The prevalence of feature-based 3D modeling in industry has necessitated the accumulation and maintenance of standard feature libraries. Currently, firms who use standard features to design parts are storing and utilizing these libraries through their existing product data management (PDM) systems. Standard features have enabled companies to…

Engineering design graphics courses taught in colleges or universities should provide and equip students preparing for employment with the basic occupational graphics skill competences required by engineering and technology disciplines. Academic institutions should introduce and include topics that cover the newer and more efficient graphics…

Integrating supportive design features and technology into the home are excellent ways to plan to make a home "age-friendly." When an immediate need occurs for eliminating barriers in an existing home, supportive design features and technology will most often need to be examined, and some form of implementation will need to take place. While…

This article showcases August's School Web Site of the Month, http://magnoliaisdcommunities.org/communities/bschuster, which was produced by Bradley H. Schuster (bschuster@magnoliaisd.org) and his students at Magnolia High School, Magnolia, Texas. Schuster teaches architectural drafting and building trades classes at both Magnolia High School and…

This article describes the AutoCAD Laboratory at Hawaii's Kamehameha Secondary Schools, offering the perspective of the AutoCAD instructor and Technology Department Head, looking at a day in the AutoCAD Laboratory, and explaining how teaching students about computer-assisted design and drafting can prepare them for college or careers. (SM)

Chances are that many high school students would not know how to use drafting instruments, but some might want to gain competence in computer-assisted design (CAD) and possibly computer-assisted manufacturing (CAM). These students are often attracted to tech courses by the availability of CAD/CAM instructions, and many go on to impress employers…

Graphical plans for construction of machinery and architecture have evolved over the last 6,000 years beginning from hieroglyphics to drawings on printable media, from the "Golden Age" of engineering graphics to the innovation of computer graphics and prototyping. The evolution of engineering design graphics as a profession has also evolved. Years…

A software tool called 3D-LAB has been developed for learning and teaching three-dimensional geometry. With this microworld, educators and students can display three dimensional solid objects, rotate them, modify them, open them up, draw points and segments, and measure lengths, areas, volumes, and angles. The major characteristics of this tool…