Computer Aided Drawing

5th Sem- 3rd year

(Open Elective- BTME15503)

Chapter 1
Introduction to Computer aided Drawing
Dr. Supriya Deshmukh
MED, SCET, Surat
 Drawing
A drawing is a graphic representation of an object, or a part of it, and
is the result of creative thought by an engineer or technician.
When one person sketches a rough map in giving direction to
another, this is graphic communication.
Graphic communication involves using visual materials to relate
ideas. Drawings, photographs, slides, transparencies, and sketches
are all forms of graphic communication.
Any medium that uses a graphic image to aid in conveying a
message, instructions, or an idea is involved in graphic
communication.
Bureau of Indian standards (BIS)- SP46 (Special publication)
SP 46 : 2003 Engineering Drawing Practice for Schools and
Colleges
"SP 46 : 2003" is special publication of Bureau of Indian Standards (B.I.S.) released
in the year 2003. The contents of the book are as follows

1.Sizes and layout of drawing sheets

2.Item references on drawing and item lists
3.Planning of assembly drawings
4.folding of drawing prints
5.scales
6.lines
7.lettering
8.projection methods
9.sections and other conventions
10.conventional representation of screw threads and threaded parts
11.conventional representation of springs
12.conventional representation of gears
13.general principle of dimensioning
14.indication of linear and angular tolerances
15.dimensioning of gears
16.indication of surface texture
17.simplified representation of the assembly of parts with fasteners
18.simplified representation of bars and profile sections
19.symbolic representation of welded, brazed and soldered joints
20.abbrevations, systems of limits and fits, tolerances etc.

As B.I.S. is continuously making efforts to update the standards.

 Drawings
(Some Types)

Portraits
Botanical Drawings ( human faces,
Nature Drawings ( plants, flowers etc.) expressions etc.)
( landscape, Geographical
scenery etc.) Zoological Drawings
Drawings Engineering Drawings,
(creatures, animals etc.)
( maps etc.) (projections.)

Building Related Drawings. Machine component Drawings

Orthographic Projections Isometric ( Mech.Engg.Term.)

(Fv,Tv & Sv.-Mech.Engg terms) or Perspective(Civil Engg.Term)
(Plan, Elevation- Civil Engg.terms)
(Working Drawings 2-D type) (Actual Object Drawing 3-D)

5
 Types of drawing
1. Artistic Drawings
 Artistic Drawings range in scope from the simplest line drawing to the most
famous paintings. Regardless of their complexity, artistic drawings are used to
express the feelings, beliefs, philosophies, and ideas of the artist.
 In order to understand an artistic drawing, it is sometimes necessary to first
understand the artist. Artists often take a subtle or abstract approach in
communicating through their drawings, which in turn gives rise to various
interpretations.
2. Technical Drawings
 The technical drawing, on the other hand, is not subtle or abstract.
It does not require an understanding of its creator, only an
understanding of technical drawings.
 A technical drawing is a means of clearly and concisely
communicating all of the information necessary to transform an
idea or a concept in to reality.
 Therefore, a technical drawing often contains more than just a
graphic representation of its subject. It also contains dimensions,
notes and specifications.
Figure 1 Technical Drawings
Types of Technical Drawings
 Technical drawings are based on the fundamental principles of
projections.
 A projection is a drawing or representation of an entity on an
imaginary plane or planes.
 This projection planes serves the same purpose in technical drawing
as is served by the movie screen. A projection involves four
components:
1. The actual object that the drawing or projection represents
2. The eye of the viewer looking at the object
3. The imaginary projection plane
4. Imaginary lines of sight called Projectors
 The two broad types of projections, both with several sub-
classifications, are parallel projection and perspective projection.
Parallel Projection

 Parallel Projection is a type of projection where the line of

sight or projectors are parallel and are perpendicular to the
picture planes. It is subdivided in to the following three
categories:
Orthographic, Oblique and Axonometric Projections.
 Orthographic projections: are drawn as multi view drawings,
which show flat representations of principal views of the
subject.
 Oblique Projections: actually show the full size of one view.
 Axonometric Projections: are three-dimensional drawings,
and are of three different varieties: Isometric, Dimetric and
Trimetric.
Front view Left hand side view

