The Significance of Top-Notch PCB Component Libraries
In the ever-evolving world of electronics, the importance of maintaining high-quality PCB (Printed Circuit Board) libraries cannot be overstated. Natasha Baker, Founder of SnapEDA, highlighted several key challenges in building and maintaining these libraries during her Winter 2019 IPC Designers Council Silicon Valley presentation.
Ensuring Accuracy and Consistency
Maintaining precise footprint dimensions, pad sizes, and pin assignments is crucial to avoid manufacturing issues. Inconsistencies can lead to assembly errors or redesigns. One common pitfall that seasoned engineers often face is misinterpreting a component's bottom view as being its top view, causing the component to get "mirrored."
Component Data Management
Handling a large volume of components and keeping their parameters, symbols, and models up to date is complex and time-consuming. SnapEDA, a search engine for PCB libraries, provides tools to support a wide array of design formats, automatically build parts using computer vision and optical character recognition, and request footprints & symbols of specific components instantly.
Standardization Across Teams
Achieving uniform standards and naming conventions across different designers and departments helps prevent confusion and errors. SnapEDA is used by over a million professional engineers from around the world to build circuit boards faster, contributing to this standardization.
Keeping Up with Component Lifecycle
Components go obsolete or are replaced frequently, making it challenging to keep the library current and relevant. It is important to stay on top of the latest industry standards, as they can affect aspects like copper lands and default orientation of footprints.
Tool and Format Compatibility
Dealing with varying PCB design tools and ensuring libraries are compatible or easily transferable can present integration issues.
Time and Resource Constraints
Building libraries with comprehensive metadata and detailed information requires significant upfront investment, which can be limited. To address this, SnapEDA offers features like InstaBuild, a computer-vision symbol builder, and InstaPart, a 24-hour request service for PCB libraries, to save engineers time and improve their workflow.
Verifying PCB libraries is crucial, whether they are obtained from a website or created by a team, as part of the DFM (Design for Manufacturing) process. The IPC (Association Connecting Electronics Industries) is a standardization body that works on creating standards for footprints, with the latest standard for surface mount components being the IPC-7351B.
In recent years, there has been a surge in smaller design teams looking for ready-to-use libraries, as times are changing rapidly in the PCB industry. Another frequent issue among newer engineers is placing silkscreen over the copper pads, which can lead to bad solder joints.
Proper and reliable manufacturing, CAD tool features functioning correctly, and consistency in designs are benefits of having high-quality PCB libraries. Sierra Circuits asked Natasha Baker about the importance of PCB libraries, and she emphasized their indispensable role in reliable manufacturing, readability, and enabling ERC (Electrical Rule Check) and DRC (Design Rule Check) checks.
- To avoid assembly errors or the need for redesigns, it is important to maintain precise footprint dimensions, pad sizes, and pin assignments in PCB libraries, ensuring that components are not inadvertently mirrored.
- Maintaining high-quality PCB libraries is crucial for staying current with industry standards, as components frequently become obsolete or are replaced, making it challenging to keep the library relevant.
