Rhino3D MCP server

RhinoMCP connects Rhino3D to Claude AI via the Model Context Protocol (MCP), enabling AI-assisted 3D modeling. This integration allows Claude to interact with and control Rhino3D directly, supporting tasks like curve creation and Python script execution within Rhino.

Requirements

• Rhinoceros 3D (Version 7 or 8)
• Python 3.10 or higher
• Windows 10 or 11

Installation

Using uv (Recommended)

# Create and activate a virtual environment 
mkdir -p .venv
uv venv .venv
source .venv/Scripts/activate  # On Windows with Git Bash

# Install the package
uv pip install -e .

Using pip

# Create and activate a virtual environment
python -m venv .venv
.venv\Scripts\activate  # On Windows

# Install the package
pip install -e .

Getting Started

Step 1: Set Up the Rhino Bridge

1. Open Rhino
2. Type EditPythonScript in the command line to open Rhino's Python editor
3. Open the Rhino server script from src/rhino_plugin/rhino_server.py
4. Run the script (F5 or click the Run button)
5. Look for "Rhino Bridge started!" in the output panel to confirm it's running

Step 2: Launch the MCP Server

# Activate your virtual environment
source .venv/Scripts/activate  # On Windows with Git Bash

# Start the MCP server with default settings
rhinomcp

Custom Server Configuration

To run with custom settings:

rhinomcp --host 127.0.0.1 --port 5000 --rhino-host 127.0.0.1 --rhino-port 8888 --debug

Connecting Claude AI

Configuration

Configure Claude Desktop or Windsurf to connect to your MCP server:

ws://127.0.0.1:5000

Using Claude with Rhino

Once connected, you can ask Claude to perform operations in Rhino. For example:

• Creating a NURBS curve: "Create a NURBS curve in Rhino using points at (0,0,0), (5,10,0), (10,0,0), and (15,10,0)."
• Running Python scripts: "Execute a Python script to create a grid of circles in Rhino."
• Analyzing geometry: "Measure the surface area of all visible objects in the Rhino viewport."

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

• Connection errors: Ensure both the Rhino Bridge server and MCP server are running
• No response from Rhino: Check that the Rhino script is running in the Python editor
• Claude can't connect: Verify the WebSocket URL is correctly configured in Claude

Connection Verification

To verify your setup is working:

1. Check that the Rhino Python editor shows "Rhino Bridge started!"
2. Confirm the MCP server console shows "Server started at ws://127.0.0.1:5000"
3. When Claude connects, you should see a connection message in the MCP server console

How to add this MCP server to Cursor

There are two ways to add an MCP server to Cursor. The most common way is to add the server globally in the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file so that it is available in all of your projects.

If you only need the server in a single project, you can add it to the project instead by creating or adding it to the .cursor/mcp.json file.

Adding an MCP server to Cursor globally

To add a global MCP server go to Cursor Settings > MCP and click "Add new global MCP server".

When you click that button the ~/.cursor/mcp.json file will be opened and you can add your server like this:

{
    "mcpServers": {
        "cursor-rules-mcp": {
            "command": "npx",
            "args": [
                "-y",
                "cursor-rules-mcp"
            ]
        }
    }
}

Adding an MCP server to a project

To add an MCP server to a project you can create a new .cursor/mcp.json file or add it to the existing one. This will look exactly the same as the global MCP server example above.

How to use the MCP server

Once the server is installed, you might need to head back to Settings > MCP and click the refresh button.

The Cursor agent will then be able to see the available tools the added MCP server has available and will call them when it needs to.

You can also explictly ask the agent to use the tool by mentioning the tool name and describing what the function does.