Top view

Fig. 2 Orthographic multi view drawing

Fig. 3 Oblique drawing
Fig. 4 Axonometric drawing
Perspective Projection
 Perspective projections are drawings which attempt to replicate what the
human eye actually sees when it views an object. There are three types of
perspective projections: One-point, Two-point and Three-point
Projections.
Perspective drawing used for:
 Advertising
 presentation drawings for architecture, industrial design, engineering
 fine art
Pros: gives a realistic view and feeling for three dimensional form of object
Cons: does not preserve shape of object or scale (except where object
intersects projection plane)
Different from a parallel projection because
 parallel lines not parallel to the projection plane converge
 size of the object is diminished with distance
 foreshortening is not uniform
 Lettering and Lines
Types of line and their applications:
In engineering drawing, the various types of lines are recommended by B.I.S. with different thickness. But for general
students are advised to take 0.5 mm for thick lines, 0.3 mm for medium lines and 0.2 mm for thin lines.
❑ Types of line and their applications:
LETTERING
❑ Lettering:
❑ Lettering guide lines and grids:
❑ Lettering:
❑ Single-stroke vertical Lettering:
❑ Single-stroke vertical Lettering:
❑ Single-stroke Inclined Lettering:
❑ Single-stroke Inclined Lettering:
❑ Double-stroke Vertical Lettering:
❑ Double-stroke Vertical Lettering:
❑ Double-stroke Inclined Lettering:
❑ Double-stroke Inclined Lettering:
Dimensioning:
❑ Dimensioning:
❑ Dimensioning:
❑ System of Dimensioning:
There are two systems of dimensioning:
1. Aligned System
2. Unidirectional system

Aligned System
In the aligned system, dimensions are aligned with the entity being measured. They are placed perpendicular
to the dimension line such that they may be read from the bottom or right-hand side of the drawing sheet.
Dimensions are placed at the middle and on top of the dimension lines.

Unidirectional System
In the unidirectional system, dimensions are placed in such a way that they can be read from the bottom edge
of the drawing sheet. Dimensions are inserted by breaking the dimension lines at the middle.
❑ System of Dimensioning:
Aligned System:
❑ System of Dimensioning:
Unidirectional System:
❑ System of Dimensioning:
In Aligned System its is divided in to the two sub parts Parallel, Chain and Combined
Dimensioning:

Parallel Dimensioning Chain Dimensioning

❑ System of Dimensioning:
In Aligned System its is divided in to the two sub parts Parallel, Chain
and Combined Dimensioning:

Combined Dimensioning
❑ Practical Hints on Dimensioning:

Combined Dimensioning
 SECTIONING A SOLID. The action of cutting is called
An object ( here a solid ) is cut by SECTIONING a solid
some imaginary cutting plane &
to understand internal details of that object. The plane of cutting is called
SECTION PLANE.
Two cutting actions means section planes are recommended.

OBSERVER

A) Section Plane perpendicular to Vp and inclined to Hp. ASSUME

UPPER PART
( This is a definition of an Aux. Inclined Plane i.e. A.I.P.) REMOVED

NOTE:- This section plane appears (A)

as a straight line in FV.

B) Section Plane perpendicular to Hp and inclined to Vp.

( This is a definition of an Aux. Vertical Plane i.e. A.V.P.)
NOTE:- This section plane appears (B)
as a straight line in TV.
Remember:-
1. After launching a section plane ASSUME
LOWER PART
either in FV or TV, the part towards observer REMOVED
OBSERVER
is assumed to be removed.
2. As far as possible the smaller part is
assumed to be removed. 41
 For TV
ILLUSTRATION SHOWING
IMPORTANT TERMS
IN SECTIONING.

SECTION
PLANE

TRUE SHAPE
Of SECTION

x y

Apparent Shape
of section
SECTION LINES
(450 to XY)

SECTIONAL T.V.
42
Typical Section Planes
&
Typical Shapes
Of
Sections. Section Plane Ellipse
Section PlaneTriangle Through Generators
Through Apex

Section Plane Parallel Section Plane Hyperbola

to end generator. Parallel to Axis.

