table of Contents
Hierarchical design report generation
Preface
The construction of the schematic diagram is only the first step, not the final design goal. It is also necessary to transfer the designed schematic diagram to the PCB editor to obtain the PCB file that can be used for production, thereby forming a real usable actual electronic product.
Due to the complexity of the circuit system, generally speaking, there are more or less errors or omissions in the circuit schematics drawn. Therefore, in order to carry out the subsequent design work smoothly, before transferring the schematic diagram to the PCB editor, the entire schematic diagram should be checked, and all errors should be eliminated as much as possible.
Project compilation
Project compilation is an important means used to check whether the user's design files comply with electrical rules. In the circuit schematic diagram, the links between various components directly represent the electrical connection of the actual circuit system. Therefore, the drawn circuit schematic diagram should comply with the electrical rules in the historical records, otherwise, it will lose its actual value. And guiding significance.
The so-called electrical rules inspection is to check whether the electrical characteristics of the circuit schematic diagram are consistent and whether the electrical parameter settings are reasonable.
Project compilation settings
The project compilation settings mainly include "Error Respecting" (error report), "Connection Matrix" (connection rules), "Comparator" (comparator) and "ECO Generation" (generating engineering change orders), etc. These settings are all in the "Options for PCB project" dialog box.
In the PCB project, execute the "Project" -> "Project Parameters" command to open the "Options for PCB Project" dialog box.
- "Error Respecting" settings
There are 9 types of violations, which are as follows.
"Violations Associated with Buses": Violations related to the bus, such as bus label out of range, illegal bus definition, bus width mismatch, etc.
· "Violations Associated with Code Symbols": Violations related to code symbols, such as duplicate entry names in code symbols, code symbols without export function, etc.
"Violations Associated with Components": Violations related to components, such as repeated use of component pins, component model parameter errors, and duplicate drawing entries.
· "Violations Associated with Configuration Constraints": types of violations related to configuration constraints, such as the constraint boundary not found in the configuration, the constraint connection failure in the configuration, etc.
·"Violations Associated with Documents": the types of violations related to documents, mainly related to hierarchical design, such as repeated icon symbol identification, no sub-scheme corresponding to chart symbols, port not connected to chart symbols, drawing entry not connected to sub-principles Figure etc.
·"Violations Associated with Harnesses": Violations related to wiring harnesses, such as wiring harness definition conflicts, unknown wiring harness types, etc.
· "Violations Associated with Nets": types of violations related to the network, such as duplicate network names, dangling network labels, and no network parameter assignments.
· "Violations Associated with Others": Types of violations related to other objects, such as the object exceeds the drawing boundary and the object deviates from the grid.
·"Violations Associated with Parameters": Violation types related to parameters, such as the same parameter having different types and agreeing that the parameters have different values, etc.
For each specific violation, there are 4 total error reporting forms: "not report", "warning", "error" and "fatal error", which indicate the severity of the violation and use different colors Make a distinction.
2. "Connection Matrix" settings
The "Connection Matrix" tab shows the condensing status between various pins, ports, and drawing entries, and the corresponding error type severity settings. When the system performs electrical rule checking (ERC), it will generate an ERC report according to the error level set by the connection matrix.
3. "Comparator" setting
There are 4 categories of participating members listed in this tab.
·"Differences Associated with Components": Differences related to components
·"Differences Associated with Net": Differences related to the network
·"Differences Associated with Parameters": Differences related to parameters
·"Differences Associated with Physical": Differences related to physical objects
In each category, a number of specific options are listed. For the differences produced by each option during project compilation, the user can choose to set "Ignore Differences" or "Find Differences". If it is set to "Find Differences", then after the project is compiled, the differences produced by the response items will be listed in " Message" panel.
4. "ECO Generation" setting
In AD, when the synchronizer is used to transfer synchronization information between the schematic file and the PCB file, the system will check the project file according to the parameters set in the engineering change sequence (ECO). If it is found that there is a change in the project file that meets the settings, the "Project Change Sequence" dialog box will open to report the specific changes in the project file to the user.
