SCALE AND CONVERSION INTRODUCTION

Introduction on how to use imperial and metric scale ruler Scale ruler As briefed in Lesson 1 notes, scale rulers are used in making or measuring from reduced scale drawings, such as floor plans. There are basically two types of scale ruler, which are; Imperial scale ruler and Metrics scale ruler. Imperial scale ruler Imperial units consist of feet and inch. Imperial units are commonly used for architectural planning and designing. The most commonly used Imperial scales are 1/16" = 1'-0", 1/8" = 1'-0", 1/4" = 1'-0" and 1/2" = 1'-0". Imperial table 12 inches = 1 feet (1 feet is written as 1'-0") e.g. 1 feet and 6 inches is written as 1'-6" 2 feet and 3 inches is written as 2'-3" How to use an imperial scale ruler 1/2" = 1'-0" reads as; 1/2" (1/2 inches) on the drawing sheet is equivalent to 1'-0" (1 feet) the actual item. 1/8" = 1'-0" reads as; 1/8" (1/8 inches) on the drawing sheet is equivalent to 1'-0" (1 feet) the actual item. Metric scale ruler Metric units consist of millimeter, centimeter and meter. Metric units are commonly used for interior planning and designing. The most commonly used Metric scale are 1:100, 1:50, 1:25, 1:20 and 1:10. Metric table 10 millimeters (mm) = 1 centimeter (cm) 100 centimeters (cm) = 1 meter (m) How to use a metric scale ruler 1:100 reads as; 1cm on the drawing sheet is equivalent to 100cm the actual item. 1:50 reads as; 1cm on the drawing sheet is equivalent to 50cm the actual item.
Imperial 0.3937 inch 1 inch 3.281 feet (3'-3")

Conversion table Metric 1 centimeter 2.54 centimeter 1 meter