Part 15: Sharing Our Discovery
- Setting Up & Printing A Drawing

Summary:

Printing is the process of making a paper print by sending drawing data from the computer to a hardcopy device, such as a printer or plotter. Plot specifications (plot specs) are a series of values which determine three things: what part of a drawing is plotted, how it appears on the paper, and to what scale it is plotted. Plots specs common to most systems include: paper size, print area, orientation, plot scale, and pen values.

Printing your drawing will take place after you have decided exactly what you want to appear on your printed drawing. You can decide to print either all or a portion of your drawing.

Plot or Print a Drawing

Plot specifications (plot spec) are a series of values which determine three things: what part of a drawing is plotted, how it appears on the paper, and to what scale it is plotted. Plot spec common to most systems include: paper size, print area, orientation, plot scale, and pen values.

Once a request for the hardcopy has been initiated, the CAD system and /or operating system must then create data that can be used by the specific plotter device. Plotters and printers have their own language or data they are able to receive. Therefore, at some point in the process, the CAD data must be converted to the printer’s language.

The Printing and Plotting Process

You can specify a number of parameters to control the size and the quality of a plot. You can plot a drawing to any size, use various line thickness and colors for different objects. You can rotate a plot, use specific fonts for text and dimensions.

Important Considerations for Plotting:

• Selecting a scale for drawings
• Composing a drawing layout
• Choosing pens colors and line weights

Composing a Drawing Layout

To compose a drawing layout, you can activate a special mode of working called paper space or plot layout. The paper space represents the actual sheet size to be used. You arrange any number of diagrams/objects on this sheet and apply a scale to each [window] individually. In a preview it shows exactly how the images will be plotted and the selected sheet size.

Selecting a Scale for Drawings

It is one thing to use CAD to produce accurate and neat objects/drawings, but it’s another things to plotting those drawing to scale. Especially if the drawings will be used to manufacture or to build.

All CAD drawings are created on a full scale (1:1). You can draw as big or small on the screen as you like. The magnification of the image has no relevance to the actual scale of the drawing. The actual scale is determined when the drawings are plotted.

Choosing Pens Colors and Lineweights

CAD allows for working with various colors and lineweights. With most CAD programs, the colors you use on-screen are configured with a specific line weight in the plotter.

For example, the objects drawn with red color on-screen may be printed with 0.007” line weight: the objects drawn with blue may be printed with 0.020” line weight. These are called pen settings/assignments. See the following table.

For more information, along with illustrations/animations/short quiz, please Click Here.

Part 15: Sharing Our Discovery - Setting Up & Printing A Drawing