Experience using AUTOCAD

Part 2 of My Experience Using AUTOCAD – Layer Settings. Last time, we discussed the three most fundamental principles for using AUTOCAD software: \"clarity,\" \"accuracy,\" and \"efficiency.\" It might seem a bit abstract to everyone, but starting from this time, we will begin actual practice. I’ve received a task and am about to start drawing; I’m not sure what everyone would do as the first step. There are probably many people who start drawing right away, but that’s not correct. Various settings should be made, including layers, line styles, fonts, labels, and so on. It is very necessary to make various settings; only when all these settings are appropriate can a solid foundation be laid for our subsequent drawing work, making it possible to achieve clarity, accuracy, and efficiency in what follows. Let’s talk about layers first. It can be said that the definition of layers is the most crucial setting in the entire AUTOCAD software, and I’ve found that not many of our company’s employees have their layer settings organized in a clear and systematic manner. Sometimes, when I open the DWG files of certain colleagues, I see dozens of layers; upon closer inspection, I find that most of the elements are on layer 0, which is really amusing. As for whether things should be on different layers or on one layer, there are countless similar issues – things that should be on one layer but aren’t. What are the principles for setting layers? First, as long as it is sufficient, less is better. Regardless of the specialty or the stage of the drawings, all the elements in them can be organized according to certain rules. For example, in the drawings related to architecture, in terms of floor plans, they can be divided into: columns, walls, axes, dimension markings, general annotations, lines indicating doors and windows, furniture, etc. In other words, for the floor plans in architecture, layers are defined based on elements such as columns, walls, axes, dimension labels, general text, door and window lines, and furniture. When drawing, each element is placed on the appropriate layer according to its category. As long as all the elements in the drawing can be properly categorized, the foundation for layer settings is established. But, is the finer the element classification, the better? No. For example, on a building floor plan, there are doors and windows, as well as lines representing steps and staircases; should these be categorized into separate layers for doors, windows, steps, and stairs? No. Too many layers can actually cause inconvenience in our subsequent drawing process. Just like doors, windows, steps, and stairs – although they are not of the same type, they all relate to lines, so they can be managed using the same layer. Therefore, the first principle of layer settings is to keep it as simple as possible while still being sufficient. Two meanings: 1. Sufficient ； 2. Streamline. The situation varies for each major, so everyone can think for themselves about what is relatively the most reasonable approach. Second, the use of layer 0. Many colleagues like to draw on layer 0, as it is the default layer and white is the default color for that layer; therefore, sometimes the display appears completely white. Doing this is absolutely not advisable. Layer 0 cannot be used for drawing; then what is Layer 0 used for? It is used to define blocks. When defining a block, set all elements to layer 0 first (except in special cases), and then define the block; this way, when the block is inserted, it will be on the same layer as that at which it was inserted. Third, the definition of layer colors. Layer settings have many attributes; in addition to the layer name, there are also color, line style, line width, and so on. When setting up layers, we need to define the corresponding color, line style, and line width. These days, many colleagues choose the colors for layers based on their personal preferences – using whatever color they like – and this approach is not reasonable. When defining the colors of layers, two things need to be taken into account: first, different layers should generally use different colors. By doing this, we can make a clear distinction in color when drawing. If two layers are the same color, it is difficult to determine which layer the element being manipulated is on when displaying it. The second point in defining layer colors is that the choice of color should be based on the thickness of the line width at the time of printing. When printing, the wider the line width setting, the brighter color should be chosen for that layer ； Conversely, if the width of that line is only 0.09 mm during printing, then the color for that layer should be color number 8 or a similar color. Why do we have to do this? This allows the thickness of the line to be visually reflected on the screen. For example, take a look at the attached figure. The column layers (ZU) and wall layers (WA) are the thickest when printed; one of them is colored yellow and the other cyan – these two colors are quite bright in AUTOCAD. The line width for the filler layer (h) and the furniture layer (fur) during printing is set at 0.13 mm; therefore, darker colors No. 8 and No. 83 are also used when selecting colors. The benefits of doing this will become apparent to everyone as they use it over time. Additionally, white belongs to layer 0 and the DEFPOINTS layer; we should not allow other layers to use white. Fourth, the settings for linearity and line width. Before discussing the linear settings for layers, let’s first talk about the LTSCALE command. Generally, the value of LTSCALE should be set to 1, so as to avoid confusion when exchanging drawings. There are three common line types: the first is the continuous line, the second is the ACAD_IS002W100 dotted line, and the third is the ACAD_IS004W100 dashed line. Options such as hidden and dot, which were used in the previous 14 versions of CAD, are not recommended. There are also particular considerations regarding the setting of line width. One of the key factors in determining whether a drawing is attractive and clear is whether it has distinct layers. In one diagram, there are thin lines with a thickness of 0.13, lines of medium width at 0.25, and thick lines at 0.35, which adds variety. At a glance at the printed drawings, it is possible to distinguish different types of elements based on the thickness of the lines: where the walls are, where the doors and windows are, and where the annotations are. Therefore, when setting the line width, we must specify the thickness clearly. If a drawing can still be described as passable when all lines have the same thickness, then it’s incorrect when the lines for doors and windows are thicker than those for walls. There is one more thing we need to pay attention to. Currently, we have two options for printing diagrams: one is to print them at a specific scale, in which case we can use line widths of 0.13\0.25\0.4 and similar thicknesses. If we print in A3 format without following the proportional scales, the line width should be set 0.09\0.15\0.3 units smaller than usual, so that the small images appear clear and distinct. When setting layers, there are mainly the above aspects to pay attention to. Additionally, when drawing, there is one more thing to keep in mind: all the various attributes of the elements should preferably be tied to the layers. Don’t use this wire; it belongs to the WA layer, its color is yellow, and its shape has changed to a dashed line. Try to keep the attributes of elements consistent with those of the layers; in other words, make the element attributes Bylayer as much as possible. This helps to keep our graphics clear.

Tips for Using AUTOCAD Part 3 – Font and Dimension Settings serta CAD Template Files. Last time, we discussed several principles regarding layer settings in AUTOCAD; next, we will look at a few other settings that I believe are important to master. Font settings (Style). In AUTOCAD software, there are two types of font libraries that can be used. One type is stored in the Fonts folder within the AUTOCAD directory, with font files having a shx extension; these are proprietary fonts for CAD, with English letters and Chinese characters belonging to separate font sets. The second type is stored in the Fonts directory located in WINNT or WINXP, depending on the operating system in use; the suffix for these font files is ttf. These are universal fonts for Windows systems, and software other than CAD, such as Word and Excel, also uses these fonts. Among them, the Chinese character font libraries already include English letters. When defining fonts in CAD, we can use either type of font library, but they each have their own characteristics, and we need to use them appropriately depending on the situation. The first category consists of font files with the suffix shx; the biggest advantage of this type of font files is that they require fewer system resources. Therefore, under normal circumstances, I recommend using this type of font library. Our company provides three font libraries: sceic.shx, sceie.shx, and sceist01.shx. Among them, sceic.shx is a Chinese character font library, sceie.shx is an English character font library, and sceist01.shx is an English character font library containing professional symbols with common formats. I strongly recommend that, unless there are special circumstances, all drawings in my company use the three font files: sceic.shx, sceie.shx, and sceist01.shx. This will ensure that the drawings are unified and properly formatted. When should fonts with the .ttf extension be used? There are two cases. First, since your drawing files need to be shared with other companies, using font families such as Song and Heiti ensures that no problems will arise when those companies open your files. The second scenario is when working on plans, covers, and similar things. Because there are a great many font files of this type, with various styles available – all very diverse and aesthetically pleasing. Therefore, when it is necessary to teach characters with aesthetic effects, this type of font library can be used. There are a few things we need to keep in mind when defining fonts. Firstly, again under the condition of sufficiency, the less, the better principle applies. This should apply to all settings in CAD. Regardless of the type of settings, the more there are, the larger the CAD file will become, and this may also affect the processing speed when the software is run. More importantly, the more settings there are, the easier it is to make