What is CAD?

When you look at a Jeep or sit on a La-Z-Boy recliner, do you ever think of the very first steps in production? More than likely they're designed using some form of CAD whether it’s the wheels, doors, or frame of a car or the mechanics of a recliner.

What Does CAD Mean?

CAD, Computer-Aided Design, is the process of designing a part and getting all the measurements before it goes to production. CAD also takes into consideration what materials the part will be therefore giving you the volume, mass, and density of the product for a more accurate representation.

How to Get Started

It all starts in 2D with a technical drawing and labeled dimensions:

The designer will start by creating each piece individually, adding measurements and contours, and then assembling them.

Once assembled, the designer will preview how the parts fit together and move. This is the trial-and-error phase where dimension tweaks might be necessary in order to create a seamless design.

Check out this video of a vice assembly I made in Autodesk Inventor 2024:

The CAD software shows the finished 3D product and allows the designer to see all the parts in motion.

The number of companies utilizing CAD is growing simply because it saves time, money, and resources: instead of building a product, using physical material, and wasting valuable company time, designers can create a computerized simulation in CAD to test the durability, strength, and fit of a product before it goes to production. Now that you see how CAD is used, you can see why it's a popular and valuable tool for companies to utilize.