Ellipse Trapezium

Cylinder through Sq. Pyramid through

generators. all slant edges 43
 GEOMETRIC CONSTRUCTION

• Strict interpretation of geometric construction allows use of only the compass and an
instrument for drawing straight lines, and with these, the geometer (a person skilled in
geometry), following mathematical theory, accomplishes his solutions.
• In technical drawing, the principles of geometry are employed constantly, but
instruments are not limited to the basic two as T-squares, triangles, scales, curves etc.
are used to make constructions with speed and accuracy.

GEOMETRIC NOMENCLATURE

A. POINTS IN SPACE
• A point is an exact location in space or on a drawing surface. A point is actually
represented on the drawing by a crisscross at its exact location.
• The exact point in space is where the two lines of the crisscross intersect.
• When a point is located on an existing line, a light, short dashed line or cross bar is
placed on the line at the location of the exact point.
B. LINE
Lines are straight elements that have no width, but are infinite in length (magnitude), and
they can be located by two points which are not on the same spot but fall along the line.
Lines may be straight lines or curved lines.
A straight line is the shortest distance between two points. It can be drawn in any direction.
Straight lines and curved lines are considered parallel if the shortest distance between them
remains constant.
The symbol used for parallel line is //. Lines, which are tangent and at 90° are considered
perpendicular. The symbol for perpendicular line is ⊥.
C. ANGLE
An angle is formed by the intersection of two lines. There are three major kinds of
angles: right angels, acute angles and obtuse angles.
The right angle is an angle of 90° an acute angle is an angle less than 90°, and an obtuse
angle is an angle more than 90°.
D. TRIANGLES
A triangle is a closed plane figure with three straight sides and their interior angles
sum up exactly 180°. The various kinds of triangles: a right triangle, an equilateral
triangle, an isosceles triangle, and an obtuse angled triangle.
E. QUADRIALTERAL
It is a plane figure bounded by four straight sides. When
opposite sides are parallel, the quadrilateral is also considered
to be a parallelogram.
F. POLYGON
A polygon is a closed plane figure with three or more straight sides. The most
important of these polygons as they relate to drafting are probably the triangle
with three sides, square with four sides, the hexagon with six sides, and the
octagon with eight sides.
G. CIRCLE
A circle is a closed curve with all points on the circle at the same distance from the
center point. The major components of a circle are the diameter, the radius and
circumference.
♦ The diameter of the circle is the straight distance from one outside curved surface
through the center point to the opposite outside curved surface.
♦ The radius of a circle is the distance from the center point to the outside curved
surface. The radius is half the diameter, and is used to set the compass when
drawing a diameter.
♦ A central angle: is an angle formed by two radial lines from the center of the circle.
♦ A sector: is the area of a circle lying between two radial lines and the
circumference.
♦ A quadrant: is a sector with a central angle of 900 and usually with one of the
radial lines oriented horizontally.
♦ A chord: is any straight line whose opposite ends terminate on the circumference
of the circle.
♦ A segment: is the smaller portion of a circle separated by a chord.
♦ Concentric circles are two or more circles with a common center point.
♦ Eccentric circles are two or more circles with out a common center point.
• A segment: is the smaller portion of a circle separated by a chord.
• Concentric circles are two or more circles with a common center point.
• Eccentric circles are two or more circles with out a common center point.
• A semi circle is half of the circle.
H. SOLIDS
They are geometric figures bounded by plane surfaces. The surfaces are called faces,
and if these are equal regular polygons, the solids are regular polyhedral.
 SECTIONING
It is defined as an imaginary cut made through an object to expose the interior or
to reveal the shape of a portion.
Sectional view
It is a view in which all or a substantial portion of the view is sectioned. There are
many times when the interior details of an object cannot be seen from the outside
(figure).

