CablePilotA CablePilot project is one UTF-8 text file named <name>.cablepilot.json. It is plain, documented JSON: you can read it, keep it in Git, compare two versions line by line, and write your own tools around it. No lock-in: the same data also leaves the app as PDF, DXF, CSV and XLSX.
- Schema:
shared/schema/project.schema.json(JSON Schema). Every sample project is checked against it in the tests. - Current format version: 7. The version is the
versionfield at the top of the file.
Stable, diff-friendly writing
The file is written the same way every time, so a change in the drawing gives a small change in the file:
- keys always in the same order, two-space indentation, a newline at the end;
- short objects and arrays on one line (up to 100 characters), longer ones expanded one item per line;
- lists sorted where order has no meaning (device data by designation, cables by designation), and kept in drawing order where it has (pages, elements on a page);
- no timestamps or machine-specific paths inside the project.
What is in the file
| Field | Contents |
|---|---|
format, version | always "cablepilot-project", and the format version |
id, name | the project's id (stays the same for its whole life) and its name |
settings | drawing language, symbol standard (IEC 60617 or NFPA 79 / ANSI), drawing style, default sheet size and template, cross-reference format, BOM settings, numbering, wire colours, installation method, supply data, PLC addressing, cabinet layout defaults |
properties | project data printed in the title block and on the cover: client, product, order and drawing numbers, drawn / checked / approved, issue date, revision... |
assembly | assembly data for the data sheets (IEC 61439): rated voltages, Icw, IP degree... |
templates | the company frames and title blocks used by the project, stored in it so it opens anywhere |
potentials | the potentials (L1, L2, L3, N, PE, L+, L-, 24 V DC, 0 V...) with their types |
pages | the pages, in order: type, title in each language, sheet size, template, default function and location, and the elements on the page |
assets | images used on pages (logos, photos), embedded |
symbols, parts | the company symbols and library parts the project uses, embedded so the project opens on a computer without your company library |
devices | data kept beside the drawing for each device: parts and quantities, user fields, parent assembly, load data for sizing |
projectParts | parts with no designation (mounting plate, wiring kit), in the BOM only |
wireClasses, wireTypes, cables | the company wire-class table (function, colour, cross-section, type, suffix), named wire types, and cables with their cores |
layers | layer state, colour and line type |
issueStatus, revisions | the issue status of the set and every issued revision with its snapshot (pages, devices, wires and parts), used for the revision index and comparisons |
Elements on a page
Each element has an id, a kind and its own fields, in page millimetres (origin top left, y downwards):
symbol (library symbol, position, rotation, mirror, designation, location, function text, value), box (black box or connector with pins), wire (orthogonal polyline, potential, number, wire type, cable and core), junction, text, line, rect, circle, table, image, warning (warning sign), form (a data sheet bound to project fields), report (a live report printed on the page) and cab (an item of the cabinet layout).
Reports, cross-references, the BOM and the terminal and cable lists are not stored: they are computed from the schematic every time, so they can never disagree with it.
Versions and migrations
When the format changes, the version goes up by one and a migration turns version *n* into *n + 1*. Opening an older file runs every migration in turn, in memory; the file is written in the new version only when you save. A file from a newer CablePilot is refused with a plain message (update the app), never half-read. A damaged file is reported with what is wrong and is not changed.
Next to the project
These live in CablePilot's data folder on your computer, not in the project:
- Autosave and crash recovery: a copy while you work; after a crash, CablePilot offers to bring it back.
- History: a daily backup and the versions you name (History), compared with the working copy and restored as one undo step.
- Company library: your own symbols, templates, macros, parts and layout templates, as data files in the same format as the built-in library.
- Settings: language, theme and panel layout; API keys and ERP passwords are encrypted by the operating system and never written in plain text.
Exchange formats
- PDF: the drawing set or one page, vector, at true scale.
- DXF: pages in and out; the mounting plate for drilling.
- CSV and XLSX: every list (terminals, cables, wires, BOM, PLC I/O, markers, nameplates, picking list).
- Cabinet layout: documented JSON and CSV, see layout exchange format.
- ERP: items and stock in, reservation requests out, see ERP link.
- PLC tag lists: TIA Portal XML and CODESYS text, out and in with a preview.
Try it on the sample projects
CablePilot ships with three complete sample projects, so every feature can be tried without your own drawings.