kicad-developers team mailing list archive

[Karl Schmidt <karl@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On 12/15/2010 08:25 PM, Wayne Stambaugh wrote:

> Maybe I should change the current pin_swap to
> pin_relocate and use pin_swap to indicate that pins are interchangeable
> a the net list level.

Yes - that is the terminology used with other CAD systems (PadsLogic, Orcad-capture etc).. Pin swap 
- gate swap is about swapping pins/gates to facilitate routing.

So to move a pin in a schematic symbol, we should call "symbol pin relocate"? Or movable symbol pins?



 So for a 7400 gate A:
> [(pin_swap 1 2)]  #indicates that the inputs can be swapped by the router.

You will see how they supported it in that PADS doc.. a swap number is assigned to pins and gates - 
swaps can only occur with the same number - and zero is unswappable.

> This would this not be a feature in the schematic capture program?  An
> excellent idea but I don't see it as a requirement of the part file or
> the part file editor.


The eeschema has to supply the information (via netlist) to PCBNEW so it knows which pins within a 
Unit are swappable. Gates are swappable within parts of the same type. (You could swap and-gate A of 
U7 with and-gate B of U4)  Pin and gate swappability-numbers are attributes of schematic pins and 
Units (AKA gates) respectively.

Once the pins and gates are swapped - the information information goes back to eeschema to update 
the changes. (for gate swapping This should be similar to renumbering reference designators  based 
on circuit board location and sending it back to eeschema. The only mess would be from swapping pins 
- a few diagonal connections would appear ).

With auto-swapping in PCBnew, even resistor ends would get swapped (they would have the same pin 
class) so that you don't spend time rotating and then fixing the reference.


Your schematic-symbol pin-relocation deal has issues in the other system I remember - I think it was 
limited to exchanging two pins so they would not wander away from the symbol the schematic. The pin 
would pick up it's length and direction from the one it was traded with.








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Karl Schmidt                                  EMail Karl@xxxxxxxxxxxx
Transtronics, Inc.                              WEB http://xtronics.com
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