JPH09237287A - Circuit diagram editor - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve the flexibility and the operability of circuit diagram input by inputting a part alternative name. SOLUTION: A part alternative name input command part 1 give an instruction when the alternate name of a part is to be inputted at the time of inputting a circuit diagram. An objective symbol inquiry command part 3 inquires a symbol being a processing object of an operator. An objective symbol indication part 4 indicates the objective symbol with a mouse or the like. n objective symbol recognition part 5 recognizes the indicated objective symbol. A dialog window display part 6 displays a window for inputting the alternate name. A part alternative input part 7 inputs the alternate name. A part alternative name registration part 8 makes the inputted part alternate name correspond to an original part name and they are stored.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a computer-aided so-called CAD circuit diagram editor.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A circuit diagram editor of this type is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 3-83168, and as shown in FIG. 6, all parts used before inputting a circuit diagram have already been registered in a library. It is usual to perform a search to find out (steps 61 and 62). As a result, if there is an unregistered component, the component is registered in the library by the library creation tool (step 64), and then a desired circuit diagram is input by the circuit diagram editor to complete it (step 63). If there are no unregistered parts,
Needless to say, similarly, the circuit diagram is input by the circuit diagram editor to complete the process (step 63).

As another method, as shown in FIG. 7, a circuit diagram editor is used to input a circuit diagram (steps 73 and 75), and a message indicating that there are unregistered parts is obtained. The unregistered parts are registered in the library (step 74), and the circuit diagram editor is returned to complete the circuit diagram (steps 73 and 75).

[0004]

The first problem with the conventional circuit diagram editor is that at the time of inputting the circuit diagram, even if the same component on the circuit symbol is registered in the component library, the name of the component to be used now If this is not the case, the part cannot be used, and a new part library registration is required. The reason is that the circuit diagram editor does not have a function of assigning an alternative name to a component name, and all processing is performed only with the designated component name.

The second problem is that many similar parts such as resistors and capacitors are registered, and the parts library becomes unnecessarily large. The reason is that the circuit diagram editor cannot handle the alternative names of the parts, so all the necessary parts are registered in the library.

Therefore, an object of the present invention is to improve flexibility and operability at the time of inputting a circuit diagram by allowing the circuit diagram editor to handle alternative names of components, and to use the circuit diagram editor at the same time. It is to reduce the capacity of the master library of parts as much as possible.

[0007]

According to the present invention, in a circuit diagram editor operating on a computer having an input device and a display device, it is instructed to give an alternative name to an existing component having a component name. A component alternative name input command unit, a target symbol inquiry command unit that prompts which component is to be processed at the time of inputting the alternative name, and a target symbol instruction unit that indicates a target symbol according to the operation of the input device, A target symbol recognition unit that recognizes the designated target symbol as a processing target, a dialog window display unit that displays a window for inputting the alternative name for the recognized target symbol on the display device, and the substitute in the window. A component alternative name input section for inputting a name and a component alternative name registration for registering the entered alternative name in association with the component name. And parts, schematic editor, characterized in that it comprises a control unit for controlling the entire operation can be obtained.

Further, according to the present invention, in a method of editing a circuit diagram on a computer having an input device and a display device, it is instructed to give an alternative name to an existing component having a component name. Recognizing which component is to be processed at the time of requesting the input of the alternative name, designating a target symbol according to the operation of the input device, recognizing the designated target symbol as a processing target, and recognizing Displaying a window for inputting the alternative name for the selected target symbol on the display device, inputting the alternative name in the window, and correlating the input alternative name with the part name. A method of editing a circuit diagram is provided, which comprises:

[0009]

[Function] When it is desired to change an already placed part to another part by design change or the like, when the circuit symbol of the target part is the same as the changed part, the part name can be easily changed by selecting the part alternative name input command section. be able to. Such cases are often seen in discrete parts such as resistors and capacitors, but as a result, unnecessary registration in the parts library is reduced and the weight can be reduced.

[0010]

Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic editor according to a first embodiment of the present invention. This schematic editor is an input device such as a mouse and C
It operates on a computer having a display device such as an RT and a main body device having a built-in CPU. Referring to FIG. 1, the circuit diagram editor includes a component substitute name input command unit 1 for instructing a component substitute name input, a control unit 2 for controlling the entire operation, and a processing target when a component substitute name input is instructed. Inquiries about which symbol is included, specifically, a target symbol inquiry command unit 3 that outputs an inquiry message, and an operator operates the input device to give an instruction to each object symbol or a rectangular area. And the target symbol recognition unit 5 that recognizes the designated symbol as a target symbol to which a component alternative name is given, and the recognized symbol. Dialog window display section 6 for displaying an input window for giving a component alternative name to a symbol on a display device, and an actual component A component alternative name input unit 7 for inputting a substitute name, a component alternative name registration unit 8 for storing the inputted component alternative name and the original component name in an external storage device or the like, and a created circuit diagram. It is composed of a file input / output unit 9 for accessing a parts library on the basis of data or outputting a netlist for interfacing with other systems such as a printed board design.

Next, the operation of the above-described circuit diagram editor will be described with reference to FIGS. Here, FIG.
The description will proceed on the assumption that the circuit shown in FIG. 3A has already been input. First, the part name “R” in FIG.
An example in which a component alternative name is given to each component for 4 "will be described.

In the state where the circuit shown in FIG. 3A is displayed on the screen of the display device, first, the operator selects the component alternative name input command section 1 for inputting the component alternative name (step 201). ). Then, the target symbol inquiry command unit 3 outputs a target symbol inquiry message via the control unit 2 (step 202). Therefore, the operator designates the component having the component name "R4" by the target symbol designating section 4 based on the operation of the input device such as a mouse (steps 203, 204, 205). The target symbol recognition unit 5 recognizes the result of the instruction as a processing target, that is, a target symbol (step 209), and the dialog window display unit 6 displays a window 11 for inputting a component alternative name for the component on the display device. (Step 210). FIG. 3B shows the state.

