Placemate Docs: Quick Start, Keys and Configuration

Requirements

Altium Designer 26 (AD26) and Altium Develop.
Windows 10 and Windows 11, 64-bit.
To open the files: a current Chrome, Edge, Firefox or Safari on any system, also on a tablet or a phone. The 3D view needs WebGL 2.

Install

Close Altium.
Run FermiumPlacemate-Setup-<version>.exe. Setup lists the Altium installations of the computer (AD26, Altium Develop) and the Placemate version that each one has. Select the installations that get Placemate. An installation that you clear loses Placemate.
Setup copies the files to C:\Program Files\Fermium\Placemate and installs the extension into each selected installation.

Run Setup again to update Placemate or to change the selection. To remove the extension from all installations, uninstallFermium Placemate in the Windows Settings.

Make a file in Altium

Save the PCB document. Placemate reads the embedded 3D models from the saved file.
Select Placemate » Generate… in the PCB editor (also in Tools » Fermium Placemate…).
Select the variant, the build quantity and the output folder.
Set the placement order (see Phases and placement order). Select Generate.

Placemate writes <PCBANumber>_<VersionIdentifier>_<Variant>.placemate.html intoProject Outputs for Placemate next to the project and opens it in the browser.Placemate » Generate Quick uses the last settings of the project without the dialog. The dialog keeps the settings of each project.

A variant that fits an alternate part gets the resolved comment of the alternate, for example 4k75 1%. To make the file in a release, add the Placemate Script Output to the OutJob.

Use the file

Select the side that you assemble first. The file asks only for a board with SMD parts on both sides.
Select the active boards in the header: one board or all boards.
The guide shows one line at a time. All its parts are highlighted in the 2D and the 3D view.
Put the parts on the boards. Press Space (Placed). The guide goes to the next line.
Press S to skip a line for later. Select Skip next to a designator to skip only that part.
Skipped parts come again at the end of the guide, in Skipped. Unskip sets a part back to open.
Press U to take back the last action. One undo takes back one action, also when the action marked the parts of all boards.

After the last line, the open lines that you went past come again. The guide reports the build as complete only when no open part is left. The Parts tab lists all parts in one table: type a designator, a value or a footprint to find a part. Drag the dividers between the panel and the views to change their size.

Keys

Key	Action
`Space, Enter`	Placed, go to the next line
`Right, Page Down`	Next open line, no change
`Shift+Space, Left, Page Up`	Previous line
`Down, Up`	Next or previous line, also a placed line
`S`	Skip for later
`Ctrl+Z, U`	Undo
`2, 3`	2D view, 3D view
`F`	Flip the board side
`Z`	Zoom to the parts
`G`	Focus mode on or off
`?, H`	Show the keys and the About information

Change the keys in Settings, for example for a USB foot pedal.

Phases and placement order

The phases are: SMD on the first side, SMD on the second side, and THT. Skipped parts come again at the end. These rules put a part into SMD or THT:

The parameter Placemate Phase (SMD or THT) of the part wins over all other rules.
A mount parameter from the supplier data (Mounting Type or Mount Type) decides when its value tells one type: Through Hole gives THT, Surface Mount gives SMD.
Else a part with a plated lead hole goes to THT. All other parts go to SMD. Vias do not count: the vias of a footprint, a hole that the mask covers, and a thermal via in an exposed pad.

The placement order sorts the lines in each phase by the designator prefix. The default order isC, R, L, F, D, Others, U, J. Others stands for all prefixes that the list does not name. Set the order in the Generate dialog, in the file under Settings » Placement order for one build, or inplacemate.json for all users of a project. Order… sorts the lines of a phase by package size, ICs first, area by area, or BOM order.

Polarity marks

The guide shows the cathode of a diode or LED, the plus pad of a capacitor, and pin 1 of a part. It shows the mark only when a name tells the polarity: K, C, -, CATHODE or KATHODE for a cathode,+ for a plus pad, 1 for pin 1. Placemate looks at the pad name first, then at the name of the schematic pin of the pad. When neither name tells the polarity, the guide shows no mark, because libraries use pad 1 and pad 2 for the cathode. Check these parts on the footprint.

Progress and state

The browser keeps the progress. Use ⋯ » Export the state to keep a copy, or ⋯ » Save a copy with the progress to make an HTML file that holds the progress. A new file of the same board keeps the progress of the build and shows the parts that changed. ⋯ » Start over starts a new build. The old build stays in ⋯ » Builds.

Configuration

placemate.json next to the .PrjPcb file sets the project options. Every value has a default. The file can hold comments.

{
  "itemParameter": "Part Number",          // groups the BOM lines
  "columns": ["Part Number", "Manufacturer", "Manufacturer Part Number", "Description"],
  "aliases": { "Manufacturer": ["Manufacturer Name"] },
  "phases": {
    "order": ["C", "R", "L", "F", "D", "*", "U", "J"],  // "*" stands for all other prefixes
    "parameter": "Placemate Phase",                     // SMD or THT, wins over the mount type
    "mountParameters": ["Mounting Type", "Mount Type"]
  },
  "excludePrefixes": ["FID", "TP", "MH", "LOGO"],
  "quantity": 1,
  "outputFolder": "Project Outputs for Placemate",
  "sharedCache": null,                     // a shared folder with the converted 3D models
  "includeCopper": true
}

Command-line tool

The Setup program also copies the command-line tool to C:\Program Files\Fermium\Placemate\cli. Use it in scripts and in CI.

placemate build board.placemate.json [--variant Lite] [--qty 3] [--order "C,R,L,F,D,*,U,J"] [--out file.html]
placemate check board.placemate.json --pnp "Project Outputs\Pick Place.csv"
placemate check board.placemate.json --models
placemate models warm C:\Library\Footprints --shared \\server\placemate-models

Placemate » Export Board Data in Altium writes board.placemate.json for the command-line tool.

Support and bug reports

To report a bug or to request a feature, select ⋯ » Send feedback… in the HTML file. The file adds the technical details: versions, browser, board name and counts, but no part data. Continue on placemate.io opens thefeedback form with your text. Send by e-mail instead opens an e-mail with the same text. You can also use the feedback form without a file.

You can also write to contact@fermium.ch. Attach:

The log file %LOCALAPPDATA%\Fermium\Placemate\logs\altium.log, or the output of the command-line tool.
The board data file from Placemate » Export Board Data, when the board is not confidential.
For a problem in the HTML file: the file, the browser and its version, and the state from ⋯ » Export the state.

Placemate documentation