Ultimately, all materials for the on-line Hardware Guide must be posted as PDF files. The software used to develop the drawing or specification is unimportant as long as the final product is a readable PDF file and the page itself conforms to the standards described in this document. Files set-up appropriately in Adobe Acrobat 7.0 can be "marked up" graphically with text editing and other comments. In combination with the discussion board, this can be a very useful tool for reviewers. To enable this capability, you can either print your drawing and specification sheets to PDF and submit them to the Task Force representative for assembly and set-up, or you can create the finished PDF file yourself. To save volunteer time, we recommend the latter approach when possible (i.e., if you have Adobe Acrobat Professional 7.0 or higher). Print the separate pages to PDF, open them in Adobe Acrobat, modify them and add links as desired, enable "comments with text editing" by selecting "Comments > Enable for Commenting in Adobe Reader," and save the file. For more information about using Adobe Acrobat, visit the Adobe support site.
Content for components and systems in the Hardware Guide consists of drawings on the facing sheets (i.e., the odd-numbered pages) and text specifications on the back sheets (i.e., the even-numbered pages). Generally, content for components consists of a one-page drawing and a one-page specification; in exceptional cases it may be acceptable to have multiple sheets for a single component. For systems, often all the material cannot be contained on a single front-and-back sheet so multiple sheets may be used. For both components and systems, if multiple sheets are needed, drawing content should always be on the facing sheets and specification text should always be on the back. Blank sheets may be inserted to facilitate this arrangement. (See examples of appropriate blank drawing sheets and blank specification sheets. Also available are completely blank drawing and specification sheets for use in manual drafting.)
CONTENT
Drawing pages for components shall generally include three orthographic views of the component. For simple geometries like plate washers, two views may be sufficient.
FORMAT
Dimensions shall be given in both inches and millimeters, with the millimeter measurement in brackets. For example, a height of 30 inches
(762 millimeters) would be labeled as 30[760]. In general, unit conversions should conform to the recommendations of AASHTO R1-91. In converting a
value from USCU units to SI units the intended precision of the dimension should be preserved. For example, a part manufactured with a +/- 1/16 inch
precision would be dimensioned in SI units to the nearest mm, since 1/16 inch is approximately 1.5 mm. On the other hand, the height of a guardrail or
the depth of guardrail post embedment is not constructed with a 1/16th inch tolerance. Converting a 30 inch rail height to 762 mm incorrectly suggests
that the height should be installed +/- 1 mm; this is much too precise a measure for a guardrail post. In practice, a guardrail height might be more
appropriately measured to the nearest 1/2 inch, so rounding the SI dimension to the nearest 10 mm would be a more realistic and meaningful conversion.
The following table gives some general conversion suggestions based on typical manufacturing or construction tolerances:
Construction and manufacturing tolerances and guide to rounding SI dimensions
| USCU tolerance | Round to the nearest X in SI units |
| 1/16 inch | 1 mm |
| 1/8 inch | 2 mm |
| 1/4 inch | 5 mm |
| 1/2 inch | 10 mm |
| 1 inch | 25 mm |
All text, with the exception of the title block text, should be 3/32 inch (2.4 mm) high and in a Roman font. Borders should be drawn around the drawing pages as follows:
| Left | 3/64"-thick black line 1" from the left edge. |
| Right | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the right edge. |
| Top | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the top edge. |
| Bottom | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the bottom edge. |
The following abbreviations shall be used in the drawings. The abbreviations shall stand alone without any period as shown in the example. The acceptable abbreviations are:
| CLR | clear distance |
| D | diameter |
| EA | each |
| OC | on-center |
| LONGIT | longitudinal reinforcement |
| LNG | long |
| MAX | maximum |
| R | radius |
| TOL | tolerance |
| TYP | typical |
A title block shall be located at the bottom of the drawing page. This title block is approximately 6-1/2 inches wide (the entire width of the drawing) and 1-1/4 inches high. It is divided into three sections, each with a 3/64-inch border:
In the lower left corner of the drawing, above the title block, the year that the component first entered the Guide should also be placed in a 3/32-inch Roman font.
CONTENT
The specification pages for components should include material and manufacturing specifications and the intended use of the component.
Any AASHTO, ASTM, ANSI or other specifications that apply to either the material or the manufacturing process should be described in the SPECIFICATIONS section. There is a great deal of intentional duplication between the AASHTO and ASTM material specifications; generally, the AASHTO version of a specification is considered the primary reference and the ASTM reference is included in parentheses for the convenience of the user. Both English and metric specifications should be cited, with the metric specification enclosed in brackets (e.g., AASHTO M183[M183M](ASTM A36[A36M])). The following list contains abbreviations of standards-making organizations used in the Hardware and Sign Guides:
| AASHTO | American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials |
| AISC | American Institute of Steel Construction |
| AGC | Associated General Contractors |
| ANSI | American National Standards Institute |
| ARTBA | American Road and Transportation Builders Association |
| ASTM | American Society for Testing and Materials |
| AWS | American Welding Society |
| FHWA | Federal Highway Administration |
| IFI | Industrial Fasteners Institute |
| SAE | Society of Automotive Engineers |
For steel shapes, both English and metric structural designations should be given, with metric designations in brackets (e.g., W6x9[W150x14]).
Information that may be of use to roadside hardware designers may also be included in this part of the specification pages, such as the moments of inertia of beams and posts and the stress area and minimum bolt strength for threaded fasteners. (Click here to see an example.)
