Packaging Workbench for FreeCAD

Parametric design of cardboard boxes and dielines following FEFCO standards. An open-source alternative to commercial packaging CAD.

🇮🇹 Italiano · 🇬🇧 English

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🇮🇹 Italiano

Cos'è Packaging?

Packaging è un workbench per FreeCAD 1.0+ per la progettazione parametrica di scatole in cartone secondo gli standard FEFCO, con generazione automatica della fustella 2D (piano di taglio) esportabile in DXF. Colma un vuoto del mondo open source: finora il packaging in cartone richiedeva software commerciali costosi (ArtiosCAD, Picador).

Caratteristiche

• Tre tipi di scatola FEFCO supportati (0201, 0301, 0713)
• Geometria 3D scoppiata parametrica (alette aperte a 90°, chiaramente leggibile)
• Generazione fustella 2D piatta con layer separati Cut / Crease / Perforation
• Export DXF nativo (tramite l'importatore di FreeCAD)
• Tutte le scatole sono parametriche: cambia Length / Width / Height (e gli altri parametri) e la scatola si rigenera automaticamente
• Nessuna dipendenza esterna: usa solo i moduli core di FreeCAD

Installazione (manuale)

1. Scarica o clona il repository.

2. Copia (o crea un collegamento) la cartella nella Mod di FreeCAD — attenzione alla versione:

   • Windows FreeCAD 1.0.x: %APPDATA%\FreeCAD\Mod\Packaging
   • Windows FreeCAD 1.1.x: %APPDATA%\FreeCAD\v1-1\Mod\Packaging
   • Linux: ~/.local/share/FreeCAD/Mod/Packaging
   • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/FreeCAD/Mod/Packaging

   Su Windows una junction non richiede privilegi di amministratore:

   New-Item -ItemType Junction `
     -Path "$env:APPDATA\FreeCAD\Mod\Packaging" `
     -Target "C:\percorso\a\PackagingWorkbench"

3. Riavvia FreeCAD.

4. Seleziona il workbench Packaging dal selettore.

Una volta pubblicato, sarà installabile anche tramite l'Addon Manager.

Uso rapido

1. Attiva il workbench Packaging.
2. Clicca FEFCO 0201 box (o 0301 / 0713): la scatola 3D parametrica compare nel documento.
3. Nel pannello Data modifica Length / Width / Height / Thickness: la scatola si rigenera.
4. Seleziona la scatola e clicca Generate dieline: la fustella 2D piatta appare sotto la scatola, con i layer Cut (rosso) / Crease (blu) / Perforation.
5. Esporta la fustella: seleziona il gruppo *_Dieline → File → Esporta → .dxf.

Tipi di scatole supportati

Codice	Nome	Descrizione
FEFCO 0201	Regular Slotted Container	La classica "scatola americana"
FEFCO 0301	Tray and Lid	Vassoio + coperchio (due pezzi)
FEFCO 0713	Tuck-end carton	Astuccio retail con linguette a infilare

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🇬🇧 English

What is Packaging?

Packaging is a FreeCAD 1.0+ workbench for the parametric design of cardboard boxes following FEFCO standards, with automatic 2D dieline (cutting plan) generation exportable to DXF. It fills an open-source gap: cardboard packaging design previously required expensive commercial software (ArtiosCAD, Picador).

Features

• Three FEFCO box types supported (0201, 0301, 0713)
• Parametric exploded 3D geometry (flaps opened at 90°, easy to read)
• Flat 2D dieline generation with separate Cut / Crease / Perforation layers
• Native DXF export (via FreeCAD's importer)
• Every box is parametric: change Length / Width / Height (and the other parameters) and it rebuilds automatically
• No external dependencies: uses only FreeCAD core modules

Installation (manual)

1. Download or clone the repository.

2. Copy (or link) the folder into FreeCAD's Mod directory — mind the version:

   • Windows FreeCAD 1.0.x: %APPDATA%\FreeCAD\Mod\Packaging
   • Windows FreeCAD 1.1.x: %APPDATA%\FreeCAD\v1-1\Mod\Packaging
   • Linux: ~/.local/share/FreeCAD/Mod/Packaging
   • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/FreeCAD/Mod/Packaging

   On Windows a junction does not require administrator rights:

   New-Item -ItemType Junction `
     -Path "$env:APPDATA\FreeCAD\Mod\Packaging" `
     -Target "C:\path\to\PackagingWorkbench"

3. Restart FreeCAD.

4. Pick the Packaging workbench from the selector.

Once published, it will also be installable through the Addon Manager.

Quick start

1. Activate the Packaging workbench.
2. Click FEFCO 0201 box (or 0301 / 0713): the parametric 3D box appears.
3. In the Data panel change Length / Width / Height / Thickness: the box rebuilds.
4. Select the box and click Generate dieline: the flat 2D dieline appears below the box, with Cut (red) / Crease (blue) / Perforation layers.
5. Export it: select the *_Dieline group → File → Export → .dxf.

Supported box types

Code	Name	Description
FEFCO 0201	Regular Slotted Container	The classic "American" shipping box
FEFCO 0301	Tray and Lid	Tray + cover (two pieces)
FEFCO 0713	Tuck-end carton	Retail carton with tuck-in flaps

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Screenshots

(Add your screenshots under docs/screenshots/.)

Development / Testing

The test suite runs under a plain Python interpreter (FreeCAD's API is mocked), so no FreeCAD installation is required to run it:

python -m unittest discover -s tests -p "test_*.py"

Style: black --line-length 100 and ruff. Code and comments in English; user-facing documentation in Italian + English.

License

LGPL-2.1-or-later — see the LICENSE file.

Contributing

Pull requests are welcome. Please keep the existing conventions (Conventional Commits, one feature branch per change) and make sure the test suite stays green.