Applied Parameters: None
Summary
This command is used to place a Blanket object onto the active document. The Blanket Directive is a powerful feature in Altium Designer's Schematic Editing domain. It enables other parameter-set based directives to quickly be applied to a group of nets, simply by 'covering' those nets with a blanket. When placing a blanket, you can either define a simple rectangular shape, or a polygonal-shape. The latter gives more precise control over coverage of the required net objects on a sheet.
For detailed information about this object type, see
Blanket.
Access
This command can be accessed in the Schematic Editor by:
- Choosing Place » Directives » Blanket from the main menus.
- Locating and using the Blanket command (
) on the Active Bar.
If the command has been recently used from the Active Bar, it will become the active/visible button. Where other commands are available, this is indicated by a triangle at the bottom-right corner of the button. Click and hold on the active button to access a menu of all associated commands for that grouping.
- Right-clicking and choosing Place » Directives » Blanket from the context menu.
Use
After launching the command, the cursor will change to a cross-hair and you will enter blanket placement mode. The procedure for placement depends on whether you are creating a rectangular-, or polygonal-shaped blanket.
To place a purely rectangular blanket:
- Position the cursor and click or press Enter to effect placement of the top-left corner.
- Position the cursor and click or press Enter to effect placement of the bottom-right corner.
- Right-click or press Enter to complete placement.
- Continue placing further blankets, or right-click or press Esc to exit placement mode.
To place a polygonal-shaped blanket:
- Position the cursor and click or press Enter to anchor the starting point for the blanket.
- Position the cursor and click or press Enter to anchor a series of segments that define the shape of the blanket.
- After placing the final segment, right-click or press Esc to complete placement. There is no need to "close" the polygon as the software will automatically complete the shape by adding required segments to connecting the start point to the final segment placed.
- Continue placing further blankets, or right-click or press Esc to exit placement mode.
Placement mode features a look-ahead aspect, represented by a finer, dotted line. This is most useful when defining a polygonal-shaped blanket. Use it to see how the overall shape of the blanket will look, before committing further segments. Complex/self-intersecting polygonal shapes are not supported. The software will simply prevent such shapes from ever being formed.
Press the
Tab key during placement to access the
Properties panel, from where properties for the blanket can be changed on-the-fly. Pressing
Tab pauses placement, allowing you to interact with the panel (or other area of the software) directly. To resume, click the pause symbol that appears over the workspace.
Tips
- For information on how a placed blanket object can be modified graphically, directly in the workspace, see Graphical Editing.
- While attributes can be modified during placement (Tab to bring up the Properties panel), bear in mind that these will become the default settings for further placement unless the Permanent option on the Schematic - Defaults page of the Preferences dialog is enabled. When this option is enabled, changes made will affect only the object being placed and subsequent objects placed during the same placement session.