SY-2023-2024

AUTOMOTIVE CADD

INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS AUTOMOTIVE CADD 1

AUTO 125-126
PEDRO M. BABIA

BS-AUTOTRONIX | COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY

AUTO 125-126 1
 CONTENTS
1. INTRODUCTION 4
2. AUTOCAD 5
• COMPATIBILITY WITH OTHER SOFTWARE
• WORK FASTER WITH SPECIALIZED TOOLSETS
• WHAT IS AUTOCAD USED FOR?
• LAUNCHING AUTOCAD
• THE AUTOCAD SCREEN
3. THE BASIC AUTOCAD TERMINOLOGY AND KEY FUNCTION 8
• 2D DRAFTING, DRAWING, AND ANNOTATION
• 3D MODELING AND VISUALIZATION
• COLLABORATION
• INSTALLATION AND CUSTOMIZATION
4. COORDINATE SYSTEM IN AUTOCAD 9
• CARTESIAN COORDINATE SYSTEM
• ABSOLUTE COORDINATE ENTRY
➢ UNDERSTANDING THE X,Y COORDINATE SYSTEM
• RELATIVE COORDINATE ENTRY
• POLAR COORDINATE SYSTEM
➢ ANGULAR MEASUREMENTS
5. CIRCLE COMMAND 18
• CENTER POINT
• CIRCLE 2P OPTION
• CIRCLE 3P OPTION
• CIRCLE Ttr (tan tan radius) OPTION
6. ARC COMMAND 28
• START, CENTER, SUBCOMMAND
➢ END, ANGLE & LENGTH
• START, END, SUBCOMMAND
➢ ANGLE, DIRECTION & RADIUS
• CENTER, START, SUBCOMMAND
➢ END, ANGLE & LENGTH

AUTO 125-126 2
 INTRODUCTION

WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF COMPUTER AIDED DESIGNED AND DRAFTING (CADD). THIS CAD MANUAL IS DESIGNED
TO TEACH YOU ALL THE SKILLS NECESSARY TO LEARN CADD IN A SUCCESFUL AND PROFESSIONAL MANNER. IT ASSUMES THAT
YOU HAVE VERY LITTLE EXPERIENCE WITH COMPUTERS; HOWEVER, YOU ARE FAMILIAR WITH BASIC GEOMETRY AND THE
CONCEPT OF DRAFTING. CADD SOFTWARE IS COMMONLY USED FOR DRAFTING ARCHITECTURAL AND ENGINEERING
DRAWINGS AND MAKING TECHNICAL ILLUSTRATIONS OF ANY KIND. IF YOU ARE A PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATED WITH DESIGN
OR DRAFTING OR WOULD JUST LIKE TO WIDEN YOUR KNOWLEDGE ABOUT CADD APPLICATIONS, THEN CADD MANUAL IS FOR
YOU.
CADD ENABLES YOU TO PREPARE FAST AND ACCURATE DRAWINGS. IT PROVIDES FLEXIBILITY TO CHANGE DRAWINGS
WITH MINIMAL EFFORT. IN RECENT YEARS, MANY PROFESSIONALS HAVE SWITCHED TO CADD TO ENJOY THE BENEFITS OF THIS
PRECISE AND CREATIVE TOOL TODAY, MANY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS INCLUDE CADD AS BLOCK OF THEIR ACADEMIC
CURRICULUM. AS A RESULT, CADD KNOWLEDGE HAS BECOME VERY IMPORTANT TO ALL PROFESSIONALS INVOLVED IN THE
FIELD OF DESIGN AND DRAFTING.
CADD MANUAL DOES NOT FOCUS ON A SPECIFIC CADD PROGRAM. IT PROVIDES GENERAL INFORMATION THAT IS
APPLICABLE TO ALL LEADING CADD PROGRAMS, SUCH AS AUTOCAD, MICROSTATION AND CADKEY. CADD MANUAL CAN GIVE
YOU A HEAD START IN LEARNING CADD, REGARDLESS OF WHATEVER CADD PROGRAM YOU MAY HAVE TO USE.

AUTO 125-126 3
 AUTOCAD
AUTOCAD IS A COMMERCIAL COMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN (CAD) AND DRAFTING SOFTWARE APPLICATION, DEVELOPED AND
MARKETED BY AUTODESK, AUTOCAD WAS FIRST RELEASED IN DECEMBER 1982 AS A DESKTOP APP RUNNING ON
MICROCOMPUTERS WITH INTERNAL GRAPHICS CONTROLLERS. BEFORE AUTOCAD WAS INTRODUCED, MOST COMMERCIAL
CAD PROGRAMS RAN ON MAINFRAME COMPUTERS OR MINICOMPUTERS, WITH EACH CAD OPERATOR (USER) WORKING AT A
SEPARATE GRAPHICS TERMINAL. SINCE 2010, AUTOCAD WAS RELEASED AS A MOBILE- AND WEB APP AS WELL, MARKETED AS
AUTOCAD 360.
AUTOCAD IS USED IN INDUSTRY, BY ARCHITECTS, PROJECT MANAGERS, ENGINEERS, GRAPHIC DESIGNERS, CITY PLANNERS AND
OTHER PROFESSIONALS RELY ON TO CREATE PRECISE 2D AND 3D DRAWINGS. IT WAS SUPPORTED BY 750 TRAINING CENTERS
WORLDWIDE IN 1994.

AUTOCAD IS A COMPUTER-AIDED TOOL THAT ALLOWS MANY DIFFERENT TYPES OF DESIGNERS TO CREATE DIVERSE KINDS OF
DRAWINGS AND DESIGNS. THIS PROGRAM HELPS DESIGNERS CREATE THEIR DESIGNS MUCH MORE QUICKLY THAN BY HAND
AND OFFERS MANY QUICK, EASY, AND USEFUL FEATURES, SUCH AS COPY AND PASTE.

