Imagine Mode
Up to four rendered concepts for an open-ended request. Nothing is modelled until you pick one.
What it produces
A set of up to 4 concept cards, generated together. The panel shows the four cells while it works, under the progress line "Generating design concepts…".
Each card carries a rendered image, a title, and four fields you can open under Details: What it is, Key specs, Why it fits, and How it’s built.
Under the set are two actions: Pick one to model it and Refine my request.
If a render fails to come back, that card still arrives, marked render unavailable. The concept itself is unaffected.
When you get concepts and when you get an answer
Imagine does not turn every message into concepts. The rule is fixed, and it decides what your next turn costs.
- A message containing any of design, build, model, make, create, generate, concept, idea, option, variant, version, sketch, propose, brainstorm, show me, come up with, lay out or mock up always produces concepts.
- Otherwise a message that ends in a question mark, or opens with what, who, why, when, where, which, how, is, are, was, were, do, does, did, should, would, explain, tell me or define, is answered as a question instead.
So "design a bracket for this motor" gives you four concepts, and "what would you use for this bracket?" gives you an answer.
Worked examples
- Design a wall mount for this enclosure that survives a 4 g shock load.
- Four concepts with different load paths, each with its key specs and a build strategy, each rendered.
- Show me three options for the handle on this housing.
- Concepts, because "show me" is one of the design words. A named count between 2 and 4 is honoured, so this returns three. Anything outside that range is clamped into it.
- What are my options for fastening these two plates?
- A written answer, not concepts. It ends in a question mark and carries no design word.
- Come up with a lighter version of this bracket.
- Concepts built against the open document, so the envelope and interfaces of the existing part are the brief.
Picking a concept
Picking one rewrites the turn to Agent Mode and builds it. What goes across is your original brief, the concept’s title, summary and key specs, and the render itself as an attached image.
That build starts without an approval prompt, whatever your Approval preference says, because picking the concept was the approval. If you want the steps first, ask for the same thing in Plan Mode instead.
Refine my request dismisses the set. The reply asks for what would sharpen it, loads, envelope, interfaces and materials, or offers to build a design you describe yourself.
A set does not wait forever. After 30 minutes the pending selection is dropped, and clicking a card then answers "These concepts are no longer available" and asks you to send the brief again.
What it cannot do
- Change anything on its own. Imagine is read-only until you pick a card, and then it is Agent Mode that builds.
- Propose concepts mid-build. Concepts are for the start of an open-ended request, not for a run already underway.
- Propose again in the same request. Once a concept is picked, that turn builds it rather than offering a fresh set.
- Run against a drawing. With a drawing as the active document the turn routes to Drawings Mode instead.
Concepts draw down credits like any other turn, and the quota is checked before the set is generated.
Where to go next
- You picked one and want to know what happens next: Agent Mode.
- You want the build steps before anything runs: Plan Mode.
- You have a sketch or a photo of the idea instead: attachments.