Coming Soon — Direct Machine Control
Web Serial machine control is on the Design Swiftly roadmap. The feature described in this article — connecting, jogging, and streaming G-Code to your CNC machine directly from the browser — is not yet available in the current release. This article covers the vision, the technology, and exactly what you can expect when it ships.
Today, running a CNC job means a pipeline of three separate applications: draw in your CAD tool, generate G-Code in your CAM tool, then open a third-party sender application (bCNC, UGS, CNCjs) to talk to your machine. Design Swiftly is building this into one browser tab.
The Technology: Web Serial API
Modern versions of Chrome and Edge ship with the Web Serial API — a browser-native way for a web page to open a serial port and communicate with USB devices. This is the same port your GRBL controller listens on.
Because Web Serial runs inside the browser sandbox, it requires no drivers (beyond the CH340/CP2102 USB-serial chip driver your machine already uses) and no server. The bytes go directly from the browser to your machine.
| What it replaces | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| bCNC, UGS, CNCjs, Candle | No separate install — everything stays in the browser tab |
| File → USB / SD card workflow | Stream G-Code directly from your design in real time |
| Manual $$ GRBL tuning via terminal | Visual settings editor with plain-language parameter names |
| Touch plate scripts | One-click Z-probe with automatic WCS origin set |
What Will Be Available at Launch
- Port connection — Chrome/Edge serial port picker, baud rate selector (default 115200), auto-reconnect
- Live DRO (Digital Read-Out) — real-time X, Y, Z position display with GRBL status (Idle / Run / Alarm / Hold)
- Jogging panel — arrow controls with 0.1 / 1 / 10 / 100mm step sizes; keyboard arrow key support
- Homing — G28 homing sequence with configurable homing direction
- Work origin (WCS) — jog to material corner, click Set Zero to define G54 origin
- Z-probe — touch-plate probing using G38.2 with auto work-Z offset
- G-Code streaming — line-by-line GRBL buffer management with progress bar, feed rate override, and emergency stop (Ctrl+X)
- GRBL settings editor — view and edit all
$$parameters with descriptions (step/mm, max feed, homing speed, soft limits) - Calibration helper — cut a test square, measure it, enter the size; wizard auto-calculates
$100–$102
Browser Compatibility
Web Serial API is only available in Chrome 89+ and Microsoft Edge 89+. Firefox and Safari do not support it. All CAD and CAM design features will continue to work in every browser.
What You Can Do Right Now
While machine control is in development, the full CAD/CAM workflow is available today:
- 1Design your parts using all CAD tools (shapes, text, SVG import, boolean ops)
- 2Generate G-Code in the Simulator tab — 6 strategies, 3D toolpath preview, multi-pass depth control
- 3Download the
.gcodefile and run it in your existing sender (bCNC, UGS, CNCjs) - 4Come back when machine control ships — your designs and G-Code workflows will be identical; you just won't need the separate sender anymore
Planned Machine Compatibility
The machine control module is being designed and tested against real hardware. Target compatibility at launch:
- GRBL 1.1 (Arduino Uno / Nano, most CNC shields)
- FluidNC (ESP32 GRBL variant, WiFi-capable boards)
- Marlin (3D printers, laser engravers running Marlin firmware)
- Compatible machines: any X-Carve, Shapeoko, Longmill, OpenBuilds, 3018 mini routers, SCULPFUN / xTool / Sculpfun laser engravers, custom GRBL Arduino builds
Design Swiftly is under active development with weekly updates. You can already design, generate G-Code, and export files — machine control is next on the roadmap.
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