In the software it is possible to create a function pool for a device. (Whether these functions are placed or not is irrelevant.) A verifiable function pool can be realized using part or device selection: Only when a device definition has been assigned, can unplaced functions be checked for errors and then a message generated about them.
The device definition is bound to the main function and is dependent on this, i.e. it is managed as part of the main function. The lifetime of a device definition and the function templates contained therein is thus bound to the main function.
If the main function (or the part) is deleted, then the device definition is also deleted. If the main function is copied, then the device definition is also copied.
Example:5 female pins are drawn in the schematic without a device definition. These pins are numbered as A1, A10, A100, A1000, and A2. Since no device definition exists, no error can be detected by the program.
Once a device definition has been defined (7 pole plug), the complete function pool is created and the placed connection points are automatically renamed:
A1 -> A1, A10 -> A2, A100 -> A3, A1000 -> A4, and A2 -> A5.
In the next step, the female pin is renamed from A5 to A7. The connection point A5 must not be lost and A7 may not occur twice:
Before renaming:
Function pool / Placed function
After renaming:
Function pool / Placed function
The placed function is this automatically assigned to the appropriate element in the function pool.
If the connection point number of the placed function is subsequently renamed from A1 to A2, then a conflict occurs because the functions assigned to the device no longer conform to the device definition. In this case an error message is generated.
There are thus the following types of device definitions:
- The classical device definition that is realized via a function definition. Here, a device definition is composed of a set of x function templates. In addition to the function type (function definition), the identifying properties of the function are also stored in each of these function templates (e.g., the connection point designations).
- The unplaced functions that (e.g.) accept data or can be wired.
See also