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Quick Tip Tuesday – Verifying Your Projects Settings

If you have ever wondered or wanted to verify exactly where your project was finding the database that it is using, then this tip is for you!

To begin, you simply right-click on your project and select “Settings…”

Once you make that selection, you will see the dialog below:

In this dialog you can use the radio buttons towards the bottom to switch between viewing the schematic details and the panel details.  With each selection, the top section will tell you where the various supporting files are being located for the project while the bottom section will show you the search path sequence that is being used.

I hope that you find this quick tip useful!!

-Jared Bunch

Block Names in AutoCAD Electrical

In AutoCAD Electrical the following block naming convention is used for schematic components:

• The first character is either "H" or "V" for horizontal or vertical wire insertion.
• The next two characters are reserved for family type (for example, PB for push buttons, CR for control relays, LS for limit switches). A zero (0) as the second character of the family type means that the symbol does not trigger a wire number change through it. (For example, T0 for terminals, W0 for cable markers, C0 for connectors.)
• The fourth character is generally a 1 or a 2: 2 for child contacts and 1 for everything else (parent or standalone component).
• If the symbol is a contact, then the fifth character is a 1 for normally open, 2 for normally closed.
• The remaining characters are not specified. They are used to keep names unique.

Most of the time if you create a custom schematic symbol and don't follow this naming convention there are not drastic consequences. For example, if you don't use "H" or "V" as the first character, AutoCAD Electrical may have to rotate a symbol if it is placed over a wire with the opposite orientation rather than use the symbol with that default orientation. The Toggle NO/NC command may not work if you don't use the 1 or 2 as the fourth character to indicate the contact type.

But, the rule "A zero (0) as the second character of the family type means that the symbol does not trigger a wire number change through it.", can produce very undesirable results if not followed. I recently had a customer report an issue that they could not insert destination arrows on a symbol. The symbol was a black box with multiple wire connections. They were able to insert a destination arrow on one connected wire but after that they would receive a message that the wire network already had a destination arrow.

After investigating I realized the symbol had a zero as the 3^rd character in the block name. So, AutoCAD Electrical saw every wire connected to it as part of the same wire network and would not allow multiple destination arrows on one wire network. The fix was to resave the custom symbol with a block name following the naming convention and then using the Block Swap to update the existing drawings.

So be careful with that 3^rd character when you name your custom blocks used for schematic symbols. Only use a zero if you intend it to be a pass-through component where all wires connected to it are seen as part of one wire network.

For more information see the Help topic, Overview of symbol naming conventions.

- Pat Murnen

Project-Wide Utilities and Scripting in AutoCAD Electrical

The Project-Wide Utilities feature in AutoCAD Electrical is kind of a catch-all for changes you might want to make project-wide such as setting all wire numbers as fixed, changing attribute sizes, and importing wire types.

Project-Wide Utilities also has an option to run a script. The script can contain standard AutoCAD commands, API calls, calls to custom programs, and lisp functions. Pretty much anything you can type on the AutoCAD Electrical command line can be put in a script. And to make this even more useful the drawings don't have to be AutoCAD Electrical drawings (unless you are using AutoCAD Electrical commands in the script).

Follow these steps:

1. Create the script containing the commands or API calls just as you would enter them on the command line.
   Note: Make sure to use .scr extension when you save the script file.
2. Test the script on one drawing to make sure it works using the AutoCAD SCRIPT command.
3. Create a project containing all the drawings you want to run this on.
4. Run the Project-Wide Utilities; Project tab > Project Tools panel > Utilities .
5. Select "Run command script file".
6. Browse to the script file.
   
7. OK and select the drawings to process.

Example script:

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Layer OFF RED_18AWG

(c:ace_new_wiretype "DC-WIRE" (list "WIRE COLOR" "BL" "SIZE" "16AWG" "_COLOR" "BLUE" "_LTYPE" "DASHED" "_LWEIGHT" "2.5") nil)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Notice the blank line after the layer command. This blank line is like pressing Enter to terminate the command. The script file should also end with a blank line. However, make sure there is only one blank line at the end. Extra blank lines will repeat the last command.

-Pat Murnen

Quick Tip #2–Finding that Missing Catalog Data

Whether you’re wrapping up a project that you started from scratch or one that you acquired from a colleague, one thing that you always want to make sure of is that the BOM is complete.  AutoCAD® Electrical has a quick and easy feature to help with this, it is the "Missing Catalog Data” report.  You can access this command either directly from the ribbon, or from within the schematic reports UI:

Once you generate the report, you will see the common AutoCAD Electrical reporting UI where you will see what is missing catalog information:

This is a good start, but the really nice thing about this, is that now you can select the “Surf” button and quickly go from component to component correcting the problem:

Keep in mind that you do not want to leave this surf command until you are done, otherwise you will have to re-run the report.  Everything that you need should be within this dialog from zoom/pan controls to the ability to edit the component that you are currently at.  Also, the little “x” will be placed next to each component in the list as you visit it to help you keep track of where you’ve been!

I hope you find this quick tip useful!!

-Jared Bunch

Parametric PLC in AutoCAD Electrical

AutoCAD Electrical supplies hundreds of PLC modules if you install every manufacturer (maybe thousands - I've never actually counted). But, if you look at the drawings in the library folder you won't see many PLC modules. That is because AutoCAD Electrical builds most of the PLC modules on-the-fly. The end result is a block with attributes, but it is actually built from a small set of building blocks. This method has some advantages over supplying all those PLC module blocks (besides taking up less disk space).

