Rev2 Chapter 02 - Introduction to AutoCADdrh1.img.digitalriver.com/DRHM/.../AATC_AutoCAD_PID... · 1 Chapter 1 Getting Started In this chapter you will launch AutoCAD P&ID and learn

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1Getting Started

In this chapter you will launch AutoCAD P&ID and learn how to use the AutoCAD P&ID environment to create, edit and manage your piping and instrumentation diagrams. We will start by explaining the user interface, which is not that different from regular AutoCAD. However, you will notice that some new functionality comes to your screen with AutoCAD P&ID.

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2 Chapter 1: Getting started

Launching AutoCAD P&ID

Starting AutoCAD P&ID is very easy. Just like any other Autodesk application, there are at least two ways of launching the program. After installation, AutoCAD P&ID places a shortcut icon on your desktop. When you double-click this icon, AutoCAD P&ID will launch with the AutoCAD P&ID workspace active.

You can also launch AutoCAD P&ID through the start-up menu. When you go to "All Programs" on your Windows desktop (normally in the bottom-left of your screen) and browse to the Autodesk program group, you will find a submenu for AutoCAD P&ID. Clicking the link in this submenu will also start AutoCAD P&ID with the AutoCAD P&ID workspace active.

Note

The subject of workspaces will be addressed later in this course.

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The User Interface

Now that you've started up AutoCAD P&ID, you will notice some differences from standard AutoCAD. You can see that a Tool Palette for AutoCAD P&ID is visible on the right of your screen. These Tool Palettes aren't new to experienced AutoCAD users, but some AutoCAD users don't use them in their daily work. In AutoCAD P&ID, the Tool Palettes are a very important item for using the software. Users who are new to AutoCAD and especially to AutoCAD P&ID will quickly learn to adapt to using these palettes. Most of the symbols and functions you need for AutoCAD P&ID are located on these Palettes.

On the left side, you see another screen has become visible. This is the AutoCAD P&ID "Project Manager". The Project Manager will be dealt with in another section, but we can tell you now that it is a handy and very powerful tool in AutoCAD P&ID.

At the bottom of the AutoCAD screen, you will find the "Command Line". Everything you enter on your keyboard, unless there is a dialog box active, will show up there near your mouse pointer. Many commands in AutoCAD and AutoCAD P&ID require more input when activated. These prompts for more input will also be shown on the "Command Line". New users will have to get used to using this command prompt, but after a while it will become second nature to read and react to the commands and questions that appear there.

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AutoCAD Settings for drafting

Command: [Snap / Grid - Options On / Off]Function keys: F9 / F7

When making a diagram, it is very useful to have some help with aligning symbols and lines with one other. To do this you can use the "Snap" and "Grid" functionality from AutoCAD. Just below the command prompt you notice a few icons that are displayed (see buttons top right). These icons are toggle switches, and selecting them will turn the option that is named on or off. When you right click on one of these toggles (for example Snap), a pop-up menu will appear with the option "Settings". Selecting this option will result in a dialog box where several different settings can be made.

Snap and Grid allow the user to draw and place symbols on a defined grid with defined distances in the horizontal and vertical directions. Grid allows you to make the grid visible on your screen, and Snap forces your mouse pointer to follow the defined grid. This functionality will help you to align symbols and lines with one other. As mentioned above, you can change the settings by right clicking the "Snap" or "Grid” button and choosing the "Settings” option.

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Tip

Snap- and Grid settings do not need to be the same; however, for ease of use we advise that the Snap setting is always either half or equal to the Grid setting.

You can set the values for Snap and Grid in the "Snap X/Y spacing" and "Grid X/Y spacing" dialog. By selecting the "Equal X and Y spacing" option, you only need to fill in one of the fields. These settings will only be used when Snap and Grid are turned on. You can make these settings either in the dialog box or with F9 (Snap on) or F7 (Grid on). As mentioned earlier, you can activate or deactivate Snap and Grid by clicking the toggle buttons on the bottom of your screen.

The Project Manager

Command: [Projectmgr]

A crucial role in AutoCAD P&ID is reserved for the Project Manager. With this Project Manager you manage your project by adding drawings, creating new drawings, adding project data, and determining where your project drawings and data should be saved. In this chapter we will teach you the basic functions of the Project Manager.

First let us take a look at the Project Manager, near the left of your screen (Image I).

Normally when you start AutoCAD P&ID the day after a hard day’s work, the Project Manager shows you the project that was active when you last closed AutoCAD P&ID. In Image I, the Project Manager is empty, as it would be when starting AutoCAD P&ID for the first time. Selecting the Drop down Box (Image II) in the Project Manager allows you, to start a new project, load an existing project or select a project you've worked on earlier.

(Image I)

(Image II)

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Open a Project

When you select the "Open Project” option, a standard Microsoft Windows dialog box appears which you can use to find an existing project, named project.xml. After the project loads, the Project Manager shows you the structure and drawings available in the loaded project. By double clicking on one of the drawings, you can open the selected drawing and modify its contents. This is the way many users will use the Project Manager in AutoCAD P&ID. In the next paragraph you will learn how to create a new project and how to fill in the basic project data.

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Starting a New Project

After you select the "New Project" option, AutoCAD P&ID will show you the basic dialog box needed for project creation. In the dialog box (Image III), select which of the standards you want to use. It is possible to browse to another existing project for use as a template. This function can be used if you have created a reference project that already contains all necessary settings. Using an existing project as template will result in a new project that has the same settings as the existing project. All identifiers will be filled in and all naming schematics will be the same in the new project as in the original project. However, it will still be necessary to fill in the Project details as shown in the dialog box.