COMPATIBILITY WITH OTHER SOFTWARE

ESRI ARCMAP 10 PERMITS EXPORT AS AUTOCAD DRAWING FILES. CIVIL 3D PERMITS EXPORT AS AUTOCAD OBJECTS AND AS
LANDXML. THIRD-PARTY FILE CONVERTERS EXIST FOR SPECIFIC FORMATS SUCH AS BENTLEY MX GENIO EXTENSION, PISTE
EXTENSION (FRANCE), ISYBAU (GERMANY), OKSTRA AND MICRODRAINAGE (UK); ALSO, CONVERSION OF .PDF FILES IS FEASIBLE,
HOWEVER, THE ACCURACY OF THE RESULTS MAY BE UNPREDICTABLE OR DISTORTED. FOR EXAMPLE, JAGGED EDGES MAY
APPEAR. SEVERAL VENDORS PROVIDE ONLINE CONVERSIONS FOR FREE SUCH AS COMETDOCS.

SINCE AUTOCAD 2019 SEVERAL VERTICALS ARE INCLUDED WITH AUTOCAD SUBSCRIPTION AS INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC TOOLSET.

WORK FASTER WITH SPECIALIZED TOOLSETS

AUTOCAD INCLUDES INDUSTRY-SPECIFIC FEATURES AND INTELLIGENT OBJECTS FOR ARCHITECTURE, MECHANICAL
ENGINEERING, ELECTRICAL DESIGN, AND MORE.
• AUTOMATE FLOOR PLANS, SECTIONS, AND ELEVATIONS
• DRAW PIPING, DUCTING, AND CIRCUITING QUICKLY WITH PARTS LIBRARIES
• AUTO-GENERATE ANNOTATIONS, LAYERS, SCHEDULES, LISTS, AND TABLES
• USE A RULES-DRIVEN WORKFLOW TO ACCURATELY ENFORCE INDUSTRY STANDARDS

FOR EXAMPLE, AUTOCAD ARCHITECTURE (FORMERLY ARCHITECTURAL DESKTOP) PERMITS ARCHITECTURAL DESIGNERS TO
DRAW 3D OBJECTS, SUCH AS WALLS, DOORS, AND WINDOWS, WITH MORE INTELLIGENT DATA ASSOCIATED WITH THEM
RATHER THAN SIMPLE OBJECTS, SUCH AS LINES AND CIRCLES. THE DATA CAN BE PROGRAMMED TO REPRESENT SPECIFIC
ARCHITECTURAL PRODUCTS SOLD IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY, OR EXTRACTED INTO A DATA FILE FOR PRICING,
MATERIALS ESTIMATION, AND OTHER VALUES RELATED TO THE OBJECTS REPRESENTED.

ADDITIONAL TOOLS GENERATE STANDARD 2D DRAWINGS, SUCH AS ELEVATIONS AND SECTIONS, FROM A 3D ARCHITECTURAL
MODEL. SIMILARLY, CIVIL DESIGN, CIVIL DESIGN 3D, AND CIVIL DESIGN PROFESSIONAL SUPPORT DATA-SPECIFIC OBJECTS
FACILITATING EASY STANDARD CIVIL ENGINEERING CALCULATIONS AND REPRESENTATIONS.

AUTO 125-126 4
SOFTDESK CIVIL WAS DEVELOPED AS AN AUTOCAD ADD-ON BY A COMPANY IN NEW HAMPSHIRE CALLED SOFTDESK
(ORIGINALLY DCA). SOFTDESK WAS ACQUIRED BY AUTODESK, AND CIVIL BECAME LAND DEVELOPMENT DESKTOP (LDD), LATER
RENAMED LAND DESKTOP. CIVIL 3D WAS LATER DEVELOPED AND LAND DESKTOP WAS RETIRED.

WHAT IS AUTOCAD USED FOR?

AUTOCAD CAN CREATE ANY 2D DRAWING AND 3D MODEL OR CONSTRUCTION THAT CAN BE DRAWN BY HAND. THE PROGRAM
ALSO ALLOWS THE USER TO GROUP OR LAYER OBJECTS, KEEP OBJECTS IN A DATABASE FOR FUTURE USE, AND MANIPULATE
PROPERTIES OF OBJECTS, SUCH AS SIZE, SHAPE, AND LOCATION.
AUTOCAD HAS NUMEROUS APPLICATIONS IN A WIDE RANGE OF FIELDS. THE PROGRAM CAN BE USED FOR SIMPLE PROJECTS,
SUCH AS GRAPHS OR PRESENTATIONS, OR COMPLEX DESIGNS, LIKE DRAWING UP THE ARCHITECTURE OF A BUILDING. SOME
OTHER PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS MAY INCLUDE:
• INTERIOR DESIGNS • MAPS
• AERONAUTICAL DESIGNS • GREETING CARDS
• LOGOS • ENGINEERING DESIGNS
• FINE ART • ARCHITECTURAL DESIGNS
LEARNING AUTOCAD OFFERS A NUMBERS OF ADVANTAGES TO YOU. IT WILL GIVE YOU A HIGHER PROBABLILTY OF USING
SKILLS LEARNED IN INDUSTRY SINCE THERE ARE MORE EMPLOYEES USING AUTOCAD THAN ANY OTHER CAD SYSTEM.