There are 3 types of change descriptions in the tab, as follows:
· "Modifications Associated with Components": Changes related to components.
· "Modifications Associated with Nets": changes related to the network.
· "Modifications Associated with Parameters": Changes related to parameters.
Each category also contains several options, and the mode of each option can be set to "Generate Change Command" or "Ignore Differences", which means no changes will be made.
Compile the project
Compile the project "Audio AMP.PrjPCB"
- In the "Connection Matrix" tab of the "Options for PCB Project" dialog box, click the color square at the intersection of "Output Port" and "Output Port" to set it to orange.
- Execute the "Project" -> "Compile PCB Project Audio AMP.PrjPcb" command, and the system starts to compile the project.
- Compilation is complete. The "Massages" panel lists all error messages and corresponding error levels in the project. The "Details" area below the "Massages" panel will display detailed information related to this error.
- The "Details" area shows the cause and location of the error:
5. According to the error message prompt, make modifications and execute the compilation again. The "Error" error message will no longer be displayed on the "Massages" panel.
6. Using the same method, check and correct the other error messages displayed on the "Massages" panel one by one to confirm that the schematic diagram is correct.
The error messages after compilation do not necessarily need to be modified. Users should make specific judgments based on their own design concepts. In addition, for parts of the design that violate the set electrical rules but are actually correct, in order to avoid displaying unnecessary error messages during compilation, you can place "no ERC mark" in advance.
"Navigator" panel
- Panel composition
Open the "Navigator" panel
There are 4 areas on the panel. The first area lists the schematic files participating in the compilation and their hierarchical relationships. Click on a different file name to display the corresponding information in the following three areas.
The second area lists the information of all components in the corresponding schematic file, including comments and types. Click a component, you can open the schematic diagram where the component is located in the edit window, and highlight the component. At the same time, all pin information of the component will be displayed in the fourth area. Using this method, a component can be quickly located in a schematic diagram with numerous components.
The third area lists all electrical network names and application ranges in the corresponding schematic files. Click a network name to highlight the wire and pins of the network in the editing window, and display the pin information of the network in the fourth area. Using this method, a network can be quickly located.
The fourth area is generally used to display all port information in the corresponding schematic file, and when performing component positioning or network positioning, it is used to display various pin information. Similarly, clicking an object in the column will quickly locate and highlight in the editing window.
2. Panel function area settings
In addition to the above-mentioned component positioning and network positioning, the "Navigator" panel also provides users with a spatial navigation function.
The "Interactive Navigation" button above the class panel. In the current schematic file, the cursor changes to a large cross. Move the cursor to switch or navigate the space. For example, for a single component, the component will be highlighted in the editing window, and the rest of the objects will be masked; if you click a network, all objects of the network will be highlighted; click a port to jump to the The drawing entrance connected to this port; for this drawing entrance, it will jump to the port connected to the drawing entrance, etc.
Press and hold the 
button on the right to enter the system "parameter selection" dialog box tab, you can set the "Navigator" panel accordingly.
- "Highlight Method" option group
It is used to set the operation mode of the highlighted object in the navigation mode. There are 4 check boxes.
· "Zoom": After selecting this check box, the navigation object will be automatically enlarged and placed in the center of the editing window. The zoom level can be adjusted by the "Zoom Precision" slider below. The further the slider is to the right, the greater the magnification.
· "Select": After selecting the check box, the navigation object will be in the selected state at the same time.
· "Hide": After selecting this check box, the navigation objects are displayed normally, and the remaining objects are blocked. Click "Mask Level" in the lower right corner of the editing window to adjust the contrast between the normal display and the masked object.
·"Link Chart": After selecting this check box, the link relationship related to the navigation object will be displayed. When the navigation object is a component, the green connection line will show the other components directly connected to the object; when the navigation object is a network, the red connection line is not used, and there are two kinds of solid lines and dashed lines, and solid lines indicate It is a physical connection rather than a logical connection, and the dashed line indicates a logical connection. If you need to display the connection relationship of the power supply objects, you can select the "Include power supply part" check box below.
