PADS Professional

Flow Guide
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 Contents
Introduction to PADS Professional 7
Introduction......................................................................................................................... 8
ISO Trusted Tools................................................................................................................. 8
About This Guide................................................................................................................. 9
Design Process Overview................................................................................................... 10
The Design Flow................................................................................................................ 11

Design Capture with PADS Professional 13

Lesson 1: The Start Pages.................................................................................................. 14
Lesson 2: PADS Professional Designer Workspace............................................................ 15
Lesson 3: Setting Up a New Project................................................................................... 33
Lesson 4: Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook............................................ 41
Lesson 5: Placing Symbols in the Schematic...................................................................... 55
Lesson 6: Wiring the Schematic........................................................................................ 67
Lesson 7: Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager................................. 83
Lesson 8: Variant Manager.............................................................................................. 103
Lesson 9: Generating the BOM (Bill of Materials) using Part Lister................................. 114
Lesson 10: PADS Professional Designer Integration with HyperLynx LineSim................. 119
Lesson 11: PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout Integration........ 125

Contents
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout 133
Lesson 12: The PADS Professional Layout Environment.................................................. 134
Lesson 13: Setting Up a New Board Design..................................................................... 154
Lesson 14: Placement...................................................................................................... 168
Lesson 15: Constraint Manager in PADS Professional Layout.......................................... 191
Lesson 16: Variant Management..................................................................................... 208
Lesson 17: AutoActive Interactive Routing...................................................................... 221
Lesson 18: Final Layout Considerations........................................................................... 250
Lesson 19: Design Verification......................................................................................... 256
Lesson 20: Flex Design and Verification........................................................................... 263

Simulation with
HyperLynx BoardSim & HyperLynx Thermal 277
Lesson 21: HyperLynx BoardSim Simulation.................................................................... 278
Lesson 22: HyperLynx Thermal Analysis.......................................................................... 283

Completing the Design 289

Lesson 23: Adding Drawing Documentation ................................................................... 290
Lesson 24: Generating Manufacturing Outputs ............................................................. 298

Data Archiving and Library Management 309

Lesson 25: Data Archiving and Transfer........................................................................... 310
Lesson 26: Creating Components in Your Personal Library............................................. 333
Conclusion....................................................................................................................... 363

Contents
Appendix
Appendix 1: ODBC Setup............................................................................................A-2
Appendix 2: Configure PADS Databook......................................................................A-4
Appendix 3: Configuring Variant Manager.................................................................A-5
Appendix 4: Configuring HyperLynx Model Search Paths...........................................A-7

List of Figures
Figure 1: Design Process Steps.................................................................................... 10
Figure 2: PADS Professional Flow Diagram.................................................................. 11
Figure 3: PADS Professional Designer Main Window.................................................. 16
Figure 4: PADS Professional Designer Toolbars....................................................... 18-19
Figure 5: Constraint Manager Main Window.............................................................. 84
Figure 6: Constraint Manager Toolbars.................................................................. 85-86
Figure 7: PADS Professional Layout Main Window.................................................... 135
Figure 8: PADS Professional Layout Toolbars......................................................137-139

Contents
Contents
 Introduction to
PADS Professional
In this section:
„„ Introduction
„„ Installation and Setup
„„ Design Process Overview
„„ The Design Flow

7
Introduction
PADS® Professional is by far the most productive and complete PCB systems „„ 3D PCB layout and MCAD collaboration
design suite that allows hardware engineers, PCB designers and small workgroups „„ Advanced electrical and DFF design rule checking
to design highly complex PCBs while at the same time offering an affordable cost „„ PCB documentation and automated manufacturing output
of ownership. Skeptical? We invite you to take a closer look using this evaluation generation
guide and see for yourself. „„ Archive management and design review with compare, mark-up and
PADS Professional is for the individual engineers who do it all, operating reporting
independently or in small teams. Until now, your choice of design tool has been
a frustrating compromise. High-end enterprise solutions that handle design While PADS Professional is a complete solution for complex PCB design, you
complexity come with too much unnecessary overhead and the associated still have the flexibility of adding specialized advanced capabilities such as
challenges of ease of use and cost of ownership. While desktop solutions are HyperLynx DDR/DRC/PI, advanced packaging and RF Design.
easier to use and have lower cost, they sacrifice productivity as design complexity PADS Professional is a key part of Mentor Graphics scalable PCB design
increases. PADS Professional delivers the best of both worlds - powerful solutions. If you are a PADS user in need of higher performance design, PADS
technology from Mentor Xpedition combined with a focus on ease of adoption, Professional offers a simple upgrade path that allows you to leverage your prior
ease of learning, ease of use, and affordability. PADS Professional provides a experience and intellectual property. If your design needs to evolve towards
tightly integrated design flow with everything you need to get the job done. enterprise capabilities such as distributed libraries, design management and
„„ Hierarchical schematic and table based design creation with intelligent concurrent engineering, then you can seamlessly transisiton to Xpedition
parts selection Enterprise.
„„ FPGA synthesis and I/O optimization We hope you’ll agree – with PADS Professional, the days of compromise
„„ Unified constraints definition and management across the flow are over. Welcome to a new breed of PCB design solution for the next
„„ Component information and library management generation of hardware engineers and PCB designers.
„„ Easy design reuse
„„ Analog/mixed signal SPICE simulation ISO Trusted Tools
„„ Pre- and post-layout signal integrity analysis based on industry leading Xpedition is supported by a large documentation system and also carries tool
HyperLynx technology qualification, with independent third-party certification for select products. This
„„ Board level thermal analysis provides confidence in the growing area of ISO 26262 Trusted Tool certification
„„ Best-in-class, PCB layout featuring: that your tool suite meets Level 1 standards.
• A single layout environment This Flow Guide and the accompanying lesson files work in concert with
• Correct-by-construction approach to plane design, placement, and Designing ISO 26262 Compliant PCBs Using Xpedition Enterprise and PADS
routing Professional. This document can be accessed from the Mentor Support Center.
• Hierarchical component planning and placement
- The industry’s most powerful auto-interactive routing environment
for large busses, single ended, and differential pair nets When you see this icon in the Guide, please refer to the chapter "Using
• Groundbreaking Sketch routing Xpediton Enterprise or PADS Professional to Achieve ISO 26262 Tool Confidence
• Advanced fabrication design including HDI and Flex Level 1" in Designing ISO 26262 Compliant PCBs Using Xpedition Enterprise
and PADS Professional.

8 Introduction
 Introduction to PADS Professional

Purpose of This Guide About This Guide

This Flow Orientation Guide will introduce you to the major features and This Flow Guide is intended to be used with PADS Professional software
capabilities of the applications and help you to understand how they work which is installed separately.
together to unify and simplify your design process. We will walk through the This Flow Guide and the accompanying lesson files allow a user who has
entire workflow from symbol creation to design capture, rules and constraints limited experience with the PADS Professional workflow to review its new
entry, to layout, placement of components, interactive routing, and design features and capabilities. Keep in mind this presentation is a snapshot of the
verification to final output. The focus throughout is on using the entire PADS full range of features that PADS Professional provides.
Professional flow, with special attention paid not only to those areas where
Note: Install the PADS Professional software and place all of the lesson files
the applications function similarly, but also to the integration and transition
used in this guide into the C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release> directory.
locations, providing tips on how to get the job done more efficiently.
The content of the guide material includes:
Working Together „„ Evaluation Guide PDF file
This attention to workflow means that we will also show you how to use (located in the C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release> directory)
the applications together with real-world design examples. Along the „„ Schematic, Simulation and PCB Lesson files
way, we also introduce you to many of the great new features in each (located in the C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release> directory)
application, highlighting some of the more interesting techniques with „„ Personal Library
steps and lots of illustrations. To see which applications and features a (located in the C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library
section covers, scan the “In this section” list at the beginning of each section. directory)
Datasheets - (located in the
Further Exploration C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\Datasheets
Finally, remember that this document is an flow orientation guide, not a directory)
comprehensive user guide. Your most complete source of detailed PADS Databook Database - (located in the
feature information is the Help Menu in each application. In C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\DatabookData
addition, take time to examine the resource information accessible through directory)
the Getting Started, Help, and News links within each applications Start
Page. There you will find even more information on a variety of Mentor
Graphics resources that will help you get started, get informed, and get Licenses
inspired while using PADS Professional. We hope this evaluation guide Some lessons within this Flow Guide may require additional licenses. If
helps you see some of the exciting design possibilities available to you with additional licenses are required, please contact your Mentor Graphics
PADS Professional. representative so that they can provide them for you.
Enjoy!

Introduction 9
Design Process Overview Steps In the Design Process
Creating a new design project requires an engineer to pay attention to many There are many operations that a designer must perform to complete a design,
details. Designing a PCB is a process of making design decisions and tradeoffs, but the process flow can be simplified to a few basic steps shown below:
based on engineering changes throughout the design. In order to obtain the best 1. Creating a Design Project
possible design, the engineer must weigh a number of conflicting factors and
2. Performing Design Capture
make calculated design choices to obtain the best possible design outputs.
„„ Creating the top level schematic
Knowing that your design tools have the ability to provide and
„„ Adding components to the schematic
manage the required content gives you a strong foundation on which to
„„ Connecting the components
build your design. PADS Professional offers a fully featured front-to-back
„„ Synthesis and FPGA I/O optimization
design flow that allows the engineer to balance rules and constraints in an
„„ Defining constraints
intelligent and predictable manner to produce quality designs that can be easily
„„ Performing design simulation (pre-layout)
manufactured.
„„ Packaging and Forward Annotating the logical design for physical design
3. PCB Layout Design
„„ Importing schematic design data to layout
„„ Configuring for physical design
Create a Personal Library „„ Generating plane structures
Design Project Part Creation „„ Adding physical constraints
„„ Place parts and verify mechanical requirements
„„ FPGA layout optimization
„„ Routing critical nets
Schematic Capture
„„ Complete nets routing
with Simulation
„„ Checking design rules (DRC) and manufacturing rules (DFF)
„„ Post layout analysis
4. Creating Documentation and Manufacturing Outputs
PCB Design Layout with „„ Creating schematic release documentation
SI/Thermal Simulation „„ Creating manufacturing outputs
„„ Performing engineering change orders (ECO)

Documentation and Partitioning your workflow to align with these steps will help you establish a
Manufacturing Outputs structured approach to organizing your design tasks. It will also provide you with
a number of checkpoints for reviewing your design data.

10 Introduction
 Introduction to PADS Professional

The Design Flow

Introduction 11
 End of section. This page intentionally left blank.

12 Introduction
Design Capture with
PADS Professional
In this section:
„„ The Start Pages
„„ PADS Professional Designer Environment and Workspace
„„ Setting up a New Project
„„ Creating a New Schematic
„„ Placing Parts
„„ Wiring the Schematic
„„ Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager
„„ Variant Manager
„„ PADS Professional Designer Integration with HyperLynx
LineSim
„„ Generating the BOM (Bill of Materials)
„„ PADS Professional Designer Packager and PADS
Professional Layout Project Integration

13
Lesson 1: The Start Pages
The Start Pages contain links to tutorial information, videos, online help features, and
this Evaluation Guide. These items can help you become productive quickly. The Start
Pages are available from both PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout. ❶

❶ From your Start menu, launch PADS Professional by selecting

Apps > PADS Pro Tools <release> > PADS Pro Designer or
Apps > PADS Pro Tools <release> >PADS Pro Layout.
Pin these entries to the right panel of your Start menu or to your
Taskbar. Right-click the entry and select Pin to Start, or drag and drop
it into the tile section of the Start menu. To unpin a tile, right-click the ❸
tile and click Unpin from Start.
You can name your grouping My PADS Professional Apps - (64-Bit) for
easy identification.
NOTE: The Start menu for PADS Professional 64-Bit now includes PADS
Design Archive. To understand how Design Archive fits in your flow, explore
Chapter 25.
Explore the resources available to you on the Start Page:
❷ Take time to become familiar with the Getting Started, Help, and News
sections. These contain links to additional product documentation ❷
on Support Center and InfoHub, including this Flow Guide and user ❸
guides.
❸ Click New Project > PADS Professional or New PCB to start a new ❹
design.
❹ Go to the Recent section to quickly access designs you have worked
on previously.
❺ Toggle visibility of the Start Page in PADS Professional Designer or
PADS Professional Layout by selecting View > Start Page.
❻ In PADS Professional Layout to keep the Start Page from appearing
when the program opens, disable View > Show Start Page at Startup.
❼ Close PADS Professional Designer and/or PADS Professional Layout if ❺
still open. ❺
❻

14 The Start Pages

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Lesson 2: PADS Professional Designer Workspace

PADS Professional Designer is used for schematic design capture. ❶
The product follows Windows navigation standards. It supports pulldown
menus, hot keys, toolbars, toolboxes and tooltips. The menus are context
sensitive so that when you right-click, the popup menu options vary depending
on the object you select.
The interface is also fully customizable. Advanced Windows navigation features ❶
including Tear Off Menus, Dockable Windows, and Auto Hide Docking are also
available.
These standard windows features make PADS Professional Designer an easy and
productive environment for schematic generation.
Start PADS Professional Designer
❶ Start PADS Pro Designer from the Windows Start menu to display the
PADS Professional Designer Start Page.

