<< Click to Display Table of Contents >> Navigation:  The graphical user interface > Circuit Objects > Customizing Components

 

New components are inserted into the circuit via the Component selection menu, from the Clipboard, or from disk files via File|Import. When you insert a new component into the circuit window the default values will be loaded from the support file and the component will appear in a red color. You have to open it with a right-click or a left double-click to specify it's attributes and characteristics. This will bring up the Open Component dialog, except for probes, geometric lines/cables LCC, and the transformer models BCTRAN and XFMR which have their own tailor made dialogs.

 

From the Open Node dialog you specify the attributes of a single component node. This dialog box is displayed when you right-click or double-click on a node.

 

To open and edit the common attributes of multiple components you double-click in a selected group of objects and specify new values in the Open Selection dialog.

 

Groups, User Specified components, and Model can be password protected (via the Protect checkbox in their input dialog). This will disable the possibility to edit and examine the content of the element.

 

Data values can be values, expressions or variables.

•Values can take the format 23.45e-2, 112, 0.0000213, 45e6. Some Data has min/max restrictions as set in the support file (Library for global, Edit definitions for local settings).

•Variables are only allowed when explicitly stated in the support file (Edit definitions, Param=1) or when the Internal Parser is used. BCTRAN and XFMR do not allow Variables (but LCC does). Variables can be maximum 6 characters with the Internal Parser, 5 otherwise. Variables cannot start with a number. Do not use XXnnnn, Xnnnn, IXnnnn either as these can have node name conflicts.

•Expressions are always allowed. The expression is converted to a value when OK is click in the component dialog. Expressions following the Variable rules are allowed (with KNT=1), for instance sqrt(2/3)*24e3 or sqrt(2)*100*cos(2*pi*30/180). Mixtures of expressions and variables are not allowed.

•If any of the rules above are violated, the user is given a chance to correct the data specification.