The display contents of the window 11 include a title bar indicating the input of a component alternative name, a product name of the current component, and a component alternative name input area in order from the top so that the target component can be easily grasped.

Next, the component substitute name "RM203" is input to the target component by the component substitute name input section 7 (step 211). The input state is shown in FIG. 3C. After that, the correspondence between the component alternative name input by the component alternative name registration unit 8 and the original component name is stored in the memory, that is, the internal memory and the external storage. Stored in device (step 2
12) At the same time, the screen of the display device is rewritten. FIG. 3D shows that state.

In this way, even if the component name is different, the same circuit symbol can be changed without creating a library of the component.

Next, a method of designating a rectangular area as another modification method will be described. Similar to the case where the component alternative name is given to each component, the description will be started from the state where the circuit shown in FIG. 3A is displayed on the screen of the display device. First, the operator selects the component alternative name input command section 1 to input the component alternative name (step 201). Then, the target symbol inquiry command unit 3 outputs a target symbol inquiry message via the control unit 2 in the same manner as the individual component instruction (step 202). Although different from the method for instructing individual parts from here, the operator can instruct a rectangular area by the target symbol instructing unit 4 of the input device and instruct a plurality of symbols included in the area as the target symbol ( Steps 203, 204, 20
6,207). FIG. 4A shows the state, and the part name “R” surrounded by a broken line is a target symbol.
1 ”and“ R2 ”are selected. Next, the plurality of designated target symbols are recognized by the target symbol recognition unit 5 (step 209), and first, the first component“ R1 ”.
The window 11 for inputting the component alternative name for is displayed on the display device by the dialog window display unit 6 (step 210).

Next, "NRZ01" desired to be the component alternative name of the component "R1" is input by the component alternative name input unit 7 (step 211). Figure 4 shows the input state.
(B), and thereafter, the component alternative name registration unit 8 stores the correspondence between the component alternative name just input and the original component name (step 212) and at the same time the screen is rewritten.
Here, in the case of the rectangle instruction, it is determined whether or not there is an unprocessed target part (steps 213 and 214). In the case of this example, since the component "R2" is unprocessed, the dialog window 11 is displayed again on the display device, and "NRZ20" desired to be the component alternative name is input by the same method. In this example, two parts are instructed, but if the number of parts is instructed to be more than a rectangle, the number of parts is repeated. FIG. 4C shows a state in which the component alternative name is finally given in this way.

Next, a circuit diagram editor according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 shows the relationship between the description format of the circuit diagram data after the input of the component alternative name described in the first embodiment, the component library, and the netlist to be output. The component name “R4” in the circuit diagram data description 51 indicates the original component name, and the component name “RM203” indicates the newly assigned component alternative name.

First, when the component library 52 is accessed, the component name "R4" that actually exists can be accessed without any contradiction.

Next, considering the case of outputting the netlist, the component alternative name indicated by the component name "RM203" in the circuit diagram data description 51 is output to the netlist 53 as the component name.

[0021]

The first effect of the present invention is that the flexibility of inputting a circuit diagram is dramatically improved by allowing a component alternative name to be given to an already arranged component. The reason is that even if the component names are different, if the same circuit symbol is already registered in the library, it can be easily used by using the component alternative name function of the present invention, and smooth circuit diagram input can be performed. It is in.

The second effect is that the number of component libraries can be minimized and the weight can be reduced. The reason is that the same circuit symbol only needs to be registered.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic editor according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart for explaining the operation of the circuit diagram editor of FIG.

FIG. 3 is an example of a screen of a display device used to explain the operation of the circuit diagram editor of FIG.

FIG. 4 is an example of a screen of a display device used for explaining the operation of the circuit diagram editor according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a related explanatory view showing the relationship of input / output files of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining an example of the flow of a conventional circuit diagram input.

FIG. 7 is a flow chart for explaining another example of the flow of the conventional circuit diagram input.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Component alternative name input command section 2 Control section 3 Target symbol inquiry command section 4 Target symbol instruction section 5 Target symbol recognition section 6 Dialog window display section 7 Component alternative name input section 8 Component alternative name registration section 9 File input / output section

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A component substitute name input command section for instructing to give a substitute name to an already arranged component having a component name in a circuit diagram editor operating on a computer having an input device and a display device, A target symbol inquiry command unit that prompts which component is to be processed at the time of inputting an alternative name, a target symbol designating unit that designates a target symbol according to the operation of the input device, and recognizes the designated target symbol as a processing target. A target symbol recognition unit, a dialog window display unit for displaying a window for inputting the alternative name for the recognized target symbol on the display device, and a component alternative name input unit for inputting the alternative name in the window , A component alternative name registration unit for registering the input alternative name in association with the component name, and control for controlling the overall operation And a circuit diagram editor. 2. The circuit diagram editor according to claim 1, further comprising a file input / output unit for reading the library with the component name. 3. The circuit diagram editor according to claim 1, further comprising a file input / output unit for outputting the substitute name as a formal part name in a netlist output which is necessary when designing a printed board for post-processing. A featured schematic editor. 4. In a method of editing a circuit diagram on a computer having an input device and a display device, giving an instruction to give an alternative name to an existing component having a component name, and Prompting which component is the processing target at the time of input request, designating the target symbol according to the operation of the input device, recognizing the designated target symbol as the processing target, and recognizing the recognized target symbol Displaying a window for inputting the alternative name on the display device, inputting the alternative name in the window, and registering the input alternative name in association with the part name. A method for editing a circuit diagram, comprising: