Leveraging Instance and Occurrence Annotation Modes in OrCAD X Capture CIS

If you're working with hierarchical designs in OrCAD Capture, you may have noticed both Instance and Occurrence annotation modes in the Annotate window.

What is the difference between Instance and Occurrence annotation modes?

The key difference lies in how reference designators are assigned in hierarchical designs.

a) Instance Mode assigns reference designators at the component instance level and is commonly used for flat designs or simple hierarchical designs.
b) Occurrence Mode assigns reference designators at the occurrence level, allowing each use of a hierarchical block to have unique reference designators.



The recommended annotation mode depends on the design structure. Understanding when to use each mode helps ensure unique reference designators across reused blocks and avoids manual renumbering effort.

Another useful concept is the relationship between the grey and yellow columns shown in the Property Editor. The grey column represents instance properties, while the yellow columns represent occurrence properties.



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