LAUNCHING AUTOCAD

1. CHOOSE START ALL PROGRAMS AUTODESK AUTOCAD 2020 AUTOCAD

2020. YOU CAN ALSO DOUBLE-CLICK THE AUTOCAD 2020 ICON ON YOUR WINDOWS DESKTOP.
2. THE OPENING GREETING, CALLED A SPLASH SCREEN, TELLS YOU WHICH VERSION OF AUTOCAD YOU ARE USING,
TO WHOM THE PROGRAM IS REGISTERED, AND AUTOCAD DEALER’S NAME AND PHONE NUMBER, SHOULD YOU
NEED HELP.
3. AFTER THE SPLASH SCREEN CLOSES, YOU SEE THE AUTOCAD WINDOW WITH A BLANK DEFAULT DOCUMENT
NAMED DRAWING1.DWG, AND CLICK START DRAWING. AS SHOWN IN FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 1

AUTO 125-126 5
 THE AUTOCAD SCREEN

FIGURE 2

PULL-DOWN MENUS – THESE ARE THE STANDARD PULL-DOWN MENUS THROUGH WHICH YOU CAN ACCES ALMOST ALL
COMMANDS.
TOOLBARS – PROVIDE ONE OF SEVERAL CUSTOMIZABLE WAYS TO START COMMANDS AND CHANGE SETTINGS. TYPES
OF TOOLBARS CONTAIN BUTTONS THAT START COMMANDS.
DRAWING AREA – THIS IS WHERE YOU DRAW. YOU HAVE AN ALMOST INFINITE AREA TO DRAW AND THIS IS JUST A
‘SECTION’ OF THE ENTIRE SPACE.
COMMAND LINE – WHEN YOU TYPE A COMMAND, YOU WILL SEE IT HERE. AUTOCAD USES THIS SPACE TO ‘PROMPT’ YOU
FOR INFORMATION. IT WILL GIVE YOU A LOT OF INFORMATION AND TELL YOU WHERE YOU ARE IN THE COMMAND.
STATUS BAR – THIS ALLOWS TO SEE AND CHANGE DIFFERENT MODES OF DRAWING SUCH AS ORTHO, OSNAPS, GRID,
OTRACK, ETC.

TITLE BAR – THIS WILL SHOW YOU WHAT PROGRAM YOU ARE RUNNING AND WHAT THE CURRENT
FILENAME IS.
WCS ICON – THIS IS HERE TO SHOW YOU WHICH DIRECTION POSITIVE X AND POSITIVE Y GO. THE W
MEANS YOU’RE IN THE WORLD CO-ORDINATE SYSTEM. (IT CAN BE CHANGED TO A USER COORDINATE
SYSTEM.)
TOOL PALETTE – COLLECTION OF TOOLS IN ONE AREA THAT CAN BE ORGANIZED INTO COMMON
CATEGORIES
SCROLLBARS – THESE WORK LIKE IN OTHER WINDOWS PROGRAMS. YOU CAN ALSO USE THE PAN
COMMAND TO MOVE AROUND YOUR DRAWING.
PROPERTY TOOLBAR – THIS TOOLBAR A WAY TO QUICKLY MODIFY AN OBJECT’S PROPERTIES, SUCH
AS LAYER AND LINETYPE.

AUTO 125-126 6
2D DRAFTING, DRAWING, AND ANNOTATION
CREATE SINGLE OR MULTILINE TEXT (MTEXT) AS A SINGLE TEXT
TEXT SETTINGS
OBJECT. FORMAT THE TEXT, COLUMNS, AND BOUNDARIES.
CREATE DIMENSIONS AUTOMATICALLY. PASS THE CURSOR OVER
DIMENSIONS
SELECTED OBJECTS TO GET A PREVIEW BEFORE YOU CREATE IT.
CREATE LEADERS WITH A VARIETY OF CONTENT, INCLUDING TEXT
LEADERS
OR BLOCKS. EASILY FORMAT LEADER LINES AND DEFINE STYLES.
CREATE AND EDIT CENTERLINES AND CENTER MARKS THAT
CENTERLINES AND CENTER
AUTOMATICALLY MOVE WHEN YOU MOVE THE ASSOCIATED
MARKS
OBJECTS.
CREATE TABLES WITH DATA AND SYMBOLS IN ROWS AND COLUMNS,
TABLES
APPLY FORMULAS, AND LINK TO A MICROSOFT EXCEL SPREADSHEET.
DRAW REVISION CLOUDS AROUND NEW CHANGES IN A DRAWING TO
REVISION CLOUDS
QUICKLY IDENTIFY YOUR UPDATES.
SAVE VIEWS BY NAME TO EASILY RETURN TO A SPECIFIC VIEW FOR
VIEWS
QUICK REFERENCE OR FOR APPLYING TO LAYOUT VIEWPORTS.
SPECIFY THE SIZE OF YOUR DRAWING SHEET, ADD A TITLE BLOCK,
LAYOUTS
AND DISPLAY MULTIPLE VIEWS OF YOUR MODEL.
USE FIELDS IN TEXT OBJECTS TO DISPLAY TEXT THAT CAN BE
FIELDS
UPDATED AUTOMATICALLY AS THE FIELD VALUE CHANGES.
ENABLE SIMULTANEOUS UPDATES BY CREATING A LIVE LINK
DATA LINKING BETWEEN A MICROSOFT EXCEL SPREADSHEET AND A TABLE IN
YOUR DRAWING
EXTRACT INFORMATION FROM OBJECTS, BLOCKS, AND ATTRIBUTES,
DATA EXTRACTION
INCLUDING DRAWING
ADD FLEXIBILITY AND INTELLIGENCE TO YOUR BLOCK REFERENCES,
DYNAMIC BLOCKS
INCLUDING CHANGING THE SHAPE, SIZE, OR CONFIGURATION.
CREATE AND MODIFY OBJECTS IN CIRCULAR OR RECTANGULAR
ARRAYS
PATTERNS, OR ALONG A PATH.
APPLY GEOMETRIC AND DIMENSIONAL CONSTRAINTS TO MAINTAIN
PARAMETRIC CONSTRAINTS
RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN DRAWING GEOMETRY.
EXTEND THE POWER OF AUTOCAD WITH A COLLECTION OF
EXPRESS TOOLS PRODUCTIVITY TOOLS.

