Remove Copper section

Making PCB Layouts, Manual routing, Auto-routing, Copper pouring, Updating from Schematic, Manufacturing Output
Post Reply
Message
Author
gabe75
Posts: 4
Joined: 24 Feb 2017, 11:27

Remove Copper section

#1 Post by gabe75 » 24 Feb 2017, 11:48

Hello, I am brand new to this , I started doing a pcb layout, when i thought I finished it, I found a couple of mistakes , so for that I will need to remove a portion of the copper I poured.I cant do it. I need some help, thanks
thanks

Tomg
Expert
Posts: 2028
Joined: 20 Jun 2015, 07:39

Re: Remove Copper section

#2 Post by Tomg » 25 Feb 2017, 06:21

To completely remove a copper pour, right-click on its outline and select Delete in the pop-up menu. Or, select/highlight the copper pour outline and press the [Delete] key.

If you want to edit the copper pour, unpour the copper pour first. Here are four ways to do this...
1) Right-click on the copper pour's outline, choose State in the pop-up menu and select Unpoured in the fly-out menu.
2) Select/highlight the copper pour's outline, grab one of the points on the outline and start dragging it.
3) Right-click on the copper pour's outline, choose Properties... in the pop-up menu, select the [Pouring] tab in the Copper Pour Properties dialog window, set Current State: to Unpoured and click on OK.
4) If you are using DipTrace version 3, you can assign a hotkey to Unpour All Copper Pours.

Here are two ways to edit the copper pour's outline...
1) Right-click on the copper pour's outline, choose Properties... in the pop-up menu, select the [Border] tab in the Copper Pour Properties dialog window, make sure [ ] Depending on Board is disabled, edit the coordinates shown in the Points list and click on OK.
2) Add more points to the copper pour's outline by hovering over the desired locations on the outline, right-clicking and choosing Insert Point in the pop-up menu. After more points have been added, drag each one to its needed location to change the outline's shape. A point can be deleted by right-clicking on it and selecting Delete Point in the pop-up menu.

Don't forget to update (re-pour) the copper pour. If you are using DipTrace version 3, you can assign a hotkey to Update All Copper Pours.
Tom

gabe75
Posts: 4
Joined: 24 Feb 2017, 11:27

Re: Remove Copper section

#3 Post by gabe75 » 25 Feb 2017, 07:59

Thanks Tom !when I press the copper pour bottom and select the copper pour area ( which I want to delete )and I press delete key nothing happens ! When I select the copper pour area and press mouse right click I don't have the options for delete .

Tomg
Expert
Posts: 2028
Joined: 20 Jun 2015, 07:39

Re: Remove Copper section

#4 Post by Tomg » 25 Feb 2017, 08:22

gabe75 wrote:"...When I press the copper pour bottom and select the copper pour area ( which I want to delete )and I press delete key nothing happens..."
You need to hover your mouse over the outline or edge of the copper pour until you see it highlight (a thin, orange perimeter line will appear), then left-click on it to select it. Let go of the mouse button and you will see that the orange grab/selection points of the copper pour outline remain highlighted. Now that the copper pour's grab/selection points are highlighted, press the [Delete] key.
gabe75 wrote:"...When I select the copper pour area and press mouse right click I don't have the options for delete..."
Again, hover your mouse over the outline or edge of the copper pour until you see it highlight (a thin, orange perimeter line will appear), then right-click to bring up the pop-up context menu.
Tom

gabe75
Posts: 4
Joined: 24 Feb 2017, 11:27

Re: Remove Copper section

#5 Post by gabe75 » 25 Feb 2017, 15:48

I believe this is a such an easy thing to do for 99.99%of you guys, but I cant figure it out.
1.I select "place copper pour"
2.I make the selection of the copper area I would LOVE to delete(rectangle in my case)
3..... nothing , nothing happens, i hover the mouse over that area, nothing happens, the area stays the same color(red, because that side of pcb is red) with white sides , sides which I mouse selected.
Please dont get mad with my lack of experience.
Thanks for your time

Tomg
Expert
Posts: 2028
Joined: 20 Jun 2015, 07:39

Re: Remove Copper section

#6 Post by Tomg » 26 Feb 2017, 00:31

Check to make sure you are working on the same signal/plane layer where the copper pour in question is located, otherwise all of the mouse clicking in the world isn't going to help. Look at the Current Signal/Plane Layer drop-down list in the Route Toolbar near the top of the screen. What is it set to? Top? Bottom? One of the inner layers? You can change the current signal/plane layer using the drop-down list. Or you can use hotkeys to change the current signal/plane layer as follows...
* If the copper pour is on the Top layer, press hotkey "T" to work on the Top layer.
* If the copper pour is on the Bottom layer, press hotkey "B" to work on the Bottom layer.
* If the copper pour is on one of the inner layers, press the corresponding hotkey number ("2", "3", "4", etc.) to work on that particular inner layer.

Just in case you are not in the default mode, disable the currently-active tool by clicking on the Default Mode icon before trying to select an object. If this doesn't help, try posting a screen shot showing the copper pour and the toolbars.
Attachments
1.gif
1.gif (26.48 KiB) Viewed 439 times
Tom

gabe75
Posts: 4
Joined: 24 Feb 2017, 11:27

Re: Remove Copper section

#7 Post by gabe75 » 26 Feb 2017, 05:05

Thanks, maybe I should say I am using the 300 free pin edition, does that make any difference?Because I still cant do it...
I was not using the hotkeys A and b, I used Top(1) Or Bottom (2) options in the menu. I actually made a new pcb layout, only one plane, so I could practice.

Then I reread what you actually said in your first message,
"1) Right-click on the copper pour's outline, choose State in the pop-up menu and select Unpoured in the fly-out menu."
OMG I feel so dumb right now, it was easy, but I needed to unpour the whole copper area!
What I was trying to do was to select a small portion of the copper and try to delete it.
Thanks a lot Tom!

Post Reply