An isometric drawing that does not show all details

We can get around this by pretending to cut the object on a plane and
showing the "sectional view". The sectional view is applicable to objects like
engine blocks, where the interior details are intricate and would be very
difficult to understand through the use of "hidden" lines (hidden lines are, by
convention, dotted) on an orthographic or isometric drawing. Imagine slicing
the object in the middle (figure)
 Take away the front half and what you have is a full
section view.

sectioning the object

orthographic view
HOW SECTIONS ARE SHOWN
To clearly draw the sectional views, we have to understand the following terminologies.
A. Cutting Plane Lines
The cutting plane line indicates the path that an imaginary cutting plane follows to slice
through an object. Think of the cutting plane line as a saw blade that is used to cut
through the object. The cutting-plane line is represented by a thick black dashed line.
Section Lining
Section lining shows where the object is sliced or cut by the cutting plane line. Section
lining is represented by thin, black lines drawn at 45° to the horizontal. Section lining is
spaced by eye from 1.5mm to 6mm apart, depending up on the overall size of the object.
The average spacing used for most drawings is 3mm. Section lines must be of uniform
thickness and evenly spaced. If the cutting plane passes through more than two parts,
section lining of each individual part must be drawn at different angles. Where an angle
other than 450 is used, the angle should be 300 or 600. Section lining should not be
parallel with the sides of the object to be section lined.
Computer Aided Drawing- INTRODUCTION
 Computer Aided Drawing (CAD) is a process of preparing a drawing of an object
on the screen of a computer.
 There are various types of drawings in different fields of engineering and sciences.
 In the fields of mechanical or aeronautical engineering, the drawings of machine
components and the layouts of them are prepared.
 In the field of civil engineering, plans and layouts of the buildings are prepared.
 In the field of electrical engineering, the layouts of power distribution system are
prepared. In all fields of engineering, use of computer is made for drawing and
drafting.
 The use of CAD process provides enhanced graphics capabilities which allows
any designer to
• Conceptualize his ideas • Modify the design very easily
• Perform animation • Make design calculations
• Use colors, fonts and other aesthetic features.
 REASONS FOR IMPLEMENTING A CAD SYSTEM
1. Increases the productivity of the designer: CAD improves the productivity of the
designer to visualize the product and its component, parts and reduces the time
required in synthesizing, analyzing and documenting the design.
2. Improves the quality of the design: CAD system improves the quality of the
design. A CAD system permits a more detailed engineering analysis and a larger
number of design alternatives can be investigated. The design errors are also
reduced because of the greater accuracy provided by the system.
3. Improves communication: It improves the communication in design. The use of
a CAD system provides better engineering drawings, more standardization in the
drawing, better documentation of the design, few drawing errors and legibility.
4. Create data base for manufacturing: In the process of creating the
documentation for these products, much of the required data base to
manufacture the products is also created.
5. Improves the efficiency of the design: It improves the efficiency of the design
process and the wastage at the design stage can be reduced.
 APPLICATIONS OF CAD
 There are various processes which can be performed by the use of
computer in the drafting process.
1. Automated drafting: This involves the creation of hard copy engineering
drawings directly from CAD data base. Drafting also includes features like
automatic dimensioning, generation of cross – hatched areas, scaling of the
drawing and the capability to develop sectional views and enlarged views in
detail. It has ability to perform transformations of images and prepare 3D
drawings like isometric views, perspective views etc.,
2. Geometric modeling: concerned with the computer compatible
mathematical description of the geometry of an object. The mathematical
description allows the image of an object to be displayed and manipulated
on a graphics terminal through signals from the CPU of the CAD system. The
software that provides geometric modeling capabilities must be designed for
efficient use both by computer and the human designer.
BENEFITS OF CAD:
The implementation of the CAD system provides variety of benefits to the
industries in design and production as given below:
1. Improved productivity in drafting
2. Shorter preparation time for drawing
3. Reduced man power requirement
4. Customer modifications in drawing are easier
5. More efficient operation in drafting
6. Low wastage in drafting
7. Minimized transcription errors in drawing
8. Improved accuracy of drawing
9. Assistance in preparation of documentation
10. Better designs can be evolved
11. Revisions are possible
12. Colours can be used to customize the product
13. Production of orthographic projections with dimensions and
tolerances
14. Hatching of all sections with different filling patterns
15. Preparation of assembly or sub assembly drawings
16. Preparation of part list
17. Machining and tolerance symbols at the required surfaces
18. Hydraulic and pneumatic circuit diagrams with symbols
19. Printing can be done to any scale
CAD SOFTWARES
The software is an interpreter or translator which allows the user to perform specific type
of application or job related to CAD. The following softwares are available for drafting.
1. FUSION 360
2. AUTOCAD
3. Pro – E
4. CATIA
5. MS OFFICE
6. PAINT
7. ANSYS
8. MSc.NASTRAN
9. IDEAS
10. SOLID WORKS
11. HYPERMESH
12. FLUENT – GAMBIT
The above softwares are used depending upon their applications.
The variety of drawings that are utilized in engineering are too numerous
to illustrate individually here. A few examples from engineering disciplines
will demonstrate the versatility of modern CAD systems.
 Aerospace: Layout drawings, part drawings, subassemblies,
assemblies
 Chemical: Process schematics, process plant layout drawings
 Civil, Construction: Structural detail drawings, site plan drawings,
construction drawings, road-use plans
 Electrical, Computer: Circuit board design, very large system
integration (VLSI) design
 Industrial and Manufacturing: Manufacturing plant layout drawings,
subassemblies, assemblies
 Mechanical : part drawing, subassemblies, assemblies
 HISTORY AND BACKGROUND
 The first important step in the development of computer-aided drawing was
made at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1963 where a
system called Sketchpad was developed and demonstrated.
 It consisted of a cathode ray tube (CRT) driven by software running on a
Lincoln TX2 computer which was able to create, modify and graphically
display a drawing on the screen using a light pen as a pointing device (Figure
1).

