Variant Placement of a Device

You can place a device in multiple slots if each instance is mutually-exclusive. For example, a battery may be placed in a particular slot in one vehicle configuration but be placed in a different slot in another vehicle configuration. You can also place a device in one slot multiple times using option expressions. This enables the device to have a different footprint depending on the configuration.

Automatic

Placement of Devices in Multiple Slots

If you place all devices simultaneously, or automatically place a single device, the system uses rules and constraints that you have defined to select the slots in which it places the devices.

These can include the “Option place by Attribute/Property” constraint that allows you to specify whether objects with a particular property or attribute should be placed conditionally with an option expression in a slot. This enables the automatic, variant-based placement of an object in multiple slots.

Note

The option expression can have a maximum of 255 characters.

For example:

You have a device BATTERY that should be placed in a slot BATTERY_LHD for the variant LHD, and in a slot BATTERY_RHD for the variant RHD.

Figure 20: BATTERY_LHD and BATTERY_RHD in Capital Systems Integrator Design

Slot BATTERY_LHD has the following constraint, which states place device BATTERY in this slot and give it the option expression LHD:

Figure 21: BATTERY_LHD Constraint

Slot BATTERY_RHD has the following constraint, which states place device BATTERY in this slot and give it the option expression RHD:

Figure 22: BATTERY_RHD Constraint

When you run automatic placement, it places the BATTERY device in the following locations based on the constraints:

• BATTERY_LHD where it has the option expression LHD

• BATTERY_RHD where it has the option expression RHD

Note

After you have used variant-based placement for a device, you can view which option expression applies to a device in a slot by holding the mouse cursor over the device in the Design Browser (Design tab) at the bottom left of the application. A tooltip displays the option expression.

Manual

Placement of Devices in Multiple Slots

You can manually place a device in multiple slots.

When you manually place a device, the Place Device dialog box displays. In this dialog box, you select the slot in which you want to place the device and you can specify an option expression that you want to set for this device instance.

Figure 23: Place Device Dialog Box for BATTERY

In this example, you can see the BATTERY device will be placed in the selected slot BATTERY_LHD and have the option expression LHD. You could use the Place Device action a second time to select BATTERY_RHD and specify RHD in the Option field.

Note

In this example, the system has recognized that slots BATTERY_LHD and BATTERY_RHD have constraints that match the BATTERY device. You could place BATTERY in other slots and give it any valid option expression.

Variant

Placement of a Device in a Single Slot

You can place a device in one slot multiple times using option expressions. This enables the device to have a different footprint depending on the configuration. This means, you do not need to use redundant devices or slots in the designs. In addition, any connectors which are the same in each footprint, can be mapped to the same slot connector. This ensures wiring synthesis generates a single set of wiring connected to these common connectors.

For example:

There is a BODY CONTROL MODULE device that you want to place in a BODY CONTROL MODULE slot.

Figure 24: BODY MODULE CONTROL Slot in Capital Systems Integrator Design

The library part BCM for the device has two footprints in Capital Component Manager:

• Footprint FP1 contains two harness connectors J1 (part number C-005) and J2 (part number C-0016). Figure 25: Footprint FP1 of Library Part BCM

• Footprint FP2 contains two harness connectors J1 (part number C-005) and J3 (part number C-9199-SRS2). Figure 26: Footprint FP2 of Library Part BCM

Note that both footprints have a common J1 connector.

You set the following constraints on the BODY MODULE CONTROL slot.

Figure 27: BODY MODULE CONTROL Constraints

These are all constraints that the system references when placing devices in slots.

Constraints	Description
First constraint: Do assign connector to slot connector where Harness connector Name = VC Name	This is an “Assign Connector by Attribute/Property” constraint that the system references when the placed device has a footprint. It states that harness connectors from the referenced footprint are mapped to slot connectors with matching names. For example, harness connector J1 from the footprint will be mapped to slot connector J1.
Second and third constraints: Assign part BCM and footprint FP1 where slot device Option Expression = LHD Assign part BCM and footprint FP2 where slot device Option Expression = RHD	These are “Assign footprint to device” constraints that the system references when the placed device has footprints. They state: When the device is placed with the option expression LHD, assign library part BCM with its footprint FP1. When the device is placed with the option expression RHD, assign library part BCM with its footprint FP2.
Fourth and fifth constraints: Place with option LHD on devices/grounds with attribute/property matching Name = Slot Name Place with option RHD on devices/grounds with attribute/property matching Name = Slot Name	These are “Option place by Attribute/Property” constraints that allow you to specify whether objects with a particular property or attribute should be placed with an option expression in a slot. These constraints state that the device should be placed here once with option expression LHD, and again with option expression RHD.

During automatic placement, these constraints result in two device placements of device BODY CONTROL MODULE in the BODY CONTROL MODULE slot:

• One placement with option LHD and footprint FP1 that contains harness connectors J1 and J2. Figure 28: First BODY CONTROL MODULE Placement (LHD)

• Another placement with option RHD and footprint FP2 that contains harness connectors J1 and J3. Figure 29: Second BODY CONTROL MODULE Placement (RHD)

In both placements, harness connector J1 is mapped to the J1 slot connector.

Figure 30: J1 Harness Connector Mapped to J1 Slot Connector

You could also place the device manually in the BODY CONTROL MODULE slot; once specifying option expression LHD, and once specifying option expression RHD. If the constraints have been set on the slot as in the example, they would still control footprint selection and harness connector mapping.

Note

After using variant placement of devices, you can run a design rule check “Variantly placed device with an invalid option expression” to identify devices that have been variantly placed either with no option expression or the same option expression in multiple slots.

Parent Topic:

Placement of a Device or Ground Device in a Slot

Capital Systems Integrator User Guide, 2512.2606

Unpublished work. © 2026 Siemens