❷ Click Open on the Start Page and browse to and select ❷

C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1\Lesson1.prj.
We will spend some time setting up the interface
in this lesson so that it will look like the workspace
on the next page.
Important Note:
License Selection
The first time you open a Schematic you may be asked to Select the
desired product license. Please enable all available licenses as shown
in the Splash screen.

PADS Professional Designer Workspace 15

 Window
Introduction to the User Interface (Main Editor Window)
Workspace My Parts Layouts

Menus
Toolbars

Navigator
Pane

PADS Professional Designer Symbol Footprint

Status Bar Search Window Preview Preview
16 PADS Professional Designer Workspace
 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Window Layouts
The Schematic Design environment provides a clear and well-reasoned approach to organizing your Layout display of toolbars, datapanes and windows that
change with your needs. Your display is controlled easily through the Window Layouts dropdown list located in the upper right corner of the PADS Professional
Designer application. Initially you are provided with three layouts -- Default, Classic and Symbol Edit.
The Default Window Layout provides simplified toolbars and windows for basic use. The Default Main toolbar is a blend of key commands from the CLASSIC Main
and View toolbars. The Classic Window Layout provides even more tool access and window navigation controls as your needs change. Flexibilty is built-in so that
you can create specific Window Layouts that follow your login. We will move between these layouts as we progress through the Flow Guide and you will have a
chance to create some of your own and provide feedback on what works best for you!

Practice Viewing Default and Classic Windows Layouts

❸ Click the Window Layouts dropdown arrow to display the three initial
layouts. Inspect the Main toolbar to see the differences on that toolbar
for Default and Classic layout. We will review the toolbars provided
with the Default layout on the next page.
PADS Professional Designer Workspace 17
Default Window Layout Toolbars

The Main Toolbar

Selection
Zoom Fit File Filter Push
New Cut Paste Undo Fit All Out Selected Viewer Options ICT

Print Copy Search Redo Zoom Zoom Properties Selection Push Pop
In Area Filter

The Add Toolbar The Grid Toolbar

Add
Properties Cut Snap to Grid Grid Snap
Select Block Net Bus Array Mode Delete Nets Grid Units On/Off

Rotate Add Multi-Net Text Special Reassign Disconnect Grid Grid Display Show
90 Part Connection Components Names Spacing On/Off Alignment
Markers

18 PADS Professional Designer Workspace

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Default Window Layout Toolbars (Continued)

The Transform Toolbar

Align Align Align Distribute
Mirror Center Top Middle Horizontally

Flip Align Align Align Distribute

Left Right Bottom Vertically
❹❺
Extended Tooltips
All of the toolbar icons contain tooltips to help you understand the
commands you select. PADS Professional Designer also contains extended
tooltip animation for most of the commands on the toolbars. These
animations provide you with a brief video to minimize the learning curve
and place immediate help at your fingertips. Quick-key commands are also
provided within the tooltips.
Displaying Extended Tooltips
❹ Hover over the Select icon. The normal tooltip is shown along with
the Quick-key command.
❺ Hover over the Select icon again, but leave your cursor over
the icon for brief time (about 3 seconds). The animation for the
command begins playing and shows additional information and
usage for the command.
❻ Hover over the Main, Add, and Transform toolbar icons to quickly
familiarize yourself with these commands.

PADS Professional Designer Workspace 19

Docking Windows to Customize Your Workspace
Window docking is easy with PADS Professional! The interface provides visual ❶
references to signal where your window will place when you release the mouse
button. We will add some application windows as we start to create our own
customized window layout.

Docking a Window in a New Location

❶ Click the Add Part icon from the Add toolbar. If you are unsure, use
the tooltips to help you identify the correct icon. ❷
The PADS Databook window displays under the workspace window.
❷ Click the Titlebar of the PADS Databook window and with your mouse
button still down, drag the window towards the Output window.
❸ A visual reference map displays over the Output window, move your
mouse to the center of the reference indicator. The entire Output
window turns blue to indicate that the PADS Databook window will be
docked in a tabbed window display, shared with the Output window
area.

❹ Release your mouse to see the new tabbed window.

20 PADS Professional Designer Workspace

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Customized Windows Layouts

Your modifications to the schematic editing environment can be saved as a
unique Window Layout that follows your user login.
The Save Window Layout button, located to the left of the Window Layout area,
enables you to quickly save layouts while you are working and then switch ❶
between layouts as you need them. Should you choose not to save your layout
as a unique Window Layout, PADS Pro Designer saves your changes as the new
Default layout when you close your project. ❷
Saving a Window Layout
❶ Click the Save Window Layout button located to the left of the Window
Layouts area. The Save Layout dialog will display on your screen.
❷ Enter my_EVAL_layout in the text field and click OK.

Navigator Tree Pane

The Navigator Tree pane, like all PADS Professional Designer panes, is
dockable and can be moved anywhere you wish on the screen. PADS
Professional Designer remembers the height and width of any pane you ❷
modify during a working session. This is particularly beneficial in a dual
monitor configuration. This pane shows a hierarchy of the schematic content
and allows you to easily jump between pages, symbols, and nets. ❷

The Navigator Tree Pane

❶ Toggle display of the Navigator Tree by selecting View > Navigator
if it is not already displayed.
❸
❷ Double-click CORPORATE and notice the main window displays the
sheet CORPORATE.Cover (The sheet name is shown on the tab at
the top of the design window.).
Next, click the [+] icon located to the left of the CORPORATE
❸ schematic name to expand the schematic sheets.
Note: The tree should expand to look like this example.

PADS Professional Designer Workspace 21

 The Navigator Tree Pane (continued)

❹ Double-click control_buffers to open the schematic sheet in the

editor workspace.
Note: Notice the schematic sheet tabs located at the top of the workspace
area display both Corporate.Cover and Corporate.control_buffers when you
hover over them.
Note: You can also click the [+] to expand any of the sheets in the Navigator
tree.
❺ Two categories (Symbols and Nets) appear in the dialog box for each
schematic sheet.
❻ Click the [+] again to expand the Symbols and Nets section of the
Navigator tree.
❼ Select any symbol in the list. PADS Professional Designer automatically
Cross Probes to that item. ❹
Note: Double-click on any symbol in the Navigator tree and it will zoom to
that symbol in the schematic.

❻
❹ ❼
❺

22 PADS Professional Designer Workspace

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Object Tooltips
PADS Professional Designer supports tooltips for Components and Nets.
The visible attributes are configurable. Let’s take a closer look. ❶
❶ Open Project Settings by selecting Setup > Settings or press the
CTRL+ALT+G hotkey.
❷ Click Display and notice the options for controlling various display
settings including Show tooltips. Enable Components and Nets.
Click Apply.
❸ Using the left panel, go up to the Schematic Editor section and
click Selection Filters and then click Add. Name your new filter
❷
PADSProfessional and click OK.
❹ Click the Pin, Symbol, Net and Bus checkbox options in the Objects ❷
section and click the Text checkbox option in the Texts section.
Click OK to apply your settings and close the Settings dialog box.

❹
❸

PADS Professional Designer Workspace 23

 Object Tooltips (continued)
❺ Double-click the schematic sheet name PCI_Connection to open
❼
this sheet of the schematic.
❻ Click the Selection Filter dropdown list from the toolbar and
select PADSProfessional.
❼ Click in the schematic workspace and place your cursor over any
component to see the tooltip.
Place your cursor over any net to view the netname tooltip. ❺
Note: This is a very convenient way to get information without having to
zoom in or invoke the Properties dialog to view and identify an object on
the schematic.

Navigation (Pan and Zoom)

Zooming

❶ Click on any open area in the workspace. ❷

❷ Press the F7 (Zoom In) and F8 (Zoom Out) function keys to zoom.
Zoom in and out for practice. You can also use the different Zoom
icons on the View Toolbar.
❸ Another method for Zooming In and Out is to use the Middle Mouse
Scroll Wheel if you have one.
❺ ❽
❹ To Pan within the workspace, click and drag the Middle Mouse Scroll
Wheel.
❺ Press the Home key (Zoom to Full) to restore the view to the entire
active schematic sheet, or use the Fit All icon.
❻ Press F9 , then drag a box around the area you wish to zoom to.
❼ You can also Zoom to a selected item by pressing the Shift and Z keys.
❸❹
❽ Use the Save Zoom and Restore Zoom icons (from the View toolbar)
when you want to be able to go back to a previous location on the
schematic.
24 PADS Professional Designer Workspace
 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Additional Navigation Tools

Sheet Thumbnails ❸
Navigation through a large schematic database is made easier with Sheet
Thumbnails. The small views of your schematic can help you easily find
the sheet you want to work on.
❶ Select View > Thumbnails to open the thumbnails panel showing
the sheet you have currently active. Dock this panel with your
Navigator panel to make a tabbed panel on the left side of the
workspace.
❷ Double-click the CORPORATE.microprocessor sheet thumbnail to
make that the currently active sheet. The sheet opens in a new tab
on your workspace.
❶
❸ To make the workspace area larger, you can Auto-hide the
Navigator/Thumbnails tabbed panel by clicking the thumb tack
icon.
Note: You can use Auto-hide on any of the panels within PADS
Professional Designer.

Save this Window Layout

❶ Click the Save Window Layout button located to the left of the Window
Layouts area. The Save Layout dialog will display on your screen.
❷ Enter my_NAV_layout in the text field and click OK.

PADS Professional Designer Workspace 25

 Navigation View
This world view of your currently active schematic sheet
allows you to easily zoom into areas for quick navigation.
❶ Select View > Other Windows > Navigation
View and the global view window opens for your
currently active sheet.
❷ The Navigation View window can be easily re-sized
by dragging the window edges.
❸ Drag the slider up on the right side of the window
to make the active zoom area smaller. Notice your ❷
main window zooms into the area shown by the
zoom window.
❹ To change your zoom location, drag the zoom ❸
window within the Navigation View to a new area
of the schematic sheet.

Links
❹
Links are Annotate symbols that allow you to quickly traverse to a ❺
corresponding link symbol on another sheet of the schematic. Connectivity
can also be linked through To/From Off-sheet link symbols.
❺ Close or Auto-hide the Navigation view. ❼
❻ Hover your cursor over the blue arrow labeled micro.
❻
❼ While pressing the Alt key, select the link and you immediately jump
to the matching link symbol on the Cover sheet of the schematic.

26 PADS Professional Designer Workspace

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Help System ❶
❶ Click Help to access documentation, support, Support Center
and tips. Take a moment to view the resources available from ❷
this menu. ❷
❷ Strokes use your mouse to draw a pattern that is understood
by the system for several commands - many of which are
related to display/zoom functions. To display a stroke quick
help guide for use while you are designing, select Help >
Show Strokes.
Additional information is available on using Strokes can be
found in Help > Documentation in InfoHub.
Note: You can also configure Navigational controls in
Setup > Settings > Schematic Editor > Strokes, Pan and Zoom.

PADS Professional Designer Workspace 27

The Find Function
You can move efficiently through a design using a variety of find methods
and then use cross-probe from the results displayed. We will explore two
methods to perform Find/Search.

