Archive for the ‘Paper’ Category
Computer-aided Design (CAD)
The definition of computer-aided design (CAD) is the use of computer technology to aid in the design of real or virtual objects. However, this definition is so broad and encompasses so many fields of study and uses. It was first put to use in the shipbuilding industry in the 1960’s. It was innovative in helping the military branches build large ships quickly and efficiently.
It was not until the late 1980’s that computer-aided design software was available and easy to use on personal computers in the workplace. This began a massive downsizing of drafting departments because one properly trained CAD operator could easily replace three to five traditional drafters. It also weeded out smaller businesses that couldn’t afford this new technology. The larger companies that could were able to get work done for customers faster and cheaper. It simply put companies not using CAD software out of business.
In many cases, computer-aided design is used to make modern blueprints. Just as in manual blueprint drawings, CAD can be configured to give all outputs of the products including dimensions, materials, processes and tolerances. It can be used to design 2 dimensional or 3 dimensional objects. Drafters and engineers can use the CAD program to tweak the drawing many times before it is actually printed. They can print mock up versions of the drawings on small-scale paper for editing and viewing purposes. When the drawings are ready, they can then be printed on any size paper necessary with large printers. This saves time, paper and man-hours vs. the way it was done before with drawings done sometimes hundreds of times before it was final.
CAD is an important tool and is widely used in many ways and applications. This design tool is used in the automotive industry to design and manufacture cars and trucks. It is also used in shipbuilding and aerospace. It has its hand in almost all forms of human travel.
In addition, it is used for many industrial and architectural design projects, including commercial buildings and also residential homes. This means, that CAD has also had a hand in almost all forms of human shelter.
Although CAD is widely used for very important design tasks, it is also used to help produce computer-aided animation for special effects in movies. It is used in advertising, marketing and making technical manuals. It is also used in a medical environment to design prosthesis, pacemakers and other medical devices. CAD is now used to design almost anything including many everyday objects such as shampoo bottles and wheels.
With computer-aided design being such a large part of today’s society many engineers are becoming proficient on the use of various CAD software packages such as SolidWorks, DesignCAD and CADpro. Having knowledge with a computer-aided design program is a necessity in many fields of engineering. By gaining knowledge and experience in these different software packages, an employee can hone his/her skills to a specific industry and gain better access to jobs in the market they might be interested in.
Thermal Paper and Printers for Commercial Application
It is though that printed records were original devised as methods to keep track of commercial transactions and inventories. The very alphabet itself may have been devised for this very purpose. Today, one of the most efficient and effective printing methods is used almost exclusively for commerce. That method is thermal printing.
Thermal printing uses the precise application of heat to unlock ink stored within a chemical matrix on special thermal paper. The paper can look just like regular paper with perhaps a little more sheen to it from the chemicals. Thermal paper is most often made into rolls of paper that fit into thermal printer machines and which are cut to length after each printing.
Thermal printers are used for such common commercial applications as cash register receipts, credit card authorization slips, automated gas pump receipts, and ATM transaction records. These applications have several things in common that make them most suitable for thermal printers instead of conventional ink-based printers.
First, they only require a single color to be printed; the goal with all of these applications is to convey simple alpha-numeric data rather than artistic pictures in full color. Thermal paper is generally only capable of single color printing. These applications often take place in either busy environments or in places where there are no attendants present. In these cases, the reliability of the thermal printer is an important consideration. Thermal printers generally have a much more simple design than ink printers. With fewer moving parts, there are fewer things to wear out or to break down, resulting in less down time and fewer repairs.
Since the paper comes in compact thermal paper rolls, a great deal of paper can be stored in a relatively small area inside the machine. This lessens the number of times each day that paper needs to be changed or replaced. The thermal paper rolls are also less prone to jamming in the machine when compared to discreet sheets of paper. Of course, because thermal printers don’t use ink, there is no need for ink cartridges or printer ribbons to be replaced.
The same factors that result in lower maintenance efforts also result in lower operating costs for thermal printers. Thermal paper is often much cheaper than ordinary paper plus ink cartridges. Cutting paper to the required length from a continuous thermal paper roll also results in more efficient use of the paper than using standard sized paper sheets.
Finally, because of the simple nature of the thermal printer design, the initial cost of the thermal printer is lower than the cost of most ink-based printers. This helps keep the overall cost of the machine in which the thermal printer resides, whether it is a gas pump, cash registers, or an ATM machine, lower as well.
For all these reasons, thermal printers are usually the best choice for commercial printing applications where color printing is not required.