draw a maker layer to cover multiple devices in layout using SKILL

I'm not entirely sure what you want here, because there are several options (I'm assuming that the instances are selected, which is what normally happens when you select the instances in the schematic; they get cross-selected in the layout):

1. The instances could be probed - for example:
   foreach(inst geGetSelSet() when(inst~>objType=="inst" geAddInstProbe(hiGetCurrentWindow() '("y0" "drawing") inst~>name)))
2. You could create a highlight set:
   hs=geCreateHilightSet(geGetEditCellView() '("y2" "drawing"))
   hs~>enable=t
   foreach(inst geGetSelSet() geAddHilightFig(hs inst))
3. You really could create markers:
   foreach(inst geGetSelSet()
     when(inst~>objType=="inst"
       dbCreateMarker(geGetEditCellView() strcat("Inst: " inst~>name) "Forum"
         destructuringBind(((llx lly) (urx ury)) inst~>bBox list(llx:lly llx:ury urx:ury urx:lly llx:lly)))
         list(inst)))
   
   

The first two of these don't modify the database - the last does (you may want other arguments for dbCreateMarker function to create the marker differently). The last will show up in the annotation browser though.

Andrew

HI Andrew,

Thank you for your information. I clarify my question further. 

I click on two devices on the right hand side, Virtuoso EXL would highlight two devices in layout on the left hand side. I want to create two rectangles (using same marker layer) to cover the highlighted two devices in layout  (1 rectangle per layout device).

Q1. Two rectangles are drawn to cover both devices in the layout after  I click Ok/Apply on my GUI in schematic. How do I find the corresponding EXL layout window when my GUI is invoked from schematic. 

cv=geGetEditCellView()  may return cellview of schematic window since my GUI is invoked from schematic.  

Q2. I want to stream out the drawn rectangle. I guess marker layer would not be exported, so I may need to define a few temporary layers in techfile. Is it correct ?

Thanks,

ManChak

Hi ManChak,

I don't think there's a simple API to retrieve the layout window from the schematic when using VXL (at least I didn't spot it). You can find the layout cellView by using bndGetBoundObjects() on an instance (eg. one of the selected schematic instances), and then in the resulting objects you can look at the ~>cellView to find the containing layout cellView. I guess you could iterate over hiGetWindowList(), and find geGetEditCellView(win) for each window, and find the window that matches that cellView.

To find the overall bBox, I would simply compute the overall minimium x and y of all the bBoxes and the maximum x and y of the all the bBoxes and find the overall bBox. Quite easy to do.

I'm not really able to spend the time to write the code for you (rather busy at the moment) and it's still not that clear what/why you want this - hopefully the above will give you an approach you could explore.

Regards,

Andrew

Hi Andrew,

Thank you for your info. Your suggestion is good enough for me. I just want to confirm API which retrieve corresponding layout view  is available or not.

Thanks,

ManChak

Hi Andrew, ManChak,

I haven't worked with EXL so I am not sure this will work but I believe the function you were looking for is the following one (which works well in XL):

(lxGetLXInfo "dstView" (geGetEditCellView)) ; returns the layout view
(lxGetLXInfo "srcView" (geGetEditCellView)) ; returns the schematic view

Cheers,

Aurélien

Hi Aurélien,

The lxGetLXInfo is now obsolete however, and the documentation simply says to use lxGetSource instead. Part of the reason is that it doesn't quite work properly, particularly if you have two layout views that use the same schematic source (the schematic itself doesn't store info on the destination layout).

This approach can be used instead though:

procedure(CCFgetDestination(@optional (srcCv geGetEditCellView()))
    let((wins)
        wins=setof(win hiGetWindowList() lxGetSource(win)==srcCv && 
            geGetEditCellView(win)!=srcCv)
        mapcar('geGetEditCellView wins)
    )
)

If called with the cellView id of the schematic, or with the schematic window open, it will return a list of layout ids using that schematic as their source, and uses only public, supported functions.

Andrew