Using the Find and Replace Function

❷
❶ Select Edit > Find and Replace > Text. ❹
❷ Click the More button to open all options. Take time to read through
the available options. ❸
❹
❸ Choose an option from the Within: dropdown list to define which
part of the design you would like to search. In this case select
Board: CORPORATE (CORPORATE).
❹ Type C2 in the Find what: text box and click Find All.
Note: The results of the search appear in the Find dialog.
Note: When you search, the results will also show in the Output window.
The output tab turns red to notify you that you have new output data.
See item # 6 below.
❺ Notice that several sheets are now open. Each page containing a
❺
reference to C2 has been opened.
❻ In the Output window, select the (component) hyperlink to quickly
jump to the capacitor with reference designator instance value of C2.
❼ Notice the section of the schematic where C2 resides.

28 PADS Professional Designer Workspace

 Design Capture with PADS Professional
❶
The Search Function
The key to successful search is to make it easy to use and powerful. Both of
these criteria are provided in the new Search.
Use the my_NAV_layout window layout for this exercise.

Using Search
❶ Select Edit > Find and Replace > Search or press Ctrl + F or use the
Main toolbar icon.
❷ The Search window displays. Drag the lower right corner of the window
to the right to enlarge the display until it is the same width as the ❸
Output window. Leave the two windows stacked at the bottom of your
workspace.
❸ You can search at a specific source using the @ operator. We will
explore @Design[dot]. Enter @Design. in the text query field to display
the level of Search dropdown list. Notice it is the same as that from the
dropdown list in the Search and Replace Text dialog. In this case select
Project from the list.
❹ Type "698k" in the query field after @Design.Project and press Enter ❸
on your keyboard.
Note: The list of found items displays in the Search window under the Design
- All tab. Using Search, you can directly cross-probe from your results without
having to change to the Output window. You can also use the tabs at the bottom
of the search window to view results at different layers of scope without the
need for filtering.

PADS Professional Designer Workspace 29

 Using Search (continued)
We will now run the same exercise using the Find and Replace Text dialog.
❺ In the Find and Replace dialog search for 698k within the Corporate
Schematic. All parts meeting this criterion are listed in the output
window. You can also use this method to find nets. Notice that we have
identical results. ❼

❻ Close all of the schematic pages using the X on the Tab to close each
❼
sheet. You can also use Window > Close All to close all open sheets.
❼ Dock the Search window with your tabbed Output/PADS Databook
window by dragging the titlebar of the Search window towards the
Output window and releasing in the area indicating tabbed window.
❽ Save the window layout as my_NAV_layout. Click Yes to overwrite the
existing layout.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Using Search and Color by Net

We will now color one of the search results for future identification.
❾ Using Search, enter the net name BSYNC* (make sure to include the “*“
wildcard character) in the criteria text area to search @Design.Project
for all instances where BSYNC is defined. Click the first net result to
select that net in the PCI_Connector schematic page.

❿ ⓫

⓮
❿ With the net selected, select View > Color by Net.
⓫ The Color by Net flag appears on the BSYNC+ net. Click the Color by Net
flag and select Mentor Maroon from the color palette.
⓬ Back in the Search window, click each net result to locate the BSYNC+
and BSYNC- nets across the design. Notice how all BSYNC+ nets now
display in Mentor Maroon across the design (even to microprocessor ⓭
page).
⓭ Select Setup > Settings, then use the left navigation panel to go to
Display > Colored Nets. This is where color by net settings are stored.
⓮ Click the BSYNC+ listing, then click Delete and OK to close the dialog. Use Setup > Settings > Display > Colored
⓯ Nets to
remove Color by Net assignments in your design.

PADS Professional Designer Workspace 31

 Review Questions
1 What is the purpose of the Navigator?
2 What information can I get from the tooltips?
3 How many different ways are there to zoom in and out?
4 When would I use the Find function or the Search function instead of the Navigator?

Review Answers
1 The Navigator presents you with a central viewport into your design. All components,
nets, classes, pin pairs and other design elements are available for browsing and
querying from this common window.
2 Tooltips provide a quick and easy way to examine the properties of design objects
(components and nets). Depending on how you have set up the visibility of properties,
you can view information about these objects by simply holding the cursor over the
item for a few seconds.
3 The PADS Professional Designer user interface provides multiple ways to perform
most common design tasks. You can zoom in and out using the keyboard keys (F7 and
F8), press F9 and drag a zoom window, press the z key and drag a zoom window, use
the mouse scroll wheel forward and backward to zoom in and out, or use strokes.
4 Though the Navigator gives you the opportunity to browse the major elements of
your design, use Find to build complex searches and quickly find very specific details
such as all instances of a specific component value within your design at various levels
of scope. Find also provides the ability to Find and Replace text elements which also
can be contained to several levels of scope. Search extends the power of Find by
providing search capabilities across your design and into library elements using a
Google like search method with self-contained window results for cross-probing into
your design or library.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Lesson 3: Setting Up a New Project

Integrated Common Database
Project Overview
A project file (.prj) contains pointers to all of the files associated with the
PADS Professional projects. Some of these files include the Schematic database,
PCB layout database, configuration files, and log files.
iCDB
The project database is stored in binary format in the /database directory.
PADS Professional PADS Professional
This Integrated Common Database structure provides a single data
Designer Layout
repository for a project and a framework for dynamic updates. The database,
continuously maintains connectivity, schematic and graphics objects, and
constraint data throughout the flow. This reduces both design time and the
risk of error inherent in creating and passing netlists between tools. When
using PADS Professional Designer, you never have to stop and remember to save
your work. Everything you do is always being stored. If you want to return to
a previous state, you can use Undo to remove your edits. Everything you do Constraint Manager
between backups will be stored in the Undo queue.
Project Directory Structure
In addition, you can create Backup points to rollback your design. You may choose
File > Backup Sheet at anytime to create a backup of the active sheet. The Rollback
Sheet function in PADS Professional Designer allows you to bring the schematic
sheet back to the last Backup version. Upon invoking PADS Professional Designer,
the Backup Sheet function is dimmed and the Rollback Sheet list is empty. When
you open a schematic, the Backup Sheet function is enabled. The Rollback Sheet
list is still dimmed until additional changes are performed on the schematic.
When you make changes following a backup then the File > Rollback Sheet menu
becomes active and lists the sheet backup timestamps. You can use this menu to
return the active sheet to the backup state. You can also use File > Clear Backups
to clear out all backups in the database. This is helpful to compact your project
file size. The tool also creates incremental automatic backups for you using Setup
> Settings > Project Backup.

Setting Up a New Project 33

 ❶
PADS Pro Designer Project Templates
In this lesson you will create a new PADS Professional Designer project by
selecting a template from the Start Page. Project Templates are a good method
to keep your company designs consistent from engineer to engineer. You can ❷
create multiple templates as needed for your design requirements.
In this section, you will modify the standard project template for the Central
Library and Component Properties Database. Any new project started with this
template will use this information.
Important - These steps must be performed to complete the entire lesson.
❶ Using Windows Explorer, browse to:
C:\MentorGraphics\PADSPro<release>\SDD_HOME\standard
\templates\dxdesigner\PADSPro.
❸
❷ Open the file PADS.prj in a text editor of your choice like Notepad.
❸ Edit the KEY CentralLibrary line to the new Central Library path as shown:
KEY CentralLibrary "C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\
Library.lmc"
❹ Add the KEY DBCFile line to the new Properties File path as shown:
KEY DBCFile "C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\
DatabookData\Sample.dbc" ❹
❺
❺ Edit the KEY PinComponents and Key BorderSymbols lines to the new
Properties File path as shown:
KEY PinComponents "C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\
speccomp.ini"
KEY BorderSymbols "C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\
borders.ini"
❻ Review the project template file for other items you may want to
setup for future designs. Do not make any further changes at this time.
❼ Save as the file edits (name the file my_PADSPro.prj) and close your text
editor.

34 Setting Up a New Project

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Creating a Project
❶ If it is not already running, start PADS Professional Designer.
❷ Select File > Close Project to close any open project.
❸ On the Start Page click New Project > PADS Professional.
❹ Select the my_PADSPro template from available templates.
❶
❺ Enter the name of your project in the Name box of Details.
Note: For this exercise enter your (first name) and (last name) for your
project name (for example, JohnSmith).
❻ Enter the project Location as C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>.
❼ Notice the Central Library Path is set through the default template (or ❶
you can browse to the path to link it to this template).
❽ Click Create to create the project.
❾ Your newly created project now appears in the Project Navigator Tree.

❹
❸

❺
❻

❾
❼ ❽

Setting Up a New Project 35

Opening a Project
There are many ways to open a project. We will learn two ways here:
Note: When you open the project for the first time you may see this message "This
project was created on an earlier version of Designer" (see sample message to the right).
If this message appears, simply select the Yes button to update and continue.

Using the File Menu

❶ From PADS Professional Designer, open a project using the menu File >
Open > Project.
❷ Browse to the C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\FirstLast\ ❶
location.
❸ Select FirstLast.prj file and click Open.

Using the Start Page

❶ If your project is listed in the Recent projects, then click your project
name to open.
❷ If not listed, click Open, then browse to
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\FirstLast\ and double-click ❶
FirstLast.prj.

36 Setting Up a New Project

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Project Settings
After you create a project, you may need to change the project settings.
Throughout this evaluation, we will ask you to adjust settings using the
Setup > Settings dialog box. You can use this dialog box at any time to
customize your environment to your preferences. ❶
You may need to change the library path for a new design. If you have other
libraries (perhaps used for previous designs) you can easily change the library
path to use them in a new design. You can also point to a path containing a
central library used by multiple users from a single library location. ❷ ❸

Changing Libraries with Setup > Settings

❶ To open the Settings dialog box, select Setup > Settings.
❷ Select the Project section of the hierarchy.
❸ To change the Central Library Path, click on the Browse button and
select a new .lmc file from the location you choose. At this time, we
will continue to use the path listed.
Note: Only one Central Library Path and Library.lmc file can be referenced by
a design project at any given time.
❹ Take a moment to browse the other sections of the Settings dialog
box to see the other settings you can change in your design projects.
❺ Click Cancel to exit the dialog and leave the settings unchanged.

Setting Up a New Project 37

Creating a New Schematic
PADS Professional Designer is a comprehensive schematic entry tool which
❶
combines a feature-rich environment with an easy-to-use GUI. This tool is simple
to navigate whether you are adding parts, nets, buses, graphics or text. A PADS
Professional Designer project can contain multiple schematics within a single
project.

Creating a New Design

❶ Your Project file FirstLast.prj should still be open and you have a blank
sheet in Schematic1.
❷ A border has been added automatically based on settings in
Setup >Settings > Project > Borders and Zones and Setup > Settings >
Schematic Editor > New Sheets. These border mappings should be
saved in the borders.ini file within your template project directory so
that you don’t have to change this when starting a new schematic.

38 Setting Up a New Project

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Adding and Placing a Border

Adding borders to a schematic can be done several ways. The process can be ❶
automatic or manual. You can change borders at any time to reflect a sheet size
modification. We will cover a few ways to add borders in some of the exercises
that follow.

Adding or Changing a Border

❶ Right-click and select Delete Border to delete the currently placed ❷
border.
❷ Change the sheet size to a B size sheet, and double-click inside the
schematic sheet area. Select B from the Drawing Size drop-down list in
the Properties window.
❸
❸ Add a border manually by placing the cursor in the working area,
right-click and select Insert Border. ❹
Note: When you add a border in this way, you use a border symbol defined in
Setup > Settings > Project > Borders and Zones.
❹ Right-click and select Change Border. Select csheet.1 from the Borders
partition.
❺ Change the sheet size to a C size using the Drawing Size dropdown list
in the dialog. Click OK to change border sheet settings.
❻ Click the Fit All icon to Zoom Out and change the view so it centers on
the format.

❺ ❻

Setting Up a New Project 39

 Review Questions
1 Where are my design files stored?
2 Where are Project Templates stored?
3 What is the quickest way to open a project?
4 Where are the settings changes in Setup > Settings dialog box stored?
5 Can I change the size of a border after I have started creating my schematic?