(Image III)

After selecting the standard or the project to use as template, it will be necessary to fill in the project details. These project details are the "Name" of the project and the project "Description" as well as the location of your project files and your project drawings. The file location is used to save the project settings and information, while the "Project DWG" directory stores the drawings you have created.

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The last option in the dialog box, "Edit project properties after creating project” allows you to automatically go to the complete project setup. In this training we won't go into detail for project setup. These settings will be explained later in the courseware.

When you click the [CREATE] button, the project will be created and you will be ready to start your first drawing.

Structuring your Project

At the start of a new project, it is very easy to add a new drawing or to add existing drawings to this new project. In some cases, a project can be divided into areas or sub-projects. The Project Manager allows you to divide your project by adding folders to your project structure. When you right-click over the name

of the project, a menu will appear with a number of different options for creating and adding drawings and folders.

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When you select "New folder," a new dialog box (Image IV) appears. In this dialog box you will be asked to give the name of the subfolder you want to create. You can also check the option that will generate this new folder as a subfolder in your Project DWG location. This option separates the drawings belonging to this subfolder from the drawings placed or created in other subfolders. If this option is not checked, AutoCAD P&ID will save each and every drawing in the standard Project DWG location. In that case, the organization only takes place in Project Manager, not in the actual location where the files are stored.

(Image IV)

The option "DWG creation template for folder" allows you to set a different title block for each folder. Checking the tick box in front of “Prompt for template” will force AutoCAD P&ID to ask which title block you wish to use when creating a new drawing.

Tip

If you use more than one title block, the option "Prompt for template" can be very useful. It lets you select the desired title block during creation of a new drawing for this specific sub folder.

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Renaming and Removing folders

If you want to remove a folder, right click the folder and a pop-up menu appears with the option "Remove Folder".

Note

It is only possible to remove folders that don't contain any drawings or subfolders; if the folder isn't empty AutoCAD P&ID will not remove the folder from the Project Manager.

To rename a folder follow the same procedure as removing a folder. Right click the desired folder and select the Rename option in the pop-up menu. In the Project Manager the folder name becomes editable and you can enter a new name. Renaming folders can be done even if the folder contains subfolders or drawings. Sa

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Removing or renaming folders only changes the name in the Project Manager view. If you want the physical folder on your hard disk to be removed or renamed, then you have to do this manually using the Microsoft Windows Explorer.

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Adding existing Drawings

Adding a drawing to your project is quite simple. By selecting your project with your right mouse button, you can select the "Add Drawing" option. After selecting this option, a Windows dialog box appears in which you can browse for existing drawings. Once a drawing is found, you simply select it and press the "Open" button and the drawing will be added. The location of this drawing doesn't have to be in your project environment.

Stop

A drawing cannot be part of two different projects simultaneously, and it cannot be copied within the same project. A drawing must first be copied and renamed before it can be added to another project.

Creating New Drawings

Creating new drawings is as easy as adding drawings. When you select the "New Drawing" option from the pop-up or when you select the new drawing button, a dialog box (Image V) will appear with several empty fields. A drawing description and a file name for the drawing are required. Depending on the options (such as sub-folders) you have selected in the Project Manager, AutoCAD P&ID will know which template to use and where the drawing should be saved. If you have selected the sub-folder, the template can be defined or AutoCAD P&ID will ask you which template to use. This was setting was initiated when you made the sub folder with the "Prompt for template" option.

The result will be the creation of a new drawing with the settings that were initiated in the template file. It is now possible to start your new drawing and to begin designing your Piping and Instrumentation

diagram.

(Image V)

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Removing drawings

When a drawing is no longer needed, it can be removed from the project. Just like renaming or removing a folder, you only need to right click on the desired drawing. A familiar pop-up will appear with the “Remove drawing” option.

Note

Removing a drawing from the project will result in a warning box from AutoCAD P&ID. AutoCAD P&ID will warn you that the drawing will be removed from the project, but the physical file will not be deleted. If you want the physical file to be deleted then you have to do this manually using the Microsoft Windows Explorer.

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Exercise - 1 In this exercise you will create a new project with folders and subfolders. These folders and subfolders will have their own specific settings. The folders and structure you create here will be used in later exercises to save your drawings. If necessary you may need to restructure your project as shown in the courseware.

Standard: PIPProject name: AutoCAD P&ID – My first ProjectProject description: Generated in the Essentials trainingProject directory: Create a folder on your hard disk (C:) named ProjectsProject DWG directory: Creates a second folder, which will be used to store the drawings

Before accepting these settings, make sure that the option “Edit project properties after creating” is unchecked or de-activated.

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When the project is created you are going to add some folders and sub-folders using the Project Manager. Each folder becomes its own folder in your "Project DWG" folder on your hard disk (Image VI).

(Image VI)

When creating a drawing in Oil or Fuel, the template that will be used will not be selectable; however, if you make a drawing in the Cooling folder, AutoCAD P&ID should ask you which template to use.

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The main folders you are going to create are:

Oil

Fuel

Cooling

The subfolders in this exercise are mainly used for visual means and will inherit the same folder settings as the main folders (Image VII). It is possible to create physical folders for subfolders, but in this exercise we de-activate the "Create Folder...." option.

(Image VII)

The subfolders folders you are going to create are:

in Oil three subfolders named Main, Secondary and Filtration.in Fuel three subfolders named Gas, Gasoline and Measuring.in Cooling two subfolders named Water and Air.

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When you have finished creating your project, the Project Manager should look like this:

If you have added all folders and subfolders correctly, your local hard disk should look like this:

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Rev2 Chapter 02 - Introduction to AutoCADdrh1.img.digitalriver.com/DRHM/.../AATC_AutoCAD_PID... · 1 Chapter 1 Getting Started In this chapter you will launch AutoCAD P&ID and learn