Electrical Design Software | Elecdes Design Suite by Scada Systems Ltd

How to Add Connections to Diagrams for External Equipment

You can insert connections from the current project directly onto existing wiring diagrams or terminal strips of equipment that is external to the EDS project. The existing diagrams can be drawings that were not produced by Elecdes, including raster image diagrams "scanned" into drawing files.

The external equipment connections to your project must be represented in the schematic drawings of the current project by inserting Elecdes "hybrid terminals".

The Wiring Diagram Generator recognises hybrid terminals found in your schematics and enables you to insert special wire diagram symbols that are intended to overlay individual terminals of the existing diagram for the "external equipment" and then add the EDS connection annotation to that diagram automatically.

Procedure

  1. Open the existing drawing that contains wiring diagrams or terminal strip diagrams of external equipment to which you wish to add EDS connections. This can be a non-EDS drawing including a scanned drawing.

  2. Start the Wiring Diagram Generator.

  3. For external terminal strips you must choose the wire orientation to match the existing diagram. For external devices this is not necessary because, for devices, you can change the orientation while inserting each conductor.

  4. You can move the conductors from side to side by editing them on the T-Strip Edit dialog.

    You cannot edit the order of the terminals in a "hybrid" terminal strip, you cannot add spare terminals and you cannot split a "hybrid" terminal strip. These operations are not appropriate as the connections are placed individually onto the existing terminal strip diagram of the external equipment.

  5. Select the entries in the device list for the external equipment that is shown on the current drawing.

    Each external device or terminal strip will show as one entry in the device list. Each device or terminal strip may contain more than one terminal connection that you will need to place individually.

  6. Click the [Create Wiring Diagram] button at the bottom of the Main dialog of the Wiring Diagram Generator.

  7. You will be asked to pick the location for each "hybrid" terminal of the existing equipment individually. The following steps repeat for each terminal of each selected external device or external terminal strip.

    • For a terminal of a device:

      1. Pick a point on the left, right, top or bottom edge of the terminal graphic in the existing wiring diagram as appropriate for the side on which the conductor should be drawn.

      2. Press the [TAB] key on the keyboard to set the conductor orientation.

      3. In the resulting drawing the conductors are the only visible part; the terminal is represented by only a small dot. Conductors are inserted on only one side of a terminal of a device.

    • For a terminal of a terminal strip:

      1. Pick the centre left (for a vertical strip) or centre top (for a horizontal strip) of the terminal graphic in the existing terminal strip diagram.

      2. The box shown when dragging a terminal strip terminal is the same size as the graphic that will be overlaid on the existing diagram. Unlike the terminals in a standard terminal strip diagram, the "hybrid" terminal symbol placed onto an existing diagram is not scaled during insertion.

      3. In the resulting drawing a (normally) rectangular visible terminal symbol is inserted that should overlay the terminal in the existing diagram. The conductors will be inserted on one or both sides of this terminal symbol as required.