Review Answers
1 PADS Professional Designer stores your design files in the project directory tree under the
name of your project. Project specific settings are saved in the project (.prj) file in your project
directory.
2 There are project templates included with PADS Professional. They are located at
[Drive]:\MentorGraphics\<release>\SDD_HOME\standard\templates\dxdesigner.
You can also create your own templates and save them in your writable or corporate WDIR
directory.
3 To quickly open a design, browse to the .prj file and double click it. This will launch
PADS Professional Designer and open the design file.
4 The changes made in Setup > Settings are stored in multiple system files, some
within the project directory, and some within the writable WDIR directory path. Most of the
changes are saved in the Project (.prj) file or the DxDesigner.xml file.
5 Sometimes it is difficult to predict in advance just how much room your design might consume
on a sheet (or sheets). You can start a design with a specific border size. Any time during
the design process you can change the border to a size that more closely fits the design
requirement.

40 Setting Up a New Project

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Lesson 4: Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook

PADS Databook is a component information system that offers the advantage of
a centralized component database system. The PADS Databook utility allows you
to manage library data more efficiently than ever before. It increases efficiency
by decreasing the number of symbols required to support the parts in your
design environment. PADS Databook connects to any ODBC compliant database
and makes the necessary content available to aid in the part selection process.

Search Window and CL View

There are two ways of looking at library data using PADS Databook – searching
and browsing. The Search tab provides access to all of the part database
properties through Parametric queries. This is the window you typically use to
place most of the parts on the schematic. The CL View tab is used for browsing
the library database by part number or symbol. This view is typically used for
placement of Local symbols and Hierarchal symbols. Parts placed from CL View
must be verified in PADS Databook to update additional properties from the
parametric database prior to schematic release.
When a part is added to the schematic, the PADS Databook property data is
also added so the part is complete when it is released onto the schematic.
PADS Databook also provides component verification checks to ensure the
property data contained on the symbol in the schematic matches the content
contained within the data source. This prevents incomplete or inaccurate data
from being passed into the PCB design phase.
Configuring PADS Databook
The Flow Guide and databases include a pre-configured version of
PADS Databook. Please ensure that you have followed the instructions in the
Appendix for Configuring PADS Databook and ODBC Setup before starting this
lesson.

Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook 41

 Opening PADS Databook
❶ If your project is not currently open, select File > Open > Project and ❷
select C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\FirstLast\FirstLast.prj.
❷ In the Navigator Pane, double-click on Board1 to the first sheet of the
schematic.
Note: As you create additional schematic sheets, they will appear in the
Navigator hierarchy.
❸ We will use the my_Eval_layout window layout for this exercise as it
provides the PADS Databook access as part of the layout.
❹ Click the PADS Databook icon to toggle the PADS Databook window
if not already displayed. The window appears with the default Search
window.
Note: PADS Databook is linked to the Evaluation Sample.dbc database as shown ❸
in the Configuration information line.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Libraries with PADS Databook ❶

❷
❶ The Library dropdown list contains all available
libraries as described in the database source. The available
libraries are defined as Tables directly in a Microsoft Access
database. ❹
❷ Choose IC from the Library dropdown list.
The system now searches the Access database and lists all the
components in the IC library.
❸ Drag the scroll bar located at the bottom of the PADS Databook window
to the left.
❸❺
❹ You should see a column labeled Datasheet. These are links to
Datasheets that describe more about the parts listed in PADS Databook.
You can also resize the column as needed.
❺ Click one of the datasheet links.
The Datasheet opens and displays the PDF content.
Note: If you did not install the PADS Professional Evaluation in the default
location under C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>, then these links will not
work.
❻ This Step is not required and is provided for your review.
Note: You can configure any field as an active link. For example, you can
open a simulation model from the schematic. To modify the configuration,
right-click in PADS Databook > Configure > Edit Configuration. Then select the ❻
desired library and find the Property Name you want to turn into an active link.
Double-click the icon cell until the icon is the same as shown for the Datasheet
field.
❼ If you opened the configuration (see note at right) click Cancel.

Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook 43

 ❷
Component Selection with PADS Databook
Many schematic capture programs require a unique symbol for every part
number. This can be very time consuming and error prone, and may also
require creation of hundreds of extra schematic symbols. With PADS Databook,
the same symbol can be used for thousands of parts, and those parts can be
easily located using queries.

Building a Component Query ❸

❶ From the Library dropdown list, select the Resistor library.
❷ Click Query Builder to start setting the query criteria.
❸ Click Condition in the Query Builder dialog box.
❹ Choose the options from the dropdown lists in each setting to match
the example shown. (VALUE, =, 10K). Click Add to set the criteria. ❹
This applies the search criteria.
❺ Click OK to activate the search based on the criteria.
The resulting data found 19 matches based on the value equaling 10K.

44 Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Narrowing the Search

Although this is a simple example of how the Query Builder can be used, it
shows you how very advanced queries can be built and added to in order to
narrow your search through possibly thousands of components within your
library.
❶
❶ Now narrow the search further to Resistors with 10K Values and
CC1206 Cell Name. Select the Query Builder again, select the AND
button, select the Condition button, set the 1st field to Cell Name, set
the 2nd to =, set the 3rd to CC1206 then click Add.
❷ Click OK to apply the additional search based on the new criteria.
Notice the quantity of available parts is significantly reduced according
to the search criteria. There are now 6 Matches.

Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook 45

 Narrowing the Search, an Alternate Method
❶
❶ Select the Query Builder again and click Back twice to remove the
additional query for the Cell Name, then click OK to reset the search to
the previous query.
❷ In the Top Line of the PADS Databook search window, in the Cell Name
column, select the = box, and note the functions available. Choose =
from the dropdown list.
❸ Click the box to the right of the = Box in the Cell Name column and
select the CC1206 Cell Name from the dropdown list and press Enter.
Notice the quantity of available parts has been reduced as with the
previous query. ❶

46 Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Search and Place

❷
❶ Now let’s search for a part with a value of 10K, Cell Name of CC1206
and a Cost of less than 0.04 (cents).
❷ Click Query Builder once more, click AND, then click Condition, set the ❸
1st field to Cost, set the 2nd field to <, set the 3rd field to 0.04.
Note: You can use the Alternate Query method if you choose.
❸ Click Add to include the additional search criteria.
❹ Click OK to apply the new search requirements.
❺ You can also click the column headers to sort the results in ascending ❹
or descending order. In this case, we have already filtered to only four
results but we could have used fewer filters and then sorted the value
❺
column to find the desired part.
❻ Select the Part 103-RES. Notice the entire line is highlighted and both
the symbol and cell can be viewed for the part by selecting the
dropdown list in the Preview window.
❼ Click and drag that symbol onto the schematic and release your mouse
button where you want to place the resistor. You can also drag the
symbol directly from the Symbol Preview window into the schematic
or click Add New Component with All Properties.

Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook 47

Cell Preview
The Cell Preview pane allows you to graphically verify that the correct
Cell (Land Pattern) will be used in Layout. The preview window ❷
updates when a symbol is selected on a schematic or within the
PADS Databook search window.
Enabling the Cell Preview Pane
❶ Select View > Other Windows > PADS Professional Cell Preview.
The PADS Professional Cell Preview window displays.
❷ Switch to the my_NAV_layout by selecting it from the Window
Layouts dropdown list. ❹
❸ Dock the Cell Preview window to the right of the PADS Databook.
❹ Select the symbol you placed in the schematic or any part in the
PADS Databook search window. The PCB cell appears in the Cell
Preview Window.
❺ Close the Cell Preview window by clicking the X. ❸
❹

48 Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

View and Edit Properties

❶ Click the Properties icon to toggle display of the Properties window and
bring it to the front of your tabbed Properties / My Parts window. This ❶
window displays all properties that are on the symbol. These properties
were added to the generic symbol by PADS Databook, using data from the
Access database when the part was added to the schematic. By using this
method, you do not have to worry about making manual errors when adding
properties.
❷ While in the Properties window, change the Value property field from
10K to 100K by entering the new value in the Value column.
Note: We made a unique change to a part so the part number no longer matches
the defined power rating. This condition could lead to a very expensive problem
due to the way parts are ordered through a company’s purchasing department. Part
❷
numbers that do not match corresponding properties generally lead to overstocks
and delays in schedule. Both are costly to correct and can be avoided if your PADS
Databook configuration is in place. Let’s look at how PADS Databook can find these
inconsistencies and resolve them quickly.
❸ With PADS Databook still active and listing available resistors, select and
drag another schematic symbol onto the schematic sheet. There should
now be two new displayed symbols. (Follow the instructions in Step 7 in the
previous topic: Search and Place). ❺
❹ Change the Library: setting from Resistor to Capacitor.
❺ Now assume you need a decoupling capacitor but have not decided on
the decoupling capacitor value to use. Select any available capacitor
listed in the PADS Databook pane, then click Add New Component with only
Common Properties to add a generic component to the schematic.
❸
Note: You will receive a Warning that the Component does not have a Part Number.
You will fix this later.
❻ With the new part active on your cursor, move both the cursor and the
symbol over the working area and click to complete the part placement.
❻
Note: If you look at the Properties Pane, you will notice the capacitor has no
Value property, not to mention many other missing properties. PADS Databook
can perform a complete verification to ensure all parts are compliant with the
database.

Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook 49

Verification in PADS Databook
PADS Databook can run verification on a group of selected items, a single page,
or an entire design. The functionality is similar but for this exercise you will verify
the parts we just placed. ❶

Verification
❶ Click the Selection Filter dropdown list located on the toolbar. Enable
the PADSProfessional filter.
❷ Click and drag a selection box or CTRL + Left-click to select the three ❷
symbols we just added via PADS Databook. ❶
❸ Click New Live Verification Window in the PADS Databook dialog box.
NOTE: You can also use this button for verifying an entire page if no items are
selected when it is activated. If you needed to run Verification on an entire
design schematic, you would click New Hierarchical Verification Window
button, located directly below the New Live Verification Window button.
❹ A new Verify window opens showing the three parts color-coded. If we
click on any of the parts, that part is highlighted in the schematic.
(Yellow) Indicates a component has multiple matches. This is the
generic part we added with Common Properties.
(Green) Indicates the properties on the schematic match the database.
(Red) Indicates that there is a conflict between the database and the
schematic and no parts match. This is the part where we changed the ❸
Value so it no longer matches the Part Number.

50 Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Verification (Continued)
❻ Fix the problem with the capacitor which is not correctly specified.
Double-click on the Yellow Circle.
❼ A search window opens with the common properties automatically
applied as filters.
❽ Select any part listed in the PADS Databook dialog.
❾ Click Annotate Component With All Properties to add the correct part
information.
Notice the circle changes from yellow to green and the Properties
Editor now shows the capacitor as a completely defined symbol/part.

❽
❼

❻ ❾

Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook 51

Verification (continued)
Now we will correct the part with the problem we created when we changed
the Value to 100K.

❶ ❷
Correcting a Database Conflict
❶ Double-click the part listing that contains the last remaining red circle.
❷ Scroll through the window that appears and notice the properties in
red. Notice the Value is in red because it does not match the database.
❸ Scroll over the Value property name, right-click and choose Remove
Condition.
The system searches the database and finds the part that matches the ❸
previously defined conditions. Notice that the verify routine has locked
onto a single part.
❹ Click on the new part number.
❺ Click the Annotate Component With All Properties icon to change to
the new part.
We have now corrected the problem of the properties and the part ❺
number not being equal. ❹
The Properties window now shows that the resistor has all the
properties of the part you selected.
❻ Select File > Close Project.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Review Questions
1 What is the advantage of using PADS Databook?
2 Will PADS Databook work with my existing component database?
3 How complex can I make my search parameters?
4 Why use Verification in PADS Databook?

Review Answers
1 Sorting through a library of a couple of hundred parts might be tedious, but not impossible. Doing
the same for a library (or libraries) of thousands of parts would be extremely time-consuming
and difficult to manage. Fortunately, PADS Databook provides the ability to perform very
complex filtering and searches on large databases of components and presents you with a selection
of candidate parts.
2 PADS Databook will work with most ODBC-compliant databases allowing you to access the wealth
of purchasing and engineering data that may already exist within your company. This connectivity
also extends the capability to populate the properties of components in your design directly from
the information in your company database(s).
3 PADS Databook allows you to build very complex searches so that you can quickly narrow a search
of thousands of components down to a select few for consideration in your design. These searches
are cumulative, so you can start out with a broad range of parameters and then add additional
qualifiers until you have found the desired part.
4 When creating a schematic with a large number of symbols, you may need to edit values and
properties as the design evolves. These changes can sometimes elude updating until later
in the design process. Verification allows you to periodically compare your design database
against your component database to resolve any changes or conflicts.

