Background

Modular circuit design allows engineers to create a set of electronics building blocks that can be reused and shared between products. The Circuit Block Manager facilitates reuse management and change control of a library of circuit blocks in a convenient and organized manner.

This brief video shows how simple it is to use a hierarchical schematic containing circuit blocks as the basis for a modular circuit block library within DS-CR.

My next blog post will show how to configure DS-CR with Circuit Block Manager – check back soon!

More information about modular circuit reuse can be found in these past Zuken Blog posts:

• Are you Making the Most of Modular Design With Design Reuse?

(For reference: https://blog.zuken.com/modular-design-reuse-1/)

• Circuit Modular Reuse Best Practices (Part 2)

(For reference:  https://blog.zuken.com/circuit-modular-reuse-best-practices/)

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Background

The destination matrix enables convenient viewing and editing of a component list that has part variants.  Variants were discussed in a previous Tech Tip: “Variation Management in Component Lists”.

This brief video will show how to configure the DS-CR Component List Master (CLM) parts list view to include a part number column for each destination.

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Variation management background

It is common for electronic product lines to share a printed circuit board assembled with different components depending on the features implemented for a specific product. For instance, a designer can use the same computer motherboard to build laptops that have more powerful or less powerful processors, different memory sizes, etc. Different targeted market regions often require different parts. For instance, power requirements and video formats vary by country. The component list for product variants is largely the same but needs to reflect the part differences for all the various products that use it.

Variation Management provides the means for the user to define the part numbers and mounting status of parts based on the product variation: delivery destination and model. Furthermore, Variant Management applications allow the user to easily switch views and export parts lists based on the destination.

Define variations and destinations

These are the steps to define the variations and destinations using DS-CR Component List Master (CLM).
1.    Define each of the variations by name and the available options
2.    Create destinations and assign the combination of variation options for them

The screenshot below shows how to define variations and destinations for a product with a motor driver circuit motors with different power ratings.

When a destination is added, its name is added to the list, and then the user selects the suitable variation values for it.

Assign variants to the component list

Parts that vary by model or destination are assigned a variation. Each variant has a unique row on the components list that contains its part number. A No Mount setting is used in case the part is not used for that variant.

This video shows how to add assembly variations to a component list in the DS-CR Component List Master application.

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I need an 80 MHZ network controller for my new project and I found one in the PLM/PDM system. That was easy. Now a quick check in the procurement database to do a price and availability check. So far so good, now on to the component engineering system to see if there are any possible lifecycle issues with a 10-year minimum requirement. It’s my lucky day, no issues and it’s a company-preferred part with an ECAD library instance.

Now that I have that critical part selected, I can start schematic capture. I need a 64.9K, .063W, .25% series resistor. There are 4 possible candidates in the corporate ECAD library. They all appear to meet the requirements, but the value descriptions are different –  64.9 K, 64.9Kohm and the last two are 64.9K ohm. Only one is flagged as ROHS compliant. Back to the component engineering database for verification so I pick the correct one

Does this back and forth routine sound familiar?

It’s not just an ECAD library anymore

Scenarios like this play out every day in all companies. The procurement group, design engineering, and component engineering all have varying data needs regarding the information contained in the corporate electronic\electrical component library. In most companies this has led to the proliferation of multiple databases, each serving the specific data requirements of the group that maintains the data. This situation has led to component research becoming an arduous and time-consuming task for design engineers. The bottom line is that design engineers must have the ability to make intelligent component selections involving critical supply chain information without having to leave their design environment. In today’s world, end-of-life status, lead time, part preference and trusted/consistent parametric data are as important to your company’s design process as is the standard CAD content.

There’s a better way

A good design data management system such as Zuken’s DS-CR, together with a trusted content provider such as SiliconExpert, provides the backbone for making your design environment the main source for engineering component selection.

• There is no need to bounce from database to database looking for component information.
• Procurement and lifecycle information is readily available ensuring that there are no downstream issues.
• Error-prone data entry of parametric data such as resistance value is virtually eliminated.
• Where Used tracking for your components offers benefits such as “End of Life” impact assessment.
• Components, design and ECAD library data are dynamically linked by DS-CR’s intelligent EBOM object.

Our upcoming webinar*,  “Connect Your Component Library to the Supply Chain and Avoid a Manufacturing Crisis”, explores how your design environment can become a “single stop” for component selection. If you’re in North America, register to attend on Wednesday, October 24th for the live webinar.

