You can use the auto-wiring feature to connect the pins on a part to the component signals on a NetGroup wire. You can also connect pins and wires to the signals on a NetGroup block.
To auto-connect Part Pins and / or wires to a NetGroup wire
- From the Place menu, choose Auto Wire then choose Connect to Bus.
Or click the Auto Connect to Bus button on the Draw toolbar.
Capture is now in the Auto-Wire mode. Notice the cursor changes to the Auto-Wire cursor. -
Select any number of pins and / or wires to be connected to the NetGroup wire.
Since you are in the Connect to Bus mode, you do not need to press the Ctrl key to multi-select points on the page.
- Select the NetGroup wire.
As soon as you select the NetGroup wire, the Select Nets dialog box displays the list of all the signals contained in the selected NetGroup with checkbox to the left of each signal. And a checkbox to the left of the NetGroup name. - Check each of the signals in the NetGroup that you want to connect to the pins.
In the Select Nets dialog, you can check the items at any level. This implies that you can select individual signals, NetGroups or buses. If you select a NetGroup or a bus, all the contained signals are selected. - Click OK.
The nets that connect the part to the bus are assigned aliases depending on the signals in the NetGroup that are connected to the pins on the part.
For example, if you create a NetGroup N1 that contains two signals S1 and S2. If these signals are connected to a part, the aliases that are assigned to the connecting nets are N1.S1 and N1.S2. However, if you rename the net alias defiend for the NetGroup or signal within the NetGroup, Capture will auto-rename the signals.
So if you rename the NetGroup net alias to, say, P1, Capture will immediately rename the net aliases on the connecting nets to P1.S1 and P1.S2.
Also, if you rename the NetGroup signals to, say, T1 and T2, Capture renames the net aliases to P1.T1 and P1.T2. For details on renaming signals in a NetGroup, see To rename a NetGroup member.
Further, say you connect a NetGroup hierarchical port HP1 to the NetGroup wire N1. The connectivity of the NetGroup hierarchical port will override the connectivity of the NetGroup wire. So, if you now auto-wire the NetGroup to the part, the aliases on connecting nets are HP1.S1 and HP1.S2. This means that renaming the NetGroup hierarchical port will affect the net aliases names. However, renaming the NetGroup wire will not affect the net wire will not affect the names of the net alias names.
Consider the above scenario, where you chose a combination of a NetGroup wire and a NetGroup hierarchical port. Say you auto-wire the part to the NetGroup wire. Immdiately the net aliases are set to N1.S1 and N1.S2. Now, the net aliases naming (and auto-renaming) is associated with the NetGroup wire. So, if after this you connect the NetGroup hierarhcial port to the NetGroup wire the net aliases are not renamed to the port. Note that this is only for purposes of net alias naming. The connectivity of the nets still depends on the precedence of objects. So the pins on the part are shorted to the signals on the NetGroup port. This can easily be verified by checking the flat net names of the connecting nets.
To auto-connect Part Pins and / or wire to the signals in a NetGroup block
- From the Place menu, choose Auto Wire then choose Two Points.
Or click the Auto Connect two points button on the Draw toolbar.
Capture is now in the Auto-Wire mode. Notice the cursor changes to the Auto-Wire cursor. - Click the pin or wire to start the net.
As you move the cursor across the page, notice a wire, from the start pin or wire, is formed. And the wire stretches as you move across the page. - Click the NetGroup entry pin on the NetGroup block.
A wire is created between the pin / wire and the NetGroup entry. - Choose the selection tool to exit the Auto-Wire mode or go back to step 2 to Auto-Wire other pairs of pins and wires on the page.