Connector transformation

Connector transformations are used when two mating connectors use different pin names or have a different order (or both). One connector might use 1 to 50, while the opposite is 50 to 1. Another example is a connector with 5 rows and pins names A1-A25 to E1-E25, which is used 180 degrees rotated and has its row numbers mirrored.

It can also be that different pin names have been used when creating the connector symbol(s). Or you have a COTS board that uses a different naming convention.

To overcome these issues BoardTrace is equipped with Connector Mapping. It allows you to re-define how connector pins connect between boards. The mappings are partly build-in and defined using regular expressions in configuration files, which can easily be extended by the user.

Example

Below is a (simplified) example of the effect of connector mapping. The right image shows an 'Flip' transformation applied. The pin numbers on the 2 row PCI connector were in reverse order. In order to have a correct connection the connector J1 needed to be flipped.