Preview: new in the next FireCAD release, planned for December 1, and in the beta available now.
Commands
| Command | Description |
|---|---|
ATOPTIONS_ASSISTANT |
Open the Options Editor on the Design Assistant tab |
ATOPTIONS |
Open the Options Editor on its first tab |
Also from: the Settings button in the Design Assistant panel
Prerequisites
- A FireCAD project must be open
Overview
The Design Assistant tab of the Options Editor holds your standing preferences for the Design Assistant: what it should assume instead of asking you or guessing. Apart from the voltage drop calculation, these settings guide only the Design Assistant; FireCAD's own commands and reports keep their own settings. The preferences are saved for your Windows user, so they apply to every project you open.
A change takes effect at your next question and starts the conversation afresh. Click Apply to save, or Cancel to leave everything as it was.
Design Preferences
| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| Voltage drop calculation | Point to point or Lump sum. This one is the project's setting, not only the assistant's: the Panel Summary, the Design Precheck and the Design Assistant all follow it. It is the same setting as Options > Reports > Voltage drop calculation (Panel Summary and Design Precheck) | As set for the project |
| Voltage margin above the minimum (V) | Volts to keep above each device's minimum operating voltage at the end of a circuit. 0 means none | 1 |
| Spare circuit and battery capacity (%) | Share of each circuit's current and addresses, and of the batteries, to leave spare. 0 means none | 20 |
| Speaker circuit voltage | Ask me, 25 V or 70.7 V | Ask me |
| Notification appliance mounting | Ask me, Ceiling or Wall | Ask me |
| Ceiling height when not given (ft) | The ceiling height to assume when neither the plan nor you give one. 0 means the assistant asks | 10 |
| Anything else the assistant should always follow | Your own standing instructions, up to 1,000 characters. For example: our AHJ wants a pull station at every exit; use System Sensor devices where there is a choice | Empty |
Progress
Show the assistant's progress over the drawing while it works shows a small card in the middle of the AutoCAD window that says what the assistant is doing while one of its drawing tools keeps AutoCAD busy, such as a room scan or a batch of areas. The card never takes a click or the keyboard. Press Esc over the drawing to stop the assistant, as the panel's Stop button does.
Tips
- Set the preferences once and the assistant stops asking the same questions on every project
- Change the voltage drop method here or on the Reports tab: it is one setting, and the Panel Summary and the Design Precheck change with it
- The Design Precheck never spends credits, whatever is set here
Related Articles
- Design Assistant (the panel)
- Design Assistant and Design Precheck Overview
- Options and Configuration
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