Feasibility of automation in AutoCAD through VB.NET

Question

My final year B.Tech. project is to (application development in VB.NET) automate the design & analysis of Intze Tank. The complete design with all the details (blueprints) need to be generated into a DWG file (AutoCAD).
I need to know how feasible it is for me (alone) to come close to completing such a project.
What all libraries & learning resources I can benefit from?
Where can I find similar such project(s)? (even names/links would be enough)
Contacts of any knowledgeable person other than Autodesk personnel would also be very helpful.

Thanks!

Answer 1

Can it be done as a school project?

That depends upon the level of detail required. Generating a few simple drawings from some entered parameters should be a doable semester project. A complete builder's blueprint set would consist of tens or hundreds of detailed drawings - that would be a bit much for a school project.

It would help a great deal if you have had some experience in or at least exposure to technical drawing. The acad APIs make a great deal of sense to drafters but are somewhat meaningless to everyday programmers.

The AutoCAD tag wiki has some links to get you started. The AutoCAD API documentation is some of the best that I have ever used, that is mostly how I learned and worked. Owen Wengerd's blog is the only non-Autodesk resource I can think of right now.