TABLE OF CONTENTS Engineering graphics is one of the crucial "languages" in engineering communication. It converts the ideas of design engineers into engineering drawings, or so-called "blueprints," that are universally understandable. Engineering graphics involves three phases. The first phase, Experimentation, is a time to experiment with the ideas in a graphical manner for visualization. The second phase, Communication, is to present the graphics in an understandablemanner for communication in design, manufacturing, and quality control. The third phase, Recording, documents the entire process of a design project.
Generally, the experimentation phase can be performed in any format virtually anywhere. For example, a design sketch may be completed with a pencil on a napkin during a dinner. This sketch may not be interpreted by anyone else but the originator. The communication phase is, on the other hand, a phase that is under the constraints of strict rules and standards. These rules and standards are established to assure that a design project is universally understood. A great deal of effort is made in the creation of engineering designs. In the present digital information age, these rules and standards are more important than ever to assure that an engineering design is globally recognizable. In the recording phase, the communicable documents, or blueprints, are produced as the sole guides to the processes of manufacturing for the realization of the final products.
For years, mastering knowledge of these three phases has been one of the major pedagogical objectives in engineering graphics. With the advancements of modern CAD...