mistakes in categorizing the elements. When using CAD, apart from the default Standard font, I usually have only two other font definitions. One is the conventional definition, with a font width of 0.75. Generally, all Chinese characters and English letters use this font. The second font definition uses the same font library as the first, but with a font width of 0.5. This font is the one I use specifically for dimensioning. Because, in most construction drawings, many small dimensions are packed together. At this point, using a narrower font reduces the amount of overlapping that occurs in the labels. Annotation settings (Dimstyle). There are a few more options in the annotation definition, but there aren’t many things to pay attention to. Normally, I define one set of settings; for special cases, I modify their properties individually, and then use the format brush to apply those changes to the others. Let me introduce the settings for my commonly used annotation definitions (1:100 scale output). Lines and arrows: All color and line width options are set to Bylayer; the arrow size is 150, while the other values are generally between 100 and 200. Text: For the text style, use the font whose width was set to 0.5 as mentioned earlier; the color should remain Bylayer. The text height is 350, with the vertical position set at the top and the horizontal position centered. It should be offset by 60 from the dimension lines, with the text aligned with those lines. Some other options can be adjusted as needed; there’s no need to pay attention to them. Unit setting (Units). Among the options provided by the unit settings, I noticed that some people prefer to choose 0 for the precision setting of length, meaning they use the individual digit as the unit. Regarding this, I suggest changing it to 3–4 decimal places. In the initial chapters, I emphasized that accuracy is one of the three fundamental principles in using AUTOCAD. If we define length precision at the single-digit level, many minor errors will be overlooked; for example, a line segment of 1000 might actually be drawn as 999.97. It is rather troublesome to perform the above definitions every time a drawing is created, so AUTOCAD has provided us with an excellent solution in the form of DWT templates. Every time we create a new drawing, the CAD software asks us to open a DWT template file; the default one is acad.dwt. Once we have created our own set of default settings, we can create our own template files to save all the settings and definitions. My DWT template is the result of several hours of careful selection of various images, including one each of simple floor plans, elevations, sections, and stair details, along with dozens of commonly used blocks (of course, all organized into categories). In this way, every time I start a new project, I can open this module and get to work. Some people might ask how to create a DWT file. It’s simple: when saving a file, choose \"Save As\", and then select DWT as the file type. After discussing all the various settings in AUTOCAD, let’s finally talk about the Purge command. The Purge command can remove all unused settings, blocks, and other information from the diagram. It is recommended that everyone use this command frequently; I use it almost every time before saving the file. To sum up, the well-organized settings in AUTOCAD form the foundation for achieving the three key objectives of clearness, accuracy, and efficiency in using CAD software. Therefore, I strongly urge all the professional departments within the company to establish, as soon as possible, a set of standards suitable for their respective departments and fields, and to put those standards into practice. If it is possible to standardize and regulate each specialty, it will undoubtedly improve efficiency not only within each specialty itself, but also in terms of the coordination between different specialties and the submission of documents. Regarding the section on annotation settings, modify it as follows: Annotation Settings (Dimstyle). There are a few more options in the annotation definition, but there aren’t many things to pay attention to. Normally, I define one set of settings; for special cases, I modify their properties individually, and then use the format brush to apply those changes to the others. Let me introduce the settings for my commonly used annotation definitions. Lines and arrows: All color and line width options are set to Bylayer; the arrow size is 1.5, while the other values are generally between 1 and 2. Text: For the text style, use the font whose width was set to 0.5 as mentioned earlier; the color should remain Bylayer. The text height is 3.5. The text should be positioned vertically at the top and horizontally in the center, with a offset of 0.6 from the dimension lines, and the text should be aligned with those lines. Some other options can be adjusted as needed; there’s no need to pay attention to them. Such annotation settings serve as the base settings for all annotations in the entire drawing. When creating drawings at different scales, it is necessary to adjust the \"global annotation scale\" according to the drawing scale. For a diagram created at a scale of 1:100, its \"global scale label\" needs to be set to 100 ； For a diagram created at 1:150, its \"global scale factor\" needs to be adjusted to 50. This will be discussed in detail in Part 6 later on. Since different diagrams, or even the same diagram, often have different scaling factors, parameters such as text height, arrow size, and text offset need to be adjusted repeatedly. Although templates are available (and they are indeed useful), making these adjustments remains a hassle. I think this approach of mine is simpler: set all the dimensions in the annotation style to the sizes they will have in the final printed output. For example, if you want the text in the output to be 3 mm high, then set that value to 3 in the annotation style; do the same for other values. After making these settings, there’s an option called “Use Global Scale” under the “Adjust” tab. If your drawing scale is 100, then enter 100 in that field (provided that the drawing units in model space are mm). Once these settings are done, save them as a template. Whenever you need to make adjustments later, you can simply adjust this global scale according to the required proportion – isn’t that simpler? Regarding the color issue, I think it’s better not to change it depending on the layer; instead, use a fixed color. That way, whenever you see this color, you’ll know it’s a label, making it easy to distinguish it from other elements. Also, I’m not sure if the original poster has studied this layout; it’s a useful feature, and it involves parameters such as the “global scale” and “custom scale factor”. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1. We use CAD for drawing; you should treat it with the respect it deserves, as I’m sure no one would like something that’s too complicated to look at! Most concise and thoroughly thorough. I find that the AUDIT repair command is very useful for CAD; if the drawing is large and causes a crash or abnormal shutdown, the PURGE and AUDIT commands should be used. 2. Think about it: a building contains many elements such as walls, doors, windows, columns, labels, text, etc. If one were to determine the bay width and depth with precision down to 0.0000, it would surely be quite difficult, right? It’s just like when we do drawing now: we must be strict with ourselves, complete tasks ahead of time, and take on new tasks as well. 3. For everyone, it’s important to read more, ask more questions, think more, and give more consideration – as well as paying attention to matters related to writing! If, for submitting building plans, an A3 format at a scale of 1:100 is required, then if your drawings are in A3 format but at a scale of 1:200, the text and annotations must be enlarged by a factor of two accordingly

Tips for Using AUTOCAD IV -- Common Commands and Principles for Setting Up Shortcuts. There are numerous commands in the AUTOCAD software; how can one master the most important ones and use them effectively? I often discuss with others that in CAD, when it comes to drawing or editing a certain element, there are generally several methods available. As a competent CAD drafter, one should use the most appropriate method appropriately. Let’s first take a look at what commands are available in CAD We can divide them into several categories. The first category is drawing-related, the second is editing-related, the third is setting-related, and the fourth is other categories, including annotations, views, etc. We analyze them category by category. The first category is drawing-related. Common commands include: Line for drawing straight lines; xline for constructing lines (used to draw auxiliary lines); mline for double lines (often used when drawing wall lines, and other line types can also be defined for use); pline for polylines (elements that are mostly composed of line segments; those that can be defined as polylines should be done so, as this makes selection easier); rectang for rectangles (which are essentially polylines enclosed by four segments); arc for arcs; circle for circles; hatch for filling (attention should be paid to the scale of the pattern); boundary for defining boundaries (used in calculations such as area determination and filling); block for defining blocks (all elements intended for use in a block must be placed on layer 0, with all other properties set to bylayer); insert for inserting blocks (compared to –insert, one option displays a dialog box while the other does not). The second category consists of editing commands. Common commands include: Matchprop for property matching (equivalent to the Format Painter in Word, often used to apply the correct layer settings to the element being edited); Hatchedit for editing hatch patterns (double-click on the hatch pattern with the left mouse button); Pedit for editing polylines (also used to connect several segments that are end-to-end to form a polyline); Erase for deleting; Copy for copying; Mirror for mirroring; Offset for translating; Array for creating arrays; Move for moving; Rotate for rotating; Scale for scaling; Stretch for stretching; Lengthen for extending (not commonly used, but useful when it’s necessary to extend segments that are not horizontal or vertical) ； !Can also achieve the same function; everyone should try to figure it out on their own first.) Trim: Cut away. Extend: Lengthen. Break: Interrupt. Fillet: Round off corners. Explode: Break apart (can be used to break apart blocks, polylines, double lines, etc.). Align: Align objects (not commonly used, but very useful when drawing inclined shapes; it allows one to draw the shape with it aligned, and then adjust it back to its original angle later). (UCS are two different concepts.) The Properties attribute (similar to ddmodify in version 14) allows you to access a property table where you can view and modify almost all of the attributes of that element, which is very useful). Let’s go over some more commands related to drawing and editing. First, when drawing, in general, we should use editing commands whenever it’s possible, rather than drawing commands. In the use of CAD software, although it is often said to be about drawing, in reality most of the time is spent editing drawings. Because editing primitives can significantly reduce the likelihood of inaccurate rendering of primitives, and it can also improve efficiency to a certain extent. Second, when using drawing commands, it is essential to set snap (the settings for snap will be discussed later); use F3 to toggle it on. Third, when using drawing and editing commands, orthogonal mode is usually required, which can be switched on with F8. Fourth, the drawing and editing commands I have listed above must be mastered and used proficiently by a CAD drafter; as for other drawing and editing commands that are not listed, one should be familiar with them and use them at appropriate times. The third category is the configuration type. A lot has been discussed earlier, so I won’t repeat it. The fourth category: others. There is a lot of content here, so let’s describe it separately. (This involves commands in Express.) Next, let’s talk about how to customize shortcuts. The definitions of shortcut keys are stored in the acad.pgp file; after version 2004 (or possibly version 02, I can’t remember exactly), the directory where they are stored changed. Everyone can find out by searching in Windows. Keyboard shortcuts can be defined freely according to each person’s preferences. But I think freedom does not mean recklessness; there should also be some principles. I. To avoid ambiguity, try not to use letters that are completely unrelated. For example, for the copy command, do not use the letter v as the shortcut key. This can easily lead to misunderstandings and forgetfulness. Even if you memorize it yourself, as soon as someone uses your machine, they’ll definitely be confused. II. Shortcut keys are defined based on the frequency of occurrence of various commands; when defining them, the principle of \"1 letter -- 1 letter repeated twice -- two adjacent or similar letters -- others\" is followed in sequence. Take the simplest example, copy and circle. In CAD’s default settings, copy is co/cp, and circle is c. Such an arrangement is absolutely unreasonable. Generally speaking, copy is used far more frequently than circle; therefore, c should first be defined as a shortcut for copy. Then, for circle, cc (the first and fourth letters) can be used, or ce (the first and last letters); if these are already in use or not preferred, ci can be used instead. For commonly used commands, my advice is to definitely use shortcuts; they are much faster than clicking on icons with the mouse or selecting commands from menus. It is essential to develop the habit of using the left hand for the keyboard and the right hand for the mouse. What are considered common commands? I suggest that commands appearing more than 5 times per day on average should all be classified as common commands. After defining the shortcut keys according to such principles, with 1–2 days of practice, efficiency will definitely improve significantly. To become an excellent architectural draftsman (architect), one should first have at least 1 year of experience drawing with ink pens on drawing boards, then possess 1 year of basic knowledge in using CAD – this knowledge must be built on good drafting habits – and finally, if one finds Tenjin to be a better tool, then use it. When layers are set up and line segments start to be drawn, if the distance between those segments is large, it’s often not possible to see the offset segment; even when scaling in to the smallest level, it still cannot be seen. What’s going on? 　　May I answer the question from above? 　　First: When drawing in the CAD model space, it is always done at a 1:1 scale. 　　　　Do you know model space and paper space? 　　　　The drawing scale should be set when creating the drawing in drawing space. The details were covered in previous posts. 　　Second: since the model space in CAD is infinite, scaling is also infinite. It’s just that you need to make a slight adjustment at this point. 　　　　Do you see the “Real-time Pan” and “Real-time Zoom” buttons on the toolbar? To their right is a button in the lower right corner with a small black triangle (it is the only one with such a triangle). By holding down the left mouse button on it, an eight-button dropdown menu will appear. Move the mouse to the sixth button (the one with a “–” symbol), then release the mouse button and click on that button; each time it is clicked, the graphic will shrink by one step. Countless clicks, countless zooms in. The fifth button with a “+” sign is for zooming in. You can try the rest by yourself.

