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Orthographic Projection Drawing — VektorCAD Tutorial

This tutorial walks you through creating orthographic views (Front, Top, and Right‑Side) of a simple mechanical part in first‑angle projection using VektorCAD.
We will use Normal thickness for the projection lines, and dimensions, and Thick for the final visible outlines. Hidden edges will use a Hidden linetype with Normal thickness.

First‑angle convention used here: Top view below XY; Right‑Side view placed to the left of Front view via a 45° miter line. (Switch positions if your standard requires third‑angle.)

Problem Statement

The pictorial view of a block is given. Using first angle projection, draw its front view, side view and top view of the block.

Block

Given

  • Isometric view of a block.
  • Projection: First‑angle.

Objective

  • Construct views with line, ray, trim, dimlin.
  • Normal for construction/projection/dimensions; Thick for visible edges; Hidden linetype for invisible edges.

Step‑by‑Step

1) Setup

  1. Line Thickness

    • Thick → for visible outlines.
    • Thin → for projectors/construction lines.
    • Normal → for dimensions.

  2. Snaps & Ortho

    • Turn Snap ON and Entity Snap ON (recommended: Endpoint, Midpoint, Center).
    • Turn Ortho ON for drawing horizontal/vertical lines.

📌 In First-Angle Projection:
- Top View is below XY.
- Front View is above XY.
- Right-Side View is placed to the left of the Front View.

2) Front View (Visible Outlines in Thick)

  1. Switch line thickness to Thick.

  2. From the Rect menu, draw a rectangle:

    • First point: center of sheet.
    • Second point: @75,12.
    • This forms the base block.

  3. Create slot edges using Offset:

    • Offset left edge → distance 25 → pick towards right.
    • Offset right edge → distance 25 → pick towards left.

Front View – Step 1

  1. Add top projection:

    • From top-right corner of rectangle, draw vertical line @0,25.
    • From end point, draw horizontal line @-20,0.
    • Press Enter to finish.

  2. Switch thickness → Thin.

  3. Offset left side of rectangle → distance 20 → towards right (creates reference line).
  4. Switch back to Thick.
  5. Draw connecting line from top of vertical extension to this offset line.

Front View – Step 2

3) Project to Top View

  1. Switch thickness → Thin.
  2. From Line → Ray, enter angle = -90 (downward).
  3. Project rays from all corners of front view.
    Top View – Projectors
  4. Switch thickness → Thick.

  5. From Rect, draw boundary rectangle:

    • Snap to leftmost projector below front view.
    • Enter @75,-50 for size.

  6. Use Offset to mark internal edges:

    • Offset = 12, 25, 20 as required.
      Top View – Step 2
  7. Trim unwanted lines to finalize top view.

Top View – Final

4) Transfer to Right-Side View

  1. From the Top View, repeat the projection process (rays + rectangle + offsets).
  2. Place the Right-Side View to the left of the Front View.

Side View

5) Dimensions and Labels

  1. Switch thickness → Normal.
  2. Use Dimension tools:
    • dimlin for linear sizes.
    • dimalign for slanted features.
    • Add overall length, width, height as required.

Final Ortho

Result Checklist

  • Front View: outer profile Thick.
  • Top View: outer profile Thick.
  • Right‑Side View (to the left, first‑angle): outer profile Thick line.
  • Projection lines light (Thin) and clean; dimensions with Normal thickness present and readable.

Variations (Practice)

  • Practice for the below blocks.

Block

Block

Commands Recap

  • line — projectors, miter, and outlines (if not using rectangle).
  • rectangle — fast view rectangles.
  • dimlin — linear dimensions.
  • Format Panel — set Thickness (Thin/Normal/Thick) and Linetype (Continuous/Hidden/Center).
  • Status Bar — Entity Snap, Ortho toggles.

You’ve completed an orthographic projection drawing using first‑angle layout, proper line weights, hidden edges, and centerlines. Export to PDF when ready and verify scale/weights in the print preview.