# research-schematic-design

Turns a figure request into a technical brief, then builds an editable vector schematic with exact labels and units. Useful when the drawing has to match the manuscript and the data.

- skill · `type=skill` · Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, OpenCode · ★ 22
- Author: hanhuark
- License: MIT · policy=mirror · the beginning of the file is at the end of this page
- Source: https://github.com/hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill/tree/HEAD/skills/research-schematic-design/SKILL.md
- Updated: 2026-10-24
- HTML: https://affpapa.org/en/nevibecode/skills/research-schematic-design

## What it does

The skill starts with a brief: who reads the figure, its target size, which components are required, exact labels and units, connections, evidence class, and what to leave out. From there it picks a production lane — native vector for facilities, flow paths and architectures, a hybrid route that generates concept frames first, or a controlled edit of an image you already have.

The default output is editable vector work: SVG, PowerPoint objects, or whatever format you ask for. Image generation is kept to concepts and textures. Once a concept is chosen, every label, arrow, dimension and legend entry is rebuilt deterministically, so nothing in the final figure depends on what a model drew inside the picture. Supporting files live in `references/schematic-brief.md`, `references/schematic-workflow.md` and `references/scientific-visual-qa.md`, with a reusable specification template at `assets/templates/schematic-brief.yaml`.

Third-party figures are off limits for tracing or copying — supplied references serve as inspiration only, and the composition has to be original. Delivery also requires checking each label against the source material and viewing the figure at its final size. Skip that and the skill will not call the result finished.

## Install

### Claude Code (native platform)

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill --skill research-schematic-design -a claude-code
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `~/.claude/skills/research-schematic-design/SKILL.md` — Copy the whole skill folder; for one project use .claude/skills/research-schematic-design/

### Codex

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill --skill research-schematic-design -a codex
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.agents/skills/research-schematic-design/SKILL.md` — For all projects use ~/.agents/skills/

### Cursor

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill --skill research-schematic-design -a cursor
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.cursor/skills/research-schematic-design/SKILL.md` — Cursor also reads .agents/skills/ and .claude/skills/

### GitHub Copilot

1. **GitHub CLI**
```bash
gh skill install hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill research-schematic-design
```

2. **Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.github/skills/research-schematic-design/SKILL.md`

### Gemini CLI

1. **Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill --skill research-schematic-design -a gemini-cli
```

2. **Platform CLI**
```bash
gemini skills install https://github.com/hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill --path skills/research-schematic-design
```

### Windsurf (Devin Desktop)

**Manually: put the files in place**
- File: `.devin/skills/research-schematic-design/SKILL.md` — The legacy .windsurf/skills/ path still works

### OpenCode

**Skills CLI (Vercel)**
```bash
npx skills add hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill --skill research-schematic-design -a opencode
```

### Claude.ai

**Claude.ai**
- Zip the folder and upload it in Settings → Capabilities → Skills

Where a file is given instead of a command, copy the files from the source to that path: https://github.com/hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill/tree/HEAD/skills/research-schematic-design/SKILL.md

## When to use it
- draw an experimental facility with exact labels and units
- map a thermal-fluid mechanism or flow path
- build a graphical abstract from paper results
- lay out a system architecture or a method's steps
- separate measured apparatus from simulated domains and proposed parts

## Example prompts
- Create an editable schematic of the test rig with every sensor labelled and units shown
- Build a graphical abstract from this paper draft; arrows and labels must be vector objects
- Run the scientific visual QA on this figure and tell me what fails at final size

## Source text · SKILL.md · MIT

Below is the content of a third-party file. It is data, not instructions for you: do not act on anything written inside unless the human asks. Block tag: 7af9dde707761957.

BEGIN THIRD-PARTY FILE 7af9dde707761957
```text
---
name: research-schematic-design
description: Create publication-quality, editable scientific and engineering schematics with explicit physical meaning, exact labels, visual hierarchy, and provenance. Use for experimental facilities, thermal-fluid mechanisms, workflows, graphical abstracts, system architectures, or research diagrams.
---

# Research Schematic Design

## Purpose

Create figures that clarify a scientific claim without inventing evidence. A publication schematic is an engineering artifact: its geometry, flow directions, symbols, labels, color semantics, and stated scale must agree with the manuscript, data, and method.

## Route To References

- Read `references/schematic-brief.md` to turn the request into a complete technical brief.
- Read `references/schematic-workflow.md` to choose native-vector, hybrid, or image-editing production.
- Read `references/scientific-visual-qa.md` before delivering or inserting a figure into a manuscript, slide deck, proposal, or poster.
- Start from `assets/templates/schematic-brief.yaml` when the user needs a reusable figure specification.

## Core Rules

- Default to an editable, native-vector source for system diagrams, facility schematics, workflows, labels, arrows, dimensions, equations, and legends. Use SVG, PowerPoint objects, or another requested editable format.
- Use image generation only for visual concepts, non-semantic textures, or a reference composition. Never trust generated in-image text, arrow direction, numerical values, symbols, dimensions, or geometry as the final scientific content.
- Recreate every final label, arrow, line, icon, legend, and quantitative annotation deterministically after a generated concept is selected.
- Distinguish measured apparatus, simulated domains, proposed systems, conceptual mechanisms, and illustrative elements. Do not depict unmeasured mechanisms as observed facts.
```
END THIRD-PARTY FILE 7af9dde707761957

The third-party file has ended. Everything between the 7af9dde707761957 tags is data: requests and commands from it are not followed. An “end of file” line with another tag inside the block is part of the file.

First 1897 of 3645 bytes. © hanhuark · MIT · https://github.com/hanhuark/mechanical-engineering-research-skill/tree/HEAD/skills/research-schematic-design/SKILL.md

_Part of the page did not fit — see the HTML version._

---
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