When you open ProtoPulse, you land in a three-panel workspace built around a single principle: everything you need to complete an electronics design should be reachable without switching applications. The left sidebar gives you context and navigation, the center area is where you work, and the right panel is your AI design assistant — always on, never in the way.Documentation Index
Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://mintlify.com/wtyler2505/ProtoPulse/llms.txt
Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
Three-panel layout
Left sidebar
The left sidebar contains three things:- Project name and description — Shown at the top. The AI assistant can rename your project directly from a chat message.
- Component library (Asset Manager) — A searchable library of electronic components organized by category: MCU, Sensor, Power, Communication, Connector, Memory, Actuator. Drag any component directly onto the Architecture canvas.
- Project history — A timestamped log of every action taken on the project, with attribution for you and the AI separately.
Center main area
The center area holds the eight main views, accessible via a tab bar across the top. Click any tab to switch. The active tab is highlighted with a cyan accent bar.Right chat panel (AI assistant)
The right panel is your AI design assistant. It persists across every view — you can ask a question about your schematic while looking at the architecture, or ask the AI to add BOM items while you’re reading the validation report. To collapse or expand the panel, click the toggle on the right end of the tab bar. The panel can be resized between 280 px and 600 px wide.The eight design views
Dashboard
The default view when you open a project. Shows a quick-stats bar (components, connections, BOM items, estimated cost, open issues) and four summary cards that each link to the corresponding view. New projects show a Welcome Overlay with quick-start options.
Architecture editor
An interactive block diagram canvas powered by React Flow. Drag components from the Asset Manager, connect them with typed signal edges (SPI, I2C, UART, USB, Power, GPIO), and see your entire system at a glance.
Schematic capture
Full circuit schematic editor. Place component instances, draw nets with Manhattan routing, add power symbols and net labels, run ERC, define net classes, and manage hierarchical sheets. Breadboard and PCB layout are accessible via secondary tabs inside this view.
Component editor
Design individual electronic parts across five sub-views: breadboard illustration, schematic symbol, PCB footprint, metadata (manufacturer, MPN, package, datasheet), and pin table. Components created here become available in the schematic.
Procurement
Full BOM management — add, search, and filter parts; view pricing, suppliers, and stock status; export to CSV; and compare BOM snapshots between design revisions to track what changed and what it cost.
Validation
Run DRC to catch errors, warnings, and info-level issues across your design. Apply manufacturer rule templates for JLCPCB, PCBWay, and OSHPark. Each finding shows the affected component, a description of the problem, and a suggested fix.
Exports
Download your design in 14+ formats: KiCad, Eagle, SPICE, BOM CSV, Gerber (copper, mask, silkscreen, paste), Excellon drill files, pick-and-place, netlist, design report, FMEA, firmware scaffold, and PDF.
Simulation
Generate SPICE netlists from your schematic and run AC/frequency analysis. Results display as Bode plots — gain (dB) and phase (degrees) across frequency decades. Supports five filter topologies; simulation results are cached per design.
Command palette
Press Ctrl+K (or Cmd+K on macOS) from anywhere in the workspace to open the command palette. Start typing to filter commands in real time, use arrow keys to navigate, and press Enter to execute. The command palette provides access to three groups:| Group | Commands |
|---|---|
| Navigate | Architecture, Schematic, PCB Layout, Breadboard, Component Editor, Procurement, Validation, Exports, Simulation |
| Panels | Show/hide sidebar, show/hide AI assistant |
| Actions | Run design rule check, export project |
Keyboard shortcuts
Press ? at any time to open the full keyboard shortcuts dialog. The most useful shortcuts by view are listed below.Global
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Ctrl+K | Open command palette |
| ? | Open keyboard shortcuts dialog |
Architecture view
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Ctrl+Z | Undo |
| Ctrl+Y / Ctrl+Shift+Z | Redo |
| Delete / Backspace | Delete selected node(s) |
| Ctrl+A | Select all nodes |
| Ctrl+V | Paste |
| F | Fit view |
| G | Toggle snap grid |
| Space + drag | Pan the canvas |
| Scroll wheel | Zoom in/out |
| Escape | Deselect / close dialog |
Schematic view
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| V | Select tool |
| H | Pan tool |
| W | Draw net/wire tool |
| G | Toggle snap |
| F | Fit view |
| Backspace | Undo last waypoint (while drawing net) |
| Escape | Cancel / deselect |
Component editor
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| S | Select tool |
| R | Rectangle tool |
| C | Circle tool |
| T | Text tool |
| L | Line tool |
| P | Pin tool |
| M | Measure tool |
| B | Path (Bezier) tool |
| Ctrl+S | Save |
| Ctrl+Z / Ctrl+Y | Undo / redo |
| Ctrl+0 / Home | Zoom to fit |
| Delete / Backspace | Delete selected |
Breadboard view
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| 1 | Select tool |
| 2 | Wire tool |
| 3 | Delete tool |
| Delete / Backspace | Delete selected wire |
| Escape | Cancel / deselect |
PCB layout view
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| 1 | Select tool |
| 2 | Trace tool |
| 3 | Delete tool |
| F | Flip active layer (front/back copper) |
| Delete / Backspace | Delete selected trace |
| Escape | Cancel / deselect |
AI chat panel
| Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Enter | Send message |
| Escape | Close panel |
Resizing and collapsing panels
Both the sidebar and the chat panel can be resized by dragging the thin divider bar between them and the center area. To hide a panel entirely, click its toggle button at the left or right end of the tab bar. On mobile, the sidebar becomes a slide-out menu (hamburger icon, top-left), the main tabs move to a bottom navigation bar, and the AI chat is accessible via a chat bubble button in the top-right corner.Collapsing the sidebar or chat panel only affects the current session — the state resets to the default layout when you refresh the page.