Richard Johnson

A prompt library for electrical engineers: load calcs, cable sizing, protection, PLC logic, and more, each with an honest note on where ChatGPT must not be trusted.

Can AI read technical drawings? It reads text and numbers well but is unreliable on GD&T and symbols. What benchmarks show and how to use it safely.

Does SolidWorks have AI? Yes, in two forms: desktop automation shipping today and cloud Virtual Companions still in beta, plus Topology Study generative design.

A verified guide to AutoCAD’s AI features: Smart Blocks, Markup Import, and the Autodesk Assistant, which ones are not AI, and the LT and cloud catches.

You can use AI to help prepare stamped drawings, but it cannot hold responsible charge. What a PE seal means for AI use and your liability, explained.

A reliable method to find which standard applies to your design: the authority and adopted code, the major standards bodies and where they apply, and where AI helps or misleads.

The accurate answer to whether ChatGPT trains on your drawings: the consumer versus business default, what training really means, how to opt out, and the safe way to work.

A practical sequence for getting up to speed on a new engineering project fast, where AI accelerates the ramp-up, where it misleads, and the grounded-documents trick.

How to check someone else’s engineering calculations: recompute independently, check assumptions, units, standards, and magnitude, where AI helps, and who stays accountable.

How to write an engineering report faster with AI: hand it the structure and prose, keep data, calculations, and conclusions for yourself, and verify every figure.

The best AI tools for studying engineering, grouped by job: understanding concepts, working practice problems, active recall, and writing notes, with honest pros and cons.