Appendix A

The Bottom Line

Each of The Bottom Line sections in the chapters suggest exercises to deepen skills and understanding. Sometimes there is only one possible solution, but often you are encouraged to use your skills and creativity to create something that builds on what you know and lets you explore one of many possible solutions.

Chapter 1: Exploring the AutoCAD Interface

Use the AutoCAD application. AutoCAD is a typical Windows graphics program that makes use of the menu bar and tools. If you’ve used other graphics programs, you’ll see at least a few familiar tools.

Master It Name the components of the AutoCAD application you can use to select a function.

Solution AutoCAD offers the menu bar, the Tool Sets palette, and the status bar.

Get a closer look with the Zoom command. The Zoom command is a common tool in graphics programs. It enables you to get a closer look at a part of your drawing or to expand your view to see the big picture.

Master It Name at least two ways of zooming into a view.

Solution Choose options from the Zoom tool from the status bar or right-click and click Zoom from the shortcut menu.

Save a file as you work. Nothing is more frustrating than having a power failure cause you to lose hours of work. It’s a good idea to save your work frequently. AutoCAD offers an Automatic Save feature that can be a lifesaver if you happen to forget to save your files.

Master It How often does the AutoCAD Automatic Save feature save your drawing?

Solution Automatic Save saves a copy of a drawing every 10 minutes by default. This interval can be modified by the user.

Make changes and open multiple files. As with other Mac applications, you can have multiple files open and exchange data between them.

Master It With two drawings open, how can you copy parts of one drawing into the other?

Solution Use the standard Copy and Paste features of the Mac OS. Select the parts you want to copy, right-click, select Clipboard, and then Copy. In the other drawing, right-click in the drawing area, select Clipboard, and then Paste.

Chapter 2: Creating Your First Drawing

Specify distances with coordinates. One of the most basic skills you need to learn is how to indicate exact distances through the keyboard. AutoCAD uses a simple annotation system to indicate distance and direction.

Master It What would you type to indicate a relative distance of 14 units at a 45° angle?

Solution @14<45

Interpret the cursor modes and understand prompts. AutoCAD’s cursor changes its shape depending on the command that is currently active. These different cursor modes can give you a clue regarding what you should be doing.

Master It Describe the Point Selection cursor and the Object Selection cursor.

Solution The Point Selection cursor is a simple crosshair. The Object Selection cursor is a small square.

Select objects and edit with grips. Grips are small squares or arrowheads that appear at key points on the object when they’re selected. They offer a powerful way to edit objects.

Master It How do you select multiple grips?

Solution Hold down while clicking the grips.

Use Dynamic Input. Besides grips, objects display their dimensional properties when selected. These dimensional properties can be edited to change an object’s shape.

Master It How do you turn on Dynamic Input? And once it’s on, what key lets you shift between the different dimensions of an object?

Solution The Dynamic Input button on the AutoCAD status bar turns Dynamic Input on and off. When an object is selected, you can move between the dimensional properties by pressing the Tab key.

Get help. AutoCAD’s Help window is thorough in its coverage of AutoCAD’s features. New and experienced users alike can often find answers to their questions through the Help window, so it pays to become familiar with it.

Master It What keyboard key do you press for context-sensitive help?

Solution Function-F1.

Display data in the Command Line palette. AutoCAD offers the Command Line palette, which keeps a running account of the commands you use. This can be helpful in retrieving input that you’ve entered when constructing your drawing.

Master It Name a command that displays its results in the Command Line palette.

Solution The List command.

Display the properties of an object. The Properties Inspector palette is one of the most useful sources for drawing information. Not only does it list the properties of an object, it lets you change the shape, color, and other properties of objects.

Master It How do you open the Properties Inspector palette for a particular object?

Solution Select the object whose properties you want to view. Right-click the object and select Properties.

Chapter 3: Setting Up and Using AutoCAD’s Drafting Tools

Set up a work area. A blank AutoCAD drawing offers few clues about the size of the area you’re working with, but you can get a rough idea of the area shown in the drawing window.

Master It Name two ways to set up the area of your work.

Solution You can use the Limits command to define the work area, otherwise known as the limits of the drawing. You can also draw a rectangle that is the size of your work area.

Explore the drawing process. To use AutoCAD effectively, you’ll want to know how the different tools work together to achieve an effect. The drawing process often involves many cycles of adding objects and then editing them.

Master It Name the tool that causes the cursor to point in an exact horizontal or vertical direction.

Solution Polar Tracking. Ortho mode can also perform this function.