Figure 1 Early CAD hardware, i.e. Sketchpad

 The first CAD system was introduced by IBM. With the development of computer hardware
and software, many changes have been made in CAD systems.
 By using computer, learning of drawing can be easier than conventional methods. With
CAD systems, drawings can be formed, mistakes can be corrected, stored and restored.
 CAD systems can also be used together with manufacturing techniques, numerical control
and robotics technology.
 In modern systems, the light pen has been replaced by more effective pointing hardware,
that is a digitizer tablet, a mouse or both as shown in Figure 2.
 The design of hardware is a key factor in easing the communication between the user and
the software functions and a vital part of the software which makes use of the peripheral
hardware to give the operator a usable interface to the functionality of the software is
called the user interface.

Figure 2 Typical modern CAD hardware

System Requirements (Specifications)
 Operating System : 32 or 64-bit Microsoft Windows/ XP-professional/vista or more
 Processor : Pentium 4 or later
 RAM : 4GB or more
 Graphics Card : 1GB or more/ integrated graphics
 Hard Disk : 20GB free hard disk space available including installation
 Pointing devices : Mouse, digitizer with win tab drive, Keyboard
 DVD ROM : Any Speed (not mandatory)
CAD system and Hardware
 Computers are being used at an increasing rate for both engineering design and
drawing purposes. There are many CAD systems in the market which are being
continuously developed and refined.
 There are three main types of computer: (a) mainframe computer (b) minicomputer
(c) microcomputer.
 The workstation, which is similar in appearance to a personal computer, is generally
of higher performance and typically four to five times more expensive.
 Computer-aided engineering software available for workstation platforms is
normally capable of carrying out the more demanding numerical analysis required
of sophisticated design systems with acceptable performance in speed.
 A mainframe computer system is capable of supporting the functional demands of
complex software packages, and for CADD systems these are accessed and
presented to the user via a graphics terminal.
 The mainframe performs the relevant mathematical modelling and sends the results
in graphical form to the terminal, which has some computing power to interpret the
data received, manipulate it and display it in graphical form.
Input Devices
 The input devices are used for making selections from a menu, which is a layout of a variety of
commands and functions required to operate the system.
 Sending these commands into the computer produces complete engineering drawings.
 The choice of optional commands on the screen menu is made by indicating the required
position with the cursor cross-hairs or by typing a required code.
 The movement of the cursor on the screen may be controlled by the following devices as
shown in Figure.
(a) a keyboard, where the allocated keys control the required movements
(b) thumb wheels, where one wheel controls horizontal movement and another wheel controls
vertical movement
(c) a light pen, where the required position is selected by pointing the pen directly at the screen
(d) a joystick, a vertical lever mounted in a box controls movements in any direction
(e) a mouse, a small box which when pushed across a surface controls movements in the same
direction
(f) a tracker ball, its rolling in the mounting controls movements in any
direction
(g) a puck or
(h) stylus in conjunction with the digitising tablet, can enter the complete
drawing from a sketch or half-completed drawing by attaching it to the
surface of the digitiser and indicating the important points on lines,
curves, etc., and entering the relevant commands.
Output Devices
 The output devices receive data from the computer and provide an output,
hard copy.
 There are two main types of output devices, namely printers and plotters. The
printers may be impact, where images are formed by a striking action or
non-impact:
(a) impact printers for drawing reproduction are of the dot matrix type and
form shapes by the appropriate selection of small dots from the printhead (The
printhead will spray, write or drop the ink onto your paper in the pattern
needed to produce the finished image);
(b) non-impact printers include electrostatic, ink-jet and laser printers:
i) electrostatic printers create shapes by burning away a thin metallic
coating on the special printing paper;
ii) the ink-jet printers use a printhead which directs a jet of ink at the
paper to create the required shapes;
