This GUI application lets you generate Dymo-style labels for each wire in a given wiring harness. Simply select the excel file containing the cut list for the wiring harness, data from the cut list will be used to generate labels for each wire/bundle. The part number and customer name are pulled from the filename using this convention: <part number> <customer>.xlsx. If the customer name is not found in the filename, the user will be prompted to enter the customer name. Any blank rows are skipped.
Before loading the excel file, the user can specify the total number of harasses they are cutting and the desired batch size. Using this information, the application will calculate the number of labels that will be printed for each wire/bundle. After loading the excel file, a table with the wire/bundle information will be displayed. The user can then select the wire they want to generate labels for and click the Print Selected button. The application will then generate the labels for the selected wire and send them to the selected Dymo printer, using the WireBundleLabel.label template saved under the templates folder. After printing the labels, the highlighted wire will be removed from the table. Clicking the Reload button will completely reload the table with the selected file and recalculate the number of labels for each wire. Clicking the Print Previous button will print a single label for the previously selected wire. Clicking the Print Single button will print a single label for the selected wire, this will not remove the selected wire from the table.
Download the latest version of the application from GitHub. Extract the contents of the zip file and run the Wire Cutting Label Generator.exe file. This application does require the DYMO Label v.8 application to be installed on the computer, and will not run without it.
Below are all the variables that can be used in the label template. Any combnation of these variables can be used in the label template. Any missing variables will be ignored and any extra variables will show the default value as defined in the template. Note that the template filename must be WireBundleLabel.label and must be saved under the templates folder.
| Reference Name | Description |
|---|---|
| timestamp | The current date and time in the format MM-DD-YYYY HH:MM. |
| left_text_box | The left text box. This is where the left text will be printed. |
| right_text_box | The right text box. This is where the right text will be printed. |
| barcode | A QR code containing a json string as defined in the Barcode section of this readme. |
An excel file containing the cut list for a wiring harness must have the following columns:
| Sheet Name | Column Name | Data Type | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cut Sheet | Qty | Integer | The number of pieces required for this wire. |
| Cut Sheet | Gauge | Integer | The gauge of the wire. |
| Cut Sheet | Type | String | The type of wire. IE. GPT, GXL, etc |
| Cut Sheet | Color | String | The color of the wire. |
| Cut Sheet | Length | Integer | The length of the wire in inches. |
| Cut Sheet | Left Strip | Float | The length of the left strip in inches. |
| Cut Sheet | Left Gap | Float | The length of the left gap in inches. |
| Cut Sheet | Right Gap | Float | The length of the right gap in inches. |
| Cut Sheet | Right Strip | Float | The length of the right strip in inches. |
| Cut Sheet | Left Terminal | String | The left terminal. |
| Cut Sheet | Right Terminal | String | The right terminal. |
A template for the excel file can be found in the templates folder.
All settings and configuration are saved to the windows registry. The hive key is HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\DF-Software\Wire Cutting Label Generator. Below is a list of the settings and their default values.
| Setting | Default Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
| initial_cut_sheet_directory | None (string) | This is an optional setting that can be used to specify the initial directory for the cut sheet files |
| Logging\log_level | 20 (decimal) | This setting controls the level of logging. The default value is 20. Valid values are multiples of 10. 10 = Critical, 20 = Error, 30 = Warning, 40 = Info, 50 = Debug |
| Logging\max_log_count | 3 (decimal) | All log files are saved in a rotating fashion. This setting controls the number of log files to keep. The default value is 3. |
| Logging\max_log_size_mb | 5 (decimal) | This setting controls the maximum size of each log file in megabytes. The default value is 5. |
| MainWindow\selected_printer_name | None (string) | This setting saves the last selected printer name. |
| Program\debug | false (boolean) | This setting controls whether the application will run in debug mode. The default value is false. |
| Program\disable_label_printing | false (boolean) | This setting controls whether the application will print labels. The default value is false. If set to true, label data will be logged. |
| Program\remove_printed_labels | false (boolean) | This setting controls whether the application will remove labels from the table after printing. The default value is false. |
| User\first_name | None (string) | This setting saves the first name of the last user to use the application. |
| User\last_name | None (string) | This setting saves the last name of the last user to use the application. |
Below is a sample of what the barcode json string will look like. The value for the Wire key uses this format: <Gauge>GA <Color> <Type>.
{
"Timestamp": "02-03-2022 13:01",
"Cut By": {
"first_name": "Test",
"last_name": "User"
},
"Customer": "Test Customer",
"PN": "PN-12345",
"Wire": "16GA BLUE/BLACK GPT",
"Length": "46",
"Left Term": "SPLICE",
"Right Term": "14/16 AMPHENOL SOCKET"
}Various aspects and functions of this application are logged to log files stored under %userprofile%\Documents\DF-Software\Wire Cutting Label Generator\Logs. Log file frontend.log contains logs partaining to user input and GUI intertactions. Log file backend.log contains logs partaining to things that happen behind the scenes.