Autocad Notes
Autocad Notes
Faculty of Technology
University of Plymouth
Drake Circus
Plymouth
PL4 8AA
Contents:
References.
2.1 Projections
2.2 Creating Orthographic Projection drawings
2.3 Drawing conventions
2.4 Sections
2.5 Dimensions
2.6 Tolerances, limits and fits
2.7 Assemblies
Almost everything around us has been created by, or is influenced by, engineers:
Buildings, vehicles, roads, railways, food growing and processing, books, medical care,
recreation, etc.
All of these have either been conceived and created from scratch or have evolved from
existing ideas. Either way, an engineering design process will have been followed, in
one form or another. The Design as a generic tool module provides an interesting a
comprehensive introduction to engineering and design, so a detailed discussion of the
design process will not be included here.
This sequence is usually iterative. It repeats until a satisfactory solution has evolved, as
indicated in the flow diagram below.
The concept of the designer working with a model of a design is fundamental to the
design process.
The design model is a representation of the design. This model could be anything from
a few ideas in the designers head, through to rough sketches and notes, calculations,
sets of detailed formal engineering drawings, computer generated 3D representations,
physical prototypes, etc.
The design model would be used by the designer to record and develop ideas and to
provide a basis to evaluate the design.
Larger design projects are undertaken by more than one engineer. Design models are
used to communicate and demonstrate ideas between all those concerned with the
product design, development, manufacture and use.
A designer needs to have the skills to generate and work with this model in order
to communicate ideas and develop a design.
Designers use a variety of different models, depending on what property of the design is
to be considered and for whom the information is destined.
• Function
• Structure
• Form
• Material properties, surface conditions
All of these areas probably encompass a large portion of the degree syllabus. Within
this module we will concern ourselves primarily with form, i.e. the shape of parts or
components and how they fit together.
We have discussed both the role of the design model in the design process and the
importance of the representation of the form or shape in this role.
Now we will consider in detail the methods designers use to represent the form of their
designs.
There are two predominant orthographic projections used today. They are based on
Monge's original right angle planes and are shown fully in Figure 2.1b. They define four
separate spaces, or quadrants. Each of these quadrants could contain the object to be
represented. Traditionally however, only two are commonly used, the first and the third.
Figure 2.1b.
Projections created with the object placed in the first quadrant are said to be in First
Angle projection, and likewise, projections created with the object placed in the third
quadrant are said to be in Third Angle projection.
Consider the first quadrant in Figure 2.1b. The resultant drawing of the cone would be
obtained by flattening the two perpendicular projections planes, as shown in Figure 2.1c.
Left. Right.
Figure 2.1c, First Angle.
Whether you view the objects from the left or the right, the order in which the drawing
views are arranged puts the image that you see after the object, object first then the
image. This is always true for First Angle projection.
This can get confusing, particularly when also considering other drawings created using
other projections. You may develop your own way of recognising First Angle projection.
The author uses:
Consider the third quadrant in Figure 2.1b. The resultant drawing of the cone would be
obtained by flattening the two perpendicular projections planes, as shown in Figure
2.1d.
Left. Right.
Figure 2.1d, Third Angle.
For this example of the cone, you would say that the left hand image is the plan or top
elevation and the image to the right is the side elevation.
Whether you view the objects from the left or the right, the order in which the drawing
views are arranged puts the image that you see before the object, image first then the
object. This is always true for Third Angle projection.
Again, you may develop your own way of recognising Third Angle projection.
Perhaps: EYE > IMAGE> OBJECT
Both systems of projection, First and Third angle, are approved internationally and have
equal status. The system used must be clearly indicated on every drawing, using the
appropriate symbol shown in Figure 2.1e below.
First Angle
projection is
more common
in Europe.
Third Angle
projection is
widely used in
both the USA
and the UK.
Perspective, isometric
and oblique pictorial
projections.
Oblique: Front face sketched as a true shape. Starts with two axes, one horizontal, one
vertical. The third axis is usually drawn at 45º and lengths are reduced by 50% of true
lengths. Sometimes called 'cabinet' projection.
