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BOM not populating all descriptions

15 REPLIES 15
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Message 1 of 16
croland
3279 Views, 15 Replies

BOM not populating all descriptions

I think we found a problem with AE 2012.  There are times when we generate a BOM of a panel, some items does not have all descriptions populated in the BOM for some reason.  Everytime this happens we check and every description has been filled in. The only "fix' we found is to do catlog lookup and click on the part again and then the descriptions will appear like they are suppose to. 

 

We are having this some problem consistantly with the din rail we use.  All the information is there in the database but it does not appear on the BOM

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15 REPLIES 15
Message 2 of 16
leeholl
in reply to: croland

Without seeing the drawings it is difficult to know what the issue may be. I know you said the data is in the database, but there must be something odd or missing with the data. Did you try a project database rebuild?

 

Regards,

Lee

 

Message 3 of 16
croland
in reply to: leeholl

I have done AEREBUILDDB multiple time.  The scratch DB rebuild does nothing for the problem.

Message 4 of 16

Hello,

 

Would you please help to provide a simple project to reproduce this issue? and also if you can provide some screenshot for the issue, that will be very helpful for us to look into the issue and also provide the solution if there is.

 

Thanks,
Robin Shou
Quality Assurance

AutoCAD Electrical

Autodesk, Inc.

Message 5 of 16

In AcadE when a BOM report is run here is what happens behind the scenes -

 

1) get the catalog values on the component

2) determine the table in the catalog database that this catalog is from

3) pull out the extra fields like description

 

I believe that it is having trouble in step #2 - determine the table in the catalog database.

 

In AcadE this is done in one of two ways -

1) on schematic components it will use the block name and if it follows the naming convention described in the Help (http://wikihelp.autodesk.com/AutoCAD_Electrical/enu/2012/Help/0266-Symbol_L266/0269-Library_269/0270...) it will look for table names that match. For example, if the block name is HSS123LI it ignores the first character (which indicates horizontal or vertical) and looks for a table SS123LI, then if that isn't found SS123L, and keeps lopping off the last character until it finds a match.

 

2) on components that do not match the naming convention such as all panel components, there is an attribute called WDBLKNAM or xdata VIA_WD_WDBLKNAM. The value on this is supposed to be the catalog table name. When you use the catalog lookup to assign the catalog value the WDBLKNAM value is also filled in. But, if you type the catalog and manufacturer values in then this is missing. (This is not to be confused with the WDBLKNAM column in the catalog database tables which has a different function).

 

So my guess is that sometimes you are typing in the MFG and CAT values rather than using the catalog lookup. And then the WDBLKNAM value is not there or not correct. Then when you go in and do the catalog lookup, the WDBLKNAM value is added, and next time the BOM report works fine.

 

You can verify if my guess is right by checking on a panel component that the fields are missing in the report. Look for either a WDBLKNAM attribute or more likely look at xdata using xdata editor (Project tab > Other Tools panel > expand panel) and see if there is a VIA_WD_WDBLKNAM. If it is missing you can add it manually in the editor and give it a value that matches the table name the catalog is found in. This is just to verify if my guess is correct.

 

This issue has been logged but I would recommend on panel components always using the catalog lookup to assign a catalog. This way the WDBLKNAM value is assigned automatically.



Pat Murnen
Principal Content Developer
Product Development – AutoCAD Product Line Group

Autodesk, Inc.

Message 6 of 16
Lab_Rat
in reply to: PatMurnen_Adsk

Hi murnenp,

 

I have searched for several hours and found this response. I believe I am having the same issue but after going through everything you mentioned I am still unable to make a component show up on a report. I was curious if you had any other suggestions for things to check.

 

I am using AutoCAD 2011.

 

Please let me know if you need anything specific to help with this issue.

 

Regards,

 

Jake

Message 7 of 16
PatMurnen_Adsk
in reply to: Lab_Rat

Jake,

 

Can you send me a drawing that I can look at? Send it to pat.murnen@autodesk.com.

 

Also, let me know which component to look at if the drawing has more than one. And if possible, run the BOM report and place the report as a table before you send the drawing. That way I can see exactly what you are getting.

 

Regards,

Pat

 



Pat Murnen
Principal Content Developer
Product Development – AutoCAD Product Line Group

Autodesk, Inc.

Message 8 of 16

Sorry to revive a rather old post, however, my issue is regarding custom footprints. Is there any way to add this XDATA information using Symbol Builder? We've created a host of custom footprints, using symbol builder, and most if not all of them are missing the VIA_WD_WDBLKNAM xdata.  If I manually add it to each item, on the drawing (after insertion) the reports work fine. However, the next time the footprint is inserted, the Xdata is gone, and I have to manually add it again. I thought this is supposed to be automatically added when the footprint is inserted into the drawing?  If not, how can I add it to the exsiting components, so the next time it comes in it already has the data?  

Message 9 of 16

Normally, the xdata VIA_WD_WDBLKNAM is added when you assign the catalog value through the catalog lookup. If the catalog is added some other way, then the xdata value is missing. I assume this is what is happening?

