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Contents:
Key
Terms in this Chapter
What
is CADD?
What
to Expect from CADD
- Presentations
- Flexibility
in Editing
- Units
& Accuracy Levels
- Storage
and Access for Drawings
- Sharing
CADD Drawings
- Project
Reporting
- Engineering
Analysis
- Computer
Aided Manufacturing (CAM)
- Design
- Add-on
Programs
A
Look at the CADD Industry
The
Focus of this Book
How
to Use CADD PRIMER
Key
Terms in this Chapter
|
Term
|
Description
|
| Attributes |
Descriptions
of electronic drawing elements. |
CAD
CADD
|
An
acronym for Computer Aided Design. It synonymously used for
Computer Aided Drafting.
An
acronym for Computer Aided Design & Drafting.
|
| CADD
system |
A
computer system that enables you to perform drawing and design
tasks. |
| CAFM |
An
acronym for Computer Aided Facility Management |
| CAE |
An
acronym for Computer Aided Engineering |
| CAM |
An
acronym for Computer Aided Manufacturing |
| Command |
A
single instruction issued by the user to complete a task on
the computer. |
| Database |
A
stored collection of data that can be retrieved and organized
in different ways. |
| Function |
A
task in a program that can be completed by issuing a set of
commands through the program. |
| Menu |
A
collection of functions or commands that are displayed on
the screen. You can make selections from the menu with a pointing
device such as a mouse. |
| Parametric
design |
A
computer capability that links graphics on the screen with
automated calculations and vice versa. |
What
is CADD?
When
we think of Computer Aided Design and Drafting (CADD), certain
questions arise that we never think of while working on the
drawing board. We do not use the essential drawing board tools:
paper, pencil, T-square, compass, eraser or scale, yet still
have to design or make a drawing. When even one of these tools
is missing we know how aggravating it can be. With CADD we
don't need even one of them!
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CADD
is an electronic tool that enables you to make quick and
accurate drawings with the use of a computer. Unlike the
traditional methods of making drawings on a drawing board,
with CADD you can sit back in an easy chair and create wonderful
drawings just by clicking the buttons of a keyboard. Moreover,
drawings created with CADD have a number of advantages over
drawings created on a drawing board. CADD drawings are neat,
clean and highly presentable. Electronic drawings can be
modified quite easily and can be presented in a variety
of formats.
A
decade ago, CADD was used only for specific engineering
applications that required high precision. Due to CADD’s
high price, only a few professionals could afford it. In
recent years, however, computer prices have decreased significantly
and more and more professionals are taking advantage of
CADD.
There
are hundreds of CADD programs available in the CADD industry
today. Some are intended for general drawing work while
others are focused on specific engineering applications.
There are programs that enable you to do 2D drawings, 3D
drawings, renderings, shadings, engineering calculations,
space planning, structural design, piping layouts, plant
design, project management, etc. There is a CADD program
for virtually every engineering discipline you can think
of.
CADD
is primarily intended for single-line drafting. It has very
limited capabilities to create artistic impressions. However,
CADD’s 3D and rendering features are fascinating. You can
create a 3D model of an object and view it from any angle.
With proper shading and rendering, it can be made to look
picture perfect!
What
to Expect from CADD
You
can do amazing things with CADD that you never thought possible
while creating drawings with a pen or pencil. The following
are some of the important capabilities that make CADD a powerful
tool:
- Presentations
- Flexibility
in editing
- Units
& accuracy levels
- Storage
and access for drawings
- Sharing
CADD drawings
- Project
reporting
- Engineering
analysis
- Computer
Aided Manufacturing (CAM)
- Design
- Add-on
programs
Presentations
You
can create fine drawings with hundreds of colors, line types,
hatch patterns, presentation symbols, text styles, etc. Even
if you don’t like something about your presentation after
you have finished it, you can instantly change it. It takes
only a few simple steps to change the text style, color or
line type and you can print a fresh copy of the drawing every
time. This kind of luxury is available only when working with
CADD.
