The NIST Engineering Design Model Repository provides a public-domain collection of industry-relevant CAD models. This collection can be leveraged for various computer-supported research activities, including but not limited to validating Artificial Intelligence (AI-)based shape search methods, testing automated meshing techniques, testing compatability of modern Computer-Aided Design (CAD) platforms with legacy file formats, and validating file format tranlsation procedures.
In the mid-1990s, a NIST-led project produced a repository that provided a large variety of parts, in native and neutral formats, from industrial collaborators. The original repository eventually became un-hosted by NIST. Due to recently renewed interest in the dataset, particularly by parties interested in Model-Based Enterprise (MBE) and Long-Term Archival (LOTAR), the original repository has been uploaded here as a GitHub repository.
The data is provided as-is. Some files from the original repository may not be included - they may be lost to the ages. While many of the files may not open in modern CAD applications, it is not the intent for this repository to resolve these issues.
William Bernstein | william.bernstein@nist.gov | NIST Page
Regli, W. C., & Gaines, D. M. (1997). A repository for design, process planning and assembly. Computer-Aided Design, 29(12), 895-905. doi:10.1016/s0010-4485(97)00028-6
https://www.nist.gov/publications/repository-design-process-planning-and-assembly
(where the repository data used to be located)
Snapshot of the original http://www.parts.nist.gov
Special thanks to Bill Regli for his foresight to create a hard-copy backup of the repository and then for his determined efforts to find these backups many years later.