This is an introduction into how to create and interpret multi-view orthographic projection
drawings.
The component:
• Front F
• Left L
• Right R
• Plan (Top) P
Your aim is to create, from the front view, an orthographic projection drawing as shown
below in Figure 2.2a. Note how the views are constructed in line with each other,
allowing the features to be 'projected' between the views.
1) Choose which view direction or face will be used as the front view of the component.
The construction method used is the same. The difference between first and third angle
projection when creating or reading really lies with the positions of the views. For the
same component, an orthographic projection drawing with the same front, side and plan
views would look like Figure 2.2b below.
Observe how, in third angle, the views give the image then the object. In other
words, what you see then what you are looking at.
In first angle you are given the object then the image, or what you are looking at,
then what you see.
2.3.1 Introduction.
In order for anyone to be able to understand exactly what a drawing represents, sets of
precise rules and conventions have to be followed, much like a language. These rules
are usually referred to as Standards.
When a designer works with an engineerign drawing they must be familiar with the
precise meaning of the various line styles, abbreviations, drawing simplifications and
terminology as specifiied in the relevant standards. This section introduces you to some
of the conventions defined in BS 8888.
Each line on a drawing represents specific precise information regarding the components
design.
2.3.3 Lettering.
All characters on a drawing must be legible and consisitent, with consideration being
given to the possibility of drawing reductions and poorer quality reproductions being
made.
Size of lettering is given as a minimum height, relating to drawing size, as shown below:
Here are some examples of commonly used engineering components and features of
components.
General:
Housing:
A component into which a
'male' mating part fits, sits or
is 'housed'.
Bush/bearing:
A removable sleeve or liner.
Known also as a simple or
plane bearing.
Boss:
A cylindrical projection on
surface of component.
Curved slot:
Elongated hole, whose
centerline lies on an arc.
Used usually on components
requiring adjustment.
Rib:
A reinforcement, positioned
to stiffen surfaces.
Fillet:
A radius or rounded portion
suppressing a sharp internal
corner.
Key:
A small block or wedge
inserted between a shaft and
a mating part (a hub). Used
to prevent relative rotation of
the two parts.
Key way:
A parallel sided slot or
groove cut into a bore or a
shaft, to 'house' a mating
key.
Flat:
A surface machined parallel
to the shaft axis.
For guidance on
dimensioning, see next page.
Circlip:
Internal & external.
Cotter Pin:
Used to retain components,
usually where loads are
transmitted.
Holes:
Drilled:
Loose tolerance, for pilot
holes or clearance holes for
fasteners.
Reamed:
Accurate finishing process
after drilling or boring.
Counterbore:
Usually used to recess the
head of a square shouldered
fastener.
Countersunk:
Usually used to recess the
head of a countersink screw.
Spotface:
Used to clean up and level
the surrounding area, usually
for a fastener or something
such as a hydraulic fitting
using a seal.
Male thread:
Usually cut with a die, turned
or rolled.
Tension:
Diamond.
Straight.
Bearings:
Some examples of rolling
element barings. Arrows
indicate directions of load
bearing.
Roller (near).
Thrust (near).
Standard drawing
representation of a bearing.
Rectangular bar:
Round bar:
Round tube:
Gears:
Bevel:
Spur:
Shaft ends:
Square:
Frequently used for hand
driven adjustments with
removable handles, such as
those found on machine
tools, etc.
Serrations:
Often used for push fit
components such as plastic
fans or pulleys, or levers
such as motorcycle gear
shifters.
Timing or synchronous
drives:
Used for transmission of
rotary power, as are v-belts,
and, because of the toothed
design (no slip) they are used
for timed (synchronised)
drives, where relative
rotational positions have to
be controlled. Some type of
tensioning system is usually
required.
Abbreviations are used on drawings to save time and space. Most of these conform to
BS 8888. They are the same singular or plural, full stops are only used where word may
be confusing.
Figure 2.4a.
Surfaces cut by the cutting plane are usually hatched at an appropriate angle, say 45°
with a density of lines in proportion with the component.
