Using Microsoft Word
I will be using MS Word 2002 for this example. Other versions including 2007 have the same tools for documentation. In addition to MS Word, you could use Open Office, the Adobe CS suite, or any other word processing or publishing software. While virtually every engineer and designer has some exposure to Microsoft Word or similar applications, this will be a brief tutorial on creating the proper environment to produce clear and organized documents.
Setup
Before you start using Microsoft Word, you will want to create a page setup that will adequately work within your company. Once you've created this setup, it is good to save it as a Word template file for future use. Inside of Word, click on the File pulldown and select Page Setup.
If you do not see the page setup command in the file pulldown, click on the expand button at the bottom of the list. The image shown below shows the settings that I use. Since I will be using a header and footer, I will want to keep the top and bottom margins at a minimum, keeping in mind the printer limits that will be used to create the document. The settings shown below will create a copy area 6 3/4 inches wide, with the gutter area allowing for binding or hole punching.
Go to the Layout tab in Page Setup to change how the header and footer will appear on each page. If the boxes are unchecked, then the header and footer will appear on every page that is created.
Next, we will want to create a header and footer for our documentation package. The header can be used to match the documentation to the specific machine that has been built. The footer should include liability and copyright information relative to this project.
To create a header and footer, select the View pulldown, and pick on Header and Footer. This will expose a text box titled Header where you can enter specific information.
Next, add the Footer information as required by your company. For legal purposes, text should be no smaller than eight point height. If you wish to add page numbering to each page, then follow the procedure listed below:
- On the Insert menu, click Page Numbers.
- In the Position box, specify whether to print page numbers in the header at the top of the page or in the footer at the bottom of the page.
- In the Alignment box, specify whether to align page numbers left, center, or right relative to the left and right margins, or inside or outside relative to the inside and outside edges of pages that will be bound.
- If you don't want a number on the first page, clear the Show number on first page check box.
- Select any other options you want.
Type styles
If you wish to maintain consistency from document to document, it will be a good idea to create several text styles for use within your documents. Using one or two fonts for your documentation will improve the appearance of the final product. I would create styles for Headings and Body Text as a minimum. Personally, I prefer using the Arial font for both.
Exit the header and footer command and save this as a document template for later reuse. Exit this word template and begin a new file using the template.
Create the document
As soon as you create a new file using your template, you will immediately see the benefits of taking the time to create that template. You are now ready to began the documentation process.
Using and modifying images
For best quality in your document, images should be saved at very close to the final size stored in the document. If you have to create an image of a different size, then create the image larger by a bit than the final size. The best image formats to use are PNG or TIFF formats as they are scalable up or down without serious degradation of image quality. JPG formats, while smaller, are "lossy" formats that break down significantly when scaled. Inventor 2009 fully supports both PNG and TIFF, as do most screen capture programs.
Converting to black-and-white images
With the advent of inexpensive color laser printers, many companies are switching their documentation over to color, thereby making the images easier to understand. If your requirements are for final printing and black and white, then the color images will be automatically converted to grayscale when printed on a black-and-white laser.
Should you have a requirement where you need to convert a color image to a black-and-white image while at the same time dropping out the color background, then you will have to edit the image. In the examples below, I used HyperSnap 6 to convert the color image to black and white. HyperSnap allows previewing of the image to get the best rendering possible. Other screen capture or editing software may have similar controls.
Creating tables
You can certainly create tables within your word processing software; however, if you are going to be placing things such as parts lists, you might want to look at exporting the parts list as an XLS file, then selecting the cells in Excel and performing a copy. You may then paste the copied cells into your Word document. Word allows you to resize and stretch the cells once they are in Word.
Putting it all together
If you wish to play with a set of sample files, please Download Them Here. Print out the PDF file, and try to match the PDF by creating the images from the sample files. Then get creative with your own!
Contest!
For those of you who would like to start working on your own documentation package, I would like to offer this encouragement to you. Submit a completed copy of your standard documentation in PDF form to me by December 20, 2008 and you will be entered into a contest for one of several copies of the book Mastering Autodesk Inventor 2009 that I will be offering to AUGI members. I will feature the winning members and their submissions in a future column. Please email entries directly to me at the email address below.
(Discuss this Article! in the HotNews Discussion Forums.)
Dennis Jeffrey is an Autodesk Inventor Certified Expert and Autodesk Implementation Certified Expert. He is the founder of Tekni Consulting LLC, a firm specializing in Autodesk Manufacturing Solutions implementation, training and consulting. Dennis has been using Autodesk Mechanical 3D Products since 1987 and has been training and supporting manufacturing customers with Autodesk products since 1986. He has authored numerous book including Creative Design With Mechanical Desktop and Creative Design With Autodesk Inventor, and has co-authored a new book, Mastering Autodesk Inventor 2009 due out in Fall 2008. He will be returning this year to Autodesk University 2008 as a seventh year instructor. Dennis is a moderator for the AUGI manufacturing forums, an AUGI Wish List reviewer, and a columnist. Dennis has released a Live Web Training version of Creative Design With Inventor 2008.
You can contact him at djeffrey@teknigroup.com and visit his website at
http://teknigroup.com
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