Selecting and Verifying Parts with PADS Databook 53

End of lesson. This page intentionally left blank.
 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Lesson 5: Placing Symbols in the Schematic

You have learned that PADS Professional Designer, through the use of PADS Databook, ❶
can make schematic component placement very easy. PADS Professional Designer
also has several useful tools to help speed up your placement of the entire schematic.
Note: In the following exercises, you will construct the schematic shown below.

Placing Symbols for a New Circuit

❶ Open C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1\Lesson1.prj and
then select File > New > Schematic, or click New and choose Schematic.
Note: The new schematic sheet you created is located in the Blocks section of
the design. This is because the Project already has a base schematic within it.
❷ Right-click the Schematic sheet name (Schematic1) in the Navigator and
rename it to Logic_FirstLast (for example, Logic_JohnSmith).

Placing Symbols in the Schematic 55

Placing Parts
Previously we placed parts in a schematic using the PADS Databook search ❶
window. For these next few lessons we will use the CL Symbol view to place
parts. CL View allows you to place generic parts quickly, but you will need to
update the Properties within them using PADS Databook Verification prior to
integrating your schematic with PCB layout. ❷
Placing Parts Into the Schematic (Manually)
❶ In the PADS Databook window, click the CL View tab, then click the Symbol
View tab, and enter the symbol filter RES. Only symbols starting with RES
are shown.
❷ Select resistor from the library Sample.
❸ In the Symbol Preview window, place the cursor over the resistor. 1 shape,
then click and drag the symbol into the schematic working area.
❹ Add a second symbol by selecting Clear Filters and then enter capn in the
Symbol Filter text box.
PADS Databook lists CAPNONPOL. ❸
❺ Select CAPNONPOL from the library Sample.
❻ Place the cursor over the symbol, then click and drag the shape into the
working area.
❼ Take note that when you place symbols from the CL or Search windows of
PADS Databook, the preview of the symbol is available.
❹

56 Placing Symbols in the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Placing Parts into the Schematic (continued) ❽

❽ Click Clear Filters and then expand the library partition Sample by
selecting the [+] item.
❾ Find and place 145421 using the same method described in step 4. ❾

Placing Parts from PADS Databook with Alternate Cell Selection ⓫

❿ Open the Search window in PADS Databook by clicking New Search ❿
Window.
⓭
⓫ Select the Library IC, and find the symbol Sample:74192 using the top
line query method in the Symbol column. Select the Part 511-5V_IC.
Note: There are two cells listed in the Symbol Preview dropdown list: the
Default SO16, and the Alternate DIP16. Clicking each of them shows a
preview of the Cell.
⓬ From the dropdown list, select DIP16 and check the Fixed box.
⓬
⓭ Place the component on the schematic by clicking Add New
Component with All Properties.
Note: The component has been placed to use the Alternate Cell during
PCB layout. Checking the Fixed box tells the designer that the Cell Name ⓮
property is fixed for primary placement.
⓮ Right-click to stop placement of further symbols. You should now
have 4 symbols on your schematic.

Placing Symbols in the Schematic 57

 ❷
Adding Power and Ground Connections
❶ Open the Settings dialog by selecting Setup > Settings.
❷ Navigate to Project > Special Components. Select Power from the ❸
dropdown list and verify that the pwr.1 symbol is available from the
Globals library. (If available, go to Step 4.)
❸ If not, click New. A new dialog box opens which allows you to browse
the libraries for a power symbol. Select the pwr.1 symbol from the
Globals library. Click OK.
❹ Follow the same process as described in step 2, but this time select
Ground in the Special Components dialog box. If the symbol gnd.1 is ❺
available from the Globals library, go to Step 5. If not, click New and
select gnd.1 from the Globals library, then select OK.
Note: Project > Boards > Special Components can contain as many Global Power and
Ground symbols as you need in your designs. It also contains Ports for hierarchical
designs and Off Page Links for cross referencing.
❻
❺ Select OK to exit the Settings dialog.
❻ Click the My Parts tab of the My Parts/Properties tabbed window to bring
My Parts to the front. The Power and Ground symbols are now available for
placement using the My Parts window, Special Components section. When
you place these symbols, they default based on your settings from steps 3
❸
and 4.
❹

58 Placing Symbols in the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Placing Symbols using the My Parts toolbox

Placing symbols using the My Parts dialog can enhance your productivity by
allowing placement of commonly used symbols, along with Favorites and ❷
Recently Used symbols without having to re-define searches using PADS ❹
Databook.
❸
❶ Select View > My Parts to open the toolbox.
❷ Click the Special Components section of My Parts, then select and drag
the gnd.1 symbol onto the schematic as shown.
❸ Repeat step 2 and place the pwr.1 on the schematic.
❹ Click the Recently Used section of My Parts, then place one more of
each gnd.1 and pwr.1 symbols on the schematic. This is an easy method ❷ ❹ ❸❹
to utilize symbols already placed within your schematic.
❶
❺ Click on the Favorites section of My Parts, then from the Symbol Preview
window of PADS Databook drag the 74192 symbol to the section. Any
parts that you will use often in the schematic can be placed here so that
you do not to search for them again.
NOTE: The Symbol Preview window appears at the far right of the
PADS Databook window when you select the CL tab. See Step 3 of Placing Parts
on Page 56 for a quick reference.
❻ Right-click the 74192 symbol in the Favorites section and click Delete
item to remove it from the section.
❼ Close the My Parts toolbox.

❼
❺ ❺

Placing Symbols in the Schematic 59

 Copying Symbols
❶ We are going to need a little more room to work so Autohide the Navigator ❻
/ Thumbnails panes, the Output/PADS Databook/Search panes and the My
Parts/Properties panes. Save your new window layout as my_Workspace.
❷ You are going to need two resistors in this schematic example. Press and ❶
hold the CTRL key, then click to select and drag away from the first resistor.
As you drag your mouse, a copy of the resistor attaches to your cursor and
is ready for placement.
❸ Make sure there is plenty of room next to the capacitor for 2 copies.
If not, move it by selecting the part and dragging to a new location.
Using the previous method (CTRL + Left-click and drag) add two more ❺❹ ❼
capacitors.
❹ Click and draw a selection box around the second GND symbol.
Note: Hold the ALT key while drawing your selection box and only objects
completely within the box will be selected. ❷
❺ Press the CTRL + C keys to create a new copy and place it into the clipboard.
❻ Press the CTRL + V keys and a ghost image of the copied symbol is attached
to your cursor.
❼ Click to place the new GND symbol to the right of the other two.
Note: Right-click to remove the part from your cursor once the new ❸
part is placed.

❸ ❹

60 Placing Symbols in the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Arrays
You can use the Array feature to add components and to add net labels.
You can also use it to add multiple objects.

Using Arrays ❷

❶ Click the capacitor to select it.

❷ Click Array to begin the arraying process.
❸ Fill in the dialog box as shown in the figure: Rows = 3,
Columns = 1.
❹ Click OK. The parts are automatically added and as ❸
you drag the cursor, you can expand the array until the
parts are spaced as shown (3 rows and 1 column).

Placing Symbols in the Schematic 61

Rotating Symbols
There are three ways to rotate objects within PADS Professional Designer. The
most convenient method is to use the new rotating wand available whenever
a symbol or group of symbols are selected in the workspace. Other methods
available to you are use of the F3 button during placement or move or Rotate ❶
button after placement. Another method uses the options from the popup menu.
Let’s review a few examples.

Rotate a Symbol
❶ Click one of the resistors to select it. Click Rotate 90 Degrees.
Note: The Rotate 90 Degrees button is located on the Add toolbar.
❺
❷ Click and hold on one of the resistors, then drag the cursor toward the
far left of the first IC.
❻
Note: The symbol moves with the cursor.
❸ While you move the part, press the F3 key and notice the part rotates.
❹ Release the mouse to place the rotated resistor to the left of the IC.
❺ Right-click on one of the capacitors, then select Transform > Rotate from
the popup menu. Use the u hotkey combination to undo this rotation.
Note: The part rotates at the cursor.
❻ Use area select to draw a box around the resistor and the IC. When
they are both selected, use the rotating wand to rotate both items to
the left 90 degrees. Move the point of rotation and rotate again.
When you are finished, return the parts to their original position.
❽ ❾
Flip and Mirror a Symbol
❼ Select the IC symbol on the right.
❽ Click the Flip icon on the Transform toolbar. This flips the entire symbol
along the X-axis. Click Flip again to return the symbol to normal.
❾ Select the same IC again, this time click the Mirror icon. Notice the
Symbol now mirrors along the Y-axis. Click Mirror again to reset the ❼
symbol to normal. ❽ ❾

62 Placing Symbols in the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional
❷
Grab Handles
Grab handles allow you to easily stretch and compress graphics objects in your ❶
design. Objects supported are as follows:: ❸
„„ Arc
„„ Box
„„ Circle
„„ Line ❺
❶ Select Classic from the Window Layout dropdown list.
❻ ❹
❷ The Add toolbar has 4 additional items added. Review the tooltips for
arc, box, circle and line.
❸ Using your new knowledge, place 1 Arc, Box, Circle.
❹ Select Line and draw the line as shown.
❺ Select each item and use the grab handles to stretch and compress
each item. With the arc change the radius grab handle location and
observe differences during stretch and compress actions.
❻ On the polyline, use the grab handle of the endpoint to stretch it to
complete the triangle. Use the Properties panel to fill the triangle.
Symbol Scale
Set symbol scaling from the Properties pane to adjust the visibility scale for
a symbol that appears in your design or in the embedded symbol editor. ❸
Scaling factors apply as follows:
„„ .500 - Decreases the symbol scale by 50%
„„ .750 - Decreases the symbol scale by 25%
„„ 1.00 - Maintains the current symbol scale
„„ 1.5 - Increases the symbol scale by 50% ❷
„„ 2.0 - Increases the symbol scale by 100 %
„„ 3.0 - Increases the symbol scale by 200%
❶ Zoom in on the two capacitors at the bottom of the sheet.
❷ Double-click the capacitor on the left to display the Properties pane.
❸ Change the Scale of the capacitor to .5.
❹ Practice changing the scale of the capacitor to different settings to
compare the display to the capacitor on the right that is at 100%.

Placing Symbols in the Schematic 63

 Moving Components using Dynamic Grid Alignment Markers ❶
You will arrange the components similar to the picture shown. PADS
Professional Designer has Dynamic Alignment tools to make the task of
arranging components easier.
❶ On the Grid toolbar enable Show Alignment Markers.
❷ Select the first capacitor symbol and drag it to the desired location.
❸ Release the mouse to drop the symbol.
❹ Select the second capacitor symbol and place as shown..
❺ Select each of the remaining capacitor symbols and note the Dynamic
Alignment Markers showing that the symbols are aligned and at the
same spacing as the two symbols placed in steps 2 through 4. ❷ ❹ ❾
❻ Place the PWR symbols as shown and note the grid alignment markers
show when the symbols are aligned in both the X and Y axis.
❼ Place the remaining symbols as shown using the grid alignment
markers.
❽ Grid Alignment Markers can also be used to align text or other objects
❾ Delete the two capacitors on the lower right by selecting them and
pressing the Delete key.
Note: Another way to do this is to right-click and select Delete from the menu
that appears. ❺

❻ ❼ ❽

64 Placing Symbols in the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Aligning Components using Align Commands

❶ Using the CTRL + Left-click, select the 2 resistors and ground symbol as
shown.
❷ Click the Align Center icon on the Transform toolbar to line up these
symbols on their centers.
Note: You can Align components by; Left, Center, Right, Top, Middle,
and Bottom
❸ Align all the parts in your design. ❶
❷

Project Integration in PADS Professional Designer

The schematic environment provides true database synchronization between the
schematic and layout, with design constraints flowing seamlessly forward and
backward. The environment also monitors changes within the schematic design
itself for Symbol updates when libraries are changed, Documentation updates ❹
when properties are changed/added or schematic sheets added and Schematic
updates when Bus Contents are changed. When updates are required, you are
notified by the Project Integration light on your PADS Professional Designer
status bar.
Launching and Performing Internal Project Integration
❹ Click the Yellow indicator button on the status bar of the PADS
Professional Designer interface. The Project Integration window
displays on your workspace.
❺ Review the warning notifications in the Documentation Area of the
Project Integration pane. Click the yellow indicator next to the Evaluated
@properties design changes detected. Click the yellow indicator next
to the Print order - number of sheets or sheet order changed, update ❺
required. The two indicators will turn green.
❻ Close the project. The Bus Contents will update upon project close.

