Create library device to use board as component?

Additional note:

If creating the new component mostly manual, one time-saver is to find the library components that the original board used (for example, its headers), and copy that component's package into the new library component.  For this purpose, it can be useful to open the original board file and export its library using exp-lbrs.ulp.

Still laborious, but saves having to recreate individual pads and their silkscreens.

-- Graham

Try "http://www.cadsoftusa.com/downloads/file/hierarchical_v1.1.zip"

HTH

Hi Morosh, thanks for the suggestion.

I see how this collection of scripts and ULPs address hierarchical design (presumably less needed with Eagle 7?), but I don't see how it relate to my problem.

Bear in mind, I'm not trying to do hierarchical design where I am revising the smaller module so its schematic can become part of a larger schematic, from which to make a single integrated board.

I actually want to use the already existing physical product as a plug-in (or solder-on) component on a new board.

I don't need to include the existing board's schematic in my own hierarchical schematic, nor do I want the existing board's circuitry to be "reprinted" onto my new board. I just want to use the existing board, as is, as a component. Hence I need a library part for that existing board.

I hope I didn't misunderstand your scripts and ulps -- but I think they don't help for my task (except perhaps as sample code if I need to write this from scratch).

-- Graham

these collection of scripts and ulps serve two goals: hierarchical designs and transforming a couple schematic/board to a device in a library so it can be used as a normal component, simply don't use ulps for hierarchical designs

HTH

Hi Morosh -- I messed around with this for an hour in hopes of understanding what it does but got stuck.

First, my guess was to do this:

• Open the source project (in this case https://github.com/adafruit/Adafruit-MAX31855-breakout-board, v2). Open both the schematic and the board.
• Run your script make_device.scr, which in turn calls several ulps.

I ran into several problems, and finally got to one I don't know how to solve, so I stopped.

1. The generated toto.scr file includes lines to rem existing dev and sym. This causes error dialogs to appear. I modified code to avoid those dialogs, but later discovered that was unnecessary, it's possible to just OK the error dialogs and continue.

2. I ran into further errors attributable to there being a space in the file name of the schematic and board which the code didn't handle. I fixed that by renaming the board and schematic.

3. Now the code hits an error at:

create_package.ulp   "Reference to uninitialized object variable"

      E.package.contacts(c) {

          dia = c.pad.diameter[1]/GRID_DIV;   <---- error

          xx1= c.pad.x/GRID_DIV;

It looks like c should be initialized by contacts(), so I'm not sure what's going on, and I'm not familiar with what debugging strategies are available for eagle ulps.

-- Graham

Actually, those ulps and scripts don't support SMDs. I'll try to update them ASAP.

Morosh:  Thanks for the reply. I infer from your comment that the error occurs because some pads don't have holes?

Anyhow, I'll be very interested to see what your tool does, once it's working. I'm puzzling whether it will know which pads are for connectors that correspond to the "device pins", and also whether it will copy the mounting holes to the new device.  I guess if it copies too much, those elements can always be deleted.

Thanks for looking at this.

-- Graham

On 8/7/2015 7:47 PM, Graham Wideman wrote:

Additional note:

 

If creating the new component mostly manual, one time-saver is to find

the library components that the original board used (for example, its

headers), and copy that component's package into the new library

component.  For this purpose, it can be useful to open the original

board file and export its library using exp-lbrs.ulp.

 

Still laborious, but saves having to recreate individual pads and their

silkscreens.

 

Hi Graham,

I think the best way to handle this is to use the EXTERNAL attribute

to to create a symbol representing that board.

Check out the libraries that Newark distributes for Arduino, BeagleBone,

and Raspberry Pi.

They use this method to indicate on the schematic that an external board

needs to be plugged into.

I think this is what you need from reading the rest of the posts.

Let me know if there's anything else I can do for you.

Best Regards,

Jorge Garcia

Hi Jorge: Thanks for the reply.

I am pretty sure you misunderstood this question.  In a separate thread I asked how to represent an off-board component, for which you suggested using the [underscore]EXTERNAL[underscore] attribute, and that was great (-ish... still requires separate library part -- sniff).

Here I'm asking how to start with schematic/board "A", (one that probably has headers on it that can plug into another board), and use that existing project "A" to create a device/package/symbol ("A-As-Component") that can be used on schematics/boards ("B"..."Z") that can receive A-As-Component.

I don't see how EXTERNAL helps at all with that.

> Check out the libraries that Newark distributes for Arduino, BeagleBone, and Raspberry Pi.

> They use this method to indicate on the schematic that an external board needs to be plugged into.

Actually, I just used the Arduino library in another project. It doesn't involved indicating EXTERNAL anywhere. It provides an Arduino symbol/package/device which gets *included* on the new PCB -- that's kind of the point.

But since you bring it up, the process I'm asking about is the process for producing such a library component (like Arduino) when you already have the schematic and footprint of the Arduino.

-- Graham

I am looking to do the exact same thing! Did you ever solve this?