Schematic Editing

The schematic view is the logical side of your harness: which cavity connects to which. Physical lengths and routing belong to the layout view; a complete schematic with zero layout is a perfectly valid state. Press 1 to show the schematic in the active pane.

Basic mouse model: left-drag on empty space box-selects, Ctrl+click adds to the selection, middle-drag (or Space+drag) pans, and right-click opens a context menu everywhere.

Add connectors, terminals, and splices

Right-click empty canvas and pick ＋ Connector here, ＋ Terminal here, or ＋ Splice here — the new node spawns where you clicked. The same dialogs open from anywhere with the single-key hotkeys c, t, and s (rebindable — see Hotkeys).

The quick-add dialog is keyboard-first: the suggested name (CONN1, T1, SP1…) is pre-selected, Enter creates, Esc cancels.

Field	Notes
Name	The node’s label on the canvas.
Library part	Connectors only: pick a part to stamp its cavity count, cavity labels, and gender; or None — ad-hoc connector. See Parts library.
Cavities / Contacts	Stepper for ad-hoc connectors and splices. Terminals always have one contact.
Numbering	Ad-hoc connectors: Numeric — 1, 2, 3…, Alpha — A, B, C…, or Grid — A1, A2, B1… with rows × columns and a live preview.
Type	Terminals: a preset such as Ring, or Custom… free text.

You can change everything later in the Inspector — label, cavity count (stepper next to the Cavities heading), cavity labels, and a renumber-all control.

Add notes

Right-click the canvas and choose ＋ Note here for a free-floating sticky note. Double-click a note to edit it; the text commits when the note loses focus, and Esc cancels the edit.

Draw wires

Every cavity row has a connect handle on both sides. Drag from any cavity handle to a cavity on another node (or another cavity on the same node) to create a wire. Wires snap to nearby handles, so you don’t need pixel-perfect aim.

• Move an end — drag a wire’s end off its cavity and drop it on a different one; the other end stays put.
• Bend a wire — drag the wire itself to bow it aside. This adds cosmetic drag points that never affect the manufacturing data. Right-click the wire for Straighten wire (or Delete this point near a specific one).
• Delete — select and press Delete/Backspace, or right-click → Delete wire.

Name signals on cavities

Select a node and use the signal… field on each cavity row in the Inspector. Typing a name is net autocomplete: an exact match joins that existing net; a new name creates one. Clearing the field detaches the cavity from its net.

Cavities with a signal show a colored signal chip on the node. New wires inherit their net’s color, stripe, and default gauge automatically; per-wire values override.

Right-click directly on a cavity row for quick fixes: Move signal up, Move signal down (swap with the neighboring cavity), and Clear signal. A connector’s context menu also offers Clear all signals.

Note

A signal is documented intent, not an auto-derived electrical net. If a wire joins two cavities assigned to different nets, the Issues panel flags a signal.mismatch — it never blocks the edit.

Group wires: twists, cables, shielded cables

Select two or more wires with Ctrl+click or box-select, then right-click one of them:

Menu item	Result
⤫ Twist N wires	A twisted group — members weave through a shared section box with visible crossings.
▤ Make N-core cable	A multi-core cable — members run as straight parallel lanes in a shared box.
⛨ Make shielded cable	Same, with a shield jacket.

With only one wire selected, the menu shows a hint instead: Ctrl+click or box-select more wires to twist / cable them. To dissolve a group, right-click a member and choose Untwist group or Ungroup cable — the same actions appear in the Inspector, which also lists the other members of the group as clickable links.

Mated connector pairs

Select exactly two connectors and right-click one → ⇄ Mate connectors. Mated connectors show a ⇄ chip with their partner’s name and act as a zero-length junction when wire lengths are routed in layout.

To break into existing wires mid-run, right-click a wire (or a multi-wire selection) and choose ⌶ Insert inline pair. Each selected wire is split into two halves through a new, already-mated connector pair named INL1_A / INL1_B; the halves inherit the original signal, color, and gauge. This is the quick way to model a bulkhead or service disconnect.

Wire properties in the Inspector

Click a wire to open it in the Inspector (right-click → 🏷 Ident bands / label… jumps there too). Read-only rows show From, To, Net, the derived Length (or its routing status), and V-drop when the net has current data. Editable fields:

Field	What it sets
Gauge	Pick a common size for the doc’s gauge unit, custom…, or inherit from net.
Ident bands / label	Up to three colored ident bands plus a printed label (e.g. W12).
Color / Stripe	Base insulation color and optional stripe/tracer, from the palette. Cleared = inherit from the net.
Extra @ A / Extra @ B	Per-end extra length (service loop, strip allowance).
Override	Manual cut length that bypasses the routed length entirely.
Advanced — net electrical	Type (Power/Data), voltage, and nominal/max current — stored on the net, shared by every wire on it.

Everything here feeds the live cut list, BOM, and validation — see Exporting and, for the length model, Layout.