I need to be able to drop a custom panel that I create in Stardraw into a block diagram.

Example:

I have floor boxes, wall plates, ect. around the facility that have XLR jacks for example in custom made & engraved panels.

I need to be able to draw a wire from these XLR jacks on the panel to a patch bay in my source rack.

In order to label the wiring and have it shown in my design and reports, I need to have a symbol in my block diagram of each custom panel.

HELP??

How can I do this easily?

Of course each panel is going to have a different number and type of connector(s) so an easy way to solve this seemingly road-blocking problem would be great!

Thanks for the input.

Mi Matt,

It sounds like you want to be able to show connections to custom panels in the Block Schematic view and then generate cable schedule reports from those connections.  (Note: I put this down because it's important to understand the actual problem you're trying to solve.  The correct solution to a problem may be very different from any preconceptions or assumptions you've made.)

In the Block Schematic view, reportable connections must be made to an I/O stub on a Symbol.  The I/O stub generates a 'Connector' object at the point where it touches the red outline of the symbol, and it is this connector object that allows rubber-banding (where the cable/dogleg follows the symbol if you move it) and reporting to work.

Therefore, in the Schematic environment you need to create a symbol that represents your panel with one or more I/O stubs.  You could do this using the Symbol Wizard, or by drawing it from scratch, or by editing existing Block Schematic symbols.  Once you have the symbol with I/Os you will be able to connect to it and generate reports.  Note: you can embelish the symbol in any way you see fit, and this could include adding the Panel Layout view of the panel (scaled and/or modified in other ways), but such embelishments won't impact on the core functionality that you're looking for.  The only thing that matters from a functional standpoint is the I/O stub/outline relationship.

I hope this is helpful.

Kind regards,
Rob Robinson
Stardraw.com