The Art of Mechanical Drawings

Mechanical drawings are among the basic elements used in engineering. These mechanical drawings are also referred to as engineering drawings, which are highly technical visual representations of an object or structure. These drawings may come in the form of blue prints, which are used for conceptualizing buildings, bridges, and skyscrapers. Manufactured items such as refrigerators, televisions, air conditioners, and vacuum cleaners are also built with the use of mechanical drawings.

Manual mechanical drawings

Before the advent of automated systems and computers, mechanical drawings were created manually. These drawings need to be precise because they are supposed to be representations of the specific requirements of the object or structure that will be constructed. When produced manually, these drawings were done with the use of a T-square, drafting table, technical pen, and a set of triangles and squares. Other materials used for creating mechanical drawings include the compass, French curve, and spline. Creating mechanical drawings take up much time, and individuals must have the necessary skills and much patience in order to produce mechanical drawings.

Kinds of mechanical drawings

* Construction drawing - This is a kind of mechanical drawing that is used for clearly defining the requirements for various engineered items. The purpose of this kind of drawing is to capture accurately the geometric features of a component or product.

* Cutaway drawing - Cutaway drawings are technical illustrations that show the internal features of a three-dimensional model without taking for granted the outer context of the product. The aim of this kind of drawing is to let the viewer see the internal aspect of an otherwise solid, opaque structure.

* Patent drawing - Patent drawings are mechanical drawings of patent inventions. These drawings show the nature of the inventions. It's a must that these drawing show each feature of the invention that is specified in the claims. The patent office usually requires patent drawings to be made on a particular type of paper, with specific margins and other details. It's also important that these drawings be easily understood by those individuals utilizing the patent descriptions.

Computer-aided design

With the introduction of computer-aided design (CAD), the creation of mechanical drawings is now easier and faster. With the use of CAD, a two-dimension mechanical engineering drawing and a three-dimension model now take a lot less time to do. CAD is a computer technology that is now widely being used not only in the field of engineering, but also in architecture, interior design, automotive, and other industries. The drafting process has undergone a radical and beneficial change since the development of CAD. Aside from making it easier for individuals to create mechanical drawings, CAD also lessened the costs of developing structures and products.

Different CAD software

There has been a wide variety of CAD software released in the market since the advent of computer-aided design. These software include VectorWorks, Coreldraw, AutoCAD, MicroStation, and Adobe Illustrator. These software programs enable individuals to do three-dimensional modeling, electrical and plumbing detailing, architectural detailing, graphic design, format conversion, and mapping.

Combination of manual drawing and CAD

It's usually easier to manipulate the pen and create drawings manually, but using computer programs is still more convenient. The National Research Council of Canada has devised a way to combine the two. Nowadays, individuals can make use of a system that knows how to recognize basic shapes that are drawn on a separate touch screen and then turn these drawings into three-dimensional models that will be shown on the computer screen. With this advancement, individuals can easily turn their visual concepts into prototypes. Innovations such as this are certainly proving to be a big help to designers doing mechanical drawings.

Vincent Hart is an aspiring engineer who's currently taking up courses involving mechanical drawing. He has gained much from learning about the rudiments of computer-aided design.