Plan and lay out a drawing. If you’ve ever had to draw a precise sketch with just a pencil and pad, you’ve probably used a set of lightly drawn guidelines to lay out your drawing first. You do the same thing in AutoCAD, but instead of lightly drawn guidelines, you can use any object you want. In AutoCAD, objects are easily modified or deleted, so you don’t have to be as careful when adding guidelines.

Master It What is the name of the feature that lets you select exact locations on objects?

Solution Object Snap, or osnap.

Use the AutoCAD modes as drafting tools. The main reason for using AutoCAD is to produce precise technical drawings. AutoCAD offers many tools to help you produce a drawing with the precision you need.

Master It What dialog box lets you set both the grid and snap spacing?

Solution The Drafting Settings dialog box.

Chapter 4: Organizing Objects with Blocks and Groups

Create and insert a block. If you have a symbol that you use often in a drawing, you can draw it once and then turn it into an AutoCAD block. A block can be placed in a drawing multiple times in any location, like a rubber stamp. A block is stored in a drawing as a block definition, which can be called up at any time.

Master It Name the dialog box used to create a block from objects in a drawing, and also name the tool to open this dialog box.

Solution The Define Block dialog box can be opened using the Create tool.

Modify a block. Once you’ve created a block, it isn’t set in stone. One of the features of a block is that you can change the block definition and all the copies of the block are updated to the new definition.

Master It What is the name of the tool used to “unblock” a block?

Solution You can use the Explode tool to break a block down to its component objects. Once this is done, you can modify the objects and then redefine the block.

Understand the annotation scale. In some cases, you’ll want to create a block that is dependent on the drawing scale. You can create a block that adjusts itself to the scale of your drawing through the annotation scale. When the annotation scale feature is turned on for a block, the block can be set to appear at the correct size depending on the scale of your drawing.

Master It What setting in the Define Block dialog box turns on the annotation scale feature, and how do you set the annotation scale of a block?

Solution The Annotative option in the Define Block dialog box turns on the annotation scale feature. You can set the scales for a block by selecting the block, right-clicking, and selecting Object Scale ⇒ Add/Delete Scales.

Group objects. Blocks can be used as a tool to group objects together, but blocks can be too rigid for some grouping applications. AutoCAD offers groups, which are collections of objects that are similar to blocks but aren’t as rigidly defined.

Master It How are groups different from blocks?

Solution Objects in a group can be easily edited by turning groups off with the ↵- -A keyboard shortcut. Also, unlike blocks, groups don’t have a single definition that’s stored in the drawing and defines the group’s appearance. You can copy a group, but each copy is independent of the other groups.

Chapter 5: Keeping Track of Layers and Blocks

Organize information with layers. Layers are perhaps the most powerful feature in AutoCAD. They help to keep drawings well organized, and they give you control over the visibility of objects. They also let you control the appearance of your drawing by setting colors, line weights, and linetypes.

Master It Describe the process of creating a layer.

Solution Click the Plus icon at the bottom left of the Layers palette. Type the name for your new layer.

Control layer visibility. When a drawing becomes dense with information, it can be difficult to edit. If you’ve organized your drawing using layers, you can reduce its complexity by turning off layers that aren’t important to your current session.

Master It Describe two methods for hiding a layer.

Solution In the Layers palette, select a layer, and click the Freeze icon for the layer. You can also select the layer from the Layers palette list and then click the Freeze option in the Properties Inspector palette.

Keep track of blocks and layers. At times, you may want a record of the layers or blocks in your drawing. You can create a list of layers using the log-file feature in AutoCAD.

Master It How do you turn on the log-file feature?

Solution Type LOGFILEMODE↵ 1↵.

Chapter 6: Editing and Reusing Data to Work Efficiently

Create and use templates. If you find that you’re using the same settings repeatedly when you create a new drawing file, you can set up an existing file the way you like and save it as a template. You can then use your saved template for any new drawings you create.

Master It Describe the method for saving a file as a template.

Solution After setting up a blank drawing with the settings you use most frequently, choose Save As from the menu bar. In the Save Drawing As dialog box, choose AutoCAD Drawing Template (*.dwt) from the File Format drop-down list, give it a name, and click Save. In the command line, specify whether the template is English or metric and then enter a descriptive name to save the template.

Copy an object multiple times. Many tools in AutoCAD allow you to create multiple copies. The Array command offers a way to create circular copies or row and column copies.

Master It What names are given to the two types of arrays in the Array dialog box?

Solution Rectangular and polar.

Develop your drawing. When laying down simple line work, you’ll use a few tools frequently. The exercises in the early part of this book showed you some of these commonly used tools.

Master It What tool can you use to join two lines end to end?

Solution Fillet.

Find an exact distance along a curve. AutoCAD offers some tools that allow you to find an exact distance along a curve.