3D MODELING AND VISUALIZATION

SOLID, SURFACE, AND MESH CREATE REALISTIC 3D MODELS OF YOUR DESIGN USING A
MODELLING COMBINATION OF SOLID, SURFACE, AND MESH MODELING TOOLS.
USE 3D VIEWING AND NAVIGATION TOOLS TO ORBIT, SWIVEL,
3D NAVIGATION (ORBIT,
WALK, AND FLY AROUND A 3D MODEL TO SHOWCASE YOUR
VIEWCUBE, WHEEL)
DESIGN.
APPLY VISUAL STYLES TO CONTROL THE DISPLAY OF EDGES,
VISUAL STYLES
LIGHTING, AND SHADING OF YOUR 3D MODEL.
CREATE SECTION PLANES TO DISPLAY CROSS-SECTIONAL VIEWS
SECTION PLANES
THROUGH SOLIDS, SURFACES, MESHES, OR REGIONS.
APPLY LIGHTING AND MATERIALS TO GIVE YOUR 3D MODELS A
RENDERING REALISTIC APPEARANCE AND TO HELP COMMUNICATE YOUR
DESIGNS.
RENDER 3D MODELS ONLINE WITHOUT CONSUMING PROCESSING
CLOUD RENDERING
POWER OR DISK SPACE ON YOUR LOCAL COMPUTER.
ATTACH POINT CLOUD FILES ACQUIRED BY 3D LASER SCANNERS
POINT CLOUDS OR OTHER TECHNOLOGIES TO USE AS A STARTING POINT FOR YOUR
DESIGNS.
GENERATE 2D DRAWINGS INCLUDING BASE, PROJECTED, SECTION,
MODEL DOCUMENTATION
AND DETAIL VIEWS FROM 3D MODELS.

AUTO 125-126 7
COLLABORATION
SHARE AND REUSE DATA FROM PDF FILES BY IMPORTING,
PDF FILES
EXPORTING, OR ATTACHING THEM AS UNDERLAYS.
SHARE AND REUSE DATA FROM DGN FILES BY IMPORTING,
DGN FILES
EXPORTING, OR ATTACHING THEM AS UNDERLAYS.
ATTACH DWG OR IMAGE FILES TO YOUR CURRENT DRAWING AS
DWG AND IMAGE REFERENCES EXTERNALLY REFERENCED FILES.

VIEW, ACCESS, MANAGE, AND PLOT MULTIPLE DRAWINGS AS

SHEET SETS SHEET SETS.

MODEL REFERENCES AND ATTACH NAVISWORKS MODELS AS UNDERLAYS TO YOUR

IMPORT DRAWINGS, AND IMPORT MODELS FROM OTHER APPLICATIONS.
INSERT GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION INFORMATION INTO A DRAWING,
GEOGRAPHIC LOCATION AND
AND DISPLAY A MAP IN THE DRAWING FROM AN ONLINE MAP
ONLINE MAPS
SERVICE.

INSTALLATION AND CUSTOMIZATION

TRUSTEDDWG™ TECHNOLOGY ALERTS YOU TO A POSSIBLE
TRUSTEDDWG TECHNOLOGY INCOMPATIBILITY WHEN A FILE WAS NOT LAST SAVED BY
AUTODESK SOFTWARE.
CUSTOMIZE THE USER INTERFACE TO IMPROVE ACCESSIBILITY AND
CUI CUSTOMIZATION
REDUCE THE NUMBER OF STEPS FOR FREQUENT TASKS.
SPECIFY SECURITY RESTRICTIONS FOR RUNNING EXECUTABLES IN
SECURE LOAD AUTOCAD TO HELP PROTECT AGAINST MALICIOUS EXECUTABLE
CODE.
RECORD COMMANDS AND INPUT VALUES THAT CAN BE PLAYED
ACTION RECORDER
BACK AS AN ACTION MACRO.
MONITOR CURRENT SYSTEM VARIABLES AGAINST A PREFERRED
SYSTEM VARIABLE MONITOR LIST OF VALUES. NOTIFICATION BALLOONS ALERT YOU TO
DEVIATIONS.
DEFINE AND MONITOR CAD STANDARDS TO MAINTAIN CONSISTENT
CAD STANDARDS CHECKER
STYLES FOR LAYERS, LINETYPES, TEXT, AND DIMENSIONS.
APPLICATION PROGRAMMING CONTROL DRAWINGS AND DATABASES WITH ACTIVEX, VBS,
INTERFACE (API) AUTOLISP, VISUAL LISP, OBJECTARX, JAVASCRIPT, AND .NET
CUSTOMIZE YOUR SOFTWARE WITH AUTODESK-APPROVED
AUTODESK APP STORE
EXTENSIONS.

AUTO 125-126 8
COORDINATE SYSTEMS IN AUTOCAD
USING COORDINATES TO SPECIFY LOCATIONS CAN BE A CHALLENGE IN AUTOCAD. IT HELPS TO TAKE OUR TIME TO
UNDERSTAND THE UNDERLYING CONCEPTS.

CARTESIAN COORDINATE SYSTEM

THE WORD “CARTESIAN” COMES FROM THE PHILOSOPHER DESCARTES, WHO CAME UP WITH THE IDEA. ONE DAY DESCARTES
WAS STARING AT A FLY ON THE FLOOR. IT OCCURRED TO HIM THAT HE COULD DESCRIBE THE FLY’S LOCATION FLOOR BY
NOTING ITS DISTANCE FROM TWO OF THE WALLS.
IN THIS EXAMPLE, THE FLOOR IS A COORDINATE PLANE.

FIGURE 3
NOTE THE UCS ICON. IT IS COMPOSED OF STUBS STICKING OUT IN THE X-DIRECTION, THE Y-DIRECTION, AND, THE Z-DIRECTION. THE Z-DIRECTION IS HIDDEN

IF YOU ARE WORKING IN 2D, BUT YOU CAN THINK OF IT AS COMING OUT OF THE PAGE (OR MONITOR, I SUPPOSE). THE PLACE WHERE THE STUBS INTERSECT

IS CALLED THE ORIGIN.

