MYP Design Planning Drawings and Working Diagrams Notes

Planning Drawings Are Instructions, Not Pictures

1. A working drawing is a dimensioned, to scale drawing carrying every size, material and joint needed to build the product.
2. The last strand of criterion B asks for accurate and detailed planning drawings plus an outline of what making the solution requires, so these pages are marked.
3. An idea sketch is there to persuade, while a working drawing is there to instruct.
4. The measure of a good one is that a competent stranger could build from it without contacting you once.

Drawn By Hand Or In CAD

1. Both count, and a careful hand drawing with a ruler and correct dimensions beats a sloppy CAD model every time.
2. CAD wins when you need exact flat patterns for a laser cutter or an STL file for a printer.
3. Whichever you use, state the scale such as 1:2 and keep it the same across the whole sheet.

What Has To Be On A Working Drawing

1. Orthographic views means front, side and plan lined up with each other, usually with an isometric alongside for clarity.
2. Dimensions in millimetres on every part, with extension lines and arrowheads, and no size left for the maker to guess.
3. Scale, drawing title, your name and the date belong on every sheet.
4. Material and quantity labelled per part, so "part C, 3 mm acrylic, 2 off".
5. Joint details drawn as an enlarged detail view of the awkward corner, often at 2:1.
6. Tolerances wherever fit matters, such as a 3.2 mm slot for 3 mm sheet or a 4.5 mm clearance hole for an M4 bolt.
7. Assembly information as an exploded view with numbered parts and an order of assembly.

The Cutting List Turns Drawings Into Shopping

1. A cutting list is a table of every part with its material, finished size, quantity and any note.
2. Write finished sizes and allow for the saw or laser kerf, since parts cut to exactly the finished size come out undersized.
3. Group parts by material so you can work out how many sheets you need and what they cost.
4. Add a cost column and total it, because your specification almost certainly set a budget.
5. Put bought in components on a separate list, such as a 40 mm brass hinge 1 off, M3 by 12 mm screws 8 off, and a 5 mm warm white LED 1 off.

Circuits, Flowcharts And Site Maps For Digital Work

1. Digital and electronic projects need the same level of detail, just in different drawing types.
2. A circuit diagram shows every component with its value and every connection named, such as D9 or GPIO 17, rather than a photograph of a breadboard.
3. A flowchart shows program logic using the standard shapes, with an oval for start and stop, a rectangle for a process, a diamond for a decision and a parallelogram for input or output.
4. A site map shows every page of a website or app and how they link, so a reader can count the clicks to the booking page.
5. Wireframes give the layout of each screen with real element sizes, such as a 48 pixel minimum tap target.
6. An asset list replaces the cutting list, covering image sizes and formats, fonts, colour hex codes and where each asset came from.

A Making Plan With Times And Machines

1. Criterion B also expects an outline of what creating the solution requires, and a plan is the clearest way to show it.
2. List the steps in order, each with the machine or tool, an estimated time and any safety note.
3. Use real times, since laser cutting four parts takes about 8 minutes, PVA needs 30 minutes clamped, and oil needs overnight to dry.
4. Put the drying and curing waits where they actually fall, because they decide whether the build fits your lessons.
5. Mark the steps needing supervision or a machine booking, such as the pillar drill or a slot in the 3D printer queue.
6. Leave a column for what actually happened, which you fill in while you are making.

The Handover Test

1. Give your drawings and cutting list to a classmate and ask them to list everything they would need to ask you.
2. Every question on that list is a missing dimension, a missing material or a missing joint detail.
3. The usual gaps are hole positions, material thickness at a joint, which face is the front, and how the electronics get inside.
4. Fix the drawing rather than answering in conversation, since a moderator cannot ask you anything.
5. When the list of questions comes back empty, your planning is done and making can start.