With the technological advancements, the industrial designing industry is increasingly adopting Computer-aided design (CAD) software to create 2D drawings and 3D models of real-world products before they're ever produced. Even though computer renderings and drawings are becoming more prevalent, many design engineers and consultants still rely on the trusty pencil and paper approach for at least initial designs.

However, these paper drawings are simply physical records. So, it is necessary to transform them or existing paper drawings into completely editable vector format for digital backups. You can also edit them without any hindrance.

This article covers essentials about converting paper drawings to CAD format by scanning a design into the software and transforming the resulting raster file into a CAD-friendly vector format.

CAD software and drawing scanners are majorly used to convert legacy designs from paper to CAD sketches. There are numerous occurrences where paper to CAD drawing conversion becomes a necessity. Consider a scenario that involves drawing on a physical paper or drawings sheet for the architectural plan. Now to develop the extension part of a site further, one option is to begin by manually drawing the technical drawings in your preferred tool and processing it further. This process can prove time-consuming. But it is wise to choose the more efficient method to use technological advances in Scan2CAD that enables you to automatically convert a scanned paper drawing to a CAD format. The same goes with hand-drawn technical sketches or any other design that has been produced on paper.

It is evident that traditional technical hand drawings and paper-based drawings are good only for initial reference. It is a cumbersome process to edit them on paper. It is important to convert them to a blueprint vector by using CAD.

When you scan a technical paper drawing—either onto your computer or directly into Scan2CAD—it can be saved as a raster file. Raster file formats are graphics made of pixels and commonly used display on the web graphic and photography but are generally not preferred for use within the context of CAD design. It cannot change individual objects without altering the image as a whole. Furthermore, if you increase the image size, this can cause the drawing to drop quality and appear fuzzy or pixelated.

Digitized drawings involve converting scanned paper drawings into a CAD-compatible vector format - DXF (Drawing Exchange Format) files or DWG (Drawing) format for further manufacturing. The vector graphics are made of objects like points, lines, curves, arcs, B-Splines, Poly-lines, and other elements. These vector files are capable enough to hold masses of data about each element of the drawings. The designer or the CAD operator can easily edit each of these entities without affecting the rest of the image.

1. Open your AutoCAD software and start a new drawing. Select "New" from the File menu.

2. Scan your image and save the file as a PNG, JPG, BMP, or TIF file. Save your file into one of these AutoCAD-compatible formats if it is already in your system.

3. Import the scanned image into AutoCAD. Select your scanned image and click "Scale." Enter the appropriate number and press "Enter."

4. Trace the scanned drawing using AutoCAD tools, such as Line, Continuous Curve, Arc, or Rectangle.

5. Select "Save As" under the File menu, type in a name for your digital drawing, and press "Enter" to save your AutoCAD digitalization of the scanned file.

The process might seem simpler, but it needs extensive experience and expertise to achieve desired quality and higher accuracy of the final CAD models and drawings. If you’re looking for AutoCAD 2D drafting services, consider outsourcing an experienced team of CAD drafters adhering to international codes and standards.