Tips for Using AUTOCAD No. 5 – Layer Control Commands, View Commands, and Element Selection Methods. Layer control commands and view commands are both tools that assist in drawing, but they are extremely important; proficiency in using them has a significant impact on the efficiency of drawing. Let’s first take a look at the commands related to layers. Most of the commands related to layers are actually in Express (in version 02 they seemed to be in Bonus); they become available only when AUTOCAD is installed completely. In the layer commands, the first one is, of course, Layer, the Layer Properties Manager. The specific details inside were discussed in some detail before, so they will not be repeated here. Other commands related to layer control are all designed to help us easily manage the \"on/off (display)\" status, locking, and selection of layers during drawing, as well as to conveniently change the layer properties of the elements we draw. Commands related to the “current layer”. ai_molc changes the current layer to the layer to which the selected element belongs. This command is available on the toolbar, and everyone should already be quite familiar with it. laycur (change to current layer) changes the layer to which the selected element belongs to the current layer. Commands related to “switches”. layoff (layer off) disables the selected layer. The Layiso* (layer isolate) view displays only the selected layer (isolated layer). Layon* (turn all layers on) enables all layers. Commands related to “locking”. laylck (layer lock): Locks the selected layer. layulk (layer unlock): Unlocks the selected locked layer. layerlckiso*: Locks all layers except the selected one (a command from the “Free Mini Building Tools” plugin). Other layer control commands: layerp: Restores the layer to its previous state. laymch (layer match): Changes the layer of the selected element to the layer of the last selected element (similar to matchprop, but in reverse order). It is recommended that you take some time to get familiar with and master these layer commands, provided that the layer settings for the elements in the drawing are well organized. If this can’t be done, then nothing else matters. There are three commands above; those marked with a * are commands that people often overlook, but which are very useful. There are three types of view commands. Category 1: redraw (redrawall) means to redraw, while regen means to regenerate. The commonly used option is redraw; when auxiliary display points or lines cannot be removed using redraw, try regen. The second category is view scaling types. This category mainly revolves around various sub-commands of Zoom. Commonly used options include: zoom – default real-time scaling; zoom-p – return to the previous view range; zoom-d – dynamically scale the view; zoom-a – display all views; zoom-w – display the view range of the selected window. The third category consists of view translation functions. They are pan and its subcommands. I wonder whether, when controlling the view, people use the mouse to select icons from the toolbar or type commands using the keyboard? Think back in the past; to facilitate view control, transparent commands were often used. With AUTOCAD versions 00 and later, as well as the three-button mouse (with the middle button serving as the scroll wheel), scaling and panning views can basically be accomplished using the scroll wheel of the mouse. Scrolling up and down with the middle button of the mouse enables real-time zooming, while pressing the middle button allows panning. Moreover, these are all transparent commands, that is, commands which can be inserted to be executed during the execution of other commands. One must master view control using a three-button mouse. Since the use of the mouse has been mentioned, let’s talk about the element selection method that is also closely related to the mouse. When performing editing commands, it is inevitable to select elements. For editing commands and element selection, there are two common methods. I’m* used to the second one. The first method is to select elements by clicking or selecting them with a box; at this point, the selected elements will be highlighted. Then, keyboard input is used to enter editing commands for operation. In this way, the Shift key can be used to remove the extra selected elements. The second method is to first enter the editing commands using the keyboard, confirm them, then select the elements that need to be modified. After selecting the desired elements, confirm again to carry out the editing operation. I think this approach is more convenient and flexible when it comes to selecting the elements that need to be manipulated, as auxiliary keys can be used to assist with the selection. P - previous, selects the element from the last operation. R - remove, delete the selected elements. A - add, to increase the selected elements (used after using remove). Both of these methods involve the same aspects related to mouse usage. Left mouse button. The left mouse button is used to select objects. One is to directly left-click to select the element. Second, after clicking the left mouse button, drag the mouse to the upper right or lower right, then release it. What appears at this point is a solid-line selection box; only elements that are completely within the solid-line frame can be selected. Third, after clicking the left mouse button, drag the mouse to the upper left or lower left, then release it. What appears at this point is a dashed selection box; any elements that are partially within the dashed box can be selected. Right-click the mouse. The right-click button of the mouse is also very useful; first, we need to modify AUTOCAD’s system settings. In “User System Configuration,” there is an option for “Custom Right-Click.” In “Default Mode” and “Edit Mode”, select “Repeat last command”” ； In the Command pattern, select “Confirm”. The Enter and Space keys on the keyboard can also be used to repeat the previous command in both “Default Mode” and “Edit Mode” ； In the command pattern, confirm. But it will definitely be slower than using the right mouse button to achieve the same goal. I suggest everyone give it a try and think about it.

