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Hidden Lines
5

Hidden Lines

Hidden Lines

(OP)
I have heard two schools of thought concerning hidden lines:

1) Always show all hidden lines unless it creates too much clutter.

2) Never use hidden lines unless it helps to clarify the shape of the part (in other words, if the the part is defined with, say, 3 or more views/sections and those views are enough to clarify the shape of the part, no hidden lines are needed).

Which is it? And documentation, please (even textbook referals) if available.

In the old days - on the board - you could be discerning and judicial with the use of hidden lines, but with the advent of CAD, it's become an all or nothing proposition.

Thanks.

RE: Hidden Lines

Only show what is necessary to indicate what the final part looks like.

Chris, CSWA
SolidWorks 14
SolidWorks Legion

RE: Hidden Lines

CAD programs make all or nothing the easy way, but they do also allow you to show those you want or to not show those you don't want. So it's still possible to use old days philosophy and think about what you're drawing.

RE: Hidden Lines

(OP)
Gilmiril, what you state is true. Unfortunately, our customer has outlawed "view dependent editing" on their drawings (NX9). So, it leaves us in an all or nothing situation.

RE: Hidden Lines

I vote option 2, however except the reference in ASME Y14.5M-1994 1.4g which implies not dimensioning to hidden lines I'm not sure something like this is in the ASME drawing standards.

Since in CAD 'views are cheap' I can generally add either a section view or broken out section to express what might otherwise rely on hidden lines to do.

Topic has been touched on before maybe you'll find something http://www.eng-tips.com/search.cfm?pid=1103&ac...

Posting guidelines FAQ731-376: Eng-Tips.com Forum Policies http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm? (probably not aimed specifically at you)
What is Engineering anyway: FAQ1088-1484: In layman terms, what is "engineering"?

RE: Hidden Lines

If anybody has a copy of Y14.2 there may be come mention of it.

I don't have copy of the standard myself, but Genium manual is pretty straightforward about it: "Hidden lines should be omitted when their use is not required for clarity of the drawing."
(OP mentioned textbook referrals are acceptable smile)

"For every expert there is an equal and opposite expert"
Arthur C. Clarke Profiles of the future

RE: Hidden Lines

2
"Hidden lines should be omitted when their use is not required for the clarity of the drawing." ASME Y14.2M-1992, 2.4

RE: Hidden Lines

Who would think of that?

"For every expert there is an equal and opposite expert"
Arthur C. Clarke Profiles of the future

RE: Hidden Lines

I look at the use of hidden lines conversely to what the ASME standard says. Rather than always using them except when they reduce clarity of a view, I only use hidden lines when they improve the clarity of a view.

RE: Hidden Lines

Kenat -- I have an unrelated question for you about another dimensioning topic. I don't know if there's a way to "private message"? Or could you perhaps track down my email address and drop a line?

John-Paul Belanger
Certified Sr. GD&T Professional
Geometric Learning Systems

RE: Hidden Lines

2
I concur to omit hidden lines unless they are absolutely necessary. One of the worst violations of drafting conduct is to dimension to a hidden line. When I see this I feel like tracking down the culprit to tar and feather him/her! If one must dimension to a far side edge then use a breakaway view or generate a new view.

Tunalover

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