Placing Symbols in the Schematic 65

 Review Questions
1 Can I mirror a symbol such as a transistor or logic gate?
2 Am I limited to the PWR and GND symbols that are supplied in the libraries
with PADS Professional Designer?
3 When would I want to create an array of components?
4 Do Properties rotate with a symbol?
Review Answers
1 You can easily mirror a symbol during placement by using the Mirror
icon on the Transform Toolbar, or right-click and select the Mirror
command from the popup menu.
2 Though the PADS Professional Designer libraries contain a selection of
PWR and GND symbols, you are free to add any custom symbols to the
library that you require in your design.
3 Many designs contain groups of identical components such as switches,
LEDs or decoupling capacitors. For example, some designers put all of
the decoupling capacitors for a design in a group arrangement on the
last page of the schematic. Using the Array command, you can place
large groupings of these components with a few mouse clicks.
4 Properties do rotate with a symbol. However, you must be careful when
doing this if you want the visible properties to maintain a specific visual
relationship to the component. In some cases, such as discrete
components (capacitors, resistors, diodes), it is preferable to create a
separate symbol for a horizontal orientation and another for the
vertical orientation. This eliminates the need to make any fine tuning
adjustments to the visible properties after you place the symbols.

66 Placing Symbols in the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Lesson 6: Wiring the Schematic

Connecting the Components with Nets ❷
❸
There are several ways to add nets to components. This section demonstrates
several.

Connecting by Abutment
❶ Open C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1\Lesson1.prj, ❷❹ ❺
then in the Blocks section, double-click the schematic Logic_FirstLast.
The sheet opens.
❷ Zoom in on the ICs. To do this click Zoom Area and create a frame around
the two IC symbols, or zoom in using the Mouse Scroll Wheel.
❸ Select one of the ICs and drag it such that the pins of the selected IC
touch those of the unselected IC and notice the Connectivity Advisor
which appears as a small asterisk (*) on each of the pins.
❹ Release the part by releasing the left mouse button.
❺ Select the part again and drag it away from the first IC. The pins are
automatically connected.

Creating Nets Using Net Mode ❻

❻ Click Net (or enter n using the keyboard) to enter Add Net mode.
❼ Add a connection to Pin 4 of the IC. Select the pin and drag the
connection to the left. When the net is long enough release the left
mouse button to drop the connection. ❼
❽ Repeat step 7 for pins 5, 9, and 6 on the IC located on the left hand side.
❾ Press ESC or click Select to exit net mode.
❽

Wiring the Schematic 67

 Creating Nets using Multi-Net Connection ❷
You can automatically connect multiple pins based on your selection order to
speed up connecting your schematic. ❶
❶ Select Add > Multi-net connection.
❷ On the left IC, use frame select to select pins 14 and 19 in the order
shown. Start your frame selection from the Top and to the Right of the
pins.
❸
NOTE: The selection order of the nets is numbered.
❸ To add the connections, frame select the upper pins on the two
capacitors in the order you want them to be connected. Note the
connection ordering numbers. Stay in Multinet connection mode and
proceed to the next exercise.
NOTE: Do not right-click to exit the command.

Manually selecting Multiple Pins

❼
❹ While still in the Multi-net connection mode, select pin 7 on the left IC.
❺ While pressing the CTRL key, also select pins 12 and 11. Note the
ordering.
❻ Now release the CTRL key and select Pin 2 of the lower left resistor,
then select Pins 1 and 2 of the upper left resistor in the proper order
as shown. ❺
❼ Right-click to exit the Multi-net connection command.
❽ Click the Undo icon from the Main toolbar to remove these connections
so you can practice connecting the nets outside of net mode in the next
segment.
❹

68 Wiring the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Creating Nets Outside of Net Mode

❶ Right-click pin 1 of the IC that is on the left side of the schematic.
❷ Move the cursor in an upward direction as shown in the graphic. ❷ ❷
As you move the cursor, a net is added and follows the cursor location.
Right-click to add a vertice to the connection. ❸
Move the cursor directly to the left as shown in the graphic.
Right-click to add a vertice to the connection.
Move the cursor in a downard direction towards the upper pin of the
resistor.
❸ Left-click to select the resistor’s upper pin to connect the net to it.
❶

Multi-pin Component Insertion

You can also create connections in your schematic by placing components on ❹
pre-existing connection lines. The connections will automatically split to make the
component connections.
❹ Select the capacitor as shown and move it over the connection you added
in steps 1 through 3.

Wiring the Schematic 69

 ❺
Multi-pin Component Insertion (continued)

❺ Release the left mouse button when the Connectivity Advisor shows
the connections, and the capacitor splits the connection and connects.
❻ Create the connections as shown on the schematic using any of the
methods you have learned. Move the components if needed, as you
have been shown in previous lessons. Do not worry about assigning
signal names at this point. You will do that next.

70 Wiring the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Cutting Net Connections

You can easily cut net connections in your schematic. If the connections are already
named, one of the new connections created will keep the net name and a new net
❷
name will be assigned to the additional net connection.
❶ Select Edit > Cut Nets or select the Cut Nets icon from the toolbar.
❷ Draw the section to cut the nets between the two ICs.
❸ Release the mouse button to complete the net cutting.
❹ Press the ESC key to release the Cut Nets mode.
❺ Click Undo to re-connect the nets.

Wiring the Schematic 71

Naming Nets and Placing Labels
❷
Naming Nets
❶ Double-click the Net from pin 13 of the IC symbol on the left side
(bottom of device).
Note: If you have difficulty selecting a net, set the Selection Filter to
PADSProfessional.
❷ The Properties window opens. Enter the name C/BE3.
❸ Select the net name and drag it to the left of the net.
NOTE: Be sure to only select the net name, not the net itself. You may need to
zoom in or adjust the Selection Filter to enable Name.
❹
❹ Double-click on the net connection from pin 21, then name this signal
C/BE2.
❺ Click in an open area to release the signal name and the selected
connection.
❻ Now select the signal name again, and drag the signal name to its
desired location.

❺ ❹ ❶

72 Wiring the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Adding Names Using the Navigator

❶ In the schematic, select the net connected to pin 4 of the IC on the left.
The corresponding net in the Navigator is highlighted. ❸
❷ In the Navigator, right-click Rename, then enter the desired name and
click Enter. Rename the net connected to pin 4 to ~CE. Using a ~ will
create an inverted pin name.
❸ Another way to set pin inversion is to use True/False in the Properties
window.

Adding Symbols with Named Net Stubs

You can also add nets when you place symbols in the schematic.
❹ From the PADS Databook Search window, open the Sample library, IC ❼
Partition and find the 74192 symbol.
❽
❺ Before placing the symbol on the schematic, check Add Component
with Net Stubs and Add Pin Labels To Nets on the right side of the
Search window. ❻
❻ Click Add New Component With All Properties icon and place the
component on the schematic.
❸
❼ Notice that all pins have net stubs and their names correspond to the
associated pins.
❽ Delete this symbol and its connected net stubs from the schematic.
❺

Wiring the Schematic 73

Setting Properties for Parts
Property Visibility
❶ Open the Property window by selecting the Properties icon or by
double-clicking the desired object.
❷ Select the IC on the right. ❶
Note: The properties for this component are displayed in the Property window. ❸
❸ To make a property type visible you can check the box next to the property.
❹ Check the box next to Cell Name. Notice Cell Name is now shown below
the symbol. ❷
To make only the value visible check the box next to DIP16 (fixed) and
uncheck the box next to Cell Name. Now only the value DIP16 (fixed) is
visible.

74 Wiring the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Adding New Properties

❶
❶ To add a new property on the schematic, the property must be defined
in the Property Definition Editor within Library Manager (Tools >
PADS Library Tools, then Tools > Property Definition Editor).
This helps users standardize on required properties within the company
and also prevents typing mistakes.
Note: If any new Properties are required in your designs, you must add them in
Library Manager first. After making a change, you will have to run Tools > Update ❷ ❸❹❺
Libraries or exit and re-invoke PADS Professional Designer before the properties are
available for assignment.
❷ Select the IC on the left then and you will add some properties.
❸ In the Property window click in the blank cell at the bottom of the list
and select Part Number from the list.
❹ Enter 510_5V_IC for Value and turn off the visibility check boxes
for the Property and Value.
❺ Continue to enter the following property information: ❼
Cell Name = SO24L
Datasheet = C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\
Datasheets\MC145421.PDF
Note: This last step links the part to a datasheet. A link can be made to
any type of document or website. The document can be launched
directly from the schematic.
❻ Select the symbol and then right-click and choose
Open Hyperlink > Datasheet.
Note: This opens the appropriate datasheet in Adobe Acrobat.
❼ In Adobe Acrobat, close the datasheet.
❻

Wiring the Schematic 75

 Change/Edit Properties
Manually
❶ Select the resistor on the bottom left.
❷ Add or change the following properties:
Part Number 107-RES ❶ ❷
Cell Name CC1206
Value 5.1K
Tolerance 1%
Power 250mW
Using PADS Databook
❸ Select the resistor on the top left.
❹ Right-click and select Load into PADS Databook.
❺ In PADS Databook, select Part Number 101-RES.
❻ Click Annotate Component With All Properties and the properties are
added to the resistor component.

❺ ❻

76 Wiring the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Adding Properties to Parts Simultaneously

❶ Select one of the capacitors.
❷ CTRL + click on each of the other two capacitors.
❹ ❺
Note: All three of the capacitors are selected and their ❶
properties are listed in the Property Editor.
❸ In the Properties window click in the blank cell at the
bottom of the list to add a new property.
❹ In the Property field select Part Number.
❺ In the Value field enter 12301-CAP. ❸
❻ Select Enter to complete the property assignment. Now
if you select each capacitor individually you will notice
they all have the same Part Number property.
❼ Add the following properties to all three capacitors
using the Manual or PADS Databook method you have ❷
already learned.
Cell Name CC1206
Value 10uF
Tolerance 5%
Voltage 16V
❽ When you have finished adding the properties, review
the assignment on each individual part, then close the
schematic sheet.
TIP: In the last sections you have learned how to
manually add and change Properties on components,
but remember the IC you placed on the right? Notice
that we did not have to add or change any Properties in
it because we used the PADS Databook Search window
to place it. You can save time in your designs by placing
all your components this way!

Wiring the Schematic 77

Working with the Bus Model
Creating a Bus ❷ ❸

❶ Click New > Schematic to begin a new schematic. ❶

❷ The new schematic is now found in the Blocks section on the Project
Navigator and it is called Schematic5.
❸ In PADS Databook, click Show CL View or the CL View tab.
❹ Select the Symbol View tab.
❺ Expand the Sample library partition using the [+]button and highlight
the SymbolTest symbol. ❹ ❻

❻ Click Place Symbol to place the symbols on the schematic as shown.

Right-click to release the cursor from Placement mode. ❺
Note: You could also enter SymbolTest into the search field above the
results display area and let PADS Databook find any matches in the list of librar-
ies.
❼ Zoom in to the left side of the symbols.
❽ Using the Bus button, place a vertical bus labeled “A[15:0]” to the left
of the symbols.
❾ Label the bus by assigning the A[15:0] value to the Name property for
the bus.
❾

❽ ❼

78 Wiring the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Connecting a Bus to Component Nets

There are two ways to connect these symbols to this bus. The first method
connects the nets from the bus to the component.
❶ Right-click on the bus (directly across from the pin 2 on the left, below
CLK) where you want the first net to connect and click Rip Nets. ❶
❷ Select the nets you want to use. In this example, we are going to use
A[15:8] from the Rip Nets dialog to connect to the top symbol. ❷
❸ Verify that the Grid is enabled (Grid On).
Click OK to place the nets on the bus starting where you last clicked.
Use the CTRL+SHIFT+Mouse Scroll Wheel to spread the Bus Bits as
needed. When the net lines are in-line and touching the symbol pins, click
to connect them.
❹ When you release your mouse, the nets will be connected.
NOTE: The properties are the “ripped bit indicator.” These indicate
which bit of the bus is attached to a particular net.