iii) the laser printers use a fine beam of laser light to create the required
shapes.
 There are two basic types of plotter ( Plotters are used to print graphical
output on paper. It interprets computer commands and makes line
drawings on paper using multicolored automated pens. It is capable of
producing graphs, drawings, charts, maps etc.), i.e. flatbed and drum:
(a) flatbed plotters have a flat area on which the paper of any type and
thickness is placed and the pens of various thicknesses and ink colours are
free to move in any direction with plothead providing all the motion;
(b) drum plotters have a rotating drum over which the paper can move in
two directions and pens are limited to move only across the drum and, with a
combination of pen movement and drum rotation, provides the required
motion.
Drawings of longer length but sometimes of lower precision are produced
when compared with flatbed plotters.
CAD Software Structure
 The database for a CADD package contains data defining the two- or
three-dimensional geometry of the drawing or design.
 It can be viewed as a mathematical model which is a precise
geometrically accurate representation of the component or assembly.
 The input to this is the addition to and modification of the model by the
designer or draughtsman and includes the addition of geometric and
detail entities such as lines, curves, points, notes or dimensions and
modification to correct errors and enhance productivity.
 These additions and modifications should immediately be seen on the
graphical display, which is the main interactive output medium of the
software and therefore needs to be very effective.
 In the case of draughting, one needs to be able to add a drawn feature
with as much or greater ease than one would be able to do on a
drawing board.
The User Interface
 CAD systems may be considered as comprising a large number of
functions for creating or manipulating the design model.
 For example a function might create a line in the database parallel to
another line at a given distance.
 The general sequence of operation of a CAD program is for the user to
select the function to be applied, and the particular way it is to be
operated, and then for the program to apply this function using data
provided by the user. Traditionally, there are two ways in which this is
achieved:
1. Command-based systems
 Command-based systems operate by reading a command and its
parameters entered by the user, carrying out the required actions, then
waiting for the next command.
 The commands themselves may often comprise English-like words. The
main commands are indicated by the permitted major words, and the
options relating to the command by minor words.
 Many systems also allow commands to be abbreviated, either through the use
of an alternative form (for example ‘dimension’ might be abbreviated by
‘dim’), or by allowing the user to type only those characters of the command
required for its unique identification .
 The command is itself sometimes followed by the name of an object on which
to carry out the command.
 The general form of command may thus be summarized as:
command (optional parameters , target object)
2. Menu-driven systems
 The menu-driven approach contrasts markedly with the command approach.
The basic principle is that the user is at any time presented with a list or menu of
the functions that are available to be selected.
 The user selects from the list, and then perhaps from further lists of available sub-
functions until the function is specified fully, at which point data is entered, or
items selected for the operation.
 In many systems the menus may be regarded as forming an inverted tree, with
the main command groupings at the first level (e.g. in a CAD context,
construct, modify, delete, move), and more specific functions at lower levels.
 There are a number of rules which should be adopted in
designing a user interface the adherence to which should be
investigated when choosing a software package for a
particular task.
 The most important of these rules are:
1. A clear, well presented screen layout.
2. Easy function selection by a well-structured menu system.
3. Meaningful function names.
4. Meaningful and helpful prompts to the user.
5. Easily accessible and clearly written help information.
 CAD FUNCTIONALITY
 The main benefits of a computerized draughting and design system over those of
manual methods is this ability to represent the design of a component or assembly in
a geometrically accurate format so that the same model can be used for other
modelling, analysis and manufacturing work.
 The ease of use of a CAD system is centred mainly around good user interface design
and the performance around function availability.
 The number and range of functions in a typical CAD system are normally extensive
even for the simplest draughting and line modelling systems for use on PCs.
 To ease the discussion and understanding of CAD system operation, the functions
can be said to fall into three categories:
(a) Synthesis type functions are concerned mainly with the creation of geometric
features and drawing details.
(b) Modification functions include those which allow for the deletion and editing of
existing geometry or detail.
(c) Management functions are concerned with how the drawing is presented both on
the screen and eventually on paper.
CAD SOFTWARE SELECTION
 There is a large variety of different CAD packages available on the
market these days and the design manager is faced with the enormous
problem of selecting a package to suit the demands of the company
and its product range.
 Computer aided drawing software exists in many forms and is available
in a wide range of prices, again depending upon the application.
 Most of packages have both a 2D and 3D component or have an
integrated 2D and 3D modeling system.
 The newer versions of drawing software operate under a menu system
which can be accessed through keyboard input or mouse
manipulation.
 The size of the company and the amount of investment capital
available will be one of the main deciding factors but there are many
other questions to be considered:
1. Mainframe or PC/workstation platform?
 A small company will not normally be able to invest in a mainframe installation
unless it can be justified in terms of its use by other departments. The choice of
personal computers may impose a restriction on how far the company can
expand the system using its present hardware. The technological life of a PC is
generally much shorter than that of more powerful systems such as minicomputers,
workstations and mainframes.
2. Two dimensions or three? Lines, surfaces or solids?
 A large proportion of computer assistance in the design office is still restricted to
pure draughting in two dimensions.
 A small company may find significant benefits in this but may soon find the need
to expand.
 Most modular CAD or CAE packages have an inexpensive 2D draughting module
which can be fully integrated with its geometric modelling and analysis modules.
 Line modelling is suitable only for limited spatial (3-D) design problems— is this
enough?
 Depending on the type of products, the company produces surface modelling,
solid modelling or both may be appropriate and worth the capital outlay.
3. Other analysis tools needed? Does the company become involved in
complex analytical design work such as stress or heat transfer analysis or
the design of kinematic, dynamic or control systems? Will the ability to
transfer the geometry to these modelling and analysis systems be needed?
 Drawing details in producing a drawing either with a pure draughting
package or from a 3D design in a CAD system, the software needs to be
able to provide facilities for details or annotation on the drawings
namely: notes, labels, dimensions, tolerances, arrows and cross-
hatching.
 Each will use text, geometric entities or a mixture of the two. The user will
need to be able to draw text of varying height, width, angle and text
style or font.
 Dimensioning needs to be automatic so that only the feature to be
dimensioned and the position of the dimension line or text needs to be
specified.
 Some packages use associative dimensioning so that, when the size of a
feature is changed, the dimension and its text automatically changes.
4. Compatibility with other systems needed?
 If the company carries out a lot of contract work with other companies
who use CAD, it does not wish to be constrained to use the same systems
as those other companies.
 As no two CAD packages define and store models on backing store
identically, a procedure of conversion to and from other CAD formats will
nearly always be required.
 There are mainly two standards that allow CAD geometry to be defined
in a neutral format for conversion to models in other CAD systems.
 DXF or drawing exchange format has been developed by Autodesk Inc.
for use with AutoCAD and many other CAD suppliers have included DXF
conversion utilities in their packages.
 The other system is the ANSI standard IGES (or its successors PDES and
STEP) and is a more comprehensive system of geometry transfer. IGES
does tend, in many cases, to be unreliable because of the many ways it
specifies the definition of some geometric entities.
5. How good is the maintenance and support from the suppliers?
