name

recreate-scientific-figure-in-drawio

description

Recreate, trace, revise, inspect, or export static scientific figures and schematic illustrations live inside the visible draw.io desktop canvas through draw.io's own graph API. Use when the user wants to watch an MCP draw a reference figure step by step in draw.io, explicitly rejects XML-first generation or operating-system mouse/screen control, provides a PNG/JPEG/SVG/PDF reference to rebuild as editable draw.io geometry, requests targeted live changes, or needs final .drawio/PNG/SVG/PDF/JPG deliverables.

Recreate Scientific Figures in draw.io

Use the plugin's live MCP tools whose names end in drawio_live_launch, drawio_live_status, drawio_live_screenshot, drawio_live_add_shape, drawio_live_add_edge, drawio_live_update_cell, drawio_live_draw_sequence, drawio_live_fit, drawio_live_inspect, and drawio_live_save_snapshot. Use file tools ending in drawio_validate and drawio_export only after the visible drawing has been saved.

Hard boundary

Control only draw.io's internal graph/model API through the live MCP server.
Never use operating-system mouse, keyboard, window, or full-screen automation for this workflow.
Never pre-build XML and then open it as the drawing method. Serialize .drawio only after live shapes and edges already exist on the visible canvas.
Renderer screenshots are allowed only to inspect the draw.io canvas itself; they are not general computer-screen control.

Workflow

Inspect every provided reference image with vision before creating XML. For a PDF, render the relevant page first. Do not merely embed the raster image and call it recreated.
Decompose the figure into editable primitives: canvas/aspect ratio, panels, containers, nodes, text, arrows, legends, repeated motifs, colors, stroke widths, fonts, and z-order. Identify any portions that must remain raster because draw.io primitives cannot reproduce them faithfully.
Call drawio_live_launch with a visible per-step delay, normally 400–1000 ms. Call drawio_live_status and require graph_ready=true before drawing.
Add geometry directly to the live canvas:
- Use drawio_live_add_shape and drawio_live_add_edge for one deliberate visible step at a time.
- Use drawio_live_draw_sequence only with a nonzero step_delay_ms; each operation must remain a separate draw.io model update so the user can watch it appear.
- Use stable semantic cell ids from the beginning so later edges and edits can target exact elements.
Call drawio_live_screenshot after each logical section, not after every trivial cell. Inspect only the draw.io renderer and compare it with the reference.
Iterate directly in the live graph. Use drawio_live_inspect followed by drawio_live_update_cell for labels, styles, position, and size. Use drawio_live_fit to keep progress visible.
After the visible figure is complete, call drawio_live_save_snapshot. This is the first point at which .drawio XML should be serialized.
Call drawio_validate. Fix structural errors through the live graph when possible, then save again.
Export a review PNG with embed=false and width=2000. Check element count, wording, topology, alignment, overlap, clipping, arrow direction, color, whitespace, and correspondence to the reference.
After approval, export the requested deliverables. Default to an editable .drawio plus PNG. Use embed=true for final PNG/SVG/PDF so draw.io XML remains embedded where supported.

Fidelity rules

Match scientific meaning before decoration: labels, relationships, directionality, grouping, and panel structure must be correct.
Recreate text as text and arrows as connectors; do not flatten them into a screenshot.
Keep coordinates on a 10 px grid unless matching the reference requires finer placement.
Use consistent fonts, stroke widths, arrowheads, corner radii, and semantic colors.
Route connectors around unrelated shapes. Pin entry/exit points where multiple edges share a node.
For microscopy, photographs, heatmaps, molecular renderings, or dense plotted data, explain that the live API currently focuses on editable draw.io primitives. Add a dedicated live image-insertion operation before attempting hybrid figures; do not silently fall back to XML-first construction.
If a reference is ambiguous or too low-resolution to read, state the uncertain labels/elements instead of inventing them.

Delivery

Return clickable paths for the .drawio source and each export. State validation status and briefly identify any intentionally rasterized portions.

Recreate Scientific Figures in draw.io

Hard boundary

Control only draw.io's internal graph/model API through the live MCP server.

Never use operating-system mouse, keyboard, window, or full-screen automation for this workflow.

Never pre-build XML and then open it as the drawing method. Serialize .drawio only after live shapes and edges already exist on the visible canvas.

Renderer screenshots are allowed only to inspect the draw.io canvas itself; they are not general computer-screen control.

Workflow

Inspect every provided reference image with vision before creating XML. For a PDF, render the relevant page first. Do not merely embed the raster image and call it recreated.

Decompose the figure into editable primitives: canvas/aspect ratio, panels, containers, nodes, text, arrows, legends, repeated motifs, colors, stroke widths, fonts, and z-order. Identify any portions that must remain raster because draw.io primitives cannot reproduce them faithfully.

Call drawio_live_launch with a visible per-step delay, normally 400–1000 ms. Call drawio_live_status and require graph_ready=true before drawing.

Add geometry directly to the live canvas:

Use drawio_live_add_shape and drawio_live_add_edge for one deliberate visible step at a time.
Use drawio_live_draw_sequence only with a nonzero step_delay_ms; each operation must remain a separate draw.io model update so the user can watch it appear.
Use stable semantic cell ids from the beginning so later edges and edits can target exact elements.

Call drawio_live_screenshot after each logical section, not after every trivial cell. Inspect only the draw.io renderer and compare it with the reference.

Iterate directly in the live graph. Use drawio_live_inspect followed by drawio_live_update_cell for labels, styles, position, and size. Use drawio_live_fit to keep progress visible.

After the visible figure is complete, call drawio_live_save_snapshot. This is the first point at which .drawio XML should be serialized.

Call drawio_validate. Fix structural errors through the live graph when possible, then save again.

Export a review PNG with embed=false and width=2000. Check element count, wording, topology, alignment, overlap, clipping, arrow direction, color, whitespace, and correspondence to the reference.

After approval, export the requested deliverables. Default to an editable .drawio plus PNG. Use embed=true for final PNG/SVG/PDF so draw.io XML remains embedded where supported.

Fidelity rules

Match scientific meaning before decoration: labels, relationships, directionality, grouping, and panel structure must be correct.

Recreate text as text and arrows as connectors; do not flatten them into a screenshot.

Keep coordinates on a 10 px grid unless matching the reference requires finer placement.

Use consistent fonts, stroke widths, arrowheads, corner radii, and semantic colors.

Route connectors around unrelated shapes. Pin entry/exit points where multiple edges share a node.

For microscopy, photographs, heatmaps, molecular renderings, or dense plotted data, explain that the live API currently focuses on editable draw.io primitives. Add a dedicated live image-insertion operation before attempting hybrid figures; do not silently fall back to XML-first construction.

If a reference is ambiguous or too low-resolution to read, state the uncertain labels/elements instead of inventing them.

Delivery

Return clickable paths for the .drawio source and each export. State validation status and briefly identify any intentionally rasterized portions.