There are millions of drawings lying all around the world. These are invaluable pieces of paper, which have created monuments, buildings, machines and infrastructures. As the time passes by, these paper drawings are endangered being lost to disaster or being lost. There is an urgent need to make sure that all the paper drawings which are lying in offices, godown and secured places to be restored in a manner which will enable them to be with us for a long time.
Modern technology has enabled us to create systems, which can enhance the lifetime of anything. For old paper drawings, we have come up with solutions such as computer aided design and drafting (CADD). With use of modern techniques, these days all the drafting and design work are being done using CAD software’s. There are numerous popular software’s depending on the use. This CAD software allows us to generate drawings, which were earlier done on paper.
The various means by which we can convert the old paper drawings to CAD are:
• Automatic conversion using software
• Manual conversion by draftsman
• Precision redrafting
• Scanning and storing
• Of the above-mentioned methods, the cheapest method is to scan the document and store it in a computer. You can get it printed as and when you want it. There are numerous scanning companies all over the place who can scan large documents using highly complex scanning machine. You can scan any old documents and once scanned the document is there with you for lifetime. New York Document Scanning, www.new-york-document-scanning.com
• If you plan to use the CAD file in future for making changes to the original design, which was done on paper, the best method is to get the drawing converted to CAD using draftsman with experience in CAD software. During this process, and as requested, text is re-typed and drawings are re-scaled 1:1. Specified items are also converted to different layers and colors to conform to the drawing standards. The end result of this meticulous process, being a CAD files which is identical to a drawing done on paper and which also requires no further work. http://www.convert2cad.com
• Simple vectorisation is the conversion of a scan or raster image into a CAD or vector file. The process is achieved through the use of software that studies the raster image and tries to recognize and then replace the raster image with lines or vector information. The result is a dxf file, which is layered according to line thickness, line type and text. The image will require some manual clean up, the extent of which will depend upon: 1) The quality of the original 2) The amount of information required from the converted file. (Often clients do not require the title block etc.) 3) The quality of the line work and whether the text was typed or hand written.
BENEFITS OF CAD CONVERSION
• Perfect drawings, which can be modified as and when required in the fastest possible manner.
• Able to access drawings at a click of a button
• Storage of the drawings becomes very easy
• Can make multiple copies at no cost
• Transmission of document is very fast
• Multiple print can be taken as a very high speed
• Thousands of drawings can be stored in a single DVD / CD
• A new file, we can create as many layers as you require. We generate separate layers for dimensions, text, body, hidden lines, and centerlines, etc.
• Text is separated and has its own layer and is recognizable as text
• Dimensions are intact and are shown by a separate layer.
• High accuracy
• Normally create a drawing as a new file; the final output is editable and will be in DXF, DWG, DGN or any other CAD formats
• Cost effective hand-drawn conversions.
• The converted drawings are manually drawn with precision and are fully editable and contains:
• Accurate layer information Accurate text (editable)
• Accurate line types (editable)
• Associative dimensions (adjustable)
• Symbols & blocks of standard components Title blocks (as per scale)
• Associative hatch patterns (editable)
Once you have converted the paper drawings to CAD format there are lot of thing that can be done with those dwg files. They can used to created 3D models and then generate rendered images or animation by using advanced software’s. http://www.convert2cad.com/samples.htm
About the Author:
Biswaroop Todi is the director of the company and plays a major role in company’s development for over 10 years. He holds engineering and business management qualifications. He possesses broad commercial technical and management experience. His extensive knowledge in all areas of software development and IT infrastructure fuel the continued advancement of our development techniques and our technology direction. He provides design consultancy to our clients, or potential clients.
