Suggestion: allow components to be Grouped and add a simple Off-chip terminal component

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cross mob
Anonymous
Not applicable

When drawing a schematic, I frequently find there is no good way to represent an off-chip functional module or integrated circuit. I usually use a group comprising a rectangle and some text objects, and then just end wires in space on top of the rectangle outline. This is not ideal because if you move the group you have to manually adjust all the wires. An alternative is to use TestPoint components or Connector components with one terminal, or maybe a Terminal, but all these give over-elaborate and inappropriate renderings. Also it is not currently possible to include a Component Catalog symbol in a Group (why not?), so you still cannot make a component which can be moved as a unit with automatic adjustment of wires.

   

A similar problem is with internal components like the SCB which do not model all their pins (why not?). So again I find I have to manually add, for example, RX and TX legends on top if the SCB and similarly just end the external wires on top of the component outline. Again you cannot include an on-chip component in a group.

   

A good solution to both these issues would be to allow components to be grouped and have a very simple new Off-chip component. This would just be a short stub line with a legend and a wire attachment point on one end (like the Cypress Pin component but without the internal end). These could be grouped with a Cypress component to add missing pin representations, or with a simple rectangle to compose a model of any module or component.

   

I thought of asking for a generic IC component, but on reflection I think the above is better. Experience in other Schematic packages is that the positioning of pins on the component rectangle is generally over-constrained limiting the ability to position the pins for an esthetic and logical schematic layout.

   

However another useful feature would be the ability to add a composed group to the Component Catalog as a user-defined component. This would be useful both for Off-chip and On-chip components (storing pre-wired compositions of existing components along with configurations).

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1 Solution
JobinT_31
Employee
Employee
50 solutions authored 25 solutions authored 10 solutions authored

Hello John,

   

Can  you please check if custom component creation can address all your issues. Grouping on and off chip components, creating a integrated circuit etc. Please note that you can create off chip components as well.
To create component please refer component author guide [Help-> Documentation-> Component Author Guide] or there are some videos available as well: http://www.cypress.com/resource-types/video/psoc-creator-custom-components
Please find the image where I am able to create an IC like external component and wires are rendering properly.

   

   

Thanks

   

JOBIN GT

   

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5 Replies
JobinT_31
Employee
Employee
50 solutions authored 25 solutions authored 10 solutions authored

Hello John,

   

Can  you please check if custom component creation can address all your issues. Grouping on and off chip components, creating a integrated circuit etc. Please note that you can create off chip components as well.
To create component please refer component author guide [Help-> Documentation-> Component Author Guide] or there are some videos available as well: http://www.cypress.com/resource-types/video/psoc-creator-custom-components
Please find the image where I am able to create an IC like external component and wires are rendering properly.

   

   

Thanks

   

JOBIN GT

   

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Anonymous
Not applicable

Thanks Jobi,

   

I was vaguely aware of component creation, primarily as a way of creating new digital components. This does look like I could rectify some of the issues, but it is quite a heavy-weight process and I am always wary of spending all my time honing tools rather than using them! I'll probably give it a go to create a simple off-chip connection point.

   

However it would be a lot simpler if we could compose modules in the schematic editor simply by grouping symbols and then adding the group to the component catalog. It is hard to see why the existing grouping mechanism does not allow groups to include components from the component catalog.

   

- John

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I don't mind creating the components out of boxes, lines and text but it would be great if one could draw an external type line anywhere on the page.

They only seem to appear if connected to an off-chip component.

Sometimes I want to be able to draw a line from a grouped object that I created to a Cypress component.

Whenever I do so it draws a digital or analog wire.

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The only legal way connecting internal and external components is through a Pin, which represents a chip physical terminal. You can use annotation library for making supplemental schematics:

Annotation library for CY8CKIT-059 Prototyping Kit

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John,

Such option already exists in Creator: arrange components on a page and save them as a "template". The schematics will appear in the Components catalog.

/odissey1

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