Let us assume I have a big knob potentiometer that controls volume.
I want to rename the reference of the symbol from RV1 to VOLUME.
Once I do this, I can see a question mark besides the name. VOLUME? appears in the symbol fields. Trying to update the PCB then throws an error that stating a fully annotated schematic is required.
How do I go about naming a symbol? Input/output/volume/data etc?
hope my question is clear enough.
Thanks.
Hi @r00n
You cannot remove or change the Ref (RVx) unless you create a special pot in a personal library, Ref. it Volume and use that symbol. Doing the fore mentioned will result in a Ref “Volume1”.
Easiest, and probably best way, is to use a different field. See the two examples below.
Use the “+” to add new fields if necessary and the “Show” column to display the information you wish to see.
It is not a good idea to make symbol which will not be able to be used more than once in the schematic.
You are attempting to abuse the Reference (RefDes). They are used for all kind of things, and their names are not arbitrary. For example if you send a BOM to Digikey (just to name a shop) they do not know what a “Volume” is.
If you want to add your own text, that’s OK, but do it as simple text, or as some custom field in the symbol.
Every reference designator must end with a digit, otherwise it’s not valid (and get’s the question mark as sign). See manual for schematic editor Schematic Editor | 8.0 | English | Documentation | KiCad , section “Reference Designators and Symbol Annotation”.
This is currently a requirement of trhe software.
Thanks
Crystal clear now.
You are the best