Master It Name the two tools you can use to mark off exact distances along a curve.

Solution Measure and Divide.

Change the length of objects. You can accurately adjust the length of a line or arc in AutoCAD using a single command.

Master It What is the command alias for the command that changes the length of objects?

Solution The command is LEN.

Create a new drawing by using parts from another drawing. You can save a lot of time by reusing parts of drawings. The Export command can help.

Master It True or false: The Export command saves only blocks as drawing files.

Solution False. You can use Export with any type of object or set of objects in a drawing.

Chapter 7: Mastering Viewing Tools, Hatches, and External References

Assemble the parts. Technical drawings are often made up of repetitive parts that are drawn over and over. AutoCAD makes quick work of repetitive elements in a drawing, as shown in the first part of this chapter.

Master It What is the object used as the basic building block for the unit plan drawing in the beginning of this chapter?

Solution Blocks of a typical unit plan are used to build a floor plan of an apartment building.

Take control of the AutoCAD display. Understanding the way the AutoCAD display works can save you time, especially in a complex drawing.

Master It Name the command used to save views in AutoCAD. Describe how to recall a saved view.

Solution The View command allows you to save views. You can recall views by typing VIEW↵ R↵.

Use hatch patterns in your drawings. Patterns can convey a lot of information at a glance. You can show the material of an object, or you can indicate a type of view, like a cross section, by applying hatch patterns.

Master It How do you open the Hatch And Gradient dialog box?

Solution Choose Hatch from the Tool Sets palette, choose Draw ⇒ Hatch from the menu bar, or type HATCH↵.

Understand the boundary hatch options. The boundary hatch options give you control over the way hatch patterns fill an enclosed area.

Master It Describe an island as it relates to boundary hatch patterns.

Solution An island is a bounded area in the area to be hatched.

Use external references. External references are drawing files that you’ve attached to the current drawing to include as part of the drawing. Because external references aren’t part of the current file, they can be worked on at the same time as the referencing file.

Master It Describe how drawing files are attached as external references.

Solution Open the Reference Manager palette (F-7), click the Attach Reference tool at the upper left, and then locate and select the file you want to attach.

Chapter 8: Introducing Printing and Layouts

Print a plan. Unlike other types of documents, AutoCAD drawings can end up on nearly any size sheet of paper. To accommodate the range of paper sizes, the AutoCAD printer settings are fairly extensive and give you a high level of control over your output.

Master It Name a few of the settings available in the Print dialog box.

Solution Paper Size, Orientation, and Printer/Plotter Name are a few of the settings available in the Print dialog box.

Understanding the print settings. The print settings in AutoCAD offer a way to let you set up how a drawing will be printed.

Master It Where would you find the setting to print upside down?

Solution The Print Upside Down setting is in the Print – Advanced dialog box, located in the Print Options group.

Use layout views for WYSIWYG printing. The layout views show you what your print output will look like before you actually print.

Master It True or false: Layout views give you limited control over the appearance of your drawing printouts.

Solution False.

Chapter 9: Adding Text to Drawings

Prepare a drawing for text. AutoCAD offers an extensive set of features for adding text to a drawing, but you need to do a little prep work before you dive in.

Master It Name two things you need to do to prepare a drawing for text.

Solution Set up a layer for your text. Create a text style for your drawing.

Set the annotation scale and add text. Before you start to add text, you should set the annotation scale for your drawing. Once this is done, you can begin to add text.

Master It In a sentence or two, briefly describe the purpose of the annotation scale feature. Name the tool you use to add text to a drawing.

Solution The annotation scale feature converts your text size to the proper height for the scale of your drawing. To add text to a drawing, use the Mtext tool.

Explore text formatting in AutoCAD. Because text styles contain font and text-size settings, you can usually set up a text style and then begin to add text to your drawing. For those special cases where you need to vary text height and font or other text features, you can use the Text Editor visor of the text editor.

Master It What text formatting tool can you use to change text to boldface type?

Solution The Bold button.

Add simple single-line text objects. In many situations, you need only a single word or a short string of text. AutoCAD offers the single line text object for these instances.

Master It Describe the methods for starting the single-line text command.

Solution Click the Single Line text icon in the Tool Sets palette. Enter DT↵ at the command prompt.

Use the Check Spelling feature. It isn’t uncommon for a drawing to contain the equivalent of several pages of text, and the likelihood of having misspelled words can be high. AutoCAD offers the Check Spelling feature to help you keep your spelling under control.

Master It What option do you select in the Check Spelling dialog box when it finds a misspelled word and you want to accept the suggestion it offers?

Solution Change.

Find and replace text. A common activity when editing technical drawings is finding and replacing a word throughout a drawing.

