Caddie sits in the SolidWorks task pane and reads the part you have open: features, sketches, dimensions, errors, materials and mass. Ask in your own words. It answers with your feature names, shows you where to click, or makes the change once you say yes.
A general chatbot only knows what you type or paste into it. Caddie reads SolidWorks directly every time you ask, so "help" is enough of a question.
In a fraction of a second, before it answers:
Typos and vague questions are fine. "sketch 2 red why" and "why is there a yellow triangle" both get a specific answer, because Caddie checks the model before it replies instead of asking you to describe it.
Answers are short and name the feature and the value. When there's work to do, Caddie starts a guide that highlights each click, or proposes the exact change for you to approve.
Ask how to do something and Caddie starts a short guide. Each step highlights where to click in SolidWorks, and ticks itself off when SolidWorks shows it's done, so you're never hunting through menus.
When the fix is clear, Caddie shows exactly what it will change. Nothing happens until you click Do it, and most changes come with an Undo button.
Asked "sketch 2 red why", Caddie found the Vertical relation fighting the others, asked to delete it, and then explained what had been wrong.
Paste, drop or attach an image of what you want to model. Caddie works out the shape and the dimensions, says what it assumed, and either builds it in steps you approve or guides you through building it yourself.
From this drawing, Caddie built the profile, the extrude and the three holes, and finished with: "I assumed the two base holes are symmetric and the upright hole is centred across the 80 mm width, as shown."
Modelling from an image →The Learn tab generates CSWA, CSWP and sheet metal practice parts with new dimensions every time. Model the part and check your answer, or let Caddie read your model and tell you what's off without giving the answer away.
Unedited answers from Caddie's test runs on sample models. Each one names the feature and the number, and points out what's worth checking.
The four holes in M6 Tapped Hole1 are M6 × 1.0, with a specified thread depth of 10 mm. The Ø5 mm tap-drill holes are blind, 12 mm deep.
That depth is worth checking: the cover is only 1.5 mm thick, so you won’t get 10 mm of thread unless there’s a thicker boss or insert at those locations.
You need 8 pieces of 30 × 30 × 2.60 mm square tube:
Those are finished cut lengths; allow extra stock for saw kerf.
The maximum shear stress is 31.8 MPa, at the shaft’s outer surface.
For a solid circular shaft, τmax = 16T/(πd³). Using T = 50,000 N·mm and d = 20 mm gives 31.8 N/mm², or MPa.
This assumes pure torsion without keyways or other stress concentrations. Whether it’s acceptable depends on the steel grade, fatigue loading and required safety factor.
Your part is about 0.9% too heavy, which points to one missing Ø10 corner hole or one that doesn’t cut all the way through. The extra material matches one full corner hole, and your centre of gravity is slightly off-centre too. Check Sketch2 and Cut-Extrude1 for all four corner holes cutting through the plate.
Base Profile controls the part’s footprint: D1@Base Profile is 60 mm and D2@Base Profile is 40 mm. Boss-Extrude1 controls its thickness through D1@Boss-Extrude1, currently 25 mm.
Those are the three main overall-size controls; Mounting Hole controls the cut, not the outside size.
Do you mean Boss-Extrude1’s 10 mm thickness should always be one tenth of Base Profile’s 40 mm height? I’ll link them with an equation so the thickness follows whenever the height changes.
Recorded 1 and 2 November 2026 by the answer-quality tests that every Caddie release goes through.
Each part is generated from its own geometry, with third-angle views and dimensions. The drawing, the answer key and the part Caddie builds for you always agree, and the keys were checked by building every part in SolidWorks.
Practice parts are in the style of the exams, not copies of real exam questions. Caddie won't help during a real certification exam: the exam has to be your own work.
A part that rebuilds today can still fall apart when someone changes a size. Caddie explains what drives what in your model and helps you build the intent in, so changes go where you expect.
Caddie lists the dimensions that control the part by name and value, and tells you which ones only position features.
Say the rule in plain words. Caddie confirms which dimensions you mean before it links them with an equation.
A bore that must stay centred should be tied to the middle, not to one edge. Caddie checks how it's located and fixes the relation.
A design intent stress test. Ask "is this part built well enough that I can change the sizes later?" Caddie makes each driving dimension 20% bigger, then 20% smaller, rebuilds, tells you exactly what breaks, and puts every value back. On a test part it checked 17 dimensions in under 7 seconds.
| Question | A general AI chat | Caddie |
|---|---|---|
| Knows your model | Only what you type, paste or screenshot | Reads the open document every time you ask |
| Answers mention | Generic steps for a typical model | Your features and values: "Fillet1, 12 mm, on a 3 mm base" |
| Doing the work | Describes the clicks | Highlights each click, or makes the change once you approve it |
| Certification practice | Questions without checking | Exam-style parts with answers checked to 0.1% |
| Where it runs | A browser tab next to SolidWorks | The SolidWorks task pane, 2022 and newer |
| Your conversations | Kept by the chat service | Kept on your PC |
CAD vendors are adding AI too, mostly to their newest releases and cloud platforms. Caddie is a free add-in for desktop SolidWorks 2022 and newer, and it's focused on the model in front of you: fixing it, learning it and checking it.
Short guides with real examples. Start with the quick start, then pick what you do most.
Install Caddie, find the panel, and ask your first question about a real model.
Read the guide → TroubleshootingFailing features, over-defined sketches, dangling references, and the yellow triangles.
Read the guide → Working togetherHow guides highlight each click, and how changes you approve work, including undo.
Read the guide → ModellingTurn a drawing, a sketch on paper or a photo into a part, step by step.
Read the guide → LearningPractice parts, exam conditions, hints that don't give it away, and the drills.
Read the guide → ConceptsWhat design intent is, how to build it into a part, and how Caddie helps you check it.
Read the guide →Caddie is built for engineers who work on confidential designs, so here is exactly where your data goes.
Conversation history, file notes and settings. Your SolidWorks files are never uploaded. History can be turned off or deleted in Settings.
Your question, the model's details, any image you attach and a screenshot of SolidWorks go to OpenAI through Caddie's relay. Screenshots can be turned off.
OpenAI doesn't train on API data, and Caddie asks it not to store conversations. OpenAI may keep requests for up to 30 days to check for abuse.
No account, usage tracking or analytics. Answers you rate stay on your PC unless you choose to send a problem report.
Yes, during the alpha. There's no account, no trial and no card. You don't need your own OpenAI account or key either.
SolidWorks 2022 and newer on 64-bit Windows 10 or 11. Caddie is tested most on SolidWorks 2026. If something doesn't work on your version, click Copy a problem report in Settings and email it to us.
No. To answer, Caddie sends your question, details of the open model (names, dimensions, materials, errors and so on) and, unless you turn it off, a screenshot of the SolidWorks window. The files themselves never leave your PC.
No. Every change is shown first, and nothing happens until you click Do it. You can tick "Don't ask again this session" for routine changes, but deleting features and sketch relations always asks.
It's a good way to prepare: practice parts with checked answers, hints and timed drills. It won't help during a real exam, and you shouldn't use it there. The certification has to be your own work.
OpenAI's models, through a small relay run by Caddie that adds the API key. Caddie picks the model; you don't need to configure anything.
Yes. For stresses, deflections, bolt preloads and the like, Caddie works the numbers out with an exact calculator instead of estimating them, and says what it assumed. Treat the result as a check, not a substitute for proper analysis or sign-off.
No. Caddie needs an internet connection to answer. Your history and settings are still on your PC when you're offline.
Caddie tells you inside SolidWorks when a new version is out. Download it, close SolidWorks and run the installer. Your settings and history carry over.
Not today. Caddie is built for SolidWorks.
Run the installer, open SolidWorks, and ask about the model you're working on. It takes about five minutes.
Download CaddieSetup.exe