FRONT VIEW 

                                                                   SIDE VIEW

Figure 5.2 A drawing of an object requiring three views to interpret correctly.

74 Chapter 5

drawing” has come into general use, indicating that more than one view is used to
illustrate an object, but the terms are essentially synonymous. “Orthographic”
comes from the Greek word for “straight writing (or drawing).” Orthographic
projection shows the object as it looks from the front, right, left, top, bottom, or
back, and different views are typically positioned relative to each other according
to the rules of either first-angle or third-angle projection. Ortho views depict the
exact shape of an object seen from one side at a time as you are looking
perpendicularly to it without showing any depth.

A single view of an object is rarely adequate to show all necessary features. Figure
5.3 is an example of orthographic projection showing the six principal views used
by architects and engineers in construction and industrial drawings.

Common types of orthographic drawings include plans, elevations, and sections.

The most obvious attribute of orthographic drawing is its constant scale—that is,
all parts of the drawing are represented without foreshortening or distortion,
retaining their true size, shape, and proportion. Thus, in an orthographic drawing,
a window shown to be 8 feet wide by 4 feet high will always be drawn at this size,
no matter how far it is from our viewpoint (Figure 5.4).

Plans are really orthographic views of an object as seen directly from above. Floor
plans are the most common form of plan; they delineate the layout of a building. A
floor plan is represented by a horizontal section taken through the building or
portion of a building just above the windowsill level. In addition to the
arrangement of rooms and spaces, floor plans need to show the location of various
architectural elements such as stairs, doors, and windows and details such as wall
and partition thickness. Generally, the greater the scale of a drawing, the more
detail that it is expected to contain (Figure 5.5). Thus, a drawing at a scale of 1/4″
= 1’0″ will typically contain more information and show more detail than a
drawing at a 1/8″ = 1’0″ scale. Likewise, a scale of 1:2 is greater than that of 1/4
inch = 1 foot, 0 inches. Other types of plans used in building construction may
include site plans, which typically show the layout of a site; foundation plans.
which show the building structure; and reflected ceiling plans, which are normally
used to locate light fixtures and design features.

Two important rules that must be adhered to in orthographic drawing are the
placement and alignment of views, depending on the type of projection to be used.
These rules are discussed below. In addition, projection lines between the views
must be aligned horizontally and vertically.

Orthographic (multiview) projection is a generally accepted convention for

representing three-dimensional (3D) objects using multiple dimensions (2D) of the
front, top, bottom, back, and sides of the object. In practice, the minimum number
 of views possible is used to describe all the details of the object. Usually, a front
view, top, and single side view are sufficient and are oriented on the paper
according to accepted convention. Figure 5.6 represents a multiview projection for
a simple house. The projection clearly shows that it is a form of parallel
projection, and the view direction is orthogonal to the projection plane. Isometric
projection attempts to represent 3D objects using a single view. Instead of the
observer viewing the object perpendicular to it, the object is rotated both
horizontally and vertically relative to the observer. There are rules and
conventions to guide the creation of both types of projections. Additionally, either
of them can be supplemented with various types of dimensions.

First-Angle Projection

First-angle projection is the ISO standard and is used mostly in Europe and Asia.
If we imagine projecting a 3D object into a transparent plastic cube, the main
object surfaces are projected onto the cube’s walls so that the top view is placed
under the front view and the right view is placed at the left of the front view, a
two-dimensional representation of the object is formed by “unfolding” the box and
viewing all of the interior walls as is shown in Figure 5.7A.
there is attendant distortion in the approximation. Because pictorial projections
innately have this distortion, great liberties are often taken for economy of effort
and best effect. Pictorials are discussed later in this chapter.

5.2 ORTHOGRAPHIC (MULTIVIEW) DRAWINGS AND PROJECTIONS

For many years architects and engineers have utilized a system known as
orthographic projection to accurately represent three-dimensional objects
graphically on paper. In recent years the term “multiview

Copyright © 2009 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Click here

for terms of use. 71

Chapte
72 r5
0 Diameter

Figure 5.1A An example of a simple drawing of objects that essentially requires

only two views to read.

Figure 5.1B An example of a simple drawing of objects that essentially requires

only two views to read.
 Types of Views 73
S