Master It True or false: The Find And Replace feature in AutoCAD works very differently than the find-and-replace feature in other programs.

Solution False.

Chapter 10: Using Fields and Tables

Use fields to associate text with drawing properties. Fields are a special type of text object that can be linked to object properties. They can help to automate certain text-related tasks.

Master It Name two uses for fields that you learned about in the first part of this chapter.

Solution Fields can be used to update text that labels a block. They can also be used to update text and report the area enclosed by a polyline.

Add tables to your drawing. The Tables feature can help you make quick work of schedules and other tabular data that you want to include in a drawing.

Master It What is the name of the visor that appears when you click the Table tool?

Solution Text Editor.

Edit the table line work. Because tables include line work to delineate their different cells, AutoCAD gives you control over table borders and lines.

Master It How do you get to the Cell Border Properties dialog box?

Solution Select the cell or cells in the table, and in the Properties Inspector palette, select Border Style from the Cells category.

Add formulas to cells. Tables can function like spreadsheets by allowing you to add formulas to cells.

Master It What type of text object lets you add formulas to cells?

Solution Field.

Export tables. The Table feature allows you to export the text from a table to a CSV file that can be imported into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.

Master It Describe how to export a table from AutoCAD into an Excel spreadsheet.

Solution Click to highlight the table. From the Table visor, choose the Export tool. In the Export Data dialog box, choose a name and a location for the file. Click Save. In Excel, choose File ⇒ Open from the menu bar. In the Files Of Type pop-up menu, select All Files. Locate the file and click Open.

Chapter 11: Using Dimensions

Understand the components of a dimension. Before you start to dimension with AutoCAD, it helps to become familiar with the different parts of a dimension. This will help you set up your dimensions to fit the style of dimensions that you need.

Master It Name a few of the dimension components.

Solution Dimension line, dimension text, extension line, and arrow.

Create a dimension style. As you become more familiar with technical drawing and drafting, you’ll learn that there are standard formats for drawing dimensions. Arrows, text size, and even the way dimension lines are drawn are all subject to a standard format. Fortunately, AutoCAD offers dimension styles that let you set up your dimension format once and then call up that format whenever you need it.

Master It What is the name of the dialog box that lets you manage dimension styles, and how do you open it?

Solution The Dimension Style Manager is the name of the dialog box. You can open it by choosing Format ⇒ Dimension Style on menu bar.

Draw linear dimensions. The most common dimension you’ll use is the linear dimension. Knowing how to place a linear dimension is a big first step in learning how to dimension in AutoCAD.

Master It Name the three locations you’re asked for when placing a linear dimension.

Solution First extension line origin, second extension line origin, and dimension line location.

Edit dimensions. Dimensions often change in the course of a project, so you should know how to make changes to dimension text or other parts of a dimension.

Master It How do you start the command to edit dimension text?

Solution Enter ED↵ at the Command prompt.

Dimension non-orthogonal objects. Not everything you dimension will use linear dimensions. AutoCAD offers a set of dimension tools for dimensioning objects that aren’t made up of straight lines.

Master It Name some of the types of objects for which a linear dimension isn’t appropriate.

Solution Arc and angle between two lines. Linear dimensions can be used for circles in certain situations.

Add a note with a leader arrow. In addition to dimensions, you’ll probably add lots of notes with arrows pointing to features in a design. AutoCAD offers the multileader for this purpose.

Master It What two types of objects does the multileader combine?

Solution Leader lines (arrowhead and line) and text.

Apply ordinate dimensions. When accuracy counts, ordinate dimensions are often used because they measure distances that are similar to coordinates from a single feature.

Master It What AutoCAD feature that isn’t strictly associated with dimensions do you use for ordinate dimensions?

Solution UCS.

Add tolerance notation. Mechanical drafting often requires the use of special notation to describe tolerances. AutoCAD offers some predefined symbols that address the need to include tolerance notation in a drawing.

Master It How do you open the Geometric Tolerance dialog box?

Solution Click Tolerance from the expanded Dimensions tool group, choose Dimension ⇒ Tolerance on the menu bar, or type TOL↵.

Chapter 12: Using Attributes

Create attributes. Attributes are a great tool for storing data with drawn objects. You can include as little or as much data as you like in an AutoCAD block.

Master It What is the name of the object you must include in a block to store data?

Solution Attribute definition.

Edit attributes. The data you include in a block is easily changed. You may have several copies of a block, each of which must contain its own unique sets of data.

Master It What is the simplest way to gain access to a block’s attribute data?

Solution Double-click the block to open the Enhanced Attribute Editor.

