01 - Getting Started with WirePlan Pro

Welcome to WirePlan Pro! This guide provides a high-level overview of the application, its purpose, and a brief tour of the main user interface components.

What is WirePlan Pro?

WirePlan Pro is a desktop software application designed to assist electrical engineers, designers, and contractors in the planning and estimation phases of projects involving electrical conduit and wiring.

Its main purposes include:

• Electrical Design & Estimating: Streamlining the creation of electrical layouts on plan drawings.
• Conduit Routing: Calculating efficient orthogonal conduit paths between defined device locations. It uses advanced optimization algorithms for this purpose.
• Wiring Planning: Facilitating the definition of wire connections (including outer cable diameter and quantity) and determining optimal wiring sequences for common topologies (Star, Ring, Bus) constrained by the calculated conduit path.
• Automated Sizing & Calculation: Automatically calculating required conduit sizes based on NEC standards and wire fill, and providing length estimations for both conduit and wiring.

Essentially, WirePlan Pro helps you visualize, optimize, and quantify your electrical plans.

System Requirements

• Operating System: Windows.
• Internet Connection: Required for initial license validation and periodic checks, as well as for checking for application updates.

Understanding the Main Window

The WirePlan Pro interface is designed to be intuitive. Here's a brief look at its main components:

• Menus (Top of the window):
  • File: Contains options for opening/saving projects (.wpp files), exporting your work (PDF layout, CSV summary), and accessing application options.
  • Tools: Provides access to core functionalities like adding obstacles, changing the drawing scale, measuring distances, finding the longest wire run, finding the connection with the most bends, and clearing data (wires, all).
  • Help: Includes options for viewing documentation, license information, and checking for updates.
• Control Panel (Top section below Menus):
  • Load Image: Button to load a background plan drawing.
  • Conduit Type: Dropdown to select the type of conduit (e.g., RMC, IMC, EMT) which affects conduit sizing calculations.
  • Default Cable OD (in): Input field to set the default outer diameter for wires when they are first added (e.g., by dragging or through topology calculation).
  • Wiring Topology: Dropdown to select the desired wiring scheme (Star, Ring, Bus) for automated calculation.
  • Add Topology: Button to calculate and apply the selected wiring topology to the current conduit path. This button is enabled when a valid conduit path and necessary selections (like a hub for Star) are present.
• Canvas (Main central area):
  • This is your main workspace where the plan drawing is displayed.
  • You'll click here to add nodes (devices/connection points).
  • Calculated conduit paths and wiring connections are drawn on the canvas.
  • Annotations for conduit sizes and wire counts appear here.
  • The visual scale bar is also displayed on the canvas.
• Status Bar (Bottom of the window):
  • Provides real-time feedback on application state, actions performed, and results (like total conduit/wire lengths, number of nodes/bends/junctions).
  • Displays information when you hover over elements like nodes, conduit segments, or wiring arrows.
  • Shows error messages or warnings.
• "Update Conduit" Button (Bottom-right of Canvas, when applicable):
  • This button appears if "Auto Conduit On Add/Delete Node" is turned off in the Options.
  • Clicking it manually recalculates the conduit path after changes like adding/deleting nodes or obstacles.

Basic Workflow Overview

A typical workflow in WirePlan Pro involves these general steps:

1. Load or Paste an Image: Start by loading a plan drawing (e.g., a floor plan) or pasting an image from your clipboard onto the canvas. This will be your background.
2. Set the Scale: Use the "Change Scale" tool (Tools menu) to define the real-world scale of your drawing (e.g., by clicking two points and entering the known distance in feet).
3. Add Nodes: Click on the canvas to place nodes representing devices, junction boxes, or other connection points.
4. (Optional) Add Obstacles: Use the "Add Obstacle" tool (Tools menu) to define rectangular areas that the conduit path should avoid.
5. Calculate Conduit Path:
   • If "Auto Conduit On Add/Delete Node" is enabled (default), the conduit path will update automatically as you add/delete nodes or obstacles.
   • If disabled, click the "Update Conduit" button on the canvas to calculate/recalculate the orthogonal conduit path connecting all nodes, avoiding obstacles.
6. Define Wiring:
   • Manually: Click and drag between two nodes to create a directed wire connection. You can then edit the wire details (OD, quantity) via the context menu (right-click on the arrow) or by pressing Enter when an arrow is selected.
   • Automatically: Select a "Wiring Topology" (Star, Ring, Bus) from the control panel. If required by the topology, select a start/hub node. Click "Add Topology" to automatically add wires (using the default OD) according to the chosen scheme, constrained by the conduit path.
7. Review Sizing and Lengths:
   • WirePlan Pro automatically calculates and displays the required conduit sizes on each segment and vertical run based on the wires passing through them and the selected conduit type.
   • The status bar updates with total conduit and wiring lengths.
8. (Optional) Adjust Node Elevations: Right-click a node and select "Change Elevation" to specify a vertical rise/drop, which will be factored into vertical conduit sizing and total wire lengths.
9. Export:
   • Save your project frequently (File > Save Project As).
   • Export the visual plan to PDF (File > Export as PDF).
   • Export summary data (lengths, counts, etc.) to CSV (File > Export as CSV) for estimating or documentation.

This overview should help you get started. Explore the menus and context menus for more specific actions!