Introduction to engineering graphics

Preface Engineering is a creative profession because its practitioners are continuously innovative and able to communicate their thoughts to others. The international fires of commerce and industry are constantly being fed with new ideas and products, improved qualities and varieties of food, clothing, and shelter—all to achieve a more comfortable and desirable environment for life. Design is fundamental to this process. The designer's ability to communicate his ideas is enhanced greatly if he has mastered certain fundamental visual skills that are associated with technical sketching, engineering drawing, descriptive geometry, and data presentation. Traditionally instruction in these important subjects has been restricted to a study of the theory and practice in the skill involved, and too little emphasis has been placed upon the use of graphics as an indispensable tool. In fact, graphics is one of the designer's most important and useful mediums of communication. This is an introductory text for drawing and graphics. The material has been purposely organized to allow the instructor maximum freedom in organizing his course as he chooses. Most of the chapters are free-standing and their sequence may be altered at will. They have also been written to serve the dual purpose of either formal class use or personalized self-paced instruction. This text is a graphics abridgement of the author's larger work. *Introduction to Engineering Design and Graphics*, Macmillan, 1973. A similar abridgement of the design material was published by Macmillan in 1974 under the title, *Design: Serving the Needs of Man*. Two workbooks have been prepared to supplement the problem assignments in the text. These are *Series A* and *Series B* of *Graphics for Design and Visualization*, Macmillan, 1973 and 1975 (BeakleyAutore-Hawley). Several consultants and associates have assisted in the preparation of the larger work. Those most closely associated with this abridged portion are Michael J. Nielsen, Donald D. Autore, and Ernest G. Chilton. Again, their contributions are gratefully acknowledged. G. C. B.