These pages should also include a section titled INTENDED USE that lists the systems where the component is used and also lists other components that are used in conjunction with it. This assists the user in finding the systems where a particular component is used.
If the component is a proprietary item, a CONTACT section can be added after the INTENDED USE section to provide contact information for the manufacturer. This contact information should point the user to a company rather than to an individual, to avoid frequent updates, and could take the form of a hyperlink rather than text.
FORMAT
All text should be in Times New Roman font (size 10pt or larger). Borders should be drawn around the specification pages as follows:
| Left | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the left edge. |
| Right | 3/64"-thick black line 1" from the right edge. |
| Top | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the top edge. |
| Bottom | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the bottom edge. |
A title block shall be located at the bottom of each specification page. This title block is approximately 6-1/2 inches wide (i.e., the entire width of the specification) and 1-5/16 inches high. It is divided into three sections, each with a 3/64-inch border:
CONTENT
Drawing pages for non-proprietary systems shall include three orthographic views; an isometric view is desirable but optional. The drawings should be sufficiently detailed for use in design. Drawing pages for proprietary designs may include either three orthographic views or an isometric view, or both, since manufacturers will generally provide more detailed drawings for design purposes. Component dimensions should not be shown in the system drawing. Only dimensions needed to lay out or construct the system should be shown.
FORMAT
Dimensions should be given in both inches and millimeters, with the millimeter measurement in brackets. For example, a height of 30 inches
(762 millimeters) would be labeled as 30[760]. In general, unit conversions should conform to the recommendations of AASHTO R1-91. In converting a
value from USCU units to SI units the intended precision of the dimension should be preserved. For example, a part manufactured with a +/- 1/16 inch
precision would be dimensioned in SI units to the nearest mm, since 1/16 inch is approximately 1.5 mm. On the other hand, the height of a guardrail or
the depth of guardrail post embedment is not constructed with a 1/16th inch tolerance. Converting a 30 inch rail height to 762 mm incorrectly suggests
that the height should be installed +/- 1 mm; this is much too precise a measure for a guardrail post. In practice, a guardrail height might be more
appropriately measured to the nearest 1/2 inch, so rounding the SI dimension to the nearest 10 mm would be a more realistic and meaningful conversion.
The following table gives some general conversion suggestions based on typical manufacturing or construction tolerances:
Construction and manufacturing tolerances and guide to rounding SI dimensions
| USCU tolerance | Round to the nearest X in SI units |
| 1/16 inch | 1 mm |
| 1/8 inch | 2 mm |
| 1/4 inch | 5 mm |
| 1/2 inch | 10 mm |
| 1 inch | 25 mm |
All text, with the exception of the title block text, should be 3/32 inch (2.4 mm) high and in a Roman font. Borders should be drawn around the drawing pages as follows:
| Left | 3/64"-thick black line 1" from the left edge. |
| Right | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the right edge. |
| Top | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the top edge. |
| Bottom | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the bottom edge. |
The following abbreviations shall be used in the drawings. The abbreviations shall stand alone without any period as shown in the example. The acceptable abbreviations are:
| CLR | clear distance |
| D | diameter |
| EA | each |
| OC | on-center |
| LONGIT | longitudinal reinforcement |
| LNG | long |
| MAX | maximum |
| R | radius |
| TOL | tolerance |
| TYP | typical |
A title block shall be located at the bottom of the drawing page. This title block is approximately 6-1/2 inches wide (the entire width of the drawing) and 1-1/4 inches high. It is divided into three sections, each with a 3/64-inch border:
In the lower left corner of the drawing, above the title block, the year that the system first entered the Guide should also be placed in a 3/32-inch Roman font.
CONTENT
System specification pages should include a description of the intended use of the system, approvals and references, contact information, and a link to photographs of the system (optional).
The INTENDED USE section should contain a brief description of the system and its use, including the test level at which it is approved. For non-proprietary systems, this section should contain a list of components (referred to by their designators). The number of components needed to construct the labeled unit lengths should be indicated. Any installation or layout information not covered in the drawing may also be discussed in this section.
The APPROVALS section should contain citations to FHWA approval letters and other approvals, with links to the letters on the Internet when available. The REFERENCES section should contain any other citations to the roadside safety literature; these citations generally refer to the most recent crash testing performed on the system or to FHWA Technical Advisories.
Specification pages for both proprietary and non-proprietary systems should include a CONTACT INFORMATION section for the manufacturer and/or relevant agencies (addresses, phone numbers, email addresses, and websites as applicable). For widely used non-proprietary systems, the FHWA should be listed as the contact. Information should be given for a company or agency rather than an individual, to avoid frequent updates, and may be in the form of a link rather than text.
Photographs of systems may be helpful but should not be included in drawing or specification pages. If a photograph is provided, a link will be placed on the specification page for viewing it. The link will be activated by clicking the camera icon located in the lower right corner of the specification page.
FORMAT
All text should be in Times New Roman font (size 10pt or larger). Borders should be drawn around the specification pages as follows:
| Left | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the left edge. |
| Right | 3/64"-thick black line 1" from the right edge. |
| Top | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the top edge. |
| Bottom | 3/64"-thick black line 1/2" from the bottom edge. |
A title block shall be located at the bottom of each specification page. This title block is approximately 6-1/2 inches wide (i.e., the entire width of the specification) and 1-5/16 inches high. It is divided into three sections, each with a 3/64-inch border: