Sketch-to-CAD · Gaskets & die-cut parts

Turn Gasket Sketches into CAD Drawings

LaunchAI converts gasket sketches, tracings and dimensioned part photos into CAD drawings. Create dimensioned DXF drawings with hole patterns and material notes. The drawing is built from the supplied measurements, notes and specifications. Unclear details are flagged for your team to review.

See your sketches converted to CAD See the approval screen

For inside sales, quote desks, CAD techs and plant managers at gasket fabricators, foam converters and die-cut part shops

Tuesday, 7:15. Somebody's plant is down.

It always starts the same way. A maintenance tech walked in at 6:50 with half an old gasket in a sandwich bag. Purchasing at a food plant sent an image (a fax, naturally) of a tracing done on the back of a work order, holes shaded in with pencil. A pump distributor emailed a phone photo of a gasket on a piece of cardboard with a tape measure that isn't quite flat. Somebody's buyer sent a 40-line spreadsheet for the annual re-quote, and a voicemail says "same as last time, but in Viton."

So you open AutoCAD. OD, ID, bolt circle, hole count, array the holes, decide if they straddle the centerline. Hold the tracing up to a 1:1 print and see where it doesn't line up, because it never lines up the first time. Pull the ASME chart to check whether this is really a 4" 150# flange or something close. Save the DXF, drop it in the nest to see how many come off a 36 x 36 sheet, look up the material, add setup, cut time, PSA if they want it, and a die charge if the quantity says steel rule. Then you price it in the ERP and do the next one.

None of it is hard for you. It's just the same twenty minutes, over and over, while the plant-down job is on hold and the shop across town is answering faster.

What the job looks like today

  1. Decode the tracing

    Which lines are the gasket, which are the pencil slipping, which holes were torn.

  2. Redraw it

    OD, ID, bolt circle, holes, array, by hand in CAD.

  3. Check it against the chart

    Is it really a 4" 150#, or something one size off?

  4. Nest and price

    Yield on the sheet, cut time, setup, PSA, die or no die.

  5. Chase the gaps

    Call about the material, the durometer, the quantity, the adhesive side.

Where it goes wrong

The tracing is honest. It's just tracing the wrong thing.

Most bad gaskets weren't cut wrong. They were drawn from a part that had already changed shape, or from a note that meant something else.

  • The old gasket crept

    A gasket that sat under bolt load for six years has flowed. Trace it and the ID is small, the OD is big, and the holes are ovals. Draw what's on the paper and the new one won't drop over the studs.

  • "PSA one side", which side?

    Adhesive on the back means the part gets kiss-cut on the liner face down. Draw it as seen from the flange and an asymmetric part comes out mirror image, all 2,000 of them.

  • "1/8 rubber" is not a material

    Red SBR, neoprene, EPDM, Buna-N or Viton? 60 or 70 durometer? Steam, oil or chlorine? The price swings several times over and the wrong compound fails in a week.

  • The PDF was printed to fit

    Someone hit "fit to page" before they scanned and sent the drawing. Every dimension you scale off it is a few percent small, and the holes miss the bolt circle by a hole width.

Why it's still manual

Software hasn't fixed this. Here's why.

Gasket shops have bought good machines. The quote still starts with someone redrawing a part from a tracing.

  • Your CAD and quoting software

    Waits for someone to type

    AutoCAD, SolidWorks and the parametric shapes in your cutting software are fast once you know the numbers. They don't read a pencil tracing, and they don't know the holes on it were torn.

  • Generic AI and OCR models

    Confidently wrong

    Paste an image of a tracing into a chat model and you get confident numbers: 8 - 3/4 holes becomes 8.75 holes, the "?" disappears, and a missing ID gets filled in with whatever looks round. Nothing tells you which numbers it guessed.

  • Image-to-CAD converters

    Traces lines, not intent

    Raster-to-vector tools trace the pencil line, wobble and all. You get a DXF of the tracing, at whatever scale the scanner used, with ovals where the bolt holes should be.