2. "Zoom accuracy" option group
In navigation mode, the system will zoom to display the highlighted object.
3. "Object display" option group
Lists the types of objects that can be displayed on the "Navigator" panel, such as pins, network tags, ports, drawing entries, etc. The user can choose and determine according to their needs.
4. "Cross selection zoom options" option group
Including "No Zoom" (no zoom), "Zoom to Last Selected" (the last selected graphics can be displayed in the display area completely), "Zoom to All Selected" (all the selected graphics can be displayed in the display area completely) Three options.
Report generation
The schematic editor of the AD system also has a wealth of report functions, which can easily generate various types of report files.
Netlist generation
The so-called network refers to a group of component pins connected to each other. A circuit is actually composed of several networks, and the network table is a complete description of the circuit or circuit schematic. The description includes two aspects: one is the information of all components, including component identification, component pins and PCB packaging form, etc.; the other is network connection information, including network name, network node, etc.
There are many ways to generate a netlist. It can be directly generated from the schematic file in the schematic editor, or manually edited and generated with a text editor. Of course, it can also be exported from the wired PCB file in the PCB editor The corresponding netlist.
Among the various reports generated by the schematic diagram, it should be said that the network table is the most important. Its importance is mainly manifested in two aspects: one is that it can support automatic routing and circuit simulation in subsequent printed circuit board design; the other is that it can be compared with the netlist derived from the PCB file to check errors.
The AD system provides Yonghui with convenient and quick practical tools, which can generate netlist files in different formats for different design requirements. Here, what needs to be generated is the netlist for PCB design, namely the Protel netlist.
Specifically, there are two types of Protel network tables, one is a network table based on a single file; the other is a project-based network table. The composition of the two network tables is exactly the same. Taking the project "Audio AMP.PrjPCB" as an example, briefly introduce the generation and characteristics of the following project network table.
Generate engineering network table
- Open the project "Audio AMP.PrjPCB" and any schematic file in the project
- Execute the "Project" -> "Project Parameters" command, select the "Option" tab in the opened "Option for PCB Project" dialog box, and set the network table options in this tab. Generally, the system default settings are used. can.
3. Execute the "Design" -> "Project Network Table" command, the system will pop up the project network table format selection menu.
4. Execute the "Protel" command in the menu, the system automatically generates the network table file "Audio AMP.NET" and stores it in the "Netlist Files" folder under the current project.
5. Double-click to open the project network table file "Audio AMP.NET".
Network identification is a simple ASCII code text file consisting of line by line text, divided into two parts: component life and network definition, with their own fixed format and fixed composition. The lack of any part may cause errors in PCB wiring. .
The component name is composed of several subsections. Each subsection is used to describe a component, starting with "[" and ending with "]". It is composed of component identification, packaging, comments, etc. The blank line is automatically generated by the system.
The network definition also consists of several small segments, each of which is used to describe the information of a network, starting with "(" and ending with ")". It is composed of the network name and the network connection points (that is, the pins of all components in the network that have electrical connections).
Component report generation
The component report is mainly used to list the identification, packaging form, library reference, etc. of all components used in the current project, which is equivalent to a component list. In one sentence of this list, users can view various information about the components in the project in detail. At the same time, it can also be used as a reference for component procurement when making printed circuit boards.
Generate component report
- Open the project "Audio AMP.PrjPCB" and any schematic file in the project.
- Execute the "Report" -> "Bill of Materials" command, and the "Bill of Materials for Project" dialog box will pop up.
In this dialog box, you can set options for the generated component report. There are two list boxes on the left, with the following meanings.
·"All columns": lists the attribute information of the components that the system can provide, such as: "Description" (component description), "Component Kind" (component type), etc. For useful information that needs to be viewed, select the check box corresponding to it on the right to display it in the component report.
·"Aggregate Column": Set the classification standard of components. You can drag a certain attribute information in "All Columns" to the change list box, and the system will classify the components based on the attribute information and display them in the component report.
Below the list box, there are the following options.
· "Export Options": Set the export format of the file, click the button 
, there are multiple formats for users to choose.
