From technical drawing to a native Onshape feature tree

This guide walks you through the full flow, from the Onshape App Store to reviewing your model and its automatically added annotation comments inside Onshape. It is written for selected beta testers. The native feature-tree delivery is not open to every account yet.

1. 1

   Start from the Onshape App Store

   In the Onshape App Store, open the Voluminate app and click “Go to Connected Cloud Application”.

   • Voluminate opens in a new tab and asks you to sign up or sign in.
   • The Onshape connection then starts automatically: approve the access request in Onshape.
   • You land in your Voluminate workspace, already connected.
2. 2

   Or connect from inside Voluminate

   Alternative
   Skip this if you started from the App Store.

   • Sign up or sign in to Voluminate directly.
   • Click your avatar in the top-right corner, choose “App connections” and click “Connect Onshape”.
   • Approve the access request in Onshape.
   • You return to Voluminate and see the account you are connected as.
   
3. 3

   Upload a technical drawing

   In your workspace, upload a technical drawing (PDF or image). Voluminate creates a part from it.
   
4. 4

   Click Convert to 3D

   Open your uploaded part and click “Convert to 3D”.
   
5. 5

   Add optional part details

   In “Anything important about this part?”, you can add details for more accurate scaling.

   • Key dimensions, tolerances, specific features and the maximum dimension.
   • Click “Save & convert”, or choose “Skip & convert” if you have nothing to add.
   
6. 6

   Select AI CAD and convert

   In “Choose your output”, select “AI CAD” for the native Onshape feature-tree option, not “AI Preview”.

   • Confirm with the Convert button, which shows the price for your part.
   • When the run finishes, review the candidate models.
   • Native feature-tree delivery depends on the geometry; if it cannot be built natively, the automatic STEP fallback below applies.
   
7. 7

   Wait for the conversion to finish

   Depending on the part's complexity, the conversion can take up to 2 hours.

   • You can close the window.
   • You will receive an email once the conversion is complete.
   • If you don't receive an email within a few hours, check your spam folder.
8. 8

   Click “All files” above the 3D viewer

   On the part page, click “All files” at the top right of the 3D model panel, next to “Download STEP”.

   • The “Download files” dialog opens with one tab per candidate.
   • “Download STEP” only downloads the file and does not send anything to Onshape.
   
9. 9

   Pick the “Onshape feature tree” candidate and send it

   Select the candidate tab marked with the “Onshape feature tree” badge.

   • Under “Integrations”, click “Open in my Onshape”.
   • Voluminate saves the model to a new document in your Onshape account and adds the drawing annotations as Onshape comments automatically.
   • When the delivery is done, click “Open in Onshape” to open the document in a new tab.

   Note: Candidates without the badge can still be sent. They arrive in Onshape as STEP, without a feature tree or annotation comments.
   
10. 10

    Review the model and automatic annotation comments

    Inspect the Part Studio and its native feature tree.

    • Open the Comments panel to review the drawing annotations that Voluminate added automatically.
    • The annotations include drawing-defined details, inferred geometry and items needing review.
    • You do not need to create these comments yourself.