IF YOU IMAGINE THE X-STUB EXTENDING OUT INDEFINITELY, THIS IS THE X-AXIS. IF YOU IMAGINE THE Y-STUB EXTENDING OUT
INDEFINITELY, THIS IS THE Y-AXIS. ANY POINT ALONG THE FLOOR CAN BE GIVEN AS (X, Y), WHERE X IS A DISTANCE ALONG THE
X-AXIS, AND Y IS A DISTANCE ALONG THE Y-AXIS.
• CONVENTIONALLY, THE X-AXIS IS HORIZONTAL, WITH POSITIVE NUMBER SIGNIFYING A MOVE TO THE RIGHT, AND A
NEGATIVE NUMBER SIGNIFYING A MOVE TO THE LEFT.
• CONVENTIONALLY, THE Y-AXIS IS VERTICAL, WITH POSITIVE NUMBERS SIGNIFYING A MOVE UP, AND NEGATIVE
NUMBERS SIGNIFYING A MOVE DOWN.
• IN THE STATUS BAR AT THE BOTTOM OF AUTOCAD, THERE IS A GRID THAT CAN BE TURNED ON OR OFF.
SOME PEOPLE LIKE THE GRID ON IN ORDER TO FACILITATE COUNTING ALONG THE X AND Y AXIS.

AUTO 125-126 9
 •
FIGURE 4

IN THE STATUS BAR AT THE BOTTOM OF AUTOCAD, THERE IS A GRID THAT CAN BE TURNED ON OR OFF. SOME PEOPLE LIKE
THE GRID ON IN ORDER TO FACILITATE COUNTING ALONG THE X AND Y AXIS. THE F7 KEY IS A QUICK WAY TO TOGGLE THE GRID
ON AND OFF. THERE IS ALSO A GRID SNAP TOOL (F9), WHICH ALLOWS SNAPPING TO THE GRID. RIGHT CLICK ON THE GRID OR
GRID SNAP TOOLS TO CHANGE THEIR SETTINGS. ANOTHER TOOL THAT CAN BE USED IS ORTHO MODE (F8), WHICH CONSTRAINS
CURSOR MOVEMENT TO THE HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL DIRECTIONS.

COORDINATES, LIKE OBJECT SNAPS, ARE A WAY OF INTRODUCING MORE PRECISION TO OUR WORK. COORDINATES ACT AS
SUBCOMMANDS IN AUTOCAD (MEANING YOU NEED ANOTHER COMMAND ACTIVE FOR THEM TO BE MEANINGFUL). AS AN
EXAMPLE, YOU COULD START A COMMAND, SUCH AS LINE, AND THEN PRACTICE TYPING IN COORDINATES AND PRESSING
[ENTER] TO PLACE A VERTEX. THIS EXERCISE IS FLESHED OUT IN THE SECTION BELOW.
ABSOLUTE COORDINATE ENTRY
ABSOLUTE COORDINATE ENTRY IS THE DEFAULT. ABSOLUTE COORDINATE ENTRY ALWAYS COUNTS FROM THE
ORIGIN. WHEN DRAWING LINES, AUTOCAD IS READY TO PLACE THE NEXT VERTEX WHEREVER YOU TELL IT TO GO:

STEPS WHAT TO DO POINTS TYPE COMMAND DO

STEP 1 COMMAND LINE TYPE L OR CLICK ICON ENTER
STEP 2 LINE Specify first point: 1 10,20 ENTER
STEP 3 LINE Specify next point or [Undo]: 2 40,50 ENTER

AUTO 125-126 10
FIGURE 5

HERE IS HOW IT WORKS:

AUTOCAD USES POINTS TO DETERMINE WHERE AN OBJECT IS LOCATED. THERE IS AN ORIGIN WHERE IT BEGINS COUNTING
FROM. THIS POINT IS (0, 0). EVERY OBJECT IS LOCATED IN RELATION TO THE ORIGIN. IF YOU WERE TO DRAW A LINE STRAIGHT
OUT TO THE RIGHT FROM THE ORIGIN, THIS WOULD BE CONSIDERED THE POSITIVE X-AXIS. IF YOU WERE TO DRAW A LINE
STRAIGHT UP, THIS WOULD BE POSITIVE Y-AXIS. THE PICTURE ABOVE SHOWS A POINT LOCATED AT (1ST POINT 10, 20). THIS
MEANS THAT THE POINT 1 IS IN 10 UNITS OVER IN THE X-AXIS AND 20 UNITS IN THE Y-AXIS.WHEN YOU ARE WORKING WITH
POINTS, X ALWAYS COME FIRST. THE OTHER POINT SHOWN IS (40, 50). THIS MEANS THAT THE POINT IS 40 UNITS IN THE
POSITIVE X-AXIS WHILE 50 UNITS IN POSITIVE Y-AXIS.

FIGURE 7

EXERCISES #1: WRITE THE COMMAND OF RECTANGLE BELOW USING ABSOLUTE COORDINATE WITH POINT 1 IS IN 20, 60.

AUTO 125-126 11
 FIGURE 8

WRITE YOUR COMMAND IN THE TABLE BELOW AND DRAW IN AUTOCAD

RELATIVE COORDINATE ENTRY

FOR RELATIVE COORDINATES, AUTOCAD DOES NOT COUNT FROM 0,0. INSTEAD, THE REFERENCE POINT IS THE PREVIOUS
POINT IN THE DRAWING. LET’S DRAW ANOTHER LINE, AND SEE WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE COMPARED TO THE OLD ONE:
• THIS ALLOWS YOU TO ENTER POINTS IN RELATION TO THE FIRST POINT YOU HAVE ENTERED. AFTER YOU ENTERED
ONE POINT, THE NEXT WOULD BE ENETERED AS @X, Y. THIS MEANS THAT AUTOCAD WILL DRAW A LINE FROM THE
FIRST POINT TO ANOTHER POINT X UNITS OVER Y UNITS UP RELATIVE TO THE PREVIOUS POINT.

AUTO 125-126 12
 FIGURE 9

AUTOCAD RECOGNIZES THE @ SYMBOL AS INSTRUCTIONS TO COUNT USING RELATIVE COORDINATES.

