Standard Operators for use with the Query Language in Altium Designer
This document is no longer available beyond version 21.0. Information can now be found here: Logical Query Expression Operators for version 25
This page provides a summary of the operators that can be used when defining logical query expressions with the Query Language.
Arithmetic Operators
| Operator | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| + | Addition operator | NetPinCount + NetViaCount |
| - | Subtraction operator | ArcStopAngle - ArcStartAngle |
| * | Multiplication operator | PadXSize_BottomLayer * PadYSize_BottomLayer |
| / | Division operator | HoleDiameter / ViaDiameter |
| Div | Integral division operator | Color Div 65536 This calculates Color divided by 65536 and the fractional part of the result is discarded |
| Mod | Modulus operator | Color Mod 256 This calculates the remainder when Color is divided by 256, without determining the fractional part of the result |
Logical Operators
| Operator | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| And | Logical AND operator | IsPad And OnMultiLayer To be returned, an object has to be a pad, and reside on the Multi-Layer layer |
| && | Logical AND operator (lower precedence) |
IsPad && OnMultiLayer To be returned, an object has to be a pad, and reside on the Multi-Layer layer |
| Or | Logical OR operator | IsPad Or IsVia To be returned, an object has to either be a pad, or a via |
| || | Logical OR operator (lower precedence) |
IsPad || IsVia To be returned, an object has to either be a pad, or a via |
| Xor | Logical EXCLUSIVE OR operator | OnMultiLayer Xor (HoleDiameter <> 0) To be returned, an object has to either be on the Multi-Layer layer and have a Hole Diameter that is zero, or not be on the Multi-Layer layer and have a Hole Diameter that is not zero. |
| Not | Logical NOT operator | Not OnMultiLayer To be returned, an object has to not be on the Multi-Layer layer |
Comparison Operators
| Operator | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| < | Less Than operator | HoleDiameter < 40 To be returned, an object has to have a Hole Diameter which is less than 40 |
| <= | Less Than Or Equal To operator | HoleDiameter <= 40 To be returned, an object has to have a Hole Diameter which is less than, or equal to 40 |
| >= | Greater Than Or Equal To operator | HoleDiameter >= 40 To be returned, an object has to have a Hole Diameter which is greater than, or equal to 40 |
| > | Greater Than operator | HoleDiameter > 40 To be returned, an object has to have a Hole Diameter which is greater than 40 |
| <> | Not Equal To operator | HoleDiameter <> 40 To be returned, an object has to have a Hole Diameter which is not equal to 40 |
| = | Equal To operator | HoleDiameter = 40 To be returned, an object has to have a Hole Diameter which is equal to 40 |
| Between...And... | Inclusive range operator | HoleDiameter Between 30 And 50 To be returned, an object has to have a Hole Diameter that is greater than, or equal to 30, and less than, or equal to 50. |
| Like | Like operator | Name Like 'ADDR?*' This returns objects having a Name property whose associated (text) string begins with ADDR and which contains at least one more character |
Wild Card Characters
Wild Card characters permit the provision of strings which are not exactly specified. These characters are typically used in conjunction with other characters, resulting in the provision of strings which are partially specified. A few exceptional keywords can accept string parameters that are not exactly specified, but for the most part, strings can only contain Wild Card characters when these are being compared by the Like operator.
| Operator | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| ? | This can be replaced by a single character of any type | Footprint Like 'DIP1?' This returns objects which have a Footprint property of DIP10, or DIP12, or DIP14, etc. |
| * | This can be replaced by any number of characters, each of which can be of any type | Footprint Like 'SIP*' This returns objects which have a Footprint property of SIP1, or SIP12, or SIP216, etc. (Any objects having a Footprint property of SIP are also returned, because '*' can also be replaced by no characters) |
Boolean Strings
| Operator | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
| True | This affirms the meaning of a Keyword | IsPad = True To be returned, an object has to be a pad |
| False | This negates the meaning of a Keyword | IsVia = False To be returned, an object has to not be a via |
Round Brackets and Order of Precedence
It is worthwhile taking a look at the order of precedence in place for the operators used in logical Query expressions. After all, without such knowledge, an expression may not target the objects required.
Round brackets have the highest precedence within an order of precedence that has been defined for the various operators, and which determines how queries are interpreted by the software (whenever the user has not provided round brackets). The sequence of this order, from highest to lowest, is as follows:
- Round brackets ()
- Not
- ^, *, /, Div, Mod, And
- +, -, Or, Xor
- =, <>, <, >, <=, >=
- &&, ||