Hi there,

I got a problem with distributing a device, which I partitioned into sub-parts, onto (hierarchical) sub-sheets of a schematic. If I select my device divided into 9 parts from the library, place it onto the top sheet and then try to distribute each sub-part onto a new sub-sheet by cut and paste, the "ICx.y" numbering gets mangled and the connection to the original device is seemingly destroyed. By the looks of it, DipTrace is making a completely new part from the sub-part of a partitioned device, which is not what I want. Each sub-sheet with a sub-part shows up as a complete footprint of the overall device on the layout editor.

For clarity, I'd like to partition my complex devices (like FPGAs) into sub-parts for ease of use and simplify the schematic for a great deal. Those sub-parts are to be distributed onto sub-sheets.

Can the problem be solved in any way, or has this kind of approach not yet been considered by the team?


Best regards

PCBee

Copying(cutting) and pasting parts of multi-part component from one sheet to another one is error-prone action. If you do it I suggest to verify RefDes and part RefDes. All parts of a component should have the same RefDes (without dot!) but different part RefDes.
If you use hierarchy, all parts of multi-part component should be within a block definition (sheet) or on top level of hierarchy. If you place parts on different hierarchical sheets, software will not combine these parts into single component.

If you can't solve the problem, please send the file to support at diptrace dot com.

Thanks for your answer, Alex.

I'm currently working with a 144-pin FPGA, which is still relatively simple. But what, if I'd like to use a 676-pin FPGA one day and want to partition it? If I'm forced to put all sub-parts onto one single sheet, this is going to be a hell of a lot confusing and huge. Very ugly to work with. Hence, I'd like to propose to add to DipTrace the distinct support to spread device sub-parts onto (possibly hierarchical) sheets. I don't know if other schematic tools on the market support this, but I'd find it incredibly useful to produce clear schematics with very complex components.

I'd appreciate if your team could put some thought into this. In my experience, DipTrace is the best and most usable tool I've ever worked with. This is a feature that I think could give DipTrace an extra edge. Maybe some other forum people could state their opinion on this matter, too.


Thanks again and best regards
PCBee

We will consider the problem and will try to improve hierarchy in future.
Notice, you can use flat circuit (without hierarchy) and place different parts of multi-part component on different sheets.