Mechanical Engineering

P•A•R•T • 2

STANDARDS

Chapter

4
Drawing Interpretation

Patrick J. McCuistion, Ph.D
Ohio University
Athens, Ohio

Patrick J. McCuistion, Ph.D., Senior GDTP, is an associate professor of Industrial Technology at Ohio
University. Dr. McCuistion taught for three years at Texas A&M University and previously worked in various engineering design, drafting, and checking positions at several manufacturing industries. He has provided instruction in geometric dimensioning and tolerancing and dimensional analysis to many industry, military, and educational institutions. He also has published one book, several articles, and given several academic presentations on those topics and dimensional management. Dr. McCuistion is an active member of several ASME/ANSI codes and standards subcommittees, including Y14 Main
Committee, Y14.3 Multiview and Sectional View Drawings, Y14.5 Dimensioning and Tolerancing, Y14.11
Molded Part Drawings, Y14.35 Drawing Revisions, Y14.36 Surface Texture, and B89.3.6 Functional
Gages.
4.1

Introduction

The engineering drawing is one of the most important communication tools that a company can possess.
Drawings are not only art, but also legal documents. Engineering drawings are regularly used to prove the negligence of one party or another in a court of law. Their creation and maintenance are expensive and time consuming. For these reasons, the effort made in fully understanding them cannot be taken for granted.
Engineering drawings require extensive thought and time to produce. Many companies are using three-dimensional (3-D) computer aided design databases to produce parts and are bypassing the traditional two-dimensional (2-D) drawings. In many ways, creating an engineering drawing is the same as a part production activity. The main difference between drawing production and part production is that the drawing serves many different functions in a company. Pricing uses it to calculate product costs. Purchasing uses it to order raw materials.

References: The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. 1980. ASME Y14.1-1980, Drawing Sheet Size and Format. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. 1995. ASME B46.1-1995, Surface Texture (Surface Roughness, Waviness, and Lay). New York, New York: The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. 1992. ASME Y14.2M-1992, Line Conventions and Lettering. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. 1994. ASME Y14.3-1994, Multiview and Sectional View Drawings The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. 1995. ASME Y14.5M-1994, Dimensioning and Tolerancing. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. 1996. ASME Y14.8M-1996, Castings and Forgings. New York, New York: The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. The American Society of Mechanical Engineers. 1996. ASME Y14.36M-1996, Surface Texture and Symbols.