 Bad maintenance and support from the software suppliers can reduce the
productivity existing even prior to acquiring the CAD system thereby
nullifying the many benefits that the system may offer.
 If the software requires a lot of maintenance and support then it is generally
of poor design.
 Many vendors of CAD packages offer hot-line support facilities where a
designer can phone in with a problem concerning the use of the package
and speak to an expert.
6. How much, how good and how long is the training?
 Many software suppliers provide their own training in using their packages.
Often the purchase price includes training for one or two potential users
with further trainees being paid for additionally.
 In some circumstances the software suppliers may offer the option of an in-
house course and send one of their trainers to the company to give
instruction on the company’s hardware using relevant design problems.
7. How easy is it to expand the system?
 Once a company starts down the CAD path then it rarely looks back.
 There will always be the need to expand both the size and capability
of the system.
 As discussed previously a CAD system which is designed in a modular
(flexible) fashion will allow greater scope for expansibility.
COMPUTER AIDED DRAWING SYSTEMS
 CAD systems are available for a number of computer platforms: laptops,
personal computers (PCs), workstations, and mainframes.
 Among the more widely used CAD systems are AutoCAD, CATIA,
SolidWorks, I-DEAS and ProEngineer.
1. AutoCAD
 AutoCAD, offered to the public in late 1982, was one of the first PC based
CAD software products.
 Using AutoCAD gives you the highest probability of being able to share
CAD files and related data and information with others and the highest
possibility that you can share CAD files and related data with your
colleagues, vendors and clients.
 Compatibility of hardware and software is an important issue in industry.
 Maintaining compatible hardware and software allows you the highest
probability for sharing data and information with others as well as offering
you flexibility in experimenting with and utilizing the latest technological
advancements.
2. PRO/ENGINEER
 Pro/ENGINEER or Pro/E is a three-dimensional (3D), feature-based,
solids modeling system.
 It was developed by Parametric Technologies Corporation (PTC) in the
late 1980s.
 Solids modeling represents objects on the computer as volumes, rather
than just a collection of edges and surfaces.
 Features are three-dimensional (3D) geometries that have direct
analogies to shapes that can be machined or manufactured, such as
holes or rounds.
 Feature-based solids modeling creates and modifies geometric
shapes that make up an object in a way that readily represents
common manufacturing processes.
3. SOLIDWORKS
 SolidWorks is mechanical design automation software that takes
advantage of the familiar Microsoft WindowsTM graphical user
interface.
 A SolidWorks model consists of pads, assemblies and drawings. Typically,
you begin with a sketch, create a base feature, and then add features
to your model.
 You can generate detail drawings or assemblies at any time in the
design process.
 In the SolidWorks application, each part, assembly, and drawing is
referred to as a document, and each document is displayed in a
separate window.
 You can have multiple part, assembly, and drawing document windows
open at the same time.
 Also, you can have multiple views of the same document visible at the
same time. With SolidWorks, you can use 3D parts to create 2D drawings
and 3D assemblies.
4. I-DEAS (INTEGRATED DESIGN ENGINEERING ANALYSIS SOFTWARE)
 I-DEAS (Integrated Design Engineering Analysis Software) is a computer aided
design (CAD), manufacturing (CAM), and engineering (CAE) package.
 I-DEAS is an integrated package of mechanical engineering software tools and
a complete Mechanical Computer Aided Engineering System for the
engineering department.
 It provides full function design, analysis, drafting, testing, and NC programming
in support of mechanical design automation.
 I-DEAS allows design engineers to realistically simulate a product's performance
in the initial design stage, and then optimize both product performance and
manufacturability.
 This software was designed to facilitate a collaborative concurrent engineering
approach to mechanical engineering product design and analysis.
 General analysis includes time history and mathematical function processing,
histogramming and statistical analysis.
 Specific analysis includes areas such as spectrum generation, modal analysis
(study of dynamic properties) and fatigue life estimation.