Chapter 7: Drawing Curves and Points

In This Chapter

Working with circles Working with arcs Creating partial ellipses Drawing donuts Creating points

AutoCAD and AutoCAD LT offer a number of ways to create curved objects. You can draw circles, arcs, ellipses, and donuts (also spelled as doughnuts). In this chapter, I also cover point objects, which are neither curves nor lines but don't deserve their own chapter.

Cross-Reference

Several complex objects — such as polylines, splines, regions, and boundaries — involve curves. These objects are covered in Chapter 16.

Drawing Circles

Circles are common objects in drawings. In mechanical drawings, they often represent holes or wheels. In architectural drawings, they may be used for doorknobs, trash baskets, or trees. In electrical and piping schematics, they are used for various kinds of symbols.

Understanding the circle options

9781118022214-ma006.tif The CIRCLE command provides six ways to draw a circle. To draw a circle, choose Home tabDraw panelCircle, and follow the prompts. You can just click the Circle button and follow the options on the command line, or access the options by clicking the button's down arrow. Table 7.1 describes how to use these options. You can access the options directly by clicking the down arrow below to the Circle button on the Ribbon.

Table 7.1

Six Ways to Draw a Circle

Option

Description

Center, Radius

This option ...

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