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PCB Circuit Design Software Manufacturers and Developers

April 19, 2018
PCB Circuit Design Software Manufacturers And Developers
PCB

Printed circuit boards (PCBs) are an essential part of the creation of any electronic product. Most electronics such as computers, smartphone and microwaves contain PCBs. Anything that uses electricity to function often has a printed circuit board. Instead of using wires, PCBs use tracers to transmit energy from one component to another. These components are made of copper. Printed circuit boards contain various components such as resistors, capacitors, inductors, relays, batteries, ruses, potentiometers and transformers.

Pre-Manufacturing includes:

  • Rapid prototyping

  • Circuit Board Schematics and Layout Design

  • Proof of Concept

  • Design for Manufacturability (DFM)

  • Design for Assembly (DFA)

  • Design for Interconnection and Packaging

  • Design for Test (DFT)

  • Prototype Manufacturing

In Manufacturing, they offer services in

Materials management & component purchasing

Rigid and Flex electronic assembly

Complete range of component assembly

Lead-Free Processing

Conformal Coating

Test Development

Environmental Stress Test (EST)

Functional, ICT, and Boundary Scan Testing

System Integration

Packaging and customized documentation

Finally, in post-manufacturing, Circuits Central performs

upgrades

repair services

BGA rework & re-balling

Design for Manufacturability

Design for Manufacturability (DFM) guidelines and rules are the blueprints of Printed Circuit Boards manufacturing. The rules have evolved with time as technology advances from circuit boards having only thru-hole components with 12 mil marks and spaces 30 years ago to today having 3 mil marks, fine pitch parts, and micro-vias. The rules become more stringent as designers seek profitably manufactured PCBs. Design rule checks (DRCs) form the bulk of DFM compliance and circuitry requirements rules. Designers should make sure that PCBs are manufactured according component spacing, to specific trace and space widths, and other clearance specifications.

Other requirements include the soldering process since some clients may demand particular pad shapes and component installation orientations to avoid 'tombstoning'. PCB DFM guidelines assist manufacturers in increasing productivity and efficiency of their design. DFM rules vary depending on the design technology being employed on the board and manufacturer’s capability.

When manufacturing PCBs, it is essential to consider the board form factor as complex board shape involve cutouts and slots. Rectangular shaped boards save on fabrication costs. Components are kept as uniform as possible to speed up the manufacturing process as uniformity ensures similar assembly lines. Surface mount technology is quickly becoming the preferred manufacturing technique to create PCBs. Instead of using through-hole components, SMT glues the components onto pads on the surface of the board.

There is Circuit design software, like Altium Designer that has DRCs and other functionality built into them assisting in adhering to DFM rules making sure designs are DFM compliant. Circuit design software can be used in drawing diagrams to be used in printing PCBs, most of which have a detailed library and share them in various programs identifying compatibility with Windows, Linux, Mac OS X Operating System. Use the toolbar to select the components for a circuit design required following the software guidelines. Examples of PCB Designing software’s in the embedded system design are:

  • TinyCAD

  • Fritzing

  • Eagle

  • Osmond PCB

  • ZenitPCB

  • KiCAD

  • ExpressPCB

  • gEDA

  • FreePCB

  • BSch3V

Circuits Central is an all-inclusive electronics manufacturing solutions firm, from pre-manufacturing, manufacturing, to post-manufacturing.

For more information, call Circuits Central toll-free at 1 (888) 821-7746, or contact us here.

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