Components, Pins & Positions
Components represent the physical devices in your design. Each has a mating behavior, derived from its shape or category, that determines how it connects:
- Connectors (e.g., Deutsch DT, DB9, Molex) have pins where conductors terminate. Connectors mate with other connectors via pin-to-pin mapping.
- Terminal points (e.g., DIN-rail terminal blocks, bus bars, spring-terminal PSU inputs) have positions — slots that receive terminations. Positions do not carry conductors directly.
- Terminations (e.g., ferrules, ring terminals, quick disconnects, flying leads) carry one or more conductors and mate with a single terminal point position.
See Mating Behavior for the full reference.
Creating Components
- Press C to enter Add Component mode.
- Click the canvas to place the component.
- Choose a category from the submenu (connector shapes, or functional types like circuit breaker, fuse, relay, etc.).
An automatic designator is assigned based on category (e.g., X1, CB1). Edit in the Properties panel.
Component Properties
Select a component to edit in the Properties panel:
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Designator | Unique label (e.g., X1, J3, CB1). Prefix from category. |
| Name | Optional descriptive name (e.g., “Engine ECU”, “Main Battery Fuse”) |
| Category | Functional type — determines designator prefix and BOM classification |
| Shape | Visual shape on the canvas (circular, rectangular, D-sub, terminal block, ferrule, ring, etc.). Connectors only. |
| Pins / Positions | Each component has one or more connection points. Connectors call these pins; terminal points call them positions. See Pin & Position Configuration. |
| Mating Behavior | How the component participates in mates and whether its connection points accept conductors. See below. |
| MPN / Manufacturer | Part assignment from the BOM. See Parts & BOM. |
Pin & Position Configuration
Configure pins (connectors) or positions (terminal points) in several ways:
- Properties Panel — Add/remove, rename labels, set functions.
- Bulk Editor > Components — Edit counts across all components in a table view.
- Quick-Add — Press P with a component selected to add a pin or position.
Each pin/position has:
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| Label | Number or identifier (e.g., “1”, “A”, “VBAT”) |
| Function | Optional functional description (e.g., “UART_TX”, “GND”) |
| Detail | Optional notes (e.g., “24V, 0.14A fuse”, “Open drain”) |
Conductor endpoint properties (termination method, contact PN) are per-conductor, not per-pin/position. See Parts & BOM: Contact Part Numbers.
Bridged Positions
Bridged positions are internally connected pins or positions — e.g., bus bar terminals or common-rail positions on a terminal block. All bridged entries resolve to the same net and share signal assignments.
Creating a bridge:
- Select a component, open the Positions (or Pins) tab.
- Check two or more rows, then click the Bridge button in the table header.
- The bridge group appears in the Bridged Positions section below the table — edit members with the chip selector, or remove the group with the × button.
Multiple independent bridge groups are supported on a single component (e.g., positions 1–3 bridged separately from positions 4–6).
Visual indicators:
- Schematic — colored vertical lines with dots connect bridged pins on the opposite side from wire exits. Colors cycle per group: green, blue, orange, purple.
- Pin table — a colored bar with a group number badge appears on the left edge of each bridged row.
Jumpers
Jumpers are external accessories (separate BOM parts) that bridge positions on terminal blocks — distinct from inherent bridged positions which represent factory-internal wiring. See Terminology: Jumper.
Requirement: The component must have Terminal Point mating behavior for its positions to accept jumpers. This is the default for terminal block shapes. Other component shapes can be set to Terminal Point via the mating behavior override in the Properties panel.
Creating a jumper:
- Right-click a position on a terminal point component → New Jumper. This creates a jumper (e.g., JB1) starting with that position.
- Right-click another position (same or different terminal point component) → Add to JB1.
- Click the jumper in the summary panel to open its properties — set designator, color, and MPN/manufacturer.
Visual indicators: Jumper positions show as colored dots on the bridge indicator column, slightly larger than inherent bridge dots, using the jumper’s assigned color. When a position is both inherently bridged and in a jumper, the jumper color overlays the bridge dot.
Key differences from bridged positions:
| Bridged Positions | Jumpers | |
|---|---|---|
| Source | Part spec or manual override | User-created accessory |
| BOM | No separate entry | Own BOM entry (MPN, manufacturer) |
| Scope | Single component only | Can span multiple terminal blocks |
| Color | White (inherent) | User-assigned |
Mating Behavior
Each component has a mating behavior, derived from its shape or category, that determines how it participates in mate relationships and how its connection points function:
| Behavior | Connection Points | UI Label | Accepts Conductors | Mates With | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Connector |  | Electrical contacts in a multi-pin interface | Pins | Yes | Other connectors (pin-to-pin mapping) |
| Terminal Point |  | Individual slots that receive terminations | Positions | No | Terminations |
| Termination |  | A single connection point | Pin | Yes | A specific terminal point position |
The default is derived from the component’s shape or category. Override it in the Properties panel dropdown. Flying leads are always treated as terminations.
When mating a terminal point with multiple positions, a submenu lets you pick which position to mate. Occupied positions are grayed out. See Connections & Conductors: Mates for creating mates, Bulk Mate, and alignment.