• Module adapts to the rung spacing
• I/O style can be selected at insertion time
• Breaks and spacers can be added as needed

Of course AutoCAD Electrical can't supply every possible PLC module. So, that means there are times when you need to add a module. Or you might want to change how an existing module is built. But, with this parametric method it is a little more complicated than just opening a library symbol and making the changes. All the information to build a module is stored in the PLC database file, ace_plc.mdb. But, you don't have to edit that file directly. The PLC Database Editor should be used to make all modifications.

Watch this video for an overview of the Parametric PLC feature and using the PLC Database Editor.

 

-Pat Murnen

AutoCAD Electrical for design and service - AFM Customer visit

I was in Los Angeles last week and had the opportunity to visit with Charlie Irwin at AFM Engineering in Santa Ana, CA.  AFM makes automated machinery for printing for various industries including medical and consumer products and Charlie has been doing this for 32 years now.

             

They use AutoCAD Electrical for their schematic designs, whether it's for a new customer machine, or retro-fitting an old machine with new controls.  

The biggest benefit that Charlie sees in AutoCAD Electrical is that you get a complete documentation package when you use ACE for controls design.  The wires are numbered and colored you get full schematic documentation, and anyone who has the machine now has a manual to perform any servicing that is needed.  Most companies have AutoCAD, and the fact that they have the schematics documented in AutoCAD Electrical is a great selling tool for AFM.  In fact, they advertise on their website that they use AutoCAD for their documentation.  

Charlie also appreciates how easy it is to reuse old components, make modifications and swap out components, and create his own custom library of parts.  It may take a little work to create these custom components up front, but in the long run, there are less mistakes made on the shop floor and less rework needed.

Another invaluable part of Charlie's success has been the service he has received from his local reseller KETIV.  They are always there to provide support and training where needed.  KETIV is one of Autodesk's finest resellers, and my thanks to their President, Kanwar Anand, for taking me around to visit with customers when I was in LA.

JWC Environmental reaps the benefit of moving to AutoCAD Electrical

Ever hear of the Muffin Monster?  No, it’s not a kitchen experiment gone horribly wrong, but a dual-shafted wastewater grinder produced by JWC Environmental of Santa Ana, California. Started in 1973, JWC Environmental invented the first dual-shafted wastewater grinder that they eventually named the Muffin Monster. Today they manufacture over 200 versions of grinders and screens for sewage and sludge processing.

To design their grinders, JWC Environmental relied on several different software platforms including VersaCAD, ExpertCAD, and Pro-E. To consolidate their solution, they worked with local Autodesk reseller, KETIV, and made the move to Inventor, AutoCAD Mechanical, and AutoCAD Electrical. The story of that move is documented here. 

We pick up their story on the Electrical side of the house. As for any machinery, JWCE had to create control schematics to operate their machines. They originally used VersaCAD to create their electrical schematics, but learned quickly that, with Autodesk, they had access to AutoCAD Electrical for this purpose. There were several advantages JWCE saw in using AutoCAD Electrical for their electrical schematic design, including

-        BOM generation

-        Convenient cross referencing between parts

-        Ability to quickly move, shift and add components

The JWCE team appreciated the built-in intelligence that AutoCAD Electrical brought to the table, especially being able to break and reattach wires to components. It was a more productive, less error-prone method than basic 2D schematic drawing.

Consistency is also important to JWCE and, with AutoCAD Electrical, they now create standard templates for their schematics. As more of their team moves to AutoCAD Electrical, the plan is to modify the current manual transfer of BOM information into their ERP system, and eventually make the process automatic.

As the team ramps up on learning the product, Rob Sabol, Director of R&D at JWCE, sees nothing but faster design creation, iteration, and productivity over the coming months as the team moves to using AutoCAD Electrical as a standard for their schematic design.  KETIV has been instrumental in support and training classes to bring their engineers up to speed on the Autodesk products, especially AutoCAD Electrical. Standardization is important to Rob’s team as it builds consistency, a repeatable process and makes for easier modification of designs.  We will certainly  follow-up with Rob and JWCE towards the end of the year to see how the experience has been for them.

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Customizing Circuit Builder – how the circuit is built (part 3 of series)

Customizing Circuit Builder is a pretty big topic so I have broken it down into multiple articles and videos. This article builds on my previous articles and videos about Circuit Builder. Previously I talked about how the spreadsheet, circuit templates, and marker blocks control what options are shown on the dialogs. I also talked about how to set the defaults for the various circuit elements.

This video focuses on how the circuit is built. More specifically:

• How to link each circuit element option to an action in the spreadsheet
• How to define what Circuit Builder should do at each marker block

Electrical Controls in Industrial Robots

Not too long ago, I posted a piece about the FIRST Robotics competition, Electro Mechanical design on a smaller scale.  Well, here is a scaled up version!!  Autodesk just released a press release that you can read here:

Autodesk.com newsroom.

It speaks to how Kawasaki Heavy Industry adopted Autodesk Digital Prototyping software to design electrical controls in industrial robots.  To quote Hashimoto-san, the GM of the Robot Division

"... With AutoCAD Electrical, we can achieve greater efficiency and productivity in our design work, helping us to continue developing and manufacturing the best industrial robots in the world"

Here is an example of these bad boys!

- Ananda Arasu

Autodesk University 2012 Call for Proposals - now open!

The Call for Proposals for Autodesk University 2012 is open now till May 22nd.  There will be 4 key industry segments featured this year: Automotive, Industrial Machinery, Building Product Fabrication, and Consumer Products.  We are interested in classes that help engineers thoroughly understand the tools used for designing, visualizing, and simulating their designs digitally.  Find out more information here: http://bit.ly/KZMlmK. Send in those proposals!

- Ananda Arasu