Chapter 13: Copying Existing Drawings into AutoCAD

Convert paper drawings into AutoCAD files. AutoCAD gives you some great tools that let you convert your paper drawings into AutoCAD files. Several options are available. Depending on your needs, you’ll find at least one solution that will allow you to convert your drawings quickly.

Master It Describe the different methods available in AutoCAD for converting paper drawings into AutoCAD files.

Solution The methods are scaling directly from a drawing, scanning and converting with a third-party program, and scanning to a raster file that can then be imported into AutoCAD to be traced over.

Import a raster image. You can use bitmap raster images as backgrounds for your CAD drawings or as underlay drawings that you can trace over.

Master It Import a raster image of your choice, and use the AutoCAD drawing tools to trace over your image.

Solution From the Reference Manager, click Attach Reference to open the Select Reference File dialog box, or type ATTACH↵ in the Command Line palette. Change the File Format drop-down list to All Image Files. Locate and select the raster image file you want to import. Click Open to open the Attach Image dialog box, and then click OK. Specify an insertion point and scale factor.

Work with a raster image. Once imported, raster images can be adjusted for size, brightness, contrast, and transparency.

Master It Import a raster image of your choice, and fade the image so it appears lighter and with less contrast.

Solution Click a raster image’s border. In the Properties Inspector palette’s Image Adjust section, click and drag the Fade slider to the right. The raster image appears faded.

Chapter 14: Advanced Editing and Organizing

Use external references (Xrefs). You’ve seen how you can use Xrefs to quickly build variations of a floor plan that contains repetitive elements. This isn’t necessarily the only way to use Xrefs, but the basic idea of how to use Xrefs is presented in the early exercises.

Master It Try putting together another floor plan that contains nothing but the Unit2 plan.

Solution Replace the eight studio units in the Common.dwg file with four of the Unit2 plans.

Change Layer information. Layers is a powerful tool used in AutoCAD drawings. You can modify a layer using various properties found in the Layers palette.

Master It Modify the Ceiling layer so that it displays a very light gray line.

Solution In the Layers palette, select the Ceiling layer. Click the color swatch and click Select Color. The Color palette will open. Select the index color 9, or type 9 in the space provided.

Select similar objects. Select Similar can select alike objects. It can be invoked from the shortcut menu when objects are selected.

Master It Select all the walls on the plan drawing and change them so that they are now set to the color magenta. Now reset them to their previous color.

Solution Click on a wall, and right-click. Choose the Select Similar option in the shortcut menu. In the Properties Inspector palette, select the color swatch and choose Magenta. Press Esc. To reset the color back, select a wall, use the Select Similar option, and change the color swatch to Bylayer.

Chapter 15: Laying Out Your Printer Output

Understand Model Space and Paper Space. AutoCAD offers two viewing modes for viewing and printing your drawings. Model Space is where you do most of your work; it’s the view you see when you create a new file. Layouts, also called Paper Space, are views that let you arrange the layout of your drawing, similar to how you would in a page-layout program.

Master It Name the method of moving from Model Space to Paper Space.

Solution You can use the Show Drawing & Layouts tool in the status bar to display the model and layout preview panels.

Work with Paper Space viewports. While in Paper Space, you can create views into your drawing using viewports. You can have several viewports, each showing a different part of your drawing.

Master It Explain how you can enlarge a view in a viewport.

Solution You can double-click inside a viewport and then use the Zoom tool to enlarge the view.

Create odd-shaped viewports. Most of the time, you’ll probably use rectangular viewports, but you have the option to create a viewport of any shape.

Master It Describe the process for creating a circular viewport.

Solution In Paper Space, draw a circle. Next, choose View ⇒ Viewports ⇒ Object from the menu bar.

Understand line weights, linetypes, and dimensions in Paper Space. You can get an accurate view of how your drawing will look on paper by making a few adjustments to AutoCAD. Your layout view will reflect how your drawing will look when printed.

Master It Name the dialog box used to adjust line weights and how you would access it.

Solution The Lineweight Settings dialog box. You can access it by typing LW↵ or via the Lineweight drop-down list in the Layers palette.

Chapter 16: Making “Smart” Drawings with Parametric Tools

Use parametric drawing tools. Parametric drawing tools enable you to create an assembly of objects that are linked to each other based on geometric or dimensional properties. With the parametric drawing tools, you can create a drawing that automatically adjusts the size of all its components when you change a single dimension.

Master It Name two examples given in the beginning of the chapter of a mechanical assembly that can be shown using parametric drawing tools.

Solution The examples are a crankshaft and piston and a Luxo lamp.

Connect objects with geometric constraints. You can link objects together so that they maintain a particular orientation to each other.

Master It Name at least six of the geometric constraints available in AutoCAD.

Solution The constraints are coincident, collinear, concentric, fix, parallel, perpendicular, horizontal, vertical, tangent, smooth, symmetric, and equal.

Control sizes with dimensional constraints. Dimensional constraints, in conjunction with geometric constraints, let you apply dimensions to an assembly of objects to control the size of the assembly.

Master It Name at least four dimensional constraints.

Solution The dimensional constraints are linear, horizontal, vertical, aligned, radius, diameter, and angular.

Put constraints to use. Constraints can be used in a variety of ways to simulate the behavior of real objects.

Master It Name at least three geometric or dimensional constraints used in the piston.dwg file to help simulate the motion of a piston and crankshaft.

Solution The geometric constraints used were horizontal, parallel, fix, and coincident. The dimensional constraints used were horizontal, vertical, aligned, and diameter.

Chapter 17: Drawing Curves

Create and edit polylines. Polylines are extremely versatile. You can use them in just about any situation in which you need to draw line work that is continuous. For this reason, you’ll want to master polylines early in your AutoCAD training.

Master It Draw the part shown here.

Solution There are many ways to create this drawing. Use these instructions as guidelines, but keep in mind that this is not the only way to create the drawing:

Create a polyline spline curve. Polylines can be used to draw fairly accurate renditions of spline curves. This feature of polylines makes them a very useful AutoCAD object type.

Master It Try drawing the outline of an object that has no or few straight lines in it, as in the file lowerfairing.jpg, which is included in the Chapter 17 sample files at www.sybex.com/go/masteringautocadmac. You can use the methods described in Chapter 13, “Copying Existing Drawings into AutoCAD,” to import a raster image of your object and then trace over the image using polyline splines.

Solution Import a raster image by using the Attach Reference tool in the Reference Manager. Use the Polyline command to trace over the image. Use short, straight polyline segments while you trace. After you place each polyline, double-click it and select the Spline option. Once you change the line to a spline curve, it may shift away from the original line you traced over. Click the polyline, and then adjust the grips so the line fits over the raster image.

Create and edit true spline curves. If you need an accurate spline curve, you’ll want to use the Spline command. Spline objects offer many fine-tuning options that you won’t find with polylines.

Master It Try tracing over the same image from the previous Master It section, but this time use the Spline command.

Solution Import a raster image by using the Attach Reference tool in the Reference Manager. Use the Spline command to trace over the image. As you draw the spline, select control points that are closer together for tighter curves. The closer the control points are, the tighter you can make the curve. Notice that, unlike with a polyline spline, you don’t have to readjust the curve after it’s been placed.

Mark divisions on curves. The Divide and Measure commands offer a quick way to mark off distances on a curved object. This can be a powerful resource in AutoCAD that you may find yourself using often.

Master It Mark off 12 equal divisions of the spline curves you drew in the previous Master It exercise.

Solution Choose Divide from the Multiple Points drop-down in the expanded Open Shapes tool group’s panel of the Tool Sets palette, select the spline, and then enter 12↵. If you don’t see the points that mark off the divisions, type DDPTYPE↵, select the X point style, and click OK.

Chapter 18: Getting and Exchanging Data from Drawings

Find the area of closed boundaries. There are a number of ways to find the area of a closed boundary. The easiest way is also perhaps the least obvious.

Master It Which AutoCAD feature would you use to quickly find the area of an irregular shape like a pond or lake?

Solution Hatch.

Get general information. A lot of information that is stored in AutoCAD drawings can tell you about the files. You can find out how much time has been spent editing a file, for instance.

Master It What feature gives you a list of current settings and how do you get to this feature?

Solution You can open the Status command by choosing Tools ⇒ Inquiry ⇒ Status from the menu bar.

Use the DXF file format to exchange CAD data with other programs. Autodesk created the DXF file format as a means of sharing vector drawings with other programs.

Master It Name the versions of AutoCAD you can export to using the Save As option.

Solution 2010, 2007, 2004, 2002, and R12.

Use AutoCAD drawings in page-layout programs. AutoCAD drawings find their way into all types of documents, including brochures and technical manuals. Users are often asked to convert their CAD drawings into formats that can be read by page-layout software.

Master It Name some file formats, by filename extension or type, that page-layout programs can accept.

Solution PDF (.pdf), EPS (.eps), BMP (.bmp), and PNG (.png).

Fix corrupted drawing files. At some point, you may encounter a corrupted drawing file. In some cases, the file may be so badly corrupted that AutoCAD won’t open it. Fortunately, you have some options to recover a file that might otherwise be unreadable.

Master It What is the command that you can use to recover an unreadable DWG file?

Solution Recover.

