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Is it possible to include fused terminal blocks in a terminal strip?

Question asked by Justin Arseneault on Dec 24, 2015
Latest reply on Jan 15, 2016 by Justin Arseneault

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I'm working on converting our drawings into SolidWorks Electrical and I'm trying to find a way to add fused terminal blocks to the schematics. I've been able to add fuses, but they need to be shown as terminals in the terminal strip drawing. I tried putting a fuse between two terminals, but that isn't really what I need here. Does SolidWorks Electrical support fused terminal blocks?

Thanks in advance!

Justin Arseneault Jan 15, 2016 2:09 PM

Correct Answer

I got some help from Hawk Ridge tech support on getting my terminal strips set up the way I want and found a fairly simple solution for this. When adding manufacturer parts to a terminal block I can add a fuse as an auxiliary part. The fuse then shows up in the BOM. To differentiate between the fused terminal blocks and the normal ones, I can do as Michael and Robert suggested, and create a custom symbol with type set to terminal. Thanks to both of you for your help!

For anyone else trying to figure out terminal blocks with fuses, here are some steps (assumes terminal with built in fuse holder, where fuse is a separate part):

Choose an existing symbol or create a new one to represent your fused terminal blocks in the schematic. Ensure the symbol classification is terminal and that it has one circuit with two connection points
Place the fused terminal blocks in your schematic as you normally would
Double click on a terminal symbol and go to the "Manufacturer part and circuits" tab to add manufacturer parts.
1. Find and select the terminal part you are using or add it if it is not in the list. Make sure you are searching for a base type part.
2. Find and select the fuse part you are using or add it if it is not in the list. Make sure you are searching for an auxiliary type part.

This method should result in the fused terminals showing as a single part in schematics and terminal strip drawings, but with both the terminal/fuse-holder and fuse shown in the BOM.

I hope this is helpful for others. If anything here seems incorrect, please feel free to correct it.

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Michael Frose Dec 30, 2015 4:24 PM

You can create a symbol for this in the Schematic, but i think you will need an Component Entry for the fuse, too?

Can you give us a little bit more Details what you want as result?

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Justin Arseneault @ Michael Frose on Dec 31, 2015 2:58 PM

Ideally the fuse should show up in the terminal strip as one of the terminal blocks. This is how our terminal strips look in AutoCAD:

The blocks labeled F# are terminal blocks with fuses. This is what terminal strips look like in SolidWorks:

This is great, except it doesn't include the fuses I've inserted in the circuit. In the picture below, you can see part of a circuit with a fuse on one side of the power supply and a terminal block on the other. F1 needs to be replaced with a symbol that still denotes a fuse, but that SolidWorks would recognize as a terminal block and include in the terminal strip drawing above. I know I can make new symbols, but can I make one with that intelligence built in? Would copying and editing a fuse symbol allow me to do this?

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Michael Frose @ Justin Arseneault on Jan 4, 2016 10:39 AM

I think that this is not possible today.

You could make a terminal symbol like this O---Fuse---O, which would help in the Schematic but not in the terminal strip drawing.

A possible workaround could be to manually adjust the terminal numbering to the component Id of the fuse.

But you will run into trouble with the components since it is not possible to add several manufacturer parts to one terminal.

You will need one part for the terminal and one for the fuse itself.

Actions

Justin Arseneault @ Michael Frose on Jan 8, 2016 4:41 PM

Thanks Michael,

For now I'll use a fuse symbol in between two terminals of the same terminal block and use the same mark for both the terminal and the fuse. It doesn't look quite as nice, but I think it will be easy to understand as long as everything is labeled well.

Actions

Robert Degiorgio Jan 9, 2016 5:37 AM

You could make a copy of the fuse symbo,l then in the properties change the classification from Fuse to terminal (see figure).

this will help you to show the fuses on the terminal stip drawing.

Actions

Justin Arseneault Jan 15, 2016 2:09 PM

For anyone else trying to figure out terminal blocks with fuses, here are some steps (assumes terminal with built in fuse holder, where fuse is a separate part):

Choose an existing symbol or create a new one to represent your fused terminal blocks in the schematic. Ensure the symbol classification is terminal and that it has one circuit with two connection points
Place the fused terminal blocks in your schematic as you normally would
Double click on a terminal symbol and go to the "Manufacturer part and circuits" tab to add manufacturer parts.
1. Find and select the terminal part you are using or add it if it is not in the list. Make sure you are searching for a base type part.
2. Find and select the fuse part you are using or add it if it is not in the list. Make sure you are searching for an auxiliary type part.

