Configuring Draftsman Via Type View Object Properties in Altium Designer

Parent page: Via Type View

Draftsman object properties are definable options that specify the visual style, content and behavior of the placed object. The property settings for each type of object are defined in two different ways:

• Pre-placement settings – most Via Type View object properties, or those that can logically be pre-defined, are available as editable default settings on the Draftsman - Defaults page of the Preferences dialog (access from the  button at the top-right of the design space). Select the object in the Primitive List to reveal its options on the right.

• Post-placement settings – all Via Type View object properties are available for editing in the Properties panel when a placed Via Type View is selected in the design space.

The Via Type View default settings in the Preferences dialog and the Via Type mode of the Properties panel

Scale

• Scale – use the drop-down to choose from a range of preset scale ratios (magnification). This option is not available if the Use Custom Scale option is checked.
• Use Custom Scale – select this option to enter a specific scale in its associated field. The scaling of the drawing object is relative to 1, where 0.9 would represent a scale of 90%.

Title

• Title – the title name string that will be displayed (if enabled) with the Via View object. Use the associated button to toggle its visibility. Enter the title name and any desired system/custom parameters to create a meaningful name for the placed view. See the Parameters section in the Properties panel's Document Options mode for a list of the currently available parameters.
• Location – use the drop-down to choose from a range of relative locations for the title. The Manual option is automatically selected if the title is manually moved (dragged and dropped to a new location).
• Font – sets the displayed font used for the view's title string.
  • Use Document Font checkbox selected – the title font used is that defined by the document options. See the Document Font entry in the General section of the Properties panel when in Document Options mode.
  • Use Document Font not selected – use the drop-down menus to choose the desired font type and size and select the lower buttons to enable text attributes. Note that the slider control sets the color Opacity level where 0% represents full transparency.

Properties

• ViaType – the via type according to the IPC-4761 standard used to render the via drawing. Use the drop-down menu to select from a range of preset via types.
• Side - use the drop-down to select from what side covering should be applied. For via types 1A, 2A, 3A, 4A, and 6A, choose from either Top or Bottom. For via types 1B, 2B, 3B, 4B, 5, 6b, and 7, the option is essentially disabled with Both as the only option and is the default for those via types.
• Layer Stack (Properties panel only) – the PCB design layer stack, as defined in the PCB editor's Layer Stack Manager, according to which the Via Type View will be rendered. Use the drop-down menu to select from the list of all available layer stacks.

Style

• Line Style – the thickness and style of the Via Type View lines. Use the drop-down menus to choose from a range of line thickness presets and the line style. The associated color button () opens the line color selector dialog as outlined for Font above.
• Hole Fill Color – the color used to render the hole fill in the Via Type View. The associated color button () opens the color selector dialog as outlined above.
• Plug Color – the color used to render the plug in the Via Type View. The associated color button () opens the color selector dialog as outlined above.
• Cover Color – the color used to render the cover in the Via Type View. The associated color button () opens the color selector dialog as outlined above.