· "Excel Options": Set display templates for component reports. Click the drop-down button on the right 
to use the template file that has been used before, or click the button 
to reselect it in the template folder.
3. After setting the corresponding options, click the "Menu" button and select "Report" in the pop-up menu to open the component report preview dialog box.
4. Click the "Output" button in the dialog box to save the report. The default is "Audio AMP.xls", which is an Excel file.
5. Click the "Open Report" button to open the Excel file
Hierarchical design report generation
Hierarchical design reports mainly include component cross-reference reports, hierarchical reports, and port cross-references.
Component cross reference report
The component cross-reference report is mainly used to group all the components in the entire project according to their respective schematic diagrams. It is also equivalent to a component list. The generation of this report is similar to the above-mentioned component report.
1. Open the project "Audio AMP.PrjPCB" and any schematic file in the project
2. Execute the "Report" -> "Component Cross Reference" command, and the "Component Cross Reference for Project" dialog box will pop up.
3. After setting the corresponding options, click the "Menu" button and select "Report" in the pop-up menu to open the preview dialog box of the component cross-reference report.
4. Click the "Output" button in the dialog box to save the report.
Hierarchical report
1. Open the project "Audio AMP.PrjPCB" and any schematic file in the project
2. Execute the "Report" -> "Compile PCB Project Audio AMP.PrjPcb" command, and a menu will pop up.
3. In the schematic editing environment, execute the "report" -> "port cross parameters" command.
4. Execute the "add to project" command, and the system adds a port cross reference to the schematic diagram in the project
The port cross reference is different from the generation of other report files. You need to compile the project before you can perform related operations.
Work file output
Batch output of report files
1. Open the project "Audio AMP.PrjPCB" and any schematic file in the project
2. Execute the "File" -> "New" -> "Output Working File" command, or click the "Project" button on the "Project" panel, and execute "Add New to Project" -> in the pop-up menu "Output Job File" command, the system creates a new output job file named "Job1.OutJob" by default under the current project, and enters the output job file editing window at the same time.
In this window, 7 major types of work files that can be output are listed, including "Netlist Outputs" (netlist output), "Documentation Outputs" (design output), "Assembly Outputs" (assembly output), "Fabrication Outputs" ( Manufacturing output), "Report Outputs", "Validation Outputs" and "Export Outputs" (format output)
3. Click the check boxes corresponding to "Report Outputs" -> "Add New Reference Report", "Report Project Hierarchy", "Simple BOM" and "Report Single Pin Nets".
4. Click the Generate Content button in the "Output Container", and the 
report files will be generated in batches and displayed in the window one by one.
Smart PDF file generation
A smart PDF generator is built into the AD system to generate fully portable and navigable PDF files. Designers can package the entire project or selected design files into PDF files, which can be viewed and read using a PDF browser, which fully reflects the sharing of design data.
1. Open the project "Audio AMP.PrjPCB" and any schematic file in the project
2. Execute the "File" -> "Smart PDF" command to start the Smart PDF generation wizard.
3. Click the "Next" button. Enter the dialog box for selecting the export destination, you can set whether to output the current project as PDF or only the current file as PDF. The system defaults to: "Current Project". At the same time, the name and save path of the output file can be set.
4. Click the "Next" button. Enter the export project file dialog box, select the file to be exported, the system defaults to select all, and the user can select only one of them.
5. Click the "Next" button. Enter the BOM dialog box, used to select whether to set the BPM table everywhere, and set the corresponding template.
6. Click the "Next" button. Enter the print settings dialog box.
7. Click the "Next" button. Enter the structural design dialog box. After selecting the "Use physical structure" check box, you can select the physical name to be displayed.
8. Click the "Next" button. Enter the dialog box, set whether to open by default after generating the PDF file and whether to save the settings to the batch output file
9. After setting, click the "Finish" button, the system will start to generate a PDF file, which will be opened by default and displayed in the working window.
10. At the same time, the batch output file is also opened by default and displayed in the output work file editing window. The corresponding settings can be directly used for future batch work file output.