There
are a number of ready-made presentation symbols and hatch
patterns available in CADD that can be used to enhance the
look of drawings. For example, a site planner can instantly
add tree symbols, shrubs, pathways, human figures, and other
landscape elements to create a site plan. Similarly, an
architect can use ready-made symbols of doors, windows,
furniture, etc., to make a presentation.
In
addition to preparing impressive presentations on paper,
you can use CADD to make on-screen presentations. You can
plug your computer into a projector and present your ideas
on-screen. Advanced CADD programs allow you to created animated
images as well. You can illustrate how a building would
appear while walking through it, or how a machine assembly
will operate when different machine parts move.
Flexibility
in Editing
CADD
provides the flexibility to make quick alterations to drawings.
You can erase any portion of a drawing with pinpoint accuracy.
It takes only seconds to do a job that could take hours on
a drawing board. In many cases, you do not even have to erase
to make the change. You can rearrange the existing components
of the drawing to fit the new shape. This enables you to analyze
design options with minimal effort.
The
following are some of the editing capabilities of CADD:
- Move
or copy drawing elements
- Enlarge
or reduce parts of a drawing
- Add
one drawing to another
- Stretch
a drawing to fit new dimensions
- Make
multiple copies of a drawing element
- Change
the size, style and fonts of text
- Change
units of measure of dimensions
Units
& Accuracy Levels
CADD
allows you work with great accuracy. If you need to create
highly accurate geometrical shapes, CADD is the answer. It
can help avoid time-consuming mathematical calculations.
You
can work with different units of measure, such as architectural
units, engineering units, scientific units and surveyor's
units. These units can be represented in various formats
commonly used by professionals.
Example:
When working with engineering units, you can specify whether
all the dimensions should be represented in inches, feet-inches,
centimeters, or meters. Similarly, you can choose angular
units of measurement such as decimal degrees, minutes, seconds
or radians.
You
can set an extremely high accuracy for the units of measurement.
You can work with as high precision as 1/1000th
of an inch! However, such accuracy is seldom required; you
will often need to set it to a lesser accuracy to avoid unnecessary
fractions.
In
general, when you need to work on a large scale drawing
such as a plan of a township, you may want to set a lesser
degree of accuracy, say 1'-0". The computer will round off
all the measurements to the next foot and you won't see
any fractions less than a foot. When you need to work on
a minute detail, you can set a higher degree of accuracy
such as 1/8th or 1/64th of an inch.
Storage
and Access of Drawings
It
is quick and convenient to organize for a CADD drawing in
the computer. You can have thousands of drawings on a computer’s
hard disk and can open any one of them within seconds.
A
computer’s electronic filing system has the following advantages
over the traditional filing system:
A
Look at the CADD Industry
There
are hundreds of CADD programs available in the CADD industry
today. Most of them are simply drafting programs, while some
offer certain engineering analysis, design or database capabilities.
Some programs are more elaborate than others. You can purchase
a CADD program with just the basic drawing capabilities for
as little as $200. These are called low-end programs and are
commonly used for general drawing work.
Another
category of software is mid-range. This category offers
advanced drafting techniques such as layers, 3D, basic database
capabilities, advanced dimensioning and many automated drawing
features. Architecture and engineering design firms commonly
use mid-range software. About 80% of all the CADD programs
fall into this category and there is immense competition
in this market. Their prices vary significantly.
There
are a few advanced CADD programs available, which are commonly
used by large corporations for manufacturing. These programs
include integrated features such as solid modeling, engineering
analysis, design, database and project management. These
are called high-end programs. Most of the time they are
customized to meet the specific requirements of the corporation.
These programs are priced quite high.
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Note:
It’s often hard to determine whether a program is low-end,
mid-range or high-end. Low-end programs claim to be mid-range,
while mid-range programs claim to be high-end.
Refer
to CADD PRIMER for detailed information on this topic.
The
Focus of this Book
With
so many CADD programs available, it is impossible to learn
each one. Most programs have similar drawing capabilities,
but the exact procedures are quite different. You may be an
expert on one program and yet not know much about another.
This is because different CADD programs use different terminology
and procedures to accomplish the same tasks. It may take you
quite some time to learn the intricacies of a particular CADD
program.
CADD
PRIMER is designed to give you a head start in learning
CADD regardless of any program you may have to use. It describes
the general principles and applications of CADD that are
applicable to most of the programs. Its objective is to
familiarize you with all the aspects of working with CADD.
Once you understand what individual functions do and which
functions to use where, you can apply this knowledge to
any CADD program.
The
following are the main objectives of CADD PRIMER:
- To
present an overview of CADD and describe its applications
in different fields.
- To
describe common terms associated with CADD hardware and
software.
- To
outline the basic principles associated with CADD and
to demonstrate common drafting techniques and shortcuts
used by professionals.
- To
introduce the advanced capabilities of CADD and how they
can be used to increase productivity.
- To
provide information about the CADD industry resources.
How
to Use CADD PRIMER
CADD
PRIMER is a reference book. The examples in this book are
illustrated in a generic way, because our objective is not
to focus on a specific program. The examples used in this
book are intended to give you an idea of how CADD works and
what it can do for you. To learn about a specific program,
you will have to obtain literature specific to that program.
A look inside
CADD PRIMER...
|
Chapter
|
Description
|
| Chapter
1:
CADD
Hardware and Software
|
Gives
an overview of CADD hardware and software.
Introduces
you to CADD equipment and how to use it. Describes the terminology
associated with the equipment and the requirements for CADD.
Presents
an overview of CADD functions and describes their role in
CADD and how they are organized in various menus.
Teaches
you how to communicate with CADD through menus, windows
and dialog boxes, and other means of data entry.
|
| Chapter
2:
CADD
Basics
|
Instructs
you on the basic drawing concepts of CADD. You will start
with a simple drawing exercise.
Explains
the essential features of CADD, such as how to enter distances
using different coordinate methods. You will learn how to
use Absolute, Relative and Polar coordinates.
Presents
guidelines on setting up a prototype CADD drawing. You will
learn how to save and manage CADD drawings.
|
| Chapter
3:
The
Drawing Tools
|
Gives
you a closer look at all the drawing capabilities of CADD.
You will learn different methods for drawing lines, arcs,
polylines, text, dimensions, etc. |
| Chapter
4:
View
Displays
|
Describes
how View-Display functions are used to display different views
of a drawing. You will learn how to zoom in on portions of
the drawing and how to save and restore selected views. |
| Chapter
5:
The
Edit Functions
|
Describes
the application of CADD’s edit functions. You will learn a
number of shortcut methods to fix errors. You will also learn
how easy it is to make changes by using the erase, copy and
move functions. Includes a number of exercises to illustrate
functions. |
| Chapter
6:
Working
with Layers
|
Discusses
the use of layers in CADD drawings. This is a commonly used
technique that enables you to organize your drawings better
by grouping information on specific layers. |
| Chapter
7:
Introduction
to 3D
|
Gives
an overview of 3D functions of CADD. You will learn basic
3D drawing techniques.
Describes
how to make isometrics and perspectives, enter 3D coordinates,
and display 3D views from different angles.
|
| Chapter
8:
Printing
and Plotting
|
Describes
CADD’s plotting and printing procedures. You will learn how
to print the same drawing with a number of variations. Includes
a discussion on plotting and printing machines. |
| Chapter
9:
CADD
Beyond Drawing
|
Presents
an outline of advanced features of CADD, such as the use of
attributes to make project reports, the use of macros to do
automated tasks, applications of design and database, and
how CADD works in an integrated environment with other programs. |
| Appendix |
Presents
an outline of important features offered by leading CADD programs
and the guidelines to choose a CADD system.
Includes
a helpful CADD directory listing the leading CADD programs
and important resources on the Internet.
|
| Thank you for visiting http://www.caddprimer.com.
For complete understanding of CADD, refer to CADD PRIMER.
It describes all the topics listed above in greater detail
and includes more than 100 diagrams to illustrate the working
of CADD. All rights reserved Mailmax Publishing, New York. |
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