Figure 2.4d.
Figure 2.4f.
Section X-X
Section Y-Y
SECTION B-B
Assemblies can be greatly clarified using sections. See the example below in Figure xx.
Note:
• Revolved sections.
• Part sections.
• Different hatching directions and spacings.
• Un-sectioned components such as shafts, keys, nuts etc.
• describing the form or shape of the component, usually by using orthographic and
sometimes pictorial views...
• giving information about any special manufacturing processes and materials required.
This section introduces some basic guidelines and examples to help explain the general
rules of dimensioning, based on BS 8888.
• The drawing must include the minimum number of dimensions required to accurately
manufacture th edesign.
• A dimension should not be stated more than once, unless it aids communication.
• It should not be necessary for the operator manufacturing the component to have to
calculate any dimensions.
• Mating dimensions. Used for parts that fit together requiring a certain degree of
accuracy.
2.5.3.1. General.
Observe the dimensioning features shown for the plate in Figure 2.5a below. Note:
Extension.
Dimension line.
Gap.
Arrow
head.
Figure 2.5a.
Sphere
Radius
2.5.3.3 Circles:
Circles on engineering drawings are usually either spheres, holes or cylinders of some
description. The dimension refers to the diameter, and the diameter symbol is ∅.
The ∅40 dimension can also be refereed to as the PCD or Pitch Circle Diameter.
Chamfer at 45º:
Chamfer at
angles other
than 45º:
Countersink:
Counterbore:
1) 2) 3)
Figure 2.5b.
The simple bearing bracket casting below shows both size and location dimensions.
Surface textures resulting from manufacturing processes consist of many complex peaks
and valleys varying in height and spacing. The Roughness value of a surface is a
measure of this surface quality. The table below gives some nominal values of
roughness resulting from various common manufacturing processes.
If a particular surface finish is required you give clear instructions on the drawing using
the British Standard machining symbol.
In order to ensure that assemblies function properly their component parts must fit
together in a predictable way. As mentioned in section 2.5, no component can be
manufactured to an exact size, so the designer has to decide on appropriate upper and
lower limits for each dimension.
To give you a feel for the magnitude of decimal values in mm, consider these
facts:
The thickness of the paper this page is printed on is approximately 0.100 mm.
The human eye cannot resolve a gap between two points smaller than about
0.020mm, at a 20cm distance.
If you raise the temperature of a 100mm long block of steel by 10ºC it will increase
in length by approximately 0.020mm.
The basic size or nominal size is the size of shaft or hole that the designer specifies
before applying the limits to it. There are two systems used for specifying shaft/hole
tolerances:
Basic hole system: Starts with the basic hole size and adjusts shaft size to fit.
Basic shaft system: Starts with the basic shaft size and adjusts hole size to fit.
Because holes are usually made with standard tools such as drills and reamers, etc, the
basic hole system tends to be preferred and will therefore be used here
The fit represents the tightness or looseness resulting from the application of tolerances
to mating parts, e.g. shafts and holes. Fits are generally classified as one of the
following:
Fits have been standradised and can be taken directly from those tabulated in the BS
4500 standard, 'ISO limits and fits.'
The BS 4500 standard refers to tolerance symbols made up with a letter followed by a
number. The BS Data Sheet BS 4500A, as shown on the following two pages, shows a
range of fits derived, using the hole basis, from the following tolerances:
Holes: H11 H9 H8 H7
Remember:
• Capital letters always refer to holes, lower case always refer to shafts.
• The greater the number the greater or wider the tolerances.
The selection of a pair of these tolerances will give you the fit. The number of possible
combinations is huge. BS 4500 helps to standardise this and offers a range of fits
suitable for most engineering applications.
Examine an extract from the BS 4500 data sheet on page 4 & 5 and you will observe the
general class of fit specified on the top row. A more detailed description of the fit is given
on the bottom row.
See the table in section 2.6.4 for guidance on the selection of types of fit.
We will determine the actual working limits, the range of allowable sizes, for the shaft
and the hole in the housing.
