in a broader kitchen layout and render the overall plan before fabrication.
Cabinet Studio can export individual DXFs, nested DXFs, and a manufacturing ZIP bundle so the machining package is ready to hand off or archive as a single deliverable.
Because the app uses ES modules, open it through a local web server rather than directly from the filesystem.
From this folder:
python -m http.server 8080Then open:
http://127.0.0.1:8080/
The app loads Three.js from the import map in index.html, so an internet connection is currently required for the 3D viewer dependency.
index.html: App shell, styles, import map, and main layout.assets/: Cabinet Studio logo and favicon assets.js/main.js: App entry point, panel list rendering, import/export wiring.js/cabinet-math.js: Pure cabinet geometry and panel generation.js/form-ui.js: Cabinet settings form and configuration state.js/three-viewport.js: 3D preview rendering and animations.js/dxf-writer.js: DXF and ZIP export generation.lib/jszip.min.js: Local JSZip dependency for ZIP exports.
Cabinet geometry is still evolving. Verify generated DXF drilling and panel dimensions against the intended hardware before cutting real material.
Choose Metric (mm) or Imperial (inches) in the top toolbar, immediately before Import. Inch inputs accept decimals, fractions (3/4), and mixed fractions (23 3/4). Switching units preserves the original geometry. Counts and angles retain their own units. The preference is saved with cabinets and shared with Kitchen Layout; layout dragging snaps to 1/16 inch in imperial mode.
Stock Setup includes nominal 3/4 inch (19.05 mm), 1/2 inch (12.7 mm), and 1/4 inch (6.35 mm) plywood for carcass, rear, and fronts. These are exact nominal sizes; check the actual sheet thickness before machining.
Panel dimensions, nesting, manufacturing manifests, and DXF geometry use the selected units. DXFs declare inches or millimetres through $INSUNITS. Saved project JSON always stores dimensions in millimetres with a separate units preference, so older projects keep their scale.
Under Hardware → Hinge Plate, untick Include second row for two screws per plate; leave it ticked for the existing four-screw pattern. Hinge plate pattern offers South Africa (2 × 2) for the existing four-hole layout, Blum frameless (2 × 1) for one row 37 mm from the front with 32 mm vertical screw spacing, and Other / Custom. Dimensions remain editable; editing a dimension or the second-row checkbox selects Other / Custom. Choosing a pattern preserves door cup settings and other hardware dimensions.
North American hardware has no single universal drilling pattern. Blum's frameless cruciform plates include 37/32 patterns, while horizontal plates include 20/32 and COMPACT face-frame hinges have different attachment options. The preset applies to the named frameless pattern; use the exact hardware drawing for face-frame or other plates.
References:
- Blum mounting plate catalogue: 20/32 and 37/32 patterns
- Blum US CLIP top assembly and mounting plates
- Blum US COMPACT face-frame attachment options
Run unit, stock, saved-project, mirrored hinge, and DXF scale checks with:
node --experimental-default-type=module tests/units-and-hinges.mjsThe grooved-in option uses rear-edge rebates on both sides, the bottom, and the top or rear stretcher. Rebate width follows the back thickness; engagement is 8 mm into the carcass, capped at half the carcass thickness for thin stock. The back finishes flush with the rear edge and engages equally on all four edges. Its width and height are the clear opening plus twice that engagement.
Shelves stop 2 mm before the back's inside face. Drawer boxes retain 20 mm clearance from that face, and runner reference positions follow the shortened drawer depth. Applied-rear dimensions retain their existing clearances. The 3D preview models the rebates as cutouts; DXF GROOVE outlines describe their footprint and the manufacturing manifest lists their depth into the inside face.
node --experimental-default-type=module tests/grooved-back.mjsDrawer fronts size themselves after a 2-second pause in typing. Entering a height locks it (padlock icon); unlocked fronts (wand icon) share the remaining opening equally after reveal gaps. Clear a height or click its lock to return it to automatic sizing. Clicking the wand locks the current suggestion. A shrinking ring in each unlocked icon shows the countdown and restarts with each edit. Click any countdown ring to calculate immediately without locking the field. Locks are saved with the project and preserved across unit changes.
