It is primarily for the experimenter's own use, but another person with similar technical background should be able to understand and duplicate any experiment, data, and conclusion, or to prepare a technical report following only the notebook. To defend patents. To act as a basis for technical reports and articles. To avoid duplication of effort. The nature of the work and the purpose of the experimenter will influence the content and format of the notebook.
Many companies have a rigid internal requirements based on the company's specific needs.
They are intended for work in the Electrical Engineering Department, and provide experience in following some acceptable format. The notebook must be understandable to a person with a comparable technical background. It must be legible. This includes the approach to the problem or design project. Any ideas generated should be included.