NOTICE THE DIFFERENCE. WHILE BOTH LINES MADE THUS FAR STARTED AT THE SAME POINT, THIS TIME, FOR THE SECOND VERTEX, AUTOCAD COUNTED 5

OVER AND 3 UP FROM THE FIRST VERTEX, AND MADE THE LINE BETWEEN THOSE TWO LOCALES.

FIGURE 10

AUTO 125-126 13
 FIGURE 11

FIGURE 12

FIGURE 13

AUTO 125-126 14
 FIGURE 14

FIGURE 15

EXERCISES #2: WRITE THE COMMAND OF THE DRAWING BELOW USING RELATIVE COORDINATE WITH BASE POINT 20, 60
AND DRAW IN AUTOCAD.

FIGURE 16 WRITE YOUR COMMAND IN THE TABLE ABOVE

AUTO 125-126 15
POLAR COORDINATE SYSTEM
POLAR COORDINATES ARE NAMED FOR THEIR “POLE”; THE REFERENCE POINT TO START COUNTING FROM, WHICH IS SIMILAR
IN CONCEPT TO THE ORIGIN. POLAR COORDINATES EMPLOY ONE RADIAL DISTANCE AND ONE ANGLE (BY CONVENTION, THE
ANGLE IS MEASURED COUNTERCLOCKWISE FROM THE X-AXIS). THE ANGLE SIGNIFIES THE DIRECTION, AND THE DISTANCE IS
HOW FAR TO GO IN THAT DIRECTION FROM THE POLE.
• POLAR COORDINATES IN AUTOCAD ARE GIVEN AS R<DEGREES, WHERE:
• “R” IS THE RADIAL DISTANCE
• “<” IS THE LESS THAN SIGN (BUT IN THIS CASE REPRESENTS THE ANGLE)
• “DEGREES” IS THE VALUE OF THE ANGLE IN DEGREES

LIKE CARTESIAN COORDINATES, POLAR COORDINATES ARE EMPLOYED AS A SUBCOMMAND.

THE ANALOGUE TO ORTHO MODE IS POLAR TRACKING (F10). POLAR TRACKING RESTRICTS CURSOR MOVEMENT TO SPECIFIED
ANGLES. THE USER CAN SPECIFY THE ACCEPTABLE ANGLE INCREMENTS BY RIGHT-CLICKING THE ICON.
RELATIVE COORDINATES ALSO WORK WITH POLAR INPUT.

FIGURE 16

AUTO 125-126 16
 FIGURE 17

FIGURE 18

EXERCISES #3: WRITE THE COMMAND OF THE DRAWING BELOW USING POLAR COORDINATE WITH BASE POINT 20, 60 AND
DRAW IN AUTOCAD.

FIGURE 19

AUTO 125-126 17
CIRCLES
COMMAND KEYSTROKE ICON MENU RESULT
DRAWS A CIRCLE BASED ON THE
CIRCLE CIRCLE/C DRAW>CIRCLE>CENTER, RADIUS
CENTER POINT AND RADIUS.

CIRCLES AND ARCS ARE THE EASIEST OBJECTS TO DRAW. BUT LIKE EVERYTHING ELSE IN AUTOCAD, THEY OFFER A WIDE
RANGE OF OPTIONS TO ALLOW YOU TO DRAW THEM IN NEARLY ANY SITUATION.

CENTER POINT

FIGURE 20

IN THIS EXAMPLE: WE DRAW A CIRCLE USING THE CIRCLE OPTIONS RADIUS OR DIAMETER,
• RADIUS 40, OR 80 DIAMETERS.
FIRST STEP – CLICK THE CIRCLE TOOL ON THE DRAW TOOLBAR, OR TYPE C OR CIRCLE.

FIGURE 21-22

SECOND STEP – AT THE Specify center point for circle or [3P 2P Ttr (tan tan radius)]: PROMPT, PICK A POINT AT COORDINATE
60, 60.

FIGURE 23

AUTO 125-126 18
THIRD STEP – AT THE SPECIFY RADIUS OF CIRCLE OR [DIAMETER]: PROMPT, TYPE 40 THEN ENTER.
THE CIRCLE APPEARS

FIGURE 24

IF WE USE DIAMETER OPTION.

4TH STEP – AT THE SPECIFY RADIUS OF CIRCLE OR [DIAMETER]: PROMPT, TYPE D THEN ENTER.

FIGURE 25

5TH STEP – AT THE Specify diameter of circle <80.0000>: 80 ENTER.

FIGURE 26

IN THIS SITUATION THE 80 IS ALREADY IN THE OPTION. SO, YOU CAN JUST ENTER. OR TYPE THE EXACT VALUE.

AUTO 125-126 19
CIRCLES
COMMAND KEYSTROKE ICON MENU RESULT
DRAWS A CIRCLE BASED ON
DRAW>CIRCLE>CENTER,
CIRCLE CIRCLE/C THE CENTER POINT AND
RADIUS
RADIUS.
IF YOU WANT TO DRAW A CIRCLE BASED ON TWO POINTS, YOU CAN DO BY USING THE 2P OPTION.
CIRCLE 2P OPTION

FIGURE 27

IN THIS EXAMPLE: WE DRAW A CIRCLE BETWEEN TWO LINES USING THE 2P OPTIONS, IN 100 DIAMETERS.

FIRST STEP – CLICK THE CIRCLE TOOL ON THE DRAW TOOLBAR, OR TYPE C OR CIRCLE.

FIGURE 28-29

SECOND STEP – AT THE Specify center point for circle or [3P 2P Ttr (tan tan radius)]: PROMPT, TYPE 2P ENTER.

FIGURE 30

AUTO 125-126 20
THIRD STEP - AT THE Specify first end point of circle’s diameter: PICK THE END POINT OF LINE.

FIGURE 31-32

FOURTH STEP - AT THE Specify second end point of circle’s diameter: PICK THE END POINT OF THE ANOTHER LINE.

