SchoolCAD is a free orthographic drawing maker: it draws a third angle projection drawing straight from a student's 3D model, to AS 1100, the Australian standard for technical drawing. Students get Front, Top and Right views in third angle projection (the Top view above the Front, the Right view to its right), an isometric view, dimensions, a parts list and a title block with their name, ready to print or add to a folio. No drawing board, no install and no account.
How to make an orthographic drawing
- Students type their name and class in the boxes at the top of SchoolCAD. These go in the title block.
- To draw one part on its own, they click it on the model first.
- Export, then Engineering drawing (PDF).
- Check the Title, type the School and choose the options. The preview updates as they go.
- Download PDF, and print at 100% (actual size) so the scale is right.
The options worth teaching
| Option | What it does |
|---|---|
| Drawing of | Whole model or Selected part. |
| Sheet | A3 or A4. |
| Scale | Best fit picks the biggest standard scale that fits, or choose one. |
| Hidden lines | Edges you can't see from that side are drawn dashed. |
| Isometric view | Adds a 3D view, with numbered balloons that match the parts list. |
| Section | Cuts one view through to show the inside (section A–A). |
| Detail view | Adds an enlarged view of one busy area, such as a joint. |
| Dimensions | Full, overall sizes and holes, or none. Best for this drawing gives a single part the full set and a whole model its overall sizes. |
| Parts list | Item, name, quantity, material and size of each kind of part. |
Sections and details
Sections are the clearest way to show joints, grooves and holes inside a design. Choose Front, Top or Right view (A–A) in Section, and move the cut with Cut at. The cutting plane appears on the next view as a chain line with arrows and the letter A, and cut faces are hatched at 45°. As AS 1100 asks, dowels, pins, screws, bolts and rods cut along their length are drawn whole: SchoolCAD recognises them by name, so parts named Dowel…, Screw… or Rod… (and dowels from the Joint tool) are handled automatically.
For a Detail view, tick it and click the preview where you want it. A circle and letter mark the spot, and a 4–5× enlargement goes nearby, labelled like DETAIL A (2:1).
Tip
Get students to name their parts by double-clicking them in the Parts list before they make a drawing. The names flow into the parts list, the balloons and the assembly instructions.
Going further: editable drawing sheets
Click Edit on a drawing sheet to keep the drawing with the design and change it: move views, add your own dimensions and notes, sections, details and more sheets. See Drawing sheet.
Reading the sizes (a handy class reference)
Ø6: a 6 mm diameter hole.4 × Ø6: four of them.Ø6 × 15 DP: 15 mm deep, not right through.CSK: countersunk.CBORE: counterbored.R12: a 12 mm radius.
Related exports for folios
- Assembly instructions (PDF): flat-pack style, step by step with a parts list, built from the student's Joints and Mates.
- Download SVG: the same drawing, true size, as an SVG.