❸ ❸

Wiring the Schematic 79

 Connecting Component Nets to a Bus
This is the second way to connect these symbols to this bus. This method
connects the nets from the component to the bus.
❶ Select the bus nets you added in the previous steps.
❷ Click Copy to place the nets in the clipboard.
❸ Click Paste, then click near the lower IC and move the pasted nets to
the location as shown. Press the ESC key on your keyboard to exit the ❷
Paste command.
Note: The Connection symbols (*) help to adjust the nets into place. ❶
❹ Use the Add Properties Mode button to invoke the Add Properties
dialog box, and set the following.
• Type = Net
• Property = Name
• Range = Enabled
• Prefix = A
❹ ❸
• Value Dec= 7 and Delta = -1
This names all of the nets and allows you to use the cursor to drag
them to connect up to the bus.
❺ Click Apply to place the Bus Bits.
❹
❻ Click on one of the nets to drag them towards the Bus. When the nets ❻
are over the bus, release the left mouse button to connect them.
❼ Close Add Properties.

80 Wiring the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Smart Selection
Smart Selection allows you to use an Area Select action to quickly select objects ❷❸
without using needing a special filter.
❶ PRACTICE FENCE MODE: Using your mouse draw an area selection fence
to enclose the 4 graphical objects. The 4 objects highlight.
❷ PRACTICE OVERLAP MODE: Click in an open area to release the selection.
Repeat the process but draw the fence so that it encloses two objects but
overlaps two objects. Notice that only two objects highlight as selected.
❸ PRACTICE TOGGLE: Click in an open area to release the selection. Press
the Alt Key on your keyboard and draw an area selection fence that
encloses two objects and overlaps two of the objects.
Note: Alt + Area Select (mouse) switches between Fence and Overlap Mode.
❹ Select the circle and then right-click and select Copy from the menu.
❺ Paste the circle to the left of the first circle. Press Esc to release Paste
Smart Select uses the Select + Shift key process to
mode. identify all items that are the same as the initial
❻ SMART SELECT: Click one of the circles then press the Shift key and draw object within the area selection fence.
an area selection fence enclosing the two circles and the arc. Release your
cursor and notice that only the two circles are selected. This is because
smart select identifies only circles for selection. ❻
❼ Click in an open area to release the selection. This time, select the circle,
press Shift and draw an area selection fence that encloses the first circle
but overlaps the second circle. Notice that even though smart select is in
process, both circles are not selected because the area selection fence does
not enclose the second circle.
❽ Click in an open area to release the selection. This time, select the circle,
press Shift and press Alt and draw an area selection fence that encloses
the first circle but overlaps the second circle. Notice that this time both
circles are selected. This is because Alt indicates to smart select to include
items that overlap the area selection fence.

Wiring the Schematic 81

 Review Questions
1 Do I need to connect every net at all points?
2 Why add names to nets?
3 Which properties should I make visible in my designs?
4 When would I add properties to parts simultaneously?
5 Why would I use a bus to represent connectivity of multiple connections?

Review Answers
1 As long as the schematic accurately represents the desired connectivity, it is not necessary to connect
every net to all points. Connectivity can be established by naming the nets, and as long as all net stubs are
identically named, connectivity will exist.
2 In addition to establishing connectivity, net names also help identify signals in very complex designs. Some
designers will name their nets with a convention that represents the source and destination of the net (such
as FPGA_A\S3_A_MEM_A_ADDR0). This makes it easy to identify the purpose and connectivity of a net just
by examining the name.
3 Which properties you choose to make visible is primarily a decision based upon the intent of the
document. Most designers choose to have reference designators (Ref Designator) visible along with
component values, tolerances, wattages and component names. This is a very individual decision and each
company may find it necessary to set their own standard. PADS Professional Designer allows you to set
visibility of properties down to the individual component level.
4 If your design contains a quantity of identical components, it may save a lot of time if you select the
group of components (either in the workspace or through the Navigator) and then assign/change the
properties for all of the components simultaneously. This helps to promote uniformity and continuity across
the design. Remember to verify the components with PADS Databook when you have finished the design.
5 You can accomplish connectivity by using individual nets to connect each point, or by naming each of
the nets. Showing all of the connections on a schematic can make the schematic difficult to read and add
unnecessary visual clutter. An alternative is to use a bus to represent a group of nets (such as an address or
data bus) that connect to a number of points (or sheets). This allows you to show the connections at the
components but represent the group across the design with a single (wide) net line. The bus is identified
with a label that shows all of the signals represented by the bus (such as ADDR_BUS_0:15).

82 Wiring the Schematic

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Lesson 7: Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager

❶
PADS Professional has a built-in constraint management system. The Constraint
Manager gives you the capabilities to create and manage constraint-based
designs in a synchronized front-end and back-end environment. Constraint
Manager is a spreadsheet interface common to both PADS Professional
Designer and PADS Professional Layout linked through the integrated database.
This system allows you to develop and maintain all of your design constraints
between the schematic and PCB layout. The constraint information can consist
of clearance constraints, placement and routing constraints, and high speed
constraints. ❹ ❷
You can also define and manage advanced rules for differential pairs, components ❸
and net classes directly from Constraint Manager. When you select an object in
the schematic, you can cross probe directly with Constraint Manager to view
the constraints that are assigned. Constraints are synchronized between the
schematic and PCB layout during the Forward and Backward Annotation process.
Entering Constraints
❶ From the Start Page in PADS Professional Designer, click Recent, and select
Lesson1, C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1\Lesson1.prj.
❷ Double-click CORPORATE to open the first sheet of the schematic if not
already open.
❸ Select the [+] next to CORPORATE to see all the schematic sheets.
❹ Double-click PCI_Connection entry to open the schematic sheet.
❺ To open the Constraint Manager Spreadsheet Editor, select the Constraint
Manager icon from the Tools toolbar, then select Constraint Manager. ❺
Note: All Constraints within the spreadsheet editor are maintained within the
integrated database for both PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional
Layout.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 83

Introduction to the Constraint Manager Spreadsheet Interface
Spreadsheet Workspace

Menus
Toolbars

Navigator
Pane

Output
Window

Status Bar Constraint

Tabs

84 Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Toolbars

The General Toolbar

Cross
Exit Copy Undo Settings Probing

Cut Paste Redo Stackup

Editor

The Filters Toolbar

Enable/Disable
Filters

Filter
Levels

Constraint Group
Filters List

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 85

 The Views Toolbar The Topology Toolbar The Tools Toolbar The Comment Toolbar
Show/Hide Minimum T H Constraint iCDB Project Insert Delete Next
Output Spanning Tree Shape Tree Complex Template Editor Backup Comment Comment Comment

Show/Hide Chained Star Custom Netline CES Edit Previous

Navigator Order Diagnostics Comment Comment

The Export Toolbar The Sort Toolbar The Clearances Toolbar The Pairs Toolbar
Export Sort General Auto Selected Nets Assign
CSV File Ascending Clearances Pin Pairs Differential Pairs Parallelism Rules

Sort Class-to-Class Solve All Auto Assign Remove Define

Descending Formulas Differential Differential Parallelism
Pairs Pairs Rules

The Find Toolbar The Help Toolbar

Find Text Box Help Text Box

Find Find Find in Online

Phrase Manual Table of Contents

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Opening Constraint Manager and Cross Probing

❶ In PADS Professional Designer, select Setup > Settings then select Cross
Probing in the Settings dialog navigator Set the options as shown. Click
OK to save changes. ❶
❷ Select the Zoom Area button and generate a zoom box around the
upper left hand corner of the screen.
❸ In the Constraint Manager window, on the Main toolbar, select
the Cross Probe icon. You can also turn on Cross Probing using
Setup > Cross Probing. This allows you to dynamically highlight nets and
❶
pins within the spreadsheet editor, or on the schematic, depending on
where you select the items.
❹ Click the CLK_IN net from within the working area of the schematic.
Note: If you are not able to select the net, you may need to modify your
Selection Filter settings. Click the Selection Filter button.

❸
❷

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 87

 Opening Constraint Manager and Cross Probing (continued)
❺ With the net selected, the spreadsheet window shows the constraints
associated with this net.
❻ In Constraint Manager, find the net BSYNC+ and click on the Box to the
left of the net. Notice that the net is selected and viewed in the schemat-
ic working area. In Constraint Manager, cross probing is bi-directional
between the spreadsheet and the schematic and/or the PCB Layout. ❺

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Filtering FromTo, Pin Pair, and Pin in Constraint Manager

You can cross probe to nets in your design, but often you may need to cross
probe deeper within the net hierarchy – down to the pins. ❶
❶ From the Constraint Manager menu, select Filters > Levels > All. The full
hierarchy of the nets becomes available within your design, including:
from-tos, pin pairs, and pins.
❷ Notice that the nets now have a “+” next to each of them. Click the “+”
to expand the net BSYNC+ and see all of the pins within the net.
❸ Click the box to the left of the pin P1-1 below the BSYNC+ net and note
in the schematic window that you have cross probed to the pin level
within the net.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 89

 Constraint Manager General Clearances
❶
In Constraint Manager, General Clearances allow you to define clearance
values between design objects that you do not specify in the Constraint
Manager Spreadsheet Clearances page. These are global clearance rules that
are specified when no Net Class relationship is required.
❶ In Constraint Manager, select the Clearances spreadsheet tab.
❷ Click the General Clearances toolbar button to open the General
Clearance Rules dialog box.
❷
❸ Look over the different General Clearances that can be adjusted in your
design. Since all of these current clearances are used within the PCB
Layout phase, we will leave them as is for now.
❹ Click Cancel.

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Constraint Manager Schemes

❶
Schemes in Constraint Manager define categories of physical
design rules that will be used during PCB Layout. When you open ❷
Constraint Manager, there are two Default schemes.
The Master Scheme represents the Default constraints for
Clearances and Trace and Via Properties for the entire design.
These values will be used if no unique constraints or rule areas are
applied.
The Minimum Scheme is read-only. It represents an overview
of the minimum values entered for Clearances and Trace and Via
Properties across all of the schemes within the design. It provides
the user with an easy method to review any entered constraints
that may be unacceptable.
❶ In the Navigator window within Constraint Manager, click ❸
the “+” next to Schemes to expand and view the Master
scheme.
❷ Expand Trace &Via Properties, click on Default clearances
to see the Master Trace & Via properties that will be used in
the design.
❸ Review the different settings that will be used for specific
Net Classes within your design. You can create as many
Schemes, or Groups of clearances within schemes, as you
need for your design.
❹ Click Default Rule under the Clearances within the
Master scheme. These are the default clearances that will
be used in the design. You may need to scroll to the right in
the spreadsheet to see all of the clearance rules that you
can set within a design.
❹
Now, let’s create and assign a new Clearance rule that we
will use later in the design.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 91

 Creating Clearances
In this exercise, we will create a High Speed clearance used for Clock
signals. In PCB layout, this rule is often referred to as a “3W” rule.
It is used on signals to reduce crosstalk between other signals in a
design. The “3W” means 3 times the width of the signal trace, spacing ❶
from center to center. Often, a PCB designer may enter these rules
in the board, but with Constraint Manager we can create them in the
schematic and pass them to the PCB designer.
First, let’s look at the Trace & Via Properties for the CLOCKS…
❶ In the Navigator, expand Trace & Via properties and click CLOCKS.
Note that the Typical Trace Width is set to 6 for all Clock signals.
Now that we know the trace width, we can build a 3W rule for the
clock signals with a Trace to Trace Spacing of 12.
❸
❷ Right-click on Clearances in the Navigator and select
New Clearance Rule .
❸ Name the rule HS_3W, then click on the HS_3W rule. ❷
❹ In the spreadsheet, find the Trace To Trace column, then in the
Top box set the default to 12 and press Enter.
❺ Click OK in the dialog box that appears. Note that all layers of the
design now have a Trace to Trace spacing set to 12.
❹

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Assigning Clearances
Now that we have created the rule for the Clock signals,
we need to assign it so that it will maintain the specific
clearances to other Net Class clearances within the design. ❶
❶ Click the Class to Class Clearance Rules icon in the
Clearances toolbar.
❷ The Class to Class Clearances dialog box opens and is set
to the Master Scheme. ❷
❸ Under the (ALL) column, choose HS_3W from the
CLOCKS Net Class dropdown list. This assigns the HS_3W
rule to all nets within the Net Class CLOCKS, and applies
it against ALL other nets within the design.
❹ Click OK. Your Clock signal spacing rule has been
completed and saved to the database.
Note: If you do not assign a Class to Class Clearance rule to a
Net Class, then the Default rules will be used.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 93

 Creating Net Classes
Net Classes are used to create Physical Constraints for nets or ❶
groups of nets within your design.
❶ In the Navigator, click the “+” next to Net Classes, then
right-click on Net Classes and select New Net Class. ❷

❷ Name the New Net Class CLOCK2 and click the CLOCK2
Net Class.
❸ Right-click on CLOCK2, and select Assign Nets…
❹ In the Assign Physical Nets to Net Class dialog box, make
sure the Source Net Class is Default and the Target Net ❸
Class is CLOCK2.
❺ In the Search Bar, enter CLK_IN, then click on the Search
icon.
❹
❻ Click “>” to move the net CLK_IN to the CLOCK2 Net
Class, then click OK.
❼ Repeat steps 3 through 6 to add CLK_3584MEG to the
CLOCK2 Net Class you created.
❽ Create a New Net Class called PWR_020_MIL using
the previous methods. This prepares you for the next
lesson where you will learn a different method for ❻
adding nets to a Net Class.