*Due to GDPR limitations, the live webinar is available in North America only. Please visit our web page for an on-demand recording after the presentation date.

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Vault File Distribution provides software automation to extract files from the vault and place them into specified locations to support the business process that rely on them.

Configuration

There are two configuration points to set up Vault File Distribution. The first step is done in the App-Coordinator. Select the files to export using DS-CR’s search feature. The second step is to define the run-time parameters in a properties file. Detailed instructions are provided below the video.

This video shows an example application of Vault File Distribution with the steps to configure and run it.

Create Distribution Group in the App-Coordinator

1. Right mouse key (RMK) on the Distribution Vault File and select New, as shown to below
2. Enter the same value for Code and Name in the resulting popup window
3. Use the Add Search Condition button to define the objects to be included in the distribution
   
4. Select the Search Condition and Category, then fill the Property filters to select the objects to include (Tip: Use the EPS search feature to determine the search conditions to meet your needs)
5. Select Sync Target as needed
6. Several search conditions can be defined to run when the distribution is expected. Specify Single Run Mode to execute them in sequence or Multi Run Mode to run them in parallel
7. The Distribution Vault File name, entered in Step 2, is referenced by an external program when the distribution is run

Vault Distribution Executable

The Vault Distribution executable – NdsVltDist – is included in the EPS install set and it is in the EPS installation directory. The environment variable DS2INSTALLROOT provides the path to it—enter %DS2INSTALLROOT% into the Windows File Explorer to navigate to it.

Properties file

A properties file is used to configure the executable; an example is provided below. The “#” character denotes a comment. Anything following it on a line is ignored.

[table id=VaultFileDistribution /]

Running the NdsVltDist program

The basic command format is: NdsVltDist  /P:propertiesfile

The paths to the program and the properties file are needed. Here is an example with the paths added:

%DS2INSTALLROOT%\NdsVltDist /P:C:\ZukenBatch\VaultDist\properties\docs.properties

To automate the process, the Vault Distribution program, NdsVltDist, is typically called from a batch file that is triggered by a scheduled task. These are advanced topics beyond the scope of this article.

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Clearly, earlier industrial revolutions were all about making better use of resources (e.g. burning coal to make steam), people (e.g. workers in factories) and, latterly, electricity and computer-controlled automation. For each revolution, the companies that did well were early adopters of the technology and practices of the day, and they recognised waste when they saw it.

So, what’s going to be the secret of success under Industry 4.0?

My resounding answer is Data. Or, more specifically, making better use of data.

In the world of engineering, many companies store their design data within their organization’s Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system. But the ‘resource’ it focusses on tends to be people and materials. Because of this, most engineering departments also use complementary solutions for Product Life Cycle (PLM), Product Data Management (PDM), Material Requirement Planning (MRP) and Document Management Systems (DMS).

However, there often is an alarming disconnect between the systems I’ve just mentioned and the tools engineers use, such as MCAD and ECAD systems – especially, if we go beyond traditional mechanical engineering into the domain of cyberphysical systems that comprise mechanical, electrical and software components. We know this because of the huge amount of time we, as engineers, spend on admin tasks. At Zuken we had an idea that this was a big problem, from talking to our customers. Indeed, a study we commissioned last year revealed worryingly that engineers spend only around half of their time on core engineering tasks.

What is an Industry 4.0 company?

I’d define one as:

1. Extremely dynamic, flexible and responsive to real-time market needs;
2. Having no physical/geographic limitations, as it is connected to sister companies, partners and suppliers via the Cloud;
3. Having seamless exchanges of data between all essential engineering design tools and PLM, ERP, PDM and DDM tool etc; and
4. Actively discouraging emails and phone calls in relation to any given project.

So, imagine life within a company that has really bought into Industry 4.0.

All design activities create or modify data that is shared with others. All other stakeholders see their respective subset of that shared data. Also, providing suppliers and contractors with restricted views (of that data) means bidding can start the instant a design is finalised. Moreover, no one need worry about the flow of the data because automated processes will greatly reduce (and ideally eliminate) the amount of time spent on admin tasks.

Under this fourth industrial revolution, making poor use of data will be as inefficient as having leaky valve seals on a steam engine under IR1, living with faulty electric motors under IR2 and incorrectly programming production line robots under IR3.

Further reading

• Find out how under Industry 4.0, maintaining and upgrading plant and equipment will become easier by making better use of engineering design data, in Maintenance: A design for life , by Marco Canducci, Industrial Plant & Equipment magazine
• Engineering Data Management guidance from Zuken

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