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Fundamentals of Graphics Communication, 3/e
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Introduction to Graphics Communication and Sketching
Bertoline - Fundamentals of Graphics Communication Third Edition

Chapter Overview

As a student of engineering graphics, you will study and learn to apply the tools used to create engineering drawings and models. Even more important, you will also learn the underlying principles and concepts of engineering graphics, such as descriptive geometry. You will also learn the standards and conventions that will enable you to create drawings and models that can be read and accurately interpreted by engineers or technologists anywhere.

The tools used for technical drawing include traditional ones, such as the triangle and the compass, and CAD. Traditional tools are used to make technical drawings by hand, and it takes practice and repetition to become proficient at their use. Although with CAD there is less emphasis on developing good technique, it still requires practice and repetition to attain proficiency.

The ability to draw is a powerful skill. It gives a person's thoughts visible form. Engineering drawings can communicate complex ideas both efficiently and effectively, and it takes special training to be able to produce these complex images. If drawings are “windows to our imaginations,” then engineering drawings are specialized windows that give expression to the most complex, technical visions our minds can imagine. Engineering drawing does more than communicate. Like any language, it can actually influence how we think. Knowing how to draw allows you to think of and deal with many problems that others may not. A knowledge of technical graphics helps you more easily envision technical problems, as well as their solutions. In short, engineering graphics is a necessity for every engineer and technologist.

Engineering drawing does more than communicate. Like any language, it can actually influence how we think. Knowing how to draw allows you to think of and deal with many problems that others may not, A knowledge of technical graphics helps you more easily envision technical problems, as well as their solutions. In short, technical graphics is a necessity for every engineer and technologist.

Sketching is an important tool for quickly and efficiently communicating design ideas. It is a particularly useful tool early in the design process, when several ideas are being explored. One of the appealing characteristics of sketches is the minimal amount of equipment needed for their creation. A pencil, eraser, and paper are the only tools really necessary for creating a sketch. Increasingly, software being developed to run on low-cost computer systems has many of the same attributes as hand sketching. This new software has the potential of allowing a more direct translation of sketched designs into final, refined models that can be used in manufacturing and construction.

Whether a sketch is created by hand or on the computer, there is a basic set of techniques that should be used. Sketches are meant to be quickly created approximations of geometric forms. Therefore, exact measurements are usually not used in sketching. Instead, construction line techniques are used to preserve the proportions of different features of the object.

The process of transferring the features of an object onto an sheet of paper is called projection. One way of defining the projection relates to whether the lines projecting the features of the object are all parallel to each other. The types of projection include isometric pictorial, oblique pictorial, and multiview. These projections constitute the most popular methods used in engineering and technical graphics. Another type of projection, perspective, more closely matches how you perceive objects in the real world. This type of projection is less commonly used, in part because of the difficulty in laying out the sketch, and also because of the distortions it creates in the features of the object drawn.

The graphical methods used in creating a sketch communicate considerable information. At times, however, words are more effective for providing information on a drawing. The use of a standard method of lettering ensures that text in a drawing will be clear and legible. Computers are used extensively for generating text. This is due in part to the flexibility with which text can be generated and modified to meet specialized needs. Later chapters in this book will go into more detail as to the proper use and placement of text in engineering and technical graphics.

The mind uses many visualization tools, working in concert, to interpret the world. The mind engages in constant problem solving in the interpretation process. Part of this problem-solving process is automatic. However, you can develop numerous sketching and modeling techniques that will help. With a better understanding of how the mind interprets what it receives, you can use conscious mental power to assist in this process. You can also learn to bring physical processes into play. For example, you may be able to pick up an object and rotate it, to gain a better understanding of the object. More importantly, you may be able to create a sketch that will help you in the visual problem-solving process.