Changes to cabinet height, toe kick, reveal or drawer count also recalculate unlocked fronts. If all heights are locked and there is enough room for another front and reveal gap, the summary offers Add another drawer. This preserves existing heights and adds an unlocked drawer sized to the remainder. Otherwise the summary explains what to change without replacing entered heights.
node --experimental-default-type=module tests/drawer-heights.mjsUnder Nesting → Global Stock Setup, every stock role has separate Material, Colour, and Thickness selections. All stock roles share the same material, colour and thickness options, including imported custom stock choices. The same combination can be selected for every part, and matching combinations nest together. Thickness lists contain both Metric (mm) and Imperial (fractional inch) groups, regardless of display units. This lets you mix, for example, 3/4-inch melamine carcass, 6 mm plywood back, and 1/2-inch plywood drawer sides. Changing material retains colour and thickness, and changing display units preserves all selections. Colour is part of stock identity: White and Storm Grey melamine nest separately at the same thickness. Panels retain structured material, colour and stock-key metadata; manifests and sheet DXF labels include the colour. Existing colour-bearing names migrate without changing thickness.
Carcass drives shelves and kickboard. Drawer side/back and bottom stocks are independent; their former thickness inputs are removed from Drawer Configuration. Existing project dimensions are preserved, including nonstandard thicknesses shown as an existing thickness option.
New imperial cabinets default to 3/4-inch melamine carcass/fronts, 1/4-inch plywood backs, 1/2-inch plywood drawer sides, and 96 × 48-inch nesting sheets. Presets calculate with the stated thickness, so verify actual material dimensions before machining.
Examples: 3/4-inch melamine, Columbia hardwood plywood sizes, and 1/2-inch MDF.
Each sheet card in Nesting has its own DXF button. The download contains that sheet’s nested parts, drilling, grooves and sheet outline in the selected units, using the same export as the manufacturing ZIP. Filenames include stock, thickness and sheet number.
Stock labels retain the thickness units selected for that stock (for example, 18 mm or 3/4 in), even when the workspace uses the other unit system. Other displayed dimensions use at most three decimals. Geometry and DXF coordinate calculations retain full precision.
In Door Configuration, choose a routed detail: rectangle, clipped corners, rounded corners, inward rounded corners, arched top or cathedral top. Plain remains the default. Set the centreline inset from the door edges and the corner size / arch rise. Details appear on the front face in the 3D preview and are saved with the cabinet.
Individual and nested DXFs include one closed centreline polyline per border detail on DOOR_DETAIL, separate from CUTLINE, DRILL and structural GROOVE geometry. Select this layer in CAM and route on the line with your chosen ballnose or V-bit and cutting depth. Curves use fine straight segments with approximately 0.02 mm chord tolerance. Corner sizes are limited to fit the door; an inset leaving no inner area produces no detail. Hinge bores are on the back face, while detail is on the front: plan machining setups accordingly.
For fake slats, select Vertical slats (V-bit) and set Slat line spacing (centre to centre). The count is automatic, with exact spacing and equal side margins. The detail inset sets the minimum side margins and the top/bottom line ends. Panel entries show the resulting line count. Each groove exports as a separate open, two-point polyline on DOOR_DETAIL, including rotated nested parts, and appears in panel, nesting and 3D previews. Set V-bit and routing depth in CAM.
Use Export STEP in the 3D view to download the active cabinet as a named assembly of panel solids in millimetres. Parts are exported closed, independent of the viewer's open-door/drawer pose, with Z up for CAD/Fusion import (viewer coordinates map to X, −Z, Y). The model includes panel sizes, toe-kick notches, back rebates, bottom dados and machining bores with specified depths, including hinge cups, screw/pin bores and edge drilling. Circular cuts are exact cylindrical surfaces in STEP. Generic reference holes and operations without a specified depth remain annotations. Decorative routing is cut using the selected V-bit or straight bit along the DXF centrelines. Cutter settings and depth are included in the machining schedule. The 3D view uses these same detailed solids automatically. The CAD kernel loads in a worker so normal editing stays responsive; flat drilling markers are retained only for operations without enough information to create a real cut. Kitchen layout placement and additional cabinet copies are not included in this active-cabinet export.
Inset fronts fit inside the carcass or face-frame opening; partial overlay exposes an editable overlay amount. Drawer Auto uses the same opening bounds as the assembled model. A drawer box keeps at least 3 mm above the cabinet floor and below the top/frame rails; fronts too short for a 30 mm box show a warning and omit that box. Hardware → Handles offers Vertically centred drawer pulls. Offset from top remains available for saved projects.
Under the door or drawer routed-detail settings, enter Routing cutter, Routing depth, and either V-bit included angle or Straight bit diameter. Starting values are a 90° V-bit, 6 mm straight bit and 2 mm depth; change these to match your cutter and job. Lengths follow the selected display units; angles stay in degrees. The preview and STEP use the same swept cutter profile, including rounded cutter ends on open paths. A depth that leaves less than 3 mm of front material is rejected with a warning. Reference lines only keeps an unmodelled pattern available without inventing a cutter. The DXF centrelines stay unchanged; machining-schedule.json records the cutter, depth, paths and cutting face.