If you have an existing non-hierarchical design, you may wish to divide the design into blocks. The Cut To Block command allows you to select a piece of circuitry and create a block instance from this. Cutting a piece of circuitry to a block does not change the connectivity of the design.
Shortcuts
Default Keys: None
Default Menu: Edit
Command: Cut To Block
Locating this option
Available from: Edit menu > Cut To Block option
How to Cut To Block
Select the Cut To Block command. Then you must draw around the circuitry you wish to cut into a block. By default, this is a rectangular frame, you can also use a polygon by selecting Polygon Select from the context menu.
Once the selection is completed, an instance of a block is created which contains all the items that were fully selected. Each of the connections and busses are cut at the point they cross the selection shape and are terminated on the upper level by block symbol pin, and on the lower level by a block port.
The block instance symbol outline on the upper level is created using the selection shape. The symbol line style and block pin style for this symbol are taken from the Design Settings - Block Defaults.
You can later edit this block symbol shape using Edit Symbol from the context menu, or generate a standard box shape using the Regenerate Block Symbol option from the context menu or replace it with an existing symbol through properties.
Pushing into the block will reveal all the items removed from the upper level. Connections and busses which where cut will end on corresponding Block Ports.
Related Topics
Hierarchy | Folders - Schematic Blocks | Properties - Block Ports | Properties - Block Instance | Insert - Block Port