Connecting Electrical Devices Together

Devices can be connected by selecting connection points and creating mechanical constraints. You can connect electrical devices and manage deactivated constraints.

This task shows you how to:

Connect Electrical Devices
Create Multi-Device Connection
Manage Deactivated Constraints

Connect Electrical Devices

This task shows you how to connect electrical devices and select the available connection points.

Before you begin: Place devices directly under an electrical geometry, so that you can use contextual engineering connections and constraints.

From the Device section of the action bar, click Connect Devices

Important: The following mask

shows that the device is in Visualization mode. In Visualization mode, you need to make a first selection of the device to load the associated geometry before being able to select an available connection point.

Select the first device in the 3D area or in the tree.
Move the pointer over the second device before selecting it, as shown below:
The cavity connection point of the first device and the cavities of the second one are displayed in green: this means that it is possible to connect the first device to any of the cavities that are available on the second one.

If a cavity is already used or if no connection point is defined on the second device, it is displayed in red:

Click to select an available connection point on the device.

Devices are connected and mechanical constraints are added to the tree under the Engineering Connections node:

You can check connections by clicking Link Review from the standard area of the action bar and selecting your product. SIC1 and Equipment1 are connected.

Tip: You can also select the second connection point by clicking one of the following and get the same result:

Representation of the connection point in the 3D area
Corresponding label
Connection point in the tree

Create Multi-Device Connection

You can connect more than one device to the same connection point by selecting the dedicated Creation of multi-device connection option in Me > Preferences > App Preferences > 3D Modeling > Electrical and Electronic Systems > Electrical 3D Design > Device section.

The impacted electrical commands are: Connect Devices, Manage Links, Link Review and Smart Place from Catalogs / Database.

For more information about this option, see Creation of multi-device connection.

Repeat the four steps explained in the above section, Connect Electrical Devices.
SIC1 is connected to Equipment1.
In Me > Preferences > App Preferences > 3D Modeling > Electrical and Electronic Systems > Electrical 3D Design > Device section, select the Allow more than one connection to the same connection point option.
From the Device section of the action bar, click Connect Devices .
Select a third device and move the pointer over Equipment1.
When the Allow more than one connection to the same connection point option is checked, the selectable connection points are displayed with different colored labels according to their status (green: not connected / blue: already connected) in the work area. In our example, the Cavity label of Equipment1 is blue showing that this connection point is already connected to the device SIC1.
Select Cavity.2.
A message appears explaining that the connection point of Equipment1 is already connected to another device. You are asked to confirm if you want to continue:
- If you click No: a warning tells you that the connection will not take place.
- If you click Yes, the third device is connected to Equipment1.
This can be checked via Link Review which highlights all the devices connected to the selected device:

Manage Deactivated Constraints

You can reuse connection points in different configurations by deactivating the engineering connection and then reconnect them to another element.

In general, the deactivated connections are always ignored by electrical commands.

The presence of deactivated engineering connection does not prevent from creating a new engineering connection with the Connect Devices command.
The deactivated engineering connection is not be removed by the Disconnect Devices command.
The Link Review command does not display links through deactivated engineering connection.

From the Device section of the action bar, click Connect Devices .
Select both devices.
Start the Link review tool to check the links of both devices.
Click the Disconnect devices command to disconnect the two devices.
Note: Ensure the two devices have activated and deactivated connection for a given connection point.

Run the knowledge rule, AnalyzeElectricalConnectionPoint, for analyzing this connection point. See Electrical Functions.

If two devices are connected, but the engineering connection relations are deactivated, both devices can be re-connected through the same connection points.

The labels for connection points (which are already connected but engineering connection relations are deactivated) are displayed in yellow and selectable while creating new connection.

The two devices, already connected through deactivated relations, can be connected:

To a third device
Or with each other.

Note: Special cases:

If any of the two devices connected through deactivated relation is connected to third device, a warning informs you about the existing deactivated relations using one / both selected connection points and ask for confirmation for the creation of the new engineering connection.
If you try to re-connect two connection points which are simultaneously used in single engineering connection, which is deactivated, then instead of creating new connection, the deactivated relations between parent devices are activated. A warning is displayed to the user to get confirmation about the activation of existing engineering connection relations.

Important:

Only active engineering connection relations between selected devices can be deleted.
Deactivated engineering connection relations cannot be removed / modified.
If no active engineering connection relation exists between selected devices, the message informs you that it not possible to disconnect the selected electrical devices and you should check if they are connected.