  • Measuring apps and configurators

    Only if everyone uses them

    Flatbed scanners, CADShot-style photo capture and optical comparators digitize the sample well. They still need the sample in your building, and they don't read the notes about material, PSA or quantity.

Written on the paperGeneric OCR / AI modelLaunchAI agent
8 - 3/4 holes 8.75 holes 8X Ø3/4" (.750) holes on the 7-1/2" bolt circle Count and size run together; a text reader merges them.
1/16 Neo 60 PSA 1S 1/16 Neo 60 PSA 15 1/16" neoprene, 60A, PSA one side Shop shorthand: "1S" is one side, not fifteen.
7½ BC 8H STR 7 1/2 BC 8H STR 8 holes on Ø7-1/2" BC, straddling the centerlines The text survives; the meaning, which places every hole, doesn't.

How the agent does it

From sketches to CAD drawings and layouts

LaunchAI converts the sketch and its measurements into CAD geometry, applies your drawing standards and prepares the related order information. Missing dimensions and unclear notes are flagged for your team to review.

AutoCADQ-26-1184 · Riverside Foods · 4" FF gasket Agent working · your login · this PC
GeneralDetailsPricingNotes
  • Full face, 4" Class 150 ← Tracing + bolt pattern
  • 9.00" ← Tracing, checked vs ASME
  • 4.50" ← Tracing, opened from 4.41"
  • Ø7.50" ← Hole centers on tracing
  • 8X Ø.750, straddle CL ← Note "8 holes 3/4?"
  • 1/8" EPDM, 60A ← Note on image + steam service
  • 50 · breaks 100, 250 ← Image header + your defaults
  • Flatbed knife, no die ← Your rule: under 500 pcs
Saved as draft. Nothing is sent until you approve.Send to review

  1. Reads what came in

    Tracings, images (faxed, texted, scanned) and spreadsheets: every dimension and note, each with a confidence score.

  2. Checks it against the standard

    Matches the pattern to ASME and your own part history, and corrects for a crushed or torn sample.

  3. Draws and nests it

    Builds the DXF in your CAD and drops it in your cutting software for yield and time.

  4. Asks only what it must

    No material on the image? It drafts the question to the buyer instead of picking one.

  5. You approve and send

    Confirm the one flagged hole size and the quote goes out.

Caught at the desk

Problems caught before the shop floor

Today the order bounces when someone hits save. The agent runs the same checks first, fills what it can from a trusted source, and brings you only the one thing that needs a person.

Today

Convert to order · quote #10482Failed rules 5

Quote incomplete · cannot price or release to cutting

  • Material compound not specified
  • Durometer missing
  • Thickness not confirmed
  • PSA side not specified
  • Quantity breaks missing

Verify the following

  • Traced hole size vs flange standard

With the agent

Agent checks · before review5/6 passed

  • Matches a standard flange

    OD 9, BC 7-1/2, 8 holes: a 4" Class 150 full-face pattern.

    Pass

  • Creep corrected

    Traced ID 4.41" opened to 4.50" per the standard; noted on the drawing.

    Pass

  • Hole size

    Written "3/4?". Torn holes on the tracing; drafted .750 per the standard. Confirm.

    Needs you

  • Holes straddle centerlines

    Hole centers on the tracing sit 22.5° off the vertical, as the standard calls for.

    Pass

  • Material fits the service

    EPDM for the steam and hot water note; no oil mentioned.

    Pass

  • Nest and price

    Nested on a 36" x 36" sheet; cut time and material priced at 50, 100 and 250.

    Pass

Human review

You approve the drawing, not the typing

The paperwork on one side, the agent's drawing on the other, and every value it read in between, with the one it's unsure of called out.

LaunchAI Portal · Reviews

Approval you asked for

Approve the Riverside Foods gasket quote Pending

The agent drew a 4" Class 150 full-face gasket from the image of the tracing, corrected the crushed ID, nested it and priced three quantities. One traced hole size needs confirmation.