 

The value in the VIA_WD_BLKNAM xdata tells AutoCAD Electrical which table to look in for the catalog information when the Bill of Material report is run. If it is missing or the there is no value on it matching a catalog table or value within the table then the report can be missing the values pulled form the catalog.

 

Xdata is used when the information is added to the block on the fly but AutoCAD Electrical will actually look for this information as an attribute first. The attribute would be just WDBLKNAM. So you could add the WDBLKNAM attribute and the appropriate value to the footprint library symbols. 

 

Regards,

Pat Murnen

 



Pat Murnen
Principal Content Developer
Product Development – AutoCAD Product Line Group

Autodesk, Inc.

Message 10 of 16

I am assigning my catalog data via the Catalog Lookup button. (AcadE 2016, btw)

It appears most of the issues are due to the footprint  WDBLKNAM attribute being incorrect. When the symbols were created in Symbol Builder, the creator forgot to change, or in some cases assigned it to the wrong table. (MS footprint is assigned as the default AM, for example) So, of course AcadE doesn't know where to look!  When I add the Xdata in, it finally knows the correct location. Thanks for the clarification. 

 

Message 11 of 16

After some additional testing, I've come across an item that inserts odd. My custom footprint WDBLKNAM attribute is set at CR, however, when I insert it via the "Schematic List" option (catalog lookup), the WDBLKNAM value gets changed to CR1.  Why?  So I have to add Xdata to this item to get the reporting to work.   What's very interesting is that I have another footprint (MS) that was inserted via the schematic list option, and neither the CR nor MS items have Xdata added, and the MS information shows up on the Panel report by default. I've checked my entries in footprint_lookup.mdb, and there is only 1 with this cat number. What else should I check, or what might be causing this change upon insertion?

Message 12 of 16

Can you send me a small project to try this on? Make sure to include the .wdp project file and the schematic drawing that contains the corresponding symbol for the footprint you are having trouble with. It might be something coming from the schematic drawing. You can send the project to pat.murnen@autodesk.com. Include in the email the steps to reproduce the issue. Or if you can send a short video that would be great.

 

Regards,

Pat Murnen



Pat Murnen
Principal Content Developer
Product Development – AutoCAD Product Line Group

Autodesk, Inc.

Message 13 of 16

per our emails, you found out that it was actually caused by a missing assembly code value. But, we did talk a little about how the correct table (CR) was found even though the value was CR1. Here is what I sent just in case anyone else on the forum has the same question -

 

It is a little confusing how AutoCAD Electrical determines which catalog table to use. Here is some information that might explain why the CR1 still worked –

It looks first for the WDBLKNAM on any component type. In some cases this includes the initial “H” or “V” but it is ignored. If there is no WDBLKNAM value, then for a schematic component it takes the block name, lops off the first “H” or “V” character, and uses the rest. So for a control relay with a symbol name of HCR1 it could end up with CR1. Once it has this value, it looks for a table with an exact match. If it doesn’t find an exact match it keeps lopping off the last character looking for a table name. So if it doesn't find CR1 then it looks for CR. So in your case it would find a CR table.

 

The reason for this is so that you can put all components of one family in one table, or for performance you can split tables up. Say you wanted to split lights up into separate tables based on color, you could have tables LT1Y, LT1R, LT1G, and so on. Then when AutoCAD Electrical looks at a symbol with block name or WDBLKNAM of LT1YM it will lop off the M and find table LT1Y. If you wanted all lights in one big table, LT, then it would keep lopping off characters looking for LT1Y, LT1, then finally LT.

 

So when you insert the footprint from the schematic list, if the schematic component does not have a WDBLKNAM value then it will use the block name (minus the “H” or “V”) as the WDBLKNAM for the panel component. This way for either component it starts with CR1 (either from the block name or WDBLKNAM value), doesn't find the catalog table, looks for CR and finds the table.

 

Regards,

Pat Murnen



Pat Murnen
Principal Content Developer
Product Development – AutoCAD Product Line Group

Autodesk, Inc.

Message 14 of 16
jas.grewal9999
in reply to: croland

I am experiencing with the same problem. When I run BOM for the active drawing everything is coming up good but when I run for the whole project then some of the description does not pop up in the BOM. Anyone have got the solution. Thanks,

Jas

Message 15 of 16

If description information is missing on certain part numbers in the BOM but is present on others, it usually means that the MFG and/or CAT fields contain data that doesn't exactly match the entry in the database for that part.  This can happen if you type the information into the MFG ande CAT fields when you insert a component, instead of assigning it via Lookup.  It could be something as simple as a missing dash or space.



Doug McAlexander


Design Engineer/Consultant/Instructor/Mentor specializing in AutoCAD Electrical training and implementation support

Phone and Web-based Support Plans Available

Phone: (770) 841-8009

www.linkedin.com/in/doug-mcalexander-1a77623




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Message 16 of 16

Hello Robin,

Please see attached, Bill of Materials file.

In Description Column, you will see it.

I can go to Catalog and choose the correct part number.   But when I insert the BOM (Bill of Materials) table in Autocad 2019, there is no Description pop up in some Manufacture in the attached file.   How to fix the problem?

 

Thanks

 

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