FIGURE 33

AUTO 125-126 21
CIRCLES
COMMAND KEYSTROKE ICON MENU RESULT
DRAWS A CIRCLE BASED ON THE THREE
CIRCLE CIRCLE/C DRAW>CIRCLE>3P
POINTS.
IF A CIRCLE PASS THROUGH THREE POINTS BUT YOU DON’T KNOW THE CENTER POINT OR RADIUS, YOU CAN USE THE 3P
OPTION. IT LETS YOU SELECT THREE POINTS TO INDICATE LOCATION OF THE CIRCLE.

CIRCLE 3P OPTION

FIGURE 34

FIRST STEP – CLICK THE SMALL TRIANGLE AT THE BOTTOM CIRCLE NAME ON THE DRAW TOOLBAR, AND CLICK THE 3P.

FIGURE 35

AUTO 125-126 22
SECOND STEP - AT THE Specify first point on circle: PICK THE FIRST END POINT.

FIGURE 36

THIRD STEP - AT THE Specify second point on circle: PICK THE SECOND END POINT.

FIGURE 37

FOURTH STEP - AT THE Specify third point on circle: PICK THE THIRD END POINT.

FIGURE 38

AUTO 125-126 23
CIRCLES
COMMAND KEYSTROKE ICON MENU RESULT
CREATE A CIRCLE TANGENT TO
CIRCLE CIRCLE/C DRAW>CIRCLE>Ttr (tan tan radius)
TWO OBJECTS.
THE TANGENT IS THE POINT WHERE AN OBJECT TOUCHES ANOTHER OBJECT WITHOUT INTERSECTING IT. USING THE TAN
TAN RADIUS OPTIONS TO SELECT TANGENT OBJECTS AND A RADIUS.

CIRCLE Ttr (tan tan radius) OPTION

FIGURE 39

FIRST STEP – CLICK THE SMALL TRIANGLE AT THE BOTTOM CIRCLE NAME ON THE DRAW TOOLBAR, CLICK Ttr ICON.

FIGURE 40

AUTO 125-126 24
SECOND STEP - AT THE Specify point on object for first tangent of circle: PICK THE FIRST DEFFERED TANGENT.

FIGURE 41

THIRD STEP - AT THE Specify point on object for second tangent of circle: PICK THE SECOND DEFFERED TANGENT.

FIGURE 42

FOURTH STEP - AT THE Specify radius of circle: TYPE 25 IF THE DESIGN RADIUS OF YOURS IS 25. THEN ENTER.

FIGURE 43

AUTO 125-126 25
EXERCISES #4: WRITE THE COMMAND OF THE DRAWING BELOW USING WITH BASE POINT 20, 60.

FIGURE 44

EXERCISES #4: WRITE THE COMMAND IN THE TABLE OF THE DRAWING ABOVE WITH BASE POINT 20, 60 AND DRAW IN
AUTOCAD.

FIGURE 45

AUTO 125-126 26
 ARC (Command)
CREATES AN ARC.

TO CREATE AN ARC, YOU CAN SPECIFY COMBINATIONS OF CENTER, ENDPOINT, START POINT, RADIUS, ANGLE, CHORD LENGTH,
AND DIRECTION VALUES. ARCS ARE DRAWN IN A COUNTERCLOCKWISE DIRECTION BY DEFAULT. HOLD DOWN THE CTRL KEY
AS YOU DRAG TO DRAW IN A CLOCKWISE DIRECTION.

THE FOLLOWING PROMPTS ARE DISPLAYED.

START POINT
DRAWS AN ARC USING THREE SPECIFIED POINTS ON THE ARC'S CIRCUMFERENCE. THE FIRST POINT IS THE START POINT (1).

NOTE: IF YOU PRESS ENTER WITHOUT SPECIFYING A POINT, THE ENDPOINT OF THE LAST DRAWN LINE OR ARC IS USED AND YOU ARE IMMEDIATELY PROMPTED

TO SPECIFY THE ENDPOINT OF THE NEW ARC. THIS CREATES AN ARC TANGENT TO THE LAST DRAWN LINE, ARC, OR POLYLINE.

SECOND POINT
SPECIFY THE SECOND POINT (2) IS A POINT ON THE CIRCUMFERENCE OF THE ARC.
END POINT
SPECIFY THE FINAL POINT (3) ON THE ARC.

FIGURE 46
YOU CAN SPECIFY A THREE-POINT ARC EITHER CLOCKWISE OR COUNTERCLOCKWISE.
START, CENTER, END
CREATES AN ARC USING THE START POINT, CENTER, AND ENDPOINT.

THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE START POINT AND THE CENTER DETERMINES THE RADIUS. THE ENDPOINT IS DETERMINED BY A
LINE FROM THE CENTER THAT PASSES THROUGH THE THIRD POINT.
THE RESULTING ARC IS ALWAYS CREATED COUNTER CLOCKWISE FROM THE START POINT.

FIGURE 47

AUTO 125-126 27
STEP 1: CLICK THE START, CENTER, END ICON IN ARC COMMAND.

STEP 2: PICK START POINT 1.

STEP 3: PICK CENTER POINT OF AN ARC THE POINT 2

STEP 4:

JUST PICK THE DESIRED END POINT OF THE ARC THE POINT 3

START, CENTER, ANGLE

CREATES AN ARC USING THE START POINT, CENTER, AND INCLUDED ANGLE.
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE START POINT AND THE CENTER DETERMINES THE RADIUS. THE OTHER END OF THE ARC IS
DETERMINED BY SPECIFYING AN INCLUDED ANGLE THAT USES THE CENTER OF THE ARC AS THE VERTEX.

THE RESULTING ARC IS ALWAYS CREATED COUNTER CLOCKWISE FROM THE START POINT.

FIGURE 48

STEP 1: CLICK THE START, CENTER, ANGLE ICON IN ARC COMMAND.

STEP 2: PICK START POINT 1.

STEP 3: PICK CENTER POINT OF AN ARC THE POINT 2.

STEP 4: TYPE THE ANGLE.

