FreeCAD 1.1 on The Raspberry Pi 5
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FreeCAD: A Free and Open Source Design Program
It's hard to describe CAD software to those who aren't familiar, but just know it makes the world go around by allowing people to design objects and then bring them to life. CAD, or computer aided design software is software that basically replaces hand drawn blueprints and plans with a computer generated version. You draw out your various things on the screen, using the computer to get perfect lines and such. It's far easier and more convenient to use than paper for more complex designs. It's blueprint creation software, essentially. It also makes detailed 3D models of stuff.
My goal here is to make it easier for people to get this software running on the cheap Raspberry Pi 5 computer.
Start here at the official FreeCAD website for a ton more info. FreeCAD 1.1 has become a very feature rich program that can even be used to pass industry standard CAD certification exams.
How to run FreeCAD 1.1_RC2 on a Raspberry Pi 5 running Raspberry Pi OS Trixie
1) Download the file from the link below.
https://github.com/FreeCAD/FreeCAD/releases/tag/1.1rc2
Note: the above link is just for this specific version. Click here for the main releases page where you can see the latest versions. Just click "Assets" under each section to get to the downloads page. You want the file with "Linux-aarch64" in the name. That's the one that will run on the Raspberry Pi.
2) Put the appimage file into whatever folder you want. I created "/home/dustin/Software" for my new software. You can also just leave it in the downloads folder if you really want.
3) Right click on the new file and click "Properties", then click the "Permissions" tab. Change the "Execute" field from "Nobody" to "Anyone".
4) Double click on the file to start the software and start using it. It should just start and run.
Another note on installing on the Raspberry Pi: While you can just use the command "sudo apt install freecad" in the terminal to install Freecad on the Pi, you might not get the latest version. In my case, I got version 1.0, which is lacking massive feature updates of version 1.1. This forced me to seek out the newest version.
Education Resources for FreeCAD
Here are some places to get started with FreeCAD, whether you're running it on a Raspberry Pi or not.
The above playlist is from my YouTube channel, and will be update as I get into FreeCAD and find useful stuff.
That's all I have for now, but I will update this as needed. I just started workong on FreeCAD yesterday, at the time of this writing.
Notes on Hardware Requirements
The software, while running well on most computers, can require significant hardware upgrades to run well on a Raspberry Pi 5 system. It's recommended to have at least 8GB of RAM, as well as overclocking the Pi to 3.0Ghz. I have yet to run it without my dedicated graphics card in use, so I can't be sure it will work without one. I have verified it runs well using an AMD Radeon RX 460 4GB graphics card. These can be had on ebay for around $60 USD, shipping included, at the time of this writing. It's an old card, but works very well with the Raspberry Pi. Anything from the Radeon 400 (Polaris) or newer AMD series will work. It will require extra hardware and some software tweaking. FreeCAD MIGHT work on a stock Raspberry Pi 5 8GB, but I have yet to confirm it.
As not everyone using the Pi 5 has a dedicated graphics card, I'll leave an excellent link with instructions on getting it working. I'll create or find a guide on getting the hardware working later.
Using AMD GPUs on Raspberry Pi without recompiling Linux
The instructions in the link above assume you have some previous Linux and command line experience. If not, I'm sorry and will work on making this easier in the future. I assume many people who find their way here will at least know some of the basics.
To overclock the Raspberry Pi 5 safely, making it run faster, follow the link below to yet another Jeff Geerling post. This guy knows his stuff.
Overclocking and *Underclocking* the Raspberry Pi 5
My CAD History
Around 2010, I started using AutoCAD design software in high school as part of my mechanical drawing class. I rather enjoyed the process of using a computer to draw detailed blueprints of things like brackets, houses, and tools.
After high school, I went to college for a short while, where I encountered AutoCAD again. Both times I used the software, it was either paid for by the school, or provided for free to the school. When I got out of college and wanted to get a copy of AutoCAD for myself, I was stunned by the price. It was far cheaper in 2012, but still out of reach for me at the time. I ended up giving up my CAD dreams for a long time, until I searched again in 2018 or so. I tested some free and open source Linux CAD programs, but never found one I actually liked or wanted to use, until very recently.
I've been watching FreeCAD for years, waiting until I had the time and energy to learn it, as well as waiting for the software to get to a certain point. Recently, with the release of FreeCAD 1.1, it finally reached a level I'm happy to embrace. Learning new software can be completely overwhelming, especially software like the various CAD/CAM programs. These software suites are as powerful as they are complicated. Nearly impossible to just pick up and start learning without previous experience. I've spent a fair bit of time gaining formal knowledge of the basic principles of design and such, but it's still a massive hurdle for me. Learning a new CAD program will likely take years of my life.
Choosing FreeCAD was not an easy decision, due to my list of requirements. It has to be free and open source. It has to work natively on Linux. It has to have a massive user base for getting help, learning new things, and keeping the project alive. It can't require an always on internet connection. It has to run on low end hardware. Last, but not least, it has to run on a Raspberry Pi 5, as that is my main computer these days, and likely will be for the foreseeable future. I've found it impossible to meet all of these requirements in the past, until just a few minutes ago. I was able to download the latest release for ARM based Linux computers, make the file executable with a few clicks, and then just run and use the program. It just worked. This is a huge win for me and the Raspberry Pi. With every new software package that gains support for the Raspberry Pi, the little computer gets another step closer to being a real and viable option as an every day computer for the masses.
Having a viable free and open source CAD program like this is incredible. It can cost thousands of dollars per year to pay for a CAD subscription license. Even more so if you're using the software for commercial use. I've seen it go into the thousands of dollars per MONTH, range. This single free and open source software project very nicely demonstrates the importance and power of open source software, The world runs on CAD software, and now it's available to everyone. Even those using super weird, cheap, low power computers that you can buy in the thousands at a time. Like a Raspberry PI.
Next Steps
Currently I do not have the knowledge required to make good use of this software. Having it running well on my main computer is a huge motivator to learn the skills. I've already started compiling resources to help me get up to speed. The plan is to use FreeCAD to design the various objects I need to finish some of my more advanced projects, like a custom cartridge based computer system and game console. I need to design the 3D files that will let me have the case and cartridges 3D printed, and eventually injection molded for mass manufacturing, assuming the project gets that far. I'll start by designing a simple, useful object that I can send to a manufacturer and have a few copies made. This is just to get myself familiar with the entire process, from design to manufacture, to testing, to daily use. Normally, the next step would be to learn how to compile the software directly for the Raspberry Pi, but this is such a large project, with so many good people working on it, that I just don't have to. Someone created the file I needed already, and it just works. I really don't have anything left to do, other than just use the software and practice.
I'll be slowly learning the software and following its development. I haven't been this excited for a software release in a long time. I hope some of you found this helpful.