What are CAD blocks?
AutoCAD blocks, or those from any other CAD program, are files that can be inserted in other CAD files, it's that simple.
Something as simple as this creates enormous advantages over the traditional construction of technical projects, allowing infinite possibilities, since once we have produced any design,
it can be inserted into the existing drawing to complete it, complement it and help us save time in our CAD project.
CAD blocks arose as a result of the need for repetitive use of multiple objects in different projects. Now, thanks to the blocks, this CAD drawing only needs to be produced once, the first time it is needed.
In subsequent projects where the same object is required, instead of drawing it again, it is reused by inserting it in the CAD file in which we are working.
Advantages of using CAD blocks
The main advantage lies in the significant amount of time saved when developing our technical projects, thus allowing better quality graphic representations.
Reuse of AutoCAD blocks is not restricted to our own designs, since logically, we can also use any block or CAD file produced by third parties if their use is permitted in our project.
In addition, companies that manufacture products or construction systems often create their own product libraries in .dwg or .dxf versions with the business aim of projects stipulating the need for their products or technical solutions and offering them on their websites.
Another advantage of using AutoCAD blocks is saving space in the file since only the data for one single block or block entity is stored regardless of whether it is repeated 2 or 20 times.
There is another parallel advantage to this, whereby if some of the blocks in our drawing need to be altered, the change only needs to be made in some of them, through the block editor. Once modified and saved, it will be automatically changed in the remaining blocks since it is a single entity.
Tips when creating CAD blocks
When we produce a design or drawing in order to use it subsequently as a block, the following rules must be taken into account as a minimum for optimum use of blocks:
One: it is preferable to create the entire block in layer 0, and thanks to this precaution, if we insert a block of a bed or a table in the "furniture" layer, for example, the inserted block acquires said layer, so that when we manage the layers, activating or deactivating them, the inserted bed will behave like the rest of the elements in that layer.
Two: the units in which we create our blocks must be checked, as they must coincide with the units in which we normally work.
Three: by specifying the insertion point, and checking this aspect, along with the previous one, we avoid time-consuming situations in which a block we have inserted cannot be seen or located, giving rise to significant frustration and time wasting. The insertion point is usually a point that is part of the drawing.
Four: we must check the types of basic elements such as letters, lines and shading that we use in our blocks, since if these are not part of our library of these elements (often the standard one) when inserting the CAD block, these elements will not be represented or will be replaced by others.
Five: it is also very common for users to keep hold of very old AutoCAD versions such as v2000, v2004, etc., so if the block has been created with more recent versions, such as 2013 or 2018, we will not be able to open it in our drawing. In these cases, we can use the Autodesk DWG TrueView program, which, in addition to being a viewer for a multitude of graphic files, allows these files to be converted into the various existing versions.
AutoCAD blocks in other languages and reference sites for downloading blocks
Spanish: bloques cad de muebles, árboles, coches, sanitarios, cocinas, puertas, muebles de oficina, cerrajería, aparatos de gimnasia, personas, señales, escaleras, perfiles laminados - Bloques AutoCAD
French: blocs cad mobilier, arbres, voitures, sanitaires, cuisine, portes, mobilier de bureau, treillis, appareils de gymnastique, personnes, signaux, escaliers, profilés laminés - Blocs CAD
German: cad blöcke möblel, bäume, fahrzeuge, badezimmer, kochen, türen,büromöbel, schlosser, fitnessgeräte, menschen, signale , treppe, stahlprofil - Cad objekte
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