Chapter 19: Creating 3D Drawings

Know the 3D modeling environment. When you work in 3D, you need a different set of tools from those for 2D drafting. AutoCAD offers the Modeling toolset on the Tool Sets palette, which provides the tools you need to create 3D models.

Master It Name some of the tool groups that are unique to the Modeling toolset on the Tool Sets palette.

Solution Solids – Create, Solids – Edit, Surfaces – Create, Surfaces – Edit, Render, Lights, Materials, Analysis, Section, and Coordinates.

Draw in 3D using solids. AutoCAD offers a type of object called a 3D solid that lets you quickly create and edit shapes.

Master It What does the Presspull command do?

Solution Presspull lets you press or pull a 3D solid shape from another 3D solid. It can also be used to press or pull a closed 2D object drawn on the surface of a solid.

Create 3D forms from 2D shapes. The Modeling toolset offers a set of basic 3D shapes, but other commands enable you to create virtually any shape you want from 2D drawings.

Master It Name the command that lets you change a closed 2D polyline into a 3D solid.

Solution Extrude.

Isolate coordinates with point filters. When you’re working in 3D, selecting points can be a complicated task. AutoCAD offers point filters to let you specify the individual X, Y, and Z coordinates of a location in space.

Master It What does the .XY point filter do?

Solution The .XY point filter lets you select an X,Y coordinate, after which you can specify a Z coordinate as a separate value.

Move around your model. Getting the view you want in a 3D model can be tricky.

Master It Where is the menu that lets you select a view from a list of predefined 3D views?

Solution The 3D Views menu of the Viewport Controls is in the drawing area; it offers predefined 3D viewpoints. You can also choose View ⇒ 3D Views from the menu bar.

Get a visual effect. At certain points in your model making, you’ll want to view your 3D model with surface colors and even material assignments. AutoCAD offers several ways to do this.

Master It What are the steps to take to change the view from Wireframe to Realistic?

Solution Click the Visual Styles viewport menu, and select Realistic.

Turn a 3D view into a 2D AutoCAD drawing. Sometimes, it’s helpful to convert a 3D model view into a 2D representation. AutoCAD offers the Flatshot command, which quickly converts a 3D view into a 2D line drawing.

Master It What type of object does Flatshot create?

Solution A block or drawing file.

Chapter 20: Using Advanced 3D Features

Master the User Coordinate System. The User Coordinate System (UCS) is a vital key to editing in 3D space. If you want to master 3D modeling, you should become familiar with this feature.

Master It Name some of the predefined UCS planes.

Solution Front, Back, Left, Right, Top, Bottom.

Understand the UCS options. You can set up the UCS orientation for any situation. It isn’t limited to the predefined settings.

Master It Give a brief description of some of the ways you can set up a UCS.

Solution Object orientation, selection of three points, rotation about an axis, selection of a Z-axis direction, and selection of the view plane.

Use viewports to aid in 3D drawing. In some 3D modeling operations, it helps to have several different views of the model through the Viewports feature.

Master It Name some of the predefined standard viewports offered in the Viewports dialog box.

Solution Two: Vertical; Two: Horizontal; Three: Right; Three: Left; Three: Above; Three: Below; Three: Vertical; Three: Horizontal; Four: Equal; Four: Right; and Four: Left.

Create complex 3D surfaces. You aren’t limited to straight, flat surfaces in AutoCAD. You can create just about any shape you want, including curved surfaces.

Master It What tool did you use in this chapter’s chair exercise to convert a surface into a solid?

Solution The Thicken tool.

Create spiral forms. Spiral forms frequently occur in nature, so it’s no wonder that we often use spirals in our own designs. Spirals are seen in screws, stairs, and ramps as well as in other man-made forms.

Master It Name the commands or tools used in the example in the section “Creating Spiral Forms,” and name two elements that are needed to create a spiral.

Solution The commands are Helix and Sweep. A helix and a profile are needed.

Create surface models. You can create a 3D surface by connecting a series of lines that define a surface contour. You can create anything from a 3D landscape to a car fender using this method.

Master It What is the tool or command used to convert a series of open objects into a 3D surface?

Solution Loft.

Move objects in 3D space. You can move objects in 3D space using tools that are similar to those for 2D drafting. But when it comes to editing objects, 3D modeling is much more complex than 2D drafting.

Master It What does the Rotate gizmo do?

Solution It lets you graphically determine the axis of rotation for an object being rotated.

Chapter 21: Rendering 3D Drawings

Simulate the sun. One of the most practical uses of AutoCAD’s rendering feature is to simulate the sun’s location and resulting shadows. You can generate shadow studies for any time of the year in any location on the earth.

