DEPARTMENT OF CIVIL AND

ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERING,
KWARA STATE UNIVERSITY, MALETE

INTRODUCTION TO AUTOCAD
By
MICHAEL OLUWASEGUN ADISA
[23/67MCE/044]
CLEMENT OLUWAFEMI ADEBAYO
[23/67MCE/050]
ALIYU OLAYINKA ABDULRAHMAN
[23/67MCE/055]
Course Title: Computer
NASIRUDEEN ALIAGANApplication
YAQUB
(CEE 804)[23/67MCE/063]
July,
Course Lecturer: Dr. Odeyemi S.O. 2024
 PRESENTATION
OUTLINE
01 Introduction 11 Selecting Objects

02 2D Interface (AutoCAD 12 Dimension Tools

2022)
03 Interacting With AutoCAD 13 Demo: 2D Sample
drawing
04 Precision tools 14 Switching between
Workspaces
05 Demo: Setting up a
15 Plotting
drawing

06 Basic tools in AutoCAD 16 Merits and Demerits of

AutoCAD
Understanding the
07 17 Vertical integration of
Coordinate System
AutoCAD
08 Using the LINE command 18 Questions

09 Drawing Tips 18 Answers

10 Navigation Tools 19 References

 INTRODUCTION 3
 Computer-aided design (CAD) or Computer-aided design and drafting (CADD) is the
use of computers to visualize, design, analyse, simulate and optimize designs.

 AutoCAD is a commercial CAD and drafting software application.

 The word AutoCAD was coined from “Auto” (Logo of the Company) and “CAD”
(Computer Aided Design/Drafting).

 It is used for 2D and 3D drawing and modelling.

 It is used by architects, project managers, engineers, graphic designers, city planners
and other professions.
 It is developed and marketed by Autodesk Inc., founded by John Walker in 1982.
 AutoCAD was launched at the COMDEX trade show in Las Vegas, USA as the first CAD
program to run on a PC.

Introduction To AutoCAD
 4

Figure 1. History timeline of AutoCAD

 AutoCAD's primary format for 2D and 3D drawing files is .dwg.
 Drawing Interchange Format .dxf is used to transfer data between various
applications e.g. Orion, Prota Structure etc.
 Other file formats are .dwt , .dws.
 AutoCAD LT is another version of AutoCAD with lesser functionalities.
 AutoCAD is available as desktop (Windows, Mac), mobile (iOS, Android) and
web apps.

Introduction To AutoCAD
 2D INTERFACE (AUTOCAD 2022) 5

Drawing Area

Figure 2. AutoCAD Interface (Jaiprakash &Yasser,

Introduction To AutoCAD 2022)
2D INTERFACE (AUTOCAD 2022) – Cont’d
6
1. The application button
Clicking on this big A icon will open a menu with options like open an existing drawing; open a new
template; save, print etc.

2. Drawing Area
This is where the drawings are made.

3. The ribbon area

The ribbon area contains all the tools and commands properly arranged into different tabs and panels.

3. The quick access toolbar

This toolbar contains most of the frequently used tools from the application button.

4. The command line or palette

All your typed commands and instructions in a middle of a command will show up in the command line.

5. The user coordinate system

The user coordinate system (UCS) shows the X, Y, and Z directions of the Cartesian coordinate system in
the drawing area. In the 2D workspace, the point of intersection of the X and Y coordinates in this UCS is
the origin, or 0,0, point.

6. The layout tabs

The layout tabs are like the sheets of your drawing on which you can arrange different views and finally,
plot multiple sheets.
 INTERACTING WITH AUTOCAD 7
Mouse Click Command aliases
No. Command Command
Alias
1 Line L
2 Circle C
3 Rectangle REC
4 Array Ar
5 Erase E
Figure 3. Mouse Interface
(Autodesk, n.d.) 6 Mirror M
Keyboard Shortcuts 8 Pan P
No. Command Keyboard
Shortcut
1 New Ctrl + N
2 Open Ctrl + O
3 Plot Ctrl + P
4 Properties Pallete Ctrl + 1
5 Tools Pallete Ctrl + 3
6 Command Window Ctrl + 9
Introduction To AutoCAD
 PRECISION TOOLS 8
Symb Name Keyboard Function
ol Shortcut
(to toggle
ON/OFF)
GRIDMODE F7 Turns the grid display on and off

SNAPMODE F9 Restricts cursor movement to specified grid

intervals
DYNAMIC INPUT (DYNMODE) F12 Allows you to enter distances, angles, and
other values right inside a drawing with a
visual reference.
ORTHOMODE F8 Locks cursor movement to vertical or
horizontal
POLAR TRACKING F10 Guides cursor movement to specified angles

ISODRAFT F5 Cycles through isoplane settings

OBJECT SNAP TRACKING F11 Tracks the cursor from object snap locations
(AUTOSNAP)
OBJECT SNAP (OSNAP) F3 Turns object snap on and off

Introduction To AutoCAD
 DEMO: SETTING UP A DRAWING 9
 You can launch the AutoCAD software using its icon on the desktop or from the Start menu