AUTO 125-126 28
START, CENTER, LENGTH
CREATES AN ARC USING THE START POINT, CENTER, AND THE LENGTH OF A CHORD.
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE START POINT AND THE CENTER DETERMINES THE RADIUS. THE OTHER END OF THE ARC IS
DETERMINED BY SPECIFYING THE LENGTH OF A CHORD BETWEEN THE START POINT AND THE ENDPOINT OF THE ARC.

THE RESULTING ARC IS ALWAYS CREATED COUNTER CLOCKWISE FROM THE START POINT.

FIGURE 49

STEP 1: CLICK THE START, CENTER, LENGTH ICON IN ARC COMMAND.

STEP 2: PICK START POINT 1.

STEP 3: PICK CENTER POINT OF AN ARC THE POINT 2.

STEP 4: TYPE THE DESIRED

LENGTH OF CHORD.

START, END, ANGLE

CREATES AN ARC USING A START POINT, END POINT, AND AN INCLUDED ANGLE
THE INCLUDED ANGLE BETWEEN THE ENDPOINTS OF THE ARC DETERMINES THE CENTER AND THE RADIUS OF THE ARC.

FIGURE 50

AUTO 125-126 29
STEP 1: CLICK THE START, END, ANGLE ICON IN ARC COMMAND.

STEP 2: PICK START POINT 1.

STEP 3: PICK ENDPOINT OF AN ARC THE POINT 2.

STEP 4: TYPE THE DESIRED ANGLE.

START, END, DIRECTION

CREATES AN ARC USING A START POINT, END POINT, AND A TANGENT DIRECTION AT THE START POINT.

THE TANGENT DIRECTION CAN BE SPECIFIED EITHER BY LOCATING A POINT ON THE DESIRED TANGENT LINE, OR BY ENTERING
AN ANGLE. YOU CAN DETERMINE WHICH ENDPOINT CONTROLS THE TANGENT BY CHANGING THE ORDER IN WHICH YOU
SPECIFY THE TWO ENDPOINTS.

FIGURE 51

STEP 1: CLICK THE START, END, DIRECTION ICON IN ARC COMMAND.

STEP 2: PICK START POINT 1.

STEP 3: PICK ENDPOINT OF AN ARC THE POINT 2.

STEP 4:

MOVED THE CURSOR TO THE TANGENT DIRECTION OR CAN BE SPECIFIED EITHER BY LOCATING A POINT ON THE
DESIRED TANGENT LINE, OR BY ENTERING AN ANGLE.

AUTO 125-126 30
START, END, RADIUS
CREATES AN ARC USING A START POINT, END POINT, AND A RADIUS.

THE DIRECTION OF THE BULGE OF THE ARC IS DETERMINED BY THE ORDER IN WHICH YOU SPECIFY ITS ENDPOINTS. YOU CAN
SPECIFY THE RADIUS EITHER BY ENTERING IT OR BY SPECIFYING A POINT AT THE DESIRED RADIUS DISTANCE.

FIGURE 52

STEP 1: CLICK THE START, END, RADIUS ICON IN ARC COMMAND.

STEP 2: PICK START POINT 1.

STEP 3: PICK ENDPOINT OF AN ARC THE POINT 2.

STEP 4: YOU CAN SPECIFY THE RADIUS

EITHER BY ENTERING IT OR BY SPECIFYING A POINT AT THE DESIRED RADIUS DISTANCE.

CENTER, START, END

CREATES AN ARC USING A CENTER POINT, START POINT, AND THIRD POINT THAT DETERMINES THE ENDPOINT.
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE START POINT AND THE CENTER DETERMINES THE RADIUS. THE ENDPOINT IS DETERMINED BY A
LINE FROM THE CENTER THAT PASSES THROUGH THE THIRD POINT.

THE RESULTING ARC IS ALWAYS CREATED COUNTER CLOCKWISE FROM THE START POINT.

FIGURE 53

AUTO 125-126 31
STEP 1: CLICK THE CENTER, START, END ICON IN ARC COMMAND.

STEP 2: PICK CENTER POINT 1.

STEP 3: PICK START POINT OF AN ARC THE POINT 2.

STEP 4:

JUST PICK THE DESIRED END POINT OF THE ARC THE POINT 3

CENTER, START, ANGLE

CREATES AN ARC USING A CENTER POINT, START POINT, AND THE INCLUDED ANGLE.

THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE START POINT AND THE CENTER DETERMINES THE RADIUS. THE OTHER END OF THE ARC IS
DETERMINED BY SPECIFYING AN INCLUDED ANGLE THAT USES THE CENTER OF THE ARC AS THE VERTEX.

THE RESULTING ARC IS ALWAYS CREATED COUNTER CLOCKWISE FROM THE START POINT.

FIGURE 54

STEP 1: CLICK THE CENTER, START, ANGLE ICON IN ARC COMMAND.

STEP 2: PICK CENTER POINT 1.

STEP 3: PICK START POINT OF AN ARC THE POINT 2

STEP 4:

JUST PICK THE DESIRED END POINT OF THE ARC THE POINT 3

AUTO 125-126 32
CENTER, START, LENGTH
CREATES AN ARC USING A CENTER POINT, START POINT, AND THE LENGTH OF A CHORD.
THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE START POINT AND THE CENTER DETERMINES THE RADIUS. THE OTHER END OF THE ARC IS
DETERMINED BY SPECIFYING THE LENGTH OF A CHORD BETWEEN THE START POINT AND THE ENDPOINT OF THE ARC.
THE RESULTING ARC IS ALWAYS CREATED COUNTER CLOCKWISE FROM THE START POINT.

FIGURE 55

STEP 1: CLICK THE CENTER, START, LENGTH ICON IN ARC COMMAND.

STEP 2: PICK CENTER POINT 1.

STEP 3: PICK START POINT OF AN ARC THE POINT 2

STEP 4:
TYPE THE DESIRED LENGTH OF CHORD.

AUTO 125-126 33