Artifacts. Your library of design-ready assets


The Artifacts section of Neurocad is where every component, symbol, footprint, and 3D model Neurocad has generated for you is stored. Each item is a persistent, versioned object you can preview, edit, organize, or send directly to your connected CAD and EDA tools.

What is an artifact?

An artifact is the output object Neurocad stores after a generation action completes. It is not a raw exported file. It is a system-registered object that holds the generated design output, a unique asset ID, creation metadata, an SVG preview, and a link back to the recipe or session that produced it.

Artifact types

  • Schematic symbols (from datasheet images or PDF sections)
  • PCB footprints (from datasheet images or PDF sections)
  • 3D models (from dimensioned mechanical drawings)

Each artifact renders first as an SVG preview so you can confirm the output visually before sending it anywhere.

Editing an artifact does not overwrite it. A new version is created and the original stays in the system with its full lineage intact. You can branch from any earlier version at any point.

Viewing artifacts

Artifact library — The scrollable list of every artifact your account has generated. Filter by domain, search by name, or right-click any row to view, edit, or move it.

Filter and search bar — Located above the library. Narrow the list by domain, artifact type, or name.

Preview window — A side panel that opens when you select any artifact. It shows the SVG preview inline without opening a separate page. From here you can open the full viewer, open the editor, or send the artifact to a connected application.

Creating an artifact

Create artifact (no recipe required)

Use the Create artifact button in the top-right corner of the Artifacts section. This opens a dedicated page for one-off generation.

  • Browse to your PDF or select an image file.
  • Select the section or image you want to use as the source.
  • Choose the artifact type: symbol, footprint, or 3D model.
  • Add a prompt describing what you want Neurocad to produce.
  • Hit go. The result appears as an SVG preview you can inspect before sending anywhere.

Recipe-based creation

A recipe is a node-based workflow configured on a canvas. When a recipe runs, the output is stored automatically as an artifact in your library.

Recipes scale. Once configured, a recipe can be triggered manually, on a schedule, or by an external event like a file drop, a Slack message, or a GitHub webhook.

Tip:  Write your prompt in the Library node with specific intent. “Extract the land pattern and pad dimensions from the BGA footprint on page 3” produces a better result than “extract the footprint.” The more precisely you describe what you’re looking at, the closer the output is to what you need.

Browsing and filtering the library

Your artifact library lists every result your recipes have produced plus anything you’ve created through the Create artifact page. Use the filter bar above the list to narrow results:

  • Domain — filter by ECAD, MCAD, or other categories as your library expands.
  • Type — filter to show only symbols, only footprints, or only 3D models.
  • Name search — type any part of the artifact name to find it directly.

Artifacts are named automatically based on the source file or automation run. You can rename any artifact manually — right-click the row and choose Edit, or open the artifact and update the name from the view page.

Use Collections to group artifacts you return to often. Right-click any row to add it to a collection. Collections appear alongside your library and let you assemble working sets without duplicating anything.

The preview window

Selecting any artifact in the library opens it in the preview window on the right side of the screen. The preview renders the SVG output inline so you can confirm what was generated before taking any further action.

From the preview window toolbar you can:

  • Open the full viewer for a larger view of the artifact.
  • Open the artifact editor.
  • Send the artifact to a connected CAD or EDA application.

You can also double-click any row in the library to open the artifact directly in the full viewer.

The artifact viewer and editor

The full viewer is your artifact canvas — a workspace where you can inspect the generated output in detail and make adjustments before sending it to a tool.

Opening the viewer

  • Double-click any artifact row in the library.
  • Click Open in the preview window toolbar.

The viewer page also shows the artifact’s creation date, the recipe it came from, all previous runs linked to that recipe, and any share links generated for the artifact.

Keyboard shortcuts

The artifact canvas supports keyboard shortcuts. A full shortcut reference menu is available inside the viewer — look for the keyboard icon in the toolbar.

Versioning

Editing an artifact is non-destructive. Every edit produces a new version; the original is preserved with its full lineage. You can branch from any earlier version at any point.

Note:  A full artifact editor with a roomy canvas, component moving, pin layout adjustment, pin renaming, and pin-to-pin distance measurement is in development and not yet available. The current viewer is a view and action surface.

Sending an artifact to your CAD tool

When you’re satisfied with the SVG preview, send the artifact to your design environment using Neurocad Link — the desktop service running in your system tray.

  • In the artifact view page, select your target machine from the machine dropdown.
  • Select the target application (Altium, Fusion 360, SolidWorks, etc.).
  • Confirm the application status indicator shows green, then click Send to Desktop.
  • Neurocad Link queues the artifact. A notification appears in the system tray. Navigate to the appropriate location in your CAD tool to access it.

Cross-machine send

Neurocad Link is cross-machine. If you’re on a Mac and your Altium installation is on a Windows machine, you can send artifacts to that machine as long as it’s logged into the same account in the desktop service. The artifact queues on the target machine — you choose when to bring it into your active design.

Note:  Neurocad Link queues artifacts rather than pushing directly into an open file. This is intentional — you review and choose when to emit each artifact. Multiple artifacts can be queued as a batch and drawn from over time.

What arrives in your CAD tool is native to that tool — a parametric model with a timeline in SolidWorks or Fusion, a schematic symbol or PCB footprint built natively in Altium. There is no intermediate file format and no translation step.

Pinning artifacts for reuse

Any artifact can be pinned to a recipe. Pinned artifacts appear at the top of the recipe’s artifact list with an inline preview and can be dragged directly onto the recipe canvas as node inputs.

Once pinned, the recipe works from the artifact’s stable asset ID rather than re-running generation from a source image. Recipes built on pinned artifacts are faster and more reliable.

Sharing artifacts

Any artifact can be shared via a link from its view page. Every share event is tracked — links are listed at the bottom of the artifact page and are not overwritten. You can see the full history of where an artifact has been shared.

Folder-level permissions and organization-wide management are planned and not yet available.

Generating artifacts at scale

Recipes can generate artifacts in bulk. Common automation patterns:

  • Point a recipe at a folder of datasheets — generate all symbols, footprints, and 3D models automatically.
  • Upload a bill of materials — Neurocad fetches the datasheets, processes them, and returns a complete artifact collection.
  • Connect a Slack integration — drop an image and a command word in a channel and receive the artifact without leaving Slack.
  • Attach a GitHub webhook — a file change in your repo triggers a recipe run and produces an artifact.

See Recipe automations for setup instructions.

Troubleshooting

The artifact doesn’t look right

Rewrite your prompt with more specific intent. Name the exact component type, page number, and what you want extracted. If the output is structurally wrong rather than imprecise, try cropping the source image more tightly before re-running.

Check that your source file type is compatible with the recipe preset you’re using. A Library preset generates symbols and footprints — it will not produce a 3D model.

The application isn’t appearing in the Send to Desktop list

Open Neurocad Link in your system tray and confirm it is running and logged into the same account. Confirm the target CAD or EDA application is open on the target machine. Check the status indicator — a red indicator means the connection is not active.

Still need help?

support@neurocad.com

Last updated June 1, 2026