This method should result in the fused terminals showing as a single part in schematics and terminal strip drawings, but with both the terminal/fuse-holder and fuse shown in the BOM.

I hope this is helpful for others. If anything here seems incorrect, please feel free to correct it.

Actions

6 Replies

Michael Frose Dec 30, 2015 4:24 PM
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Correct Answer
You can create a symbol for this in the Schematic, but i think you will need an Component Entry for the fuse, too?
Can you give us a little bit more Details what you want as result?
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- Justin Arseneault @ Michael Frose on Dec 31, 2015 2:58 PM
  Mark Correct
  Correct Answer
  Ideally the fuse should show up in the terminal strip as one of the terminal blocks. This is how our terminal strips look in AutoCAD:
  The blocks labeled F# are terminal blocks with fuses. This is what terminal strips look like in SolidWorks:
  This is great, except it doesn't include the fuses I've inserted in the circuit. In the picture below, you can see part of a circuit with a fuse on one side of the power supply and a terminal block on the other. F1 needs to be replaced with a symbol that still denotes a fuse, but that SolidWorks would recognize as a terminal block and include in the terminal strip drawing above. I know I can make new symbols, but can I make one with that intelligence built in? Would copying and editing a fuse symbol allow me to do this?
  Like • Show 0 Likes0
  Actions
  - Michael Frose @ Justin Arseneault on Jan 4, 2016 10:39 AM
    Mark Correct
    Correct Answer
    I think that this is not possible today.
    
    You could make a terminal symbol like this O---Fuse---O, which would help in the Schematic but not in the terminal strip drawing.
    A possible workaround could be to manually adjust the terminal numbering to the component Id of the fuse.
    
    But you will run into trouble with the components since it is not possible to add several manufacturer parts to one terminal.
    You will need one part for the terminal and one for the fuse itself.
    Like • Show 0 Likes0
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    - Justin Arseneault @ Michael Frose on Jan 8, 2016 4:41 PM
      Mark Correct
      Correct Answer
      Thanks Michael,
      
      For now I'll use a fuse symbol in between two terminals of the same terminal block and use the same mark for both the terminal and the fuse. It doesn't look quite as nice, but I think it will be easy to understand as long as everything is labeled well.
      Like • Show 0 Likes0
      Actions
Robert Degiorgio Jan 9, 2016 5:37 AM
Mark Correct
Correct Answer
You could make a copy of the fuse symbo,l then in the properties change the classification from Fuse to terminal (see figure).
this will help you to show the fuses on the terminal stip drawing.
Like • Show 0 Likes0
Actions
Justin Arseneault Jan 15, 2016 2:09 PM
Unmark Correct
Correct Answer
I got some help from Hawk Ridge tech support on getting my terminal strips set up the way I want and found a fairly simple solution for this. When adding manufacturer parts to a terminal block I can add a fuse as an auxiliary part. The fuse then shows up in the BOM. To differentiate between the fused terminal blocks and the normal ones, I can do as Michael and Robert suggested, and create a custom symbol with type set to terminal. Thanks to both of you for your help!

For anyone else trying to figure out terminal blocks with fuses, here are some steps (assumes terminal with built in fuse holder, where fuse is a separate part):
1. Choose an existing symbol or create a new one to represent your fused terminal blocks in the schematic. Ensure the symbol classification is terminal and that it has one circuit with two connection points
2. Place the fused terminal blocks in your schematic as you normally would
3. Double click on a terminal symbol and go to the "Manufacturer part and circuits" tab to add manufacturer parts.
  Find and select the terminal part you are using or add it if it is not in the list. Make sure you are searching for a base type part.
  Find and select the fuse part you are using or add it if it is not in the list. Make sure you are searching for an auxiliary type part.
This method should result in the fused terminals showing as a single part in schematics and terminal strip drawings, but with both the terminal/fuse-holder and fuse shown in the BOM.

I hope this is helpful for others. If anything here seems incorrect, please feel free to correct it.
Like • Show 0 Likes0
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Is it possible to include fused terminal blocks in a terminal strip?

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