Medium risk 1 of 43 in your queue Sketch to CAD · step 02.4 · Review gasket drawing

Agent suggests: Approve after confirming the .750 holes. OD, ID, bolt circle and hole count match the tracing and the flange standard; material follows the steam note.

Source sketchimage_WO22817_tracing.pdf
9" OD4½ ID 8 holes 3/4? 7½ BC EPDM qty 50 1/8 thk
4" FF gasket · Riverside FoodsOpen in AutoCAD
9.00" ODØ4.50 ID 8X Ø.750 STRADDLE CL Ø7.50 B.C. EPDM 60A · QTY 50 .125" THK Flange gasket · plan view · Rev A ● Preview synced just now

Dimensions read from sketch

  • OD“9" OD” 9.00"
  • ID“4½ ID” 4.50"
  • Bolt circle“7½ BC” Ø7.50"
  • HolesLooks like “8 holes 3/4?” 8X Ø.750
  • Thickness“1/8” .125"
  • Material“EPDM” EPDM 60A
Every value links back to where it was read on the sketch. Request changes Approve CAD

Inputs and outputs

Sketches and measure sheets in. CAD drawings out.

  • Pencil tracings, charcoal rubbings and images of flange sketches (faxed, texted, scanned)
  • Old gaskets and samples dropped at the counter or mailed in
  • Phone photos of a part with a tape or ruler in the frame
  • Customer PDFs and prints, including ones printed "fit to page"
  • Annual RFQ spreadsheets with dozens of part numbers
  • A clean, dimensioned DXF drawn in AutoCAD or SolidWorks, checked against the flange standard
  • Hole pattern, PSA side and liner orientation marked on the print
  • The part nested in your cutting software with yield and cut time
  • A priced quote in your ERP with quantity breaks and any die charge
  • A short question to the customer for anything the tracing can't tell you

Your numbers

What it gives back to your team

Change the numbers to match your shop.

Example values. Put in your own.

34hours back per week
1,700hours back per year (50 weeks)
0.8full-time people's worth of typing

today with the agent: review only

Your software

Create CAD drawings in your team's tools

LaunchAI converts sketches into drawings through your CAD and design workflow. Bring your software version, drawing standards and a sample sketch so we can confirm the conversion steps and outputs for your setup.

  • AutoCAD
  • SolidWorks
  • Zünd Cut Center
  • Esko ArtiosCAD
  • OMAX IntelliMAX
  • Global Shop Solutions
  • E2 Shop System
  • Email, text and fax inbox

FAQ

Gaskets & die-cut parts: questions we hear

Can it work from a pencil tracing or a charcoal rubbing?

Yes. It reads the outline, the hole positions and every note, then checks the pattern against flange standards and your past jobs. Where the tracing is torn, crushed or smudged, it says so and flags the value instead of drawing the damage.

We draw in AutoCAD and cut on a Zünd. Do we need an integration?

No. LaunchAI agents use your software through the screen with your team's logins: AutoCAD or SolidWorks for the drawing, your cutting software for the nest, your ERP for the price. Nothing to install on the machines.

What if the customer never says what material?

The agent never picks a compound for them. It drafts a short question to the buyer, and if you allow it, prices your usual default with the assumption printed on the quote.

Who signs off before anything gets cut?

Your quote desk or CAD tech. The agent prepares the drawing and price and stops. Nothing goes to the cutting table or the customer until someone approves it.

Can it handle die-cut and kiss-cut parts on rolls, not just flange gaskets?

Yes. Foam pads, PSA parts, kiss-cut on a liner, multi-layer laminates: it marks the adhesive side and liner orientation and applies your rules for when a steel rule die pays off.

What about the annual RFQ with 40 part numbers?

It works the spreadsheet line by line, matches what it can to parts you've made before, drafts the new ones, and gives you one review queue instead of 40 separate jobs.

Other industries

The same agent, other trades

Pools & outdoor living

Metal & fabrication

Kitchens, interiors & glass

Building products & structures

Signs, covers & soft goods

How the Sketch-to-CAD agent works

Send us last month's tracings and images.

See your gasket sketches converted into CAD drawings.

Get demo