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Ballooned drawing and dimensional results template

A ballooned drawing is a copy of the part drawing on which every dimension, tolerance zone, geometric frame and checkable note carries a numbered balloon, so that each result in a dimensional results table traces back to its place on the drawing. This template has a one-page ballooning guide, a results sheet for six parts, and an Excel file that works out the limits, the smallest and largest reading and the result of every row.

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Page 1 of the ballooned drawing templateA schematic part with twelve numbered balloons on the top view and the side view, nine rules for ballooning a drawing, and a table of the twelve balloons with their type.
Ballooning guideSchematic ballooned drawingResults table for six partsSize, geometric, pass/fail and reference rowsSpecial characteristic columnOK, NEAR LIMIT and NOT OK counts
Filled-in Ballooned drawing and dimensional results template: twelve ballooned characteristics, one NOT OK
The same sheet filled in with the worked example (page 3 of the PDF, illustrative numbers). Open full size (opens the picture in a new tab)

When to use it

When to use a ballooned drawing and dimensional results sheet

  • For a PPAP or first article submission, where the customer wants every dimension measured on production parts and the results laid out against the drawing.
  • When you inspect incoming parts and want a results report the supplier can read against the same balloon numbers.
  • After an engineering change, to prove that a changed dimension and the ones around it are still in tolerance.
  • To hand a measurement job to someone new: the balloons say what to measure, the table says how and with what.
  • Not for statistical studies of one characteristic over time. Use a capability study for that, and keep this sheet for one-off layout results.

How to fill it in

  1. 1

    Start from the controlled drawing

    Use the drawing at the change level on the order, and write the change level and date on the sheet. Never balloon a copy of unknown age.
  2. 2

    Balloon every checkable feature

    One balloon on each dimension, tolerance zone, geometric frame and note that can be checked. Number them left to right and top to bottom in each view, then the next view. Never reuse a number.
  3. 3

    Write one row per balloon

    Same number, a plain name for the feature, and a type: Size, Geometric, Pass/fail or Reference. Add the nominal and the plus and minus values for a size, or the zone for a geometric tolerance.
  4. 4

    Mark the special characteristics

    Put your customer's symbol in the Special column on every row that carries one, so the rows that matter most are the first to be read.
  5. 5

    Measure parts from the production run

    Six is a common number, and your customer may ask for more or fewer. Record the gauge or method on every row. If a reading is out, write it as measured, mark the row and raise the issue.
  6. 6

    Read the result column and the counts

    The Excel file works out OK, NEAR LIMIT or NOT OK per row and counts them. Every NOT OK goes on the open issues list before the warrant is signed.

Four kinds of row

How each type of characteristic is judged

The type decides which cells you fill in and how the result is worked out.

  • Size

    What you enter
    Nominal, plus and minus tolerance, a reading per part
    How it is judged
    Every reading must be between nominal minus the minus and nominal plus the plus
    Example
    Overall length 120.00 plus or minus 0.20
  • Geometric

    What you enter
    The zone as the plus value, a reading per part
    How it is judged
    Every reading must be between 0 and the zone
    Example
    Hole position within 0.30
  • Pass/fail

    What you enter
    OK or NOT OK per part
    How it is judged
    Any NOT OK in the row makes the row NOT OK
    Example
    Coating with no bare spots
  • Reference

    What you enter
    The reference value and readings if you want them
    How it is judged
    Not judged: shown as Reference and left out of the counts
    Example
    Overall height (45) in brackets

A filled-in example

Illustrative, not a benchmark

An example (illustrative): a made-up mounting bracket, MB-220, lot 5001, first production run, on drawing MB-220 at change level C. Six parts were measured and part 3 is the master sample.

  • The drawing has 12 balloons. Eleven are judged and balloon 12, the overall height (45.00 in brackets), is a Reference and is not judged.
  • 9 rows are OK, 1 is NEAR LIMIT and 1 is NOT OK. The Special NOT OK count is 1.
  • Balloon 5, the hole A to datum B distance, is 25.00 plus or minus 0.15, so the limits are 24.85 and 25.15. Part 6 reads 25.130, which passes but is only 0.02 below the upper limit, inside the 0.03 zone that is 10% of the 0.30 tolerance width, so the row is NEAR LIMIT.
  • NEAR LIMIT is our own convenience rule: a reading inside the tolerance but within 10% of the tolerance width of a limit. It is a prompt to watch for drift, not a requirement.
  • Balloon 6, the hole A position, is a special characteristic (SC) with a zone of 0.30. Part 6 reads 0.31, so the row is NOT OK and goes on the open issues list.
  • Balloons 10 and 11 are pass/fail notes (no burrs, coating with no bare spots) and every part is OK.

One number stands between this lot and a clean warrant, and it is on a special characteristic. Every reading can be found from the balloon alone, on the drawing and in the table.

Common mistakes

  • Ballooning a drawing at the wrong change level

    Results against an old drawing are results against the wrong requirement. Write the level and date on the sheet and check them against the order.

  • Skipping the notes and the geometric frames

    A dimension is not the only thing the customer can check. Notes about burrs, coating and marking, and every geometric frame, need a balloon and a row.

  • Renumbering after the first draft

    Once results reference a balloon, changing the number breaks the trace. Add new numbers at the end and say why.

  • Rounding a reading into tolerance

    Write the reading as the gauge showed it. A part that is out is a finding, not a typing problem, and a rounded reading is the fastest way to lose a customer's trust.

  • Measuring hand-picked parts

    Take parts from the production run at the stated rate. Parts picked for being good do not support the declaration on the warrant.

Download the template

Free to use: print it, copy it and edit it for your team. Enter your name and work email once to download.

Run this template in LeanSuite

In LeanSuite quality checks run as digital checklists with number limits, an out-of-spec answer can raise a tag or start a CAPA automatically, and KPI Builder tracks quality KPIs against targets.

See it in a 45-minute demo

FAQ

Ballooned drawing and dimensional results template: common questions

  1. It is the part drawing with a numbered balloon on every dimension, tolerance, geometric frame and checkable note. The numbers tie each row of the results table to its feature on the drawing.

  2. Six is common and this sheet has six columns, but your customer decides. Some ask for more, and some ask for one master sample plus others. Follow the customer's requirement.

  3. A reading that passes but sits within 10% of the tolerance width of a limit is flagged NEAR LIMIT. This is our own convenience rule, so you can see drift early. It is not a standard and your customer does not need it.

  4. A geometric row has a zone from 0 to the plus value, and every reading must be inside it. The sheet is for the measured value reported against the zone. It does not decide how a geometric tolerance is defined or measured: that comes from your drawing standard.

  5. A dimension shown in brackets for information only. It gets a balloon and a row so nothing is missing, is marked Reference, and is not judged or counted.

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