Introduction To AutoCAD
 BASIC TOOLS IN AUTOCAD 10
Command Function
DRAW TOOLS

LINE (L) Creates line segments

RECTANGLE Creates a rectangular polyline
(REC)
DIVIDE (DIV) Divides an object into evenly
spaced segments
DONUT (DO) Creates a filled circle or a
wide ring
Figure 4. Draw tools

Command Function
MODIFY TOOLS

ROTATE (RO) Rotates an object around a base

point
EXPLODE (X) Breaks a compound object into
its component object
ALIGN (AL) Aligns objects with other objects
JOIN (J) Joins similar objects to form a
single, unbroken object
Figure 5. Modify tools

Introduction To AutoCAD
UNDERSTANDING THE COORDINATE SYSTEM 11
 Cartesian coordinates • Polar coordinates
• Points in space are represented by the
distances from the origin along the axes. • Points in space are represented by an angle
with respect to the positive X axis and the
• In a 2D space, (X,Y) coordinate system is distance from the origin.
used.
• In a 3D space, (X,Y,Z) coordinate system
is used.

Figure 6. Cartesian coordinates

(Jaiprakash &Yasser, 2022, p.31) Figure 7. Polar coordinates (Jaiprakash
Introduction To AutoCAD
&Yasser, 2022, p.31)
 USING THE LINE COMMAND 12
 Using Absolute Coordinates  Using Polar  Using No
• Coordinates
Uses @DIS<ANG • Coordinates
Locks the line at specified
• Uses (X,Y) coordinates. notation angle
• Can start at any point • MUST start at the • Can start at any point
origin

Figure 8. Absolute Coordinates

• DYNMODE must be OFF* Figure 9. Polar Coordinates Figure 10. Using no Coordinates
• Select LINE command or • Select LINE command or • Select LINE command or
type L type L type L
• Type 2,4 as first point • Type 0,0 as first point • Select a first point (A)
• Type 8,4 as next point • Type 7<55 as next point • Type <45
• Type 4,10 as next point
[notice the line is
• Type 2,4 as next point
locked at 45°]
* If ON, DYNMODE makes it a relative coordinate. • Type 5 as distance
 USING THE LINE COMMAND – Cont’d 13
• Using Relative Coordinates • Using Direct Distance
• Combines both absolute and polar coordinates • Does not require entering coordinates
systems • Easy to use
• Uses @X,Y or @DIS<ANG notations • ORTHO or POLAR TRACKING must be ON
• Uses a selected point as a reference for adding the
coordinates.
• Select LINE command or type L
• Select a first point (A)
• Move the cursor in the horizontal
direction.
• Type 8 (B)
• Move the cursor in the vertical
direction.
• Type 5 (C)
• Type <151
• Type 7 (D)
Figure 11. Relative Coordinates Figure 12. Direct Distance
• Click on point A or type C (to
• Select LINE command or type L close the figure at A)
• Select a first point (A)
• Type @8,0 (B)
• Type @0,5 (C)
• Type @7<151 (D)
• Click on point A or type C (to close the
Introduction To AutoCAD
figure at A)
 DRAWING TIPS 14
Drawing Tip 1 Drawing Tip 2
In the middle of a command, any option can be In the middle of any DRAW command, POLAR or
invoked by ORTHO modes can be overridden by pressing
• right-clicking and picking the option; or down the Shift key.
• typing the letter in uppercase shown in the
Drawing Tip 3
command window and pressing Enter.
Pressing down the Shift or Ctrl key and right-
clicking will show the object snap options

Figure 13. Drawing tip 1 Figure 14. Drawing tip 3

Introduction To AutoCAD
 NAVIGATION TOOLS 15

Zoom Type Function

Zoom Zooms to display the maximum extents of
Extents all objects.
Zoom Zooms to display an area specified by a
Window rectangular window.
Zoom Zooms to display the previous view. You
Previous can restore up to 10 previous views.
Zoom Zooms interactively to change the
Realtime magnification of the view.
Zooming
Figure 15. Navigation Tools Tip

PAN (P) - Shifts the view without

changing the viewing direction or
magnification

Figure 16. Zoom using mouse

(Autodesk, n.d.)
Introduction To AutoCAD
 SELECTING OBJECTS 16
 Type Select (SEL) at the command prompt and press Enter (by default, the options are hidden)
 Type ? and press Enter to see all options

Window Crossing Fence Multiple

• Selects all objects • Selects objects • Selects all objects • Selects objects
completely inside a within and crossing crossing a individually
rectangle defined by an area defined by selection fence. without
two points from left to two points from highlighting them
right . right to left. during object
selection.

Figure 17. Window Figure 18. Crossing Figure 19. Fence

Selection Selection Selection
Note that selection of an object by clicking, window and crossing selections can be performed
without invoking the SELECT command.
Introduction To AutoCAD
 DIMENSION TOOLS
17

Figure 20. Dimension Figure 21. Setting

Types Dimension Style
Introduction To AutoCAD
 DEMO: 2D DRAWING 18

Introduction To AutoCAD
 SWITCHING BETWEEN WORKSPACES 19

Figure 22. Switching to 3D

Workspace
Introduction To AutoCAD
 PLOTTING 20
 Outputs a drawing to a printer, a plotter, or a file.