Look along the bottom of the ISO Fits Data Sheet 4500A and locate 'Normal Fit'. We will
use this pair of columns to extract our tolerances.
The tolerances indicated are: 1st column H8 for the hole (upper case H)
2nd column f7 for the shaft (lower case f)
The actual tolerances depend upon the basic, or nominal, diameter as well as the class
of fit. So, locate 40mm in the left hand Nominal Sizes column. Either the 30 - 40 or 40 -
50 range is acceptable in this case. Read across and note the tolerance values for the
hole and the shaft, as shown below.
These tolerance values are simply added to the nominal size to obtain the actual
allowable sizes.
Note that this is a clearance fit. As long as the hole and shaft are manufactured within
the specified tolerances the hole will always be either slightly oversize or spot on the
nominal size and the shaft will always be slightly undersize. This ensures that there will
always be a free clearance fit.
• Name, identify, describe and quantify all of the components making up the assembly.
• Clearly show how all of the components fit together.
• Indicate all of the required fasteners.
• Record any special assembly instructions.
• Record any other relevant information.
Here is an example:
Note the use of sections, item numbers neatly layed out and the parts list.
It is easy to accidentally omit various items when creating engineering detail drawings.
Before passing on your work it is recommended that you work through the checklist
below for each drawing:
7 Check to make sure that there are sufficient dimensions to manufacture the
component. Check that positions and sizes of any features, such as holes, are
clearly dimensioned.
8 No dimension should appear more than once on the drawing, do any?
9 Have the dimensions been laid out in consistent and clear positions, so that they
are easy to read.
10 Have all of the dimension lines been constructed with correct extension lines and
gaps?
11 Are the arrow heads all in the same style and the same size?
12 Have dimensions relating to a particular feature, such as a hole, been grouped
together on one view, if possible?
13 Have appropriate line styles and line weights been used?
14 Have any surface finish requirements been specified?
15 Have any explicit tolerance requirements been specified?
16 Have any required center lines, break lines, etc. been used?
17 Have any required general notes been added, such as additional general
tolerances, finish specifications or specification of special manufacturing
processes?
18 If sections have been used do they conform to drawing conventions?
Computer Aided Draughting or Design offers several methods of representing the design
model:
Solid modelling Solid geometry, fully defined three dimensional solid shapes, with
free-form curved faces, material and mass properties.
Different methods suit different design circumstances. This section will introduce you to
the most significant and expanding technology, Solid Modelling.
The graph below gives a very crude indication of the productivity of companies
developing CAD software, through time.
All of the acronyms below may be used in the context of mechanical computer
aided engineering:
Part modelling:
You can also assign material properties, analyse mass properties, control the colour and
texture of the appearance, create photo realistic images with lighting, shadows and
perspective.
Orthographic drawing:
From the 3D model you can also create a detailed orthographic projection drawing.
Most market leading solid modelling software offers this associativity and is
usually referred to as 3D parametric associative solid modelling software.
Assembly modelling:
Having created a 3D solid model of a component, the geometry can then be used to
predict how it may behave in real life.
For example:
To predict how high the stresses may be and how much the conrod may deflect under
load, CAD software can be used to apply loads and supports and then analyse the
structural behaviour of the model.
Load. Supports, or
constraints.
You, as the design engineer, can use the analysis results to help you decide whether the
design is acceptable or requires modification. You may decide for the conrod, that the
stresses are too high around the small end and modify the design accordingly. You run
the analysis again, continuing the process until the predicted stress values are
acceptable.
As time passes more and more 3D CAD software packages allow you to create high
quality photorealistic images of your designs. By setting up an environment, with
surrounding walls, a floor and a ceiling, lights, surface textures, etc. you can capture
impressive images that cast shadows and reflections, giving a much more realistic
impression of what your design may look like once manufactured. These facilities
provide very powerful tools for developing, communicating and selling design ideas.
Most consumer product designs are modelled using 3D CAD software and then photo
rendered as part of the product development process. Most public building designs now
are also treated in the same way.