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PAR M1.3 - PAR appears to ignore soft range constraints


Record #2398

Problem Title:
PAR M1.3 - PAR appears to ignore soft range constraints


Problem Description:
In some cases, PAR appears to ignore soft range constraints,
placing the constrained components outside the specified
range, with no warning message or other indication that this
is happening.

A soft range constraint is a constraint that is used to
guide placement, but PAR will place components elsewhere
if the costing algorithms override the constraint. A hard
range constraint will not be overidden by other factors and
the PAR session will either follow the constraint or error
out if this is not possible.

Reference #11273


Solution 1:

PAR does in fact pay attention to soft range constraints
by factoring the constraint into its costing algorithms.
A site outside the specified area may still be the lowest cost
solution even though the soft constraint has increased that
cost. A hard range constraint should be used to guarantee
placement within a range.



End of Record #2398