Copying Component Placement?

[David]

Hi all,

Something that has been bugging me for a while and I cannot find a solution. I have multiple parts of my PCB design which I would like to be the same. Is there anyway to select a component placement and apply it to another set of components? 

[Zman]

the most natural way is to use Rooms and Hierarchies :
http://techdocs.altium.com/display/ADOH/Creating+a+Multi-channel+Design

place your repeating schematics on to a separate sheet(s), make copies of them OR use Repeat(), then system will create several PCB rooms for you, each assigned to a particular sheet. Then at PCB layout stage you can "Copy room formats" between them.

[T3sl4co1l]

You can also copy locations (T, O, F, load a file), but the refdes and locations have to match.  If it's worth going to the trouble of this, you'll probably update the refdes in the file by hand, and move the original group out of the way first (because your new load will be right on top of them..).

If it's not too many, you can just line them up by hand, on the grid or by snap.  Select the group, save the selection (CTRL+1 or other number), place, then recall selection (ALT+1) and move away (click and drag or M,S, click).

Or you can find them in the PCB List Panel, sorted appropriately (and you might want to filter by selection and by type = Component, so you don't have to pick them out of the full list), and copy+paste the X1, Y1 coordinates.

And there's probably stuff by Paste Special or other means.

If all else fails, using List and Excel (or just popping up some good old fashioned scripts) to match up components, and adjust the coordinates for each so you have them going exactly where you want them, first time every time, is very powerful.  Many added steps of course, but almost unlimited possibilities.

Tim