Master It How do you get to the sun properties?

Solution Make sure nothing is selected in the drawing and then click the All button in the Properties Inspector palette.

Create effects using materials and lights. You can use materials and lights together to control the appearance of your model.

Master It Name the part of the example model in this chapter that was used to show how a material can appear to glow.

Solution Light bulb material.

Control your render quality. AutoCAD offers a few features to give you some control over the quality of your rendering. The default rendering settings allow you to view your rendering at a level good enough to gauge how it will look.

Master It Name the two features discussed in this chapter that allow you to control the quality of your renderings.

Solution The Renderquality setting and the Properties Inspector palette.

Print your renderings. You can save your rendered views as bitmap files using the Render window. If you prefer, you can also have AutoCAD include a rendering in a layout. You can include different renderings of the same file in a single layout.

Master It Give a general description of the process for setting up a rendered viewport in a layout.

Solution Create a viewport, and then set up the view you want for the viewport using the 3D Views menu in the viewport controls. Select the viewport’s border, right-click, and select a Shade Plot menu option.

Chapter 22: Editing and Visualizing 3D Solids

Understand solid modeling. Solid modeling lets you build 3D models by creating and joining 3D shapes called solids. There are several built-in solid shapes called primitives, and you can create others using the Extrude tool.

Master It Name some of the built-in solid primitives available in AutoCAD.

Solution Box, wedge, cone, sphere, cylinder, pyramid, torus, and polysolid.

Create solid forms. You can use Boolean operations to sculpt 3D solids into the shape you want. Two solids can be joined to form a more complex one, or you can remove one solid from another.

Master It Name the three Boolean operations you can use on solids.

Solution Intersection, subtraction, and union.

Create complex solids. Besides the primitives, you can create your own shapes based on 2D polylines.

Master It Name three tools that let you convert closed polylines and circles into 3D solids.

Solution Extrude, Revolve, and Sweep.

Edit solids. Once you’ve created a solid, you can make changes to it using the solid-editing tools offered on the Solids – Edit tool group or the Modify ⇒ Solid Editing submenu on the menu bar.

Master It Name at least four of the tools found on the Solids – Edit tool group.

Solution The tools found on the Solids - Edit tool group are Union, Subtract, Intersect, Slice, Thicken, Extract Edges, Taper Faces, Extrude Faces, Offset Faces.

Streamline the 2D drawing process. You can create 3D orthogonal views of your 3D model to create standard 2D mechanical drawings.

Master It What is the name of the tool in the Tool Sets palette that lets you create a 2D drawing of a 3D model?

Solution Flatshot.

Visualize solids. In addition to viewing your 3D model in a number of different orientations, you can view it as if it were transparent or cut in half.

Master It What is the name of the command that lets you create a cut view of your 3D model?

Solution Sectionplane.

Chapter 23: Exploring 3D Mesh and Surface Modeling

Create a simple 3D mesh. Mesh modeling allows you to create more organic 3D forms by giving you unique smoothing and editing tools. You can start your mesh model by creating a basic shape using the mesh primitives.

Master It Name at least six mesh primitives available on the Primitives submenu under Draw ⇒ 3D Modeling ⇒ Meshes on the menu bar.

Solution The mesh primitives are box, cone, sphere, pyramid, wedge, torus, and cylinder.

Edit faces and edges. The ability to edit faces and edges is essential to creating complex shapes with mesh objects.

Master It Name the tool that is used to divide a face into multiple faces.

Solution The Mesh Refine tool.

Create mesh surfaces. The Mesh primitives let you create shapes that enclose a volume. If you just want to model a smooth, curved surface in 3D, you might find the surface mesh tools helpful.

Master It How many objects are needed to use the Edge Surface tool?

Solution Four.

Convert meshes to solids. You can convert a mesh into a 3D solid to take advantage of many of the solid-editing tools available in AutoCAD.

Master It Name at least two tools you can use on a solid that you cannot use on a mesh.

Solution Union, Subtract, Intersect, Interfere, any of the edge- or face-editing tools on the Tool Sets palette.

Understand 3D surfaces. 3D surfaces can be created using some of the same tools you use to create 3D solids.

Master It Name at least two tools you can use to create both 3D solids and 3D surfaces.

Solution Any of the following: Loft, Sweep, Extrude, and Revolve.

Edit 3D surfaces. AutoCAD offers a wide range of tools that are unique to 3D surfaces.

Master It Name at least four tools devoted to CV editing.

Solution Any of the following: 3D Edit bar, Convert To NURBS, Show CV, Hide CV, Surface Rebuild (Rebuild), Add CV Surface CV (or just CV Add), and Remove CV (or CV Remove).