AI+CAD Data Representation Architecture: From AI+CAD Solid Modeling to AI+CAD Industrial-Grade Parametric Feature Modeling
For researchers and developers in AI-driven CAD, this work provides a foundational data representation framework that targets the critical gap between academic AI+CAD and industrial requirements, though it is primarily a survey and analysis rather than a novel algorithmic contribution.
The paper addresses the strategic bottleneck of China's reliance on imported industrial CAD software by proposing a data representation architecture for AI+CAD that bridges the gap between current AI+CAD methods and industrial-grade parametric feature modeling. It reports a classification paradigm and analyzes how the WHUCAD three-level architecture supports industrial usability, contrasting with the limitations of DeepCAD.
In July 2025, Study Times, sponsored by the Party School of the Central Committee of the CPC, pointed out that 95% of industrial software for R&D and design in China relies on imports, and that 90% of the high-end CAD/CAE/CAM software market is monopolized by European and American giants. This is a typical strategic bottleneck problem. Unlike the visually oriented goal of "visual plausibility" pursued by related sister disciplines such as CV and CG, CAD places greater emphasis on "industrial usability". In CAD, data representation architecture is more foundational than the optimization of network algorithms. This paper first starts from data representation in AI+CAD and reports a classification paradigm and research progress in AI+CAD. Then, using the open-source DeepCAD data representation as an example, it analyzes the pain points of representative AI+CAD work and the gap between such work and real industrial-grade parametric feature modeling. Next, by comparison with the open-source WHUCAD data representation, it discusses how its three-level architecture provides fundamental support for industrial-grade parametric feature modeling. Finally, in view of the rapid iteration of the AI wave, large models, and agents, this paper offers an outlook on AI+industrial-grade CAD.