Multisim and Ultiboard

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ripped up components

I have an existing circuit board layout. I need to change two resistor values, add one resistor and add two capacitors.

 

I have changed the schematic with no problems. But when I forward annotate to the PCB layout Ultiboard rips up all of the connectors, 11 alphanumeric displays, two speakers, and five ICs! These are moved outside the board edge along with the new components.

 

What should be a ten minute board modification has become a mess that will take days to clean up!

 

1. This is totally stupid! Why is it doing this?

 

2. Please tell me that there is a way to defeat this stupidity. If not, the program goes into the trash!

 

Phil

 

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Message 1 of 11
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Hi Phil,

 

A forward annotation should not remove the placed components and traces. It should just show you the changes that are being made to the netlist like in your case, it would be the adding of some new components etc. The new components should show up outside the board outline.

 

Is it possible for you to send us your files and I will take a look at what is causing the issue.

 

On your part, when you do a forward annotate, when it opens Ultiboard, please make sure the netlist is only showing the changes being made and not the complete netlist.

Regards,

Tayyab R,
National Instruments.
Message 2 of 11
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The forward annotation list does have the information for adding new components in the layout and making connections to nets.

 

But it also has a long list of statements to the effect:

 

Item  Difference  Schematic  Layout  Action in layout

 

XX     Footprint   PartN                     Change device to PartN

 

So it is changing an existing part to the same part, thereby pulling it out of the layout and putting it on the outside of the board outline.

 

In all cases I have made no changes to the schematic for the parts that are being replaced by the same part. It is ripping up almost every part on the PC board. Why is it doing this?

 

It would have taken less than 30 minutes to make these changes in any other program. I have been flailing with this problem for over a month. Nothing I can find in the documentation helps, and nothing I have tried works.

 

Phil

 

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Message 3 of 11
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Here is a bit of information that might help.

 

The board was originally designed by someone else. Almost every component is not found in the National Instruments library, but is from a custom library.

 

I do not have that library.

 

Clearly the schematic and the layout have all of the elements of the parts - symbol, footprints, etc. I have not changed any of these things, so there should be no reason for the program to make changes.

 

Furthermore, when the components are ripped from the existing layout and placed around the board outline, they are the same custom components that were on the board before forward annotation, and not parts from the NI library..

 

Do you suppose the missing library has something to do with this problem?

 

Phil

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Hey I dont know how to connect the multisim with Labview. Please share any simple example programs to understand.

 

 

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Message 5 of 11
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Hi Phil,

 

I tried running some tests to see if I could re-produce the problem but I was not able to. I created some custom components and used them in my design and then removed them from my database but still, it did not seem to do what you are seeing. It still kept everything on the board except the things which I added.

 

Is it possible for you to send us your files and we can take a look at what is causing the issue. You can go to the link below and create a service request and we can try to resolve your issue.

 

https://lumen.ni.com/nicif/US/GB_SRM/content.xhtml?du=https://sine.ni.com/srm/app/myServiceRequests

 

Regards,

Tayyab R,
National Instruments.
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Message 6 of 11
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I have started a service request.

 

Thanks.

 

Phil

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Message 7 of 11
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I want to get AC signals from mulisim to Labview. For that i have completed small heater circuit in Multisim.

 

Now i want to connect multisim with labview. While connecting with labview " Unspecified error " is occured. I dont know how  to resolve it.

 

Please help to resolve it. I have attached my program

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Message 8 of 11
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Hi,

 

This issue is not linked to this thread. Please start a new thread for this issue.

Regards,

Tayyab R,
National Instruments.
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Message 9 of 11
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The problem:

 

The original files were created in Multisim/Ultiboard V8.

I am using V11

V8 files are incompatible with V11!

 

It took more than a month of hassling with the forum and NI tech support before someone finally stopped saying "it shouldn't do that" and admitted that V9 and later are incompatible with existing files!

 

When Multisim reads older files it translates component footprints from the common industry wide names like SO-8 to some 12 to 15 character gibberish. All components in the schematic file are changed.

 

When you forward annotate to the layout file Ultiboard says "look, all the components have changed" and rips up the entire design!

 

What a piece of crap! (Actually, my opinion of the %^&*^$ at NI who decided to create this incompatability cannot be printed)

 

The solution:

 

I opened the V8 layout file in Ultiboard V11. I then saved every component to a user database with encrypted footprint names that Multisim will never recognize.

 

Then I edited every component in the V8 file in V11 Multisim to replace the footprint standard names with the matching encrypted names. These were saved to the database. Then I replaced the components in the schematic with the new components from the user database.

 

What a PITA!

 

****

 

Finally, after 2 1/2 months I have finished a job that would have taken 3-4 hours in any other program!

 

After this job is done I will never touch this crapware again!

 

Phil

 

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