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Parent page: PCB Panel
The PCB Library panel
The PCB Library panel enables you to browse footprints stored in the active PCB library document and edit their properties. When a PCB Library document is active, the panel becomes populated with information pertaining to the constituent footprints of that library. The panel also offers the ability to pass on any changes made to them directly to the PCB design document.
The panel is accessed from the PCB Library Editor in the following ways:
The panel has three main sections, each offering a different scope or view of the footprints in the active PCB Library:
As a footprint is selected in the panel, its constituent primitives populate the Footprint Primitives section and the footprint is displayed in the main editor workspace. Selecting a primitive object in the panel causes the corresponding object to be highlighted in the editor workspace. In this way, the PCB Library panel offers a fast and easy way to browse, view and access PCB library footprints.
The contents of the list can be filtered, enabling you to quickly find a particular footprint within the library. This is especially useful if the library contains a large number of items. Filtering can be applied using the following methods:
This method uses the Mask field at the top of the panel to filter the contents of the list. Masking is applied based on the entry in the field. Only those footprints in the list targeted by the scope of the entry will remain displayed.
Use the *
wild card operator for more elaborate filtering. For example, typing m*
will display only footprints whose names begin with m
, or as in the image below, typing *16
will display only footprints that contains 16
in the name.
This method is available for all list regions in the panel and allows you to quickly jump to an entry by directly typing within the area of the list. Masking is not applied, leaving the full content of the list visible at all times.
To use the feature to quickly find a footprint, click inside the Footprints section of the panel then type the first letter of the footprint to which you want to jumps. For example, if you wanted to quickly jump to footprint entries starting with the letter S
, you would press "S
" on the keyboard. The first footprint in the list starting with S
will be made active, and the letter will be highlighted to indicate that filtering of the list is based upon it.
If there are multiple footprints starting with the same letter and especially if the library is particularly large, type additional letters to target the specific entry you require, for example, "SO
" as shown below.
In some situations it may be helpful to use Indirect and Direct filtering together. If, for example, you recall that the footprint you want to locate has a sub-type number of 4
and a prefix of PO
, this information can be used as Indirect (Mask) and Direct entries.
PCBCOMPONENT_1.
The Footprint Primitives section lists all primitive objects that constitute the footprint currently selected in the Footprints list. For each primitive entry, the following information is displayed:
As individual object primitives are selected in the panel, the matching object (track, arc, pad, etc.,) is graphically highlighted in the editor workspace.
Selecting an entry in either panel list region applies a filter, essentially using the entry as its scope. The visual result of the applied filtering on the document in the design editor window is determined by a series of highlighting controls located at the top of the panel.
Any combination of these options can be enabled. For example, you might want to have all filtered objects zoomed, centered and selected in the design workspace as well as applying masking to take away the clutter of other design objects. Use the Clear button to clear the currently-applied filter. All objects in the design workspace will become fully visible and available for selection/editing. If you want to re-apply the filter, click the Apply button.
The bottom section provides a mini-viewer for the document, with an image of the active footprint central to its window. The area currently displayed in the design editor window is denoted by white hash marks as highlighted in the following image.
Click the Magnify button at the top of the panel to provide a floating magnifying glass and zoom cursor in the design editor window. As you move these around in the workspace, the mini-viewer in the panel will contain the magnified image of the active footprint centered on the cursor. This allows you to browse the document at full size in the design editor window, while looking at zoomed detail in the mini-viewer window.
Use the Page Up and Page Down keys to increase or decrease the magnification. Right-click, click or press Esc to exit magnify mode.
LibraryName.CMP
) in the same folder as the source PCB library document and will automatically be opened as the active document in the design editor window. The report lists information including footprint dimensions, a breakdown of the primitive objects that constitute the footprint, and the layers on which they reside.PCBCOMPONENT_1
.*.PcbLib
). You cannot edit the footprints in an integrated library (*.IntLib
). You would have to de-compile the integrated library first then edit the required footprint(s) in the source PCB library document(s). The source can then be recompiled to produce the updated integrated library.Contact our corporate or local offices directly.
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