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Field Data Port


Sarajs

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Im not sure if this has been asked before, but I am looking to put a wall port onto a schematic drawing. How would I do that?

 

As a little background, I design museum AV and Lighting systems and need to show which data port in the field that a series of equipment is connected to, as well as the connection going from the rack room to that data port. Is there an easy way to do this and im just missing it?

 

Thanks!

 

Sara

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  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee

Hi @Sarajs

 

This is exactly what the Connector Panel was designed for. A way to model those facilities panels that litter museums, churches (in the US), conference centers etc. On the schematic you place Connector Panel devices using the tool. These are simply devices whose name begins with the prefix "CTP_". When you create Equipment Items from these devices the Equipment has a couple of extra buttons on the Object Info Palette:

 

Get Connectors - looks at the schematic and adds connector symbols inside the Equipment. You can move these around to set up the physical layout of your panel.

 

Create Panel Device - is for those people who like the design there panel layouts first and then do the wiring  schematic.

 

So this way you can have your wall ports represented both as physical equipment located on floor plans, and as devices on your wiring schematic.

 

Final wrinkle: Connector Panels can either be inputs or outputs. Since a Connector Panel is a chassis connector there are two circuits joining to it. One on the left and one on the right. One of these will have a cable connector, the other will be bare ends soldered or crimped to the back of the chassis connector. We symbolise bare ends as --> pr <-- depending on which way they are going. An input connector panel has bare ends on the right, and an output has bare ends on the left side. Kinda long explanation but it's actually quite simple.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Conrad

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This makes a lot of sense thank you! The one question I have (and I've had this issue with the jackfield tool as well) but there appears to be default values in the label legend that don't disappear when information is filled out. Do you know where the 01/01 data is coming from that is overlaid on top? It's making the tool quite un-useable...

 

Thanks!

 

Sara

Screen Shot 2021-07-30 at 10.36.32 AM.png

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • Vectorworks, Inc Employee

Hi Sara

 

Something weird going on with the system symbols here. I re-imported the symbols cp_IN and cp_OUT from the Imperial template, and replaced the connector panels on your drawing. And now they behave themselves. What I don't know is how it got messed up in the first place. If you remember any steps that got you here that would be helpful.

 

I've attached the corrected drawing. Obviously you'll have to sort out the labeling of the panels using the Edit Device Array button on the  Object Info Palette.

 

Hope I've helped and sorry for the delay.

 

Conrad

MIAC - Risers and Single Lines.vwx

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  • 1 month later...

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