CIRCUIT ELEMENT CONNECTION RETRIEVING SYSTEM

PURPOSE:To reduce the analyzing man-hours of a circuit diagram to trace connection between hierarchies by automatically retrieving the connection between the hierarchies of a logic circuit, and displaying by emphasizing the terminal of the internal circuit of a connected hierarchy and a signal line. CONSTITUTION:The terminal names I1-I3, O1, and O2 of the opening of a macro 31 on a master circuit diagram 30 are instructed, and a slave circuit diagram 32 is read page by page to search terminals I1-I3, O1, and O2 with the same names as that of the terminals I1-I3, O1, and O2 instructed on the slave circuit diagram 32. A terminal name on a read slave circuit diagram 32 is read one by one, and it is checked whether or not an instructed terminal name coincides with a read terminal name. When coincidence is obtained, the read slave circuit diagram 42 is displayed, and the terminal I2 whose name coincides and the signal line L2 connected to the terminal are displayed by emphasizing on a displayed slave circuit diagram 42 by changing the color of them differently from the other, etc. In such a way, it is possible to reduce the man-hours in the analysis of the circuit diagram.