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Project assistant (Ask Jodu) ​

Ask Jodu is your built-in intelligent design co-pilot in Jodu. It answers questions about your active project and guides you through drawing, modeling, and estimating workflows.

Unlike general AI chatbots, Ask Jodu does not guess or hallucinate facts. Every answer is strictly grounded in your project's live model data (rooms, storeys, openings, schedules, quantities, finishes) and this maintained help library.

How do I open and use Ask Jodu? ​

  1. Press ⌘K (Ctrl+K on Windows and Linux), or click Ask Jodu in the header.
  2. Type your question into the input box, or click the Mic button to speak.
  3. Press Enter or click Ask. A short answer shows in the box; click Continue in thread for a longer conversation in a side sheet.
  4. Read the grounded answer and inspect the numbered evidence sources underneath.
  5. Click Sources to expand the citation list — each source links to an element on the Plan canvas (Show in plan) or the relevant help page (Help · heading).
  6. Click New topic in the thread sheet when you want to start a fresh conversation.

When you ask for a change that one step can draft, such as finishes, Ask Jodu opens that step with your brief filled in. See Working with Jodu AI.

What can I ask Ask Jodu? ​

You can ask two main types of questions: Project Questions (about your current floor plan, dimensions, schedules, or quantities) and How-To Questions (about tools, shortcuts, and workflows).

Floor plan, rooms, and carpet areas ​

Ask about spaces, room dimensions, counts, and areas across any storey:

  • How many rooms are on each storey?
  • What is the total carpet area on Ground Floor?
  • What are the exact dimensions of the Living Room?
  • Which bedrooms have an attached toilet?
  • What is the built-up area vs carpet area of the house?

Doors, windows, and opening schedules ​

Ask about opening types, counts, dimensions, and schedule completeness:

  • Why is the door schedule incomplete?
  • How many D01 doors and W01 windows are placed on Ground Floor?
  • Which windows are missing a sill height or lintel level?
  • Show me all door openings on the First Floor.
  • What are the dimensions of the main entrance door?

Quantities, BOQ, and material statements ​

Ask about material take-offs, brickwork volume, concrete, cement, and steel:

  • How many cement bags are estimated for Ground Floor masonry?
  • Show me the material statement for cement, sand, and aggregate.
  • What is the total steel reinforcement estimate for the building?
  • Which walls or rooms still need a finish rate assigned?
  • What is the total brickwork volume in cubic metres?

Structure, columns, beams, and foundations ​

Ask about structural elements, framing, and levels:

  • How many structural columns are placed on Ground Floor?
  • Are all columns aligned with the structural grid?
  • Show me the column and footing schedule.
  • What is the floor-to-floor height between Ground and First Floor?
  • What slab thickness is configured for the First Floor?

Site, setbacks, and plot context ​

Ask about site dimensions, orientation, and setbacks:

  • What are the plot dimensions and road orientation?
  • What are the front, rear, and side setbacks?
  • Is the building within the buildable envelope?
  • What is the North angle configured for the site?

Drawing how-tos and workflow questions ​

Ask how to use any tool, keyboard shortcut, or modeling workflow:

  • How do I change a wall's thickness?
  • How do I draw a 9.0 m exterior wall with exact dimensions?
  • How do I add another storey (First Floor or Terrace)?
  • How do I place a staircase connecting to First Floor?
  • How do I trace an underlay CAD drawing or PDF?
  • What does keyboard shortcut P (Passage) do?
  • How do I close a corner with Corner close (C)?
  • How do I mirror bathroom fixtures across a partition wall?
  • How do I export a composed PDF drawing set?

How do I get the best answers? ​

To get fast, accurate answers on the first try:

  1. Name the level or storey: Saying "How many rooms are on First Floor?" is faster and more precise than "How many rooms are there?".
  2. Name the specific room or object: Saying "What is the area of Bedroom 1?" gives an immediate exact number.
  3. Specify the action and the tool: Saying "How do I trim overlapping walls?" points directly to the Trim tool workflow.
  4. Mention the material or unit: Saying "How many cement bags are needed?" brings up the exact material statement row.

How do I use voice input? ​

Ask Jodu supports voice questions in English, Hindi, and mixed conversational speech (Hinglish):

  1. Click the Mic button in the composer.
  2. Speak your question clearly into your microphone. A live second counter shows the recording duration.
  3. Click the Stop (Square) button or click the Mic button again when you finish.
  4. The transcribed question appears in the text box.
  5. Review or edit the text if needed, then press Enter or click Send.
  6. If you want to cancel during recording, click Cancel or press Escape.

How do citations and canvas navigation work? ​

Every answer provided by Ask Jodu includes a collapsible Sources section. Click Sources (N) to expand the numbered list of evidence references:

  • Project sources: Point to exact elements in your active building model (such as a specific wall, room, stair, column, or schedule). Each project source has a Show in plan action — clicking it automatically switches to the Plan canvas, centers the view, and highlights the selected element.
  • Help sources: Point to canonical user documentation pages and headings. Each help source shows Help · <heading> — clicking it opens the exact documentation section in a new tab.
  • Workspace sources: Point to output workspaces. Each shows Open <workspace> — clicking it navigates directly to that workspace.

What are Fast and Thorough answer modes? ​

You can toggle between two answering styles above the question box:

  • Fast: Optimized for quick, direct answers — ideal for looking up single room dimensions, finding keyboard shortcuts, or checking a quick count.
  • Thorough: Performs a deeper inspection across multiple project tables and documents — ideal for comprehensive schedule reviews, quantity breakdowns, and multi-step architectural workflows.

How does language selection work? ​

  • Auto (Default): Ask Jodu automatically detects the language of your question and replies in the same language.
  • English only: Click the English only toggle to ensure all responses are delivered in English, regardless of whether your question was spoken or typed in Hindi or another language.

Why does Ask Jodu say it doesn't know? ​

Ask Jodu is engineered with strict safety guardrails. If a requested fact is not present in your project model (for example, asking about soil test reports when none are configured) or a workflow is not covered in the help documentation, Ask Jodu will clearly state that it cannot find evidence rather than guessing.

This protects civil engineers and contractors from costly on-site construction mistakes caused by AI hallucinations.

Are my questions and project data private? ​

Yes. Ask Jodu is designed with privacy and security:

  • Session-only memory: Your conversation is held in memory during your active session and is cleared when you close the project or browser tab.
  • No permanent audio storage: Voice recordings sent for transcription are processed ephemerally and discarded immediately after transcription.
  • No public training: Your proprietary building models and project dimensions are never used to train public foundation models.

What Ask Jodu will not do ​

To maintain data integrity and user control:

  • Ask Jodu never modifies your project automatically or moves walls without your direct action.
  • Ask Jodu never guesses unverified structural loads or invents municipal bylaws.
  • Ask Jodu never quotes unverified external websites as project facts.

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