• Mostly, you switch to the Paper Space for

plotting Figure 23. Switching to Layout
Tab
• Type PLOT or CTRL + P to invoke the PLOT
command

Figure 24. Plot dialog

Introduction To AutoCAD box
 MERITS AND DEMERITS OF AUTOCAD21

Merits of AutoCAD Demerits of AutoCAD

• Time and energy saving • High cost of acquiring latest configuration
computer systems**
• Easy to editing
• High cost of acquiring and updating the
• Quality design with Improved accuracy
software
and precision
• Loss of work if computer is damaged,
• Design optimization
attacked by virus or hacked
• Code re-use
• Time and high cost of learning
• Easy to share

**Can be eliminated by the use of cloud-

based storage

Introduction To AutoCAD
 VERTICAL INTEGRATION OF AUTOCAD22

• Industry-specific toolsets built upon AutoCAD

AutoCAD

AutoCAD AutoCAD
Advance AutoCAD AutoCAD AutoCAD AutoCAD Autodesk
Architect Mechanic
Steel Electrical Map 3D Plant 3D MEP Civil 3D
ure al

Introduction To AutoCAD
 QUESTIONS 23

1. Mention the merits and demerits of AutoCAD.

2. List four precision tools on the status bar and their functions.
3. Mention some industry-specific toolsets built upon AutoCAD.
4. List the steps to draw a square of 5 units using the direct distance method.
5. Differentiate between the coordinate systems available in AutoCAD.

Introduction To AutoCAD
 ANSWERS 24
1. Mention the merits and demerits of AutoCAD
Merits of AutoCAD Demerits of AutoCAD

• High cost of acquiring latest configuration computer
Time and energy saving
systems
 Easy to editing • High cost of acquiring and updating the software
• Loss of work if computer is damaged, attacked by virus
 Quality design with
or hacked
Improved accuracy and • Time and high cost of learning
precision
 Design optimization
 Code re-use
 Easy to share 2. List four precision tools on the status bar and their functions
S/N Name Function
1 GRIDMODE Turns the grid display on and off
2 SNAPMODE Restricts cursor movement to specified grid intervals
3 ORTHOMODE Locks cursor movement to vertical or horizontal
4 POLAR Guides cursor movement to specified angles
TRACKING
Introduction To AutoCAD
 ANSWERS – Cont’d 25

3. Mention some industry-specific toolsets built upon AutoCAD

a. Autodesk Civil 3D
b. AutoCAD Mechanical
c. AutoCAD Electrical
d. AutoCAD Architecture
e. Advance Steel
. List the steps to draw a square of 5 units using the direct distance method

a. Type L and press Enter OR pick LINE from the Draw panel
b. Pick the first point
c. Move in the horizontal direction
d. Type 5 and press Enter
e. Move in the vertical direction
f. Type 5 and press Enter
g. Move in the horizontal direction (opposite to the first horizontal direction)
h. Type 5 and press Enter
i. Type C and press Enter OR click the first point
Introduction To AutoCAD
 ANSWERS – Cont’d 26

5. Differentiate between the coordinate systems available in AutoCAD

S/N Cartesian Polar coordinates

coordinates
1 Points in space are Points in space are represented
represented by the by an angle with respect to the
distances from the positive X axis and the distance
origin along the from the origin.
axes.
2 Example: A(3,4) Example: B(7<45)
Introduction To AutoCAD
 REFERENCES 27
 Arcvertex (n.d.). Advantages And Disadvantages of Using Computer Aided Design (CAD).
Retrieved June 25, 2023, from
https
://www.arcvertex.com/article/advantages-and-disadvantages-of-using-computer-aided-design-cad/
 Autodesk Inc. (n.d.). Have You Tried: Faster Zooming and Panning. Retrieved June 28, 2023, from
https://help.autodesk.com/view/ACD/2022/ENU/?guid=GUID-10D3C9A9-22E8-4047-AED1-5E96C6
C28866

 Autodesk Inc. (n.d.). The Hitchhiker's Guide to AutoCAD. Retrieved June 25, 2023, from https
://help.autodesk.com/view/ACD/2022/ENU/?
guid=GUID-2AA12FC5-FBB2-4ABE-9024-90D41FEB1AC3
 Jaiprakash, P. (n.d.). 72 Practice drawings: Fully dimensioned 2D and 3D drawings for practice.
SourceCAD Learning. Retrieved June 27, 2023 from http://www.thesourcecad.com
 Jaiprakash, P. & Yasser, S. (2022). Practical Autodesk AutoCAD 2023 and AutoCAD LT 2023.
Birmingham, UK: Packt Publishing Ltd.
Introduction To AutoCAD
 28

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Introduction To AutoCAD