Computer-aided engineering

Refers to the integration of engineering design and the manufacture of objects into a system under the direct control of digital computers. It combines the use of computers in industrial-design work, called "computer-aided design" or "CAD," with the use of computers in manufacturing operations, known as "computer-aided manufacturing" or "CAM." This integrated process is commonly called CAD/CAM. It is typically characterized by the facility to allow drawings developed and revised during the design process to be converted directly into instructions for the production machines that will manufacture the desired object.