Experience with AUTOCAD – Part 6: Control of drawing and printing scales, applying frames, and dimensioning commands. After completing the drawing, we need to print it out; only once the drawing is printed (either as a plain copy or as a blueprint on sulfuric paper) can we consider our drawing work essentially finished (of course, there are still tasks such as organizing and archiving the documents). When printing, there is one issue that cannot be avoided: the aspect ratio problem. If the printing scale and drawing scale are appropriate, the final drawing will be clear, beautiful, and attractive. We often see that some drawings are densely filled while others are empty; this is all due to improper scale control. So, in terms of printing scale and drawing scale, what should we pay attention to during drawing and at the initial stage of drawing? Generally speaking, the drawings we eventually print are available in both scaled and unscaled versions. Proportionally, it is usually the construction drawings ； There are many cases where proportions are not followed; typically, there are project documents, process diagrams (for personal use), condition charts, etc. In recent years, the preliminary design documents (expanded preliminary designs) have also gradually come to be printed in A3 size without respecting any proportional standards. Let’s first take a look at the construction drawings printed in proportion. Construction drawings are generally drawn to scale, but different scale settings may be used during the drawing process. For example, the general scale for plan-and-elevation views is 1:100; for stairwells and bathrooms it is 1:50. The scale for detailed node drawings is 1:20, while in decoration drawings these detailed drawings may use scales of 1:10, 1:5, 1:2, etc. The common scale for overall plans is 1:500, though sometimes 1:1000 or 1:2000 is also used. Next, I will use a set of conventional building construction drawings that include plan, elevation, and sectional views, as well as details of stairwells, bathrooms, and joints, as an example. First of all, what we draw at the beginning are usually floor plans, and in this case we should set 1 actual MM to correspond to 1 standard unit in AUTOCAD; the same applies to the other elevational and sectional views as well. At this point, there are two things we need to pay attention to: first, all fonts should generally be set at a height of around 350, room names can be slightly larger, while the height of fonts used for things like drawing titles should be determined separately. Second, after adding the dimension annotations, set the \"global scale of the annotations\" to 100 (I have modified some of the settings related to annotations earlier; please pay attention). For the other settings, follow what was described earlier. Next are the detailed drawings of the stairs at a 1:50 scale and those of the bathroom. When drawing such diagrams, I usually first copy the relevant parts from the plan view next to the original drawing, and then delete and trim away the unnecessary parts. Some things need to be modified next. First is the linear scale: except for solid lines, others such as dashed lines and dotted lines have their linear scale reduced to half of the original value. Second, the scale for font size, elevation size, and axis number size is 0.5 of the original value. Third is the annotation settings: change the \"Global Annotation Scale\" for all annotations in this section to 50. In this way, when printed at a 1:50 scale, the sizes of all the various parts will be appropriate. The method for drawing the 1:20 node detail is the same, so no further explanation is needed. Once the drawing is completed, the next step is to add a frame around it. Every company has its own drawing frame, and different drawing sizes should all have one. When creating picture frames, they are usually made at a 1:1 ratio: A0—1194*840 ； A1—840*597 ； A2—597*420 ； A3—420*297 ； A4—297*210. Among them, vertical frames are also often used for sheets A1 and A2. Also, when we need to use an extended picture frame, the increase should be made along the long side of the frame, by an amount equal to 1/4 of the length of that long side. Regardless of the image size, when each frame is printed at a fixed scale, the size of the title bar should remain the same. We enlarge image frames of different sizes to the scale we need for the output, and then place the image inside them. There are two more points to mention regarding the preparation of construction drawings at the correct scale. First, not all plan-and-elevation views need to be drawn at a 1:100 scale; for warehouses or factories that lack detailed features, a scale of 1:150 or 1:200 can also be considered. Only in this way can the drawing appear full. Secondly, no matter what type of diagram it is, always make sure that 1 MM in reality corresponds to 1 standard unit in AUTOCAD when creating the diagram (with the exception of overall plans). Diagrams drawn at different scales differ only in terms of font size, linear scale, and the global scale of annotations. Of course, the above situation applies when graphs with the same scale are all plotted within the same figure frame. When graphs with different proportions need to be placed in one figure frame, there is a slight difference. Let’s use as an example the situation where a 1:20 scale detail drawing needs to be included in a 1:100 scale plan. First, it was determined that 1:100 is the primary scale for this drawing. The 1:100 scale plan was drawn using the aforementioned method, and the 1:20 scale detail drawings were also created in the same way, with all relevant settings adjusted accordingly. When it was found that it needed to be included in a map drawn at a 1:100 scale, a copy of the 1:20 scale node was copied into the 1:100 scale frame and scaled up by 5 times; then two things needed to be modified. The first is the linear proportion, and the second are the two parameters in the labeling. One of them is to change the global scale notation to 1:100 (i.e., the primary scale), and the second is to change the linear scale notation to 0.2. That’s fine then. Of course, when drawing drawings in other scales, if it is determined from the start that they are to be placed together with drawings of different scales, some of the above procedures can be adjusted, which can reduce the number of steps and save time. For diagrams that are not drawn to scale, there are still things to pay attention to; the scale issue also needs to be considered. Next, we will use a plan as an example to illustrate. When we are in the stage of finalizing the drawings for a design project, we need to pay attention to the scale issue. First, it is necessary to determine the final size of the output image. Previous proposal documents were all in A3 format, but now A2 is also commonly used (that is, two vertically stacked A3 sheets). After determining the final drawing scale, we need to estimate an approximate scale, and then set the font size for printing at around 2.5 MM (the scale for design documents is generally 1:200 or higher; unless it’s for villas, small residences, or small commercial buildings, the font size and dimension markings can be slightly smaller). In this way, appropriate values for the font size and dimension markings in the drawings can be determined. If necessary, it is possible to first produce a rough version of the first drawing at the beginning of the organization process; once everything looks fine, then proceed to work on completing the other drawings. All the drawings have been organized, framed, and sent to the printing company—OK. Here, I would like to briefly mention paper space. Drawing space is also a very interesting concept, with significant differences in aspects such as drawing scale settings and batch printing. However, after trying out this thing called drawing space for a while, I gave up on it, because the drawings we create in our architecture field are not only used by us for our own purposes but also serve as reference documents for other fields. After I handed the drawings from the paper space to other specialties, I kept getting calls with questions. I realized that not only did I need to master the paper space myself, but I also had to teach all the other specialties how to use it... So I gave up using it... Hehe. However, I’ve noticed that in some foreign companies, drawing space is also widely used not only in the plans but also in the construction drawings. I wonder how they address the issues I mentioned above; perhaps they provide relevant training for all employees of the company (which can be difficult when there are many employees, especially those of middle age or older).

It’s very good, thank you. I still don’t understand some things though. . .

Experience is extremely useful for us beginners

After reading what was said above, it seems too complicated. I designed a Lisp program that people run before starting a new drawing; it requires them to specify the scale, that is, the ratio between the actual object and the drawing to be created, the things you mentioned. . . . . . . OK. I’m not from an architectural background; since a high degree of precision is required, it’s necessary for everyone to draw in model space at a 1:1 scale. As everyone uses the same setup, it becomes much easier to share and make drawings from different specialties compatible with each other. There seems to have been a national standard for layer, color, and line type settings during the 1999–2000 period; it would be great if everyone followed that standard. In recent years, various design firms have set their own rules; some even go to great lengths by creating their own custom fonts and line styles. This is a step backward – it would be better to use that effort on professional skills instead.

It’s really good; it feels like there’s too much content~~~

I also designed such a Lisp, which functions as a template file. Additionally: This article has been reposted many times in this forum’s CAD drawing section, and when you repost it, you should indicate that it is a repost; otherwise, others might think it’s your own experience. Also, please search first to see if there are any existing posts before posting.

No way, I checked – it wasn’t there, so I uploaded it myself; I’m sorry. I will definitely follow the rules from now on; it’s unlikely that I’ll repost multiple times! Make sure to post your own content from now on!

Great summary of experience; I’ve learned a lot from it

1. The file that contains the abbreviated commands for controlling acad.pgp is: Tools–Customize–PGP; it is a hidden file located in the folder C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\Application Data\Autodesk\AutoCAD 2006\R16.2\chs\Support. 2. To reload acad.pgp without exiting CAD, enter “reinit”. 3. The command for quickly saving a drawing to another file is “w”; blocks created using this command are saved as separate DWG files that can be inserted directly into other files.

There really are those who are even stronger among the strong! Impressive, really...