❽
❺

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional
Assigning Nets Using Constraint Editor
❶
Constraint Editor is an embedded constraint editor that you can use directly
within PADS Professional Designer or PADS Professional Layout. Constraint ❷
Editor improves your design productivity through context-driven operations
that allow you to view and edit constraint data while editing your design.
❶ In the PCI_Connection schematic sheet, Zoom into the area shown.
❷ Select the nets GND and VDD.
❸ While hovering over one of the selected nets, right-click and select Edit
Constraints. Constraint Editor opens both of the nets shown.
Note: Since these are Power Nets, you may need to show the Power
Nets Bar. Select Configure > Bars from the Constraint Editor command ribbon ❸
and make sure Power Nets is selected. ❷
❹ In Constraint Editor, change the Net Class for all of the selected nets to
PWR_020_MIL by selecting it from the dropdown list for the net in the ❸
first column. Then right-click on the Netclass row in the first column
and select Apply Value to All Columns.
❺ Using Constraint Editor, find the nets VDDQ3.3V and V2.7 and assign
them to Net Class PWR_020_MIL using Constraint Editor.
❻ Close Constraint Editor.
❸

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 95

 Creating a Differential Pair
❶ On the PCI_Connection sheet, use the Home key or the Fit ❷
All icon to zoom full. ❶
❷ Click Zoom Area and window the area in the upper left hand
❸
corner of the page near the USER I/F CONNECTOR. ❺
❸ Select the signal BSYNC-, then while pressing the CTRL key
select the signal BSYNC+ .
❹ In the Constraint Manager Spreadsheet (which should still be
open), the nets BSYNC- and BSYNC+ are selected.
❺ Create a New Net Class called BSYNC.
❻ While hovering over the BSYNC+ net in Constraint Manager,
right-click and choose Assign Net(s) to Net Class from the
popup menu.
❼ In the Select Net Class dialog box, select BSYNC and then
click OK.
❹
❽ In Constraint Manager, select BSYNC+ and BSYNC-, then
right-click and choose Create Differential Pair from the
❻
popup menu. Notice that the nets are now linked as a Diff
Pair and their Net Class is set to BSYNC.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Creating a Constraint Class

Constraint Classes are used to create Electrical Constraints for nets or groups ❶
of nets.
❶ In the Navigator, select the “+” next to Constraint Classes to expand the ❷
list, then right-click on Constraint Classes and select New Constraint Class.
❷ Name the New Constraint Class BSYNC.
❸ Select the Diff Pair Row in Constraint Manager for BSYNC+, BSYNC-, then
right-click and choose Assign Differential Pair(s) to Constraint Class from ❸
the popup menu.
❹
❹ In the Select Constraint Class dialog box, select the BSYNC constraint class,
then click OK. The Diff Pair is added to the Constraint Class.
Note: You may need to sort Constraint Class/Net column to see the Constraint
Class. You can also select the BSYNC constraint class in the Navigator to filter out
everything except the assigned nets.

Ordering Nets and Diff Pairs for Routing

You may be required to route nets or diff pairs in a specific ordering topology.
Constraint Manager allows you to create Custom Routing Topologies that can
be passed to layout in PADS Professional. When ordering diff pair signals, ❷
Constraint Manager handles both nets at the same time.
❶ Right-click in the toolbar area and select the Topology toolbar, if not ❶
already visible.
❷ Select the BSYNC+, BSYNC- diff pair if it is not still selected, then click
the Netline Order button on the Topology toolbar.
Note: Currently, the Diff Pair is shown as a Custom Topology with No Ordering
in Constraint Manager.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 97

 Ordering Nets and Diff Pairs for Routing (continued) ❸

❸ The Netline Order dialog box appears.

❹ Select the connection on the net P2-B2 and note that the first
From pin is populated.
❺ Select the connection on the net U8-26 and the first To pin is
populated.
❻ Click the Add from-to arrow to set the first from-to order in the
topology.
❼ Using the method in steps 3 through 6 complete the Ordering
Topology as shown, then click OK to update Constraint Manager with ❹ ❺ ❻
the ordering.
❽ A message appears warning that the second net of the diff
pair was reordered also. You can view the report if needed.
Click No to close the message.
❾ The Constraint Template Matching dialog box opens when diff pairs
are reordered. You can make changes here, but since we want the
ordering on the diff pairs to be the same, click Cancel to close the
dialog box.
The BSYNC+, BSYNC- diff pair is now an Ordered Topology in
❽
Constraint Manager.
❿ Close the Constraint Manager application.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Adding Property Constraints in PADS Professional Designer

❶
In PADS Professional Designer, you can add properties to your schematic
symbols that will be used as constraints during component placement
in the PADS Professional Layout database. These constraints can be for
grouping of special circuitry or used to confine the placement location of
specific components.
Grouping Components for Placement
❶ Navigate to the PCI_Connection schematic page and select the
P1 connector, the P2 Connector and the resistors and capacitor
associated with it, as shown.
❶
Note: You may wish to set your selection filter to only select symbols
during this exercise.
❷ At the bottom of the Properties window, add the
Property “Cluster”, and enter the Value as CONNECTORS.
❸ Navigate to the control_buffers schematic sheet and select the
LEDs and associated Resistors, as shown. Add these parts to the
CONNECTORS component group using the Cluster property as in
Step 2.
Note: The component group called CONNECTORS is available for placement
as a group of components in PADS Professional Layout.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 99

 Constraining Components to an Area in PCB Layout
❶ Navigate to the Analog schematic sheet, then to the
Inst_Amp block under the Analog_Switch.
❷ Select all of the Symbols on the sheet, except the power and ❷
ground symbols as shown.
❸ Add the Cluster property to these symbols with a Value of
ANALOG_SW.
❹ Add a second property, Room and set the Value to ANALOG.
Note: These components are now available for placement as a
group in PADS Professional Layout, and they will be constrained
to a Room called ANALOG which we will need to create within the
PCB database. ❶

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Adding and Editing Graphical Text

When creating your schematic, you may need to add engineering or instructional
notes as additional information. You will add some text to the Analog schematic
sheet to describe the room you just created.
❶ The schematic sheet Analog > Analog_Switch > Inst_amp should be open.
❷ Select Add > Text, and click a location for the text above the title block.
❹
❸ Enter some text, for example: “Place components in the room Analog”
❹ Right-click the entered text and change the size to .250 in.
❺ To easily edit the text, double-click it and highlight text to be edited as
needed. ❷

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager 101

 Review Questions
1 Why would I want to use rules and constraints?
2 If constraints are added in the schematic, can they be edited during the layout process?
3 When would I want to use a Constraint Class?
4 Can I assign different constraints to individual differential pairs in my design?

Review Answers
1 Rules and constraints help establish structure in the design. Not all signals in a design can be routed together without
introducing interference and/or crosstalk. Rules and constraints allow you to create specific routing conditions for each
signal (or signal type) in the design, each with its own set of spacing and layer assignment rules. The more complex the
design, the more helpful these rules and constraints will be.
2 Constraints created in the schematic within Constraint Manager are passed to the Layout environment. Once the design is in
Layout, changes can be made within Constraint Manager and can be back annotated to the schematic. Constraint Manager
and the iCDB keep the design constraint data synchronized.
3 Sometimes you will want to assign the same constraint (spacing, net length, etc.) to a group of similar nets. Rather than do
this individually, you can group these nets into a Constraint Class. Any constraints assigned to the Constraint Class will be
automatically assigned to all of the nets in that class. This also simplifies the process of making edits or changes.
4 The Constraint Manager Spreadsheet is extremely flexible and allows you to assign rules and constraints to a large variety
of design elements. This includes: groups of nets, individual nets, differential pairs (including at the individual pair level)
and individual pin pairs. The ability to exercise this level of control over the design helps you meet the most demanding
requirements.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Lesson 8: Variant Manager

Variant Manager is a utility that manages PCB subassemblies at the schematic level.
The bill of materials is typically generated here and can represent the entire schematic
or any variant defined by Variant Manager. Variant modifications can include Placed
(Populated) Components, Replaced (Substituted) Components and Unplaced
(Depopulated) Components. Multiple variants can exist in a single design with the
ability to automatically generate schematics and BOMs for each.
Variants defined in PADS Professional Designer can be integrated with PADS
Professional Layout. The Variant Manager utility inside PADS Professional Layout can
generate the necessary assembly drawings based on each variant passed from PADS
Professional Designer. This capability accommodates the passing of variants from the
front end tool all the way through to the backend tools.

Creating New Variants ❷

Variant Manager is used to create a unique BOM for schematic variants. For
example, you may need to produce designs which are basically the same, except for
an extra memory bank. Variant Manager allows you to create a unique schematic,
BOM, and set of reports for the design variant.
Launching Variant Manager
❶ Start PADS Professional Designer, and in the Recent section of the Start Page
select Lesson1 C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1\Lesson1. ❸
prj.
❷ Launch Variant Manager using View > Other Windows > Variants.
❸ A new window opens for Variant Manager. If it shows “No Project Loaded”
simply Click on Corporate in the Navigator to open a schematic sheet.

Variant Manager 103

 ❶
Reviewing the Variant Manager Settings
Before creating new variants, review the current settings and familiarize
yourself with the available options.
The General Tab
❶ Review the Settings for the Variant Manager by clicking the Settings icon. ❷
❷ There are three tabs in the Settings dialog box. The General Tab
includes settings for naming unplaced parts as well as report options.
The Unplaced keyword appears in the appropriate cell for parts that you
choose to not be installed during the PCB Assembly process. You can
specify any string as the keyword.

❸
The CAE Interaction Tab
❸ The CAE Interaction tab provides display options for variant schematics.
You can Delete, Markup or assign a Color to the unplaced symbols in each
variant.
When a variant view is generated, these settings will be applied to the
symbols within the schematic according to the symbol’s variant status.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

The Library Query Setup Tab

❶ The Library Query Setup tab allows you to define and edit how
the project interacts with the Library database. The Data source
configuration file specified in the first field of the dialog box
indicates the PADS Databook database that you use when creating
your design variant.
❶
❷ The Define Libraries button allows you to edit your PADS Databook
configuration. For this lesson the setup is done for you but you can
❷
refer to the Appendix: Configuring Variant Manager at the end of
this guide if you are using your own database.
❸ The Query settings section controls the database search when
❸
using the Replace function. Allow sufficient results to be
returned from each library by setting the Results/library value
appropriately. If you want to use replacement parts from more
❹
than one library, you must set the Results total number to be
larger than the number of results returned from each individual
library. Verify the Part number attribute is set to Part Number.
❺
❹ The Output format controls your database query results. The Part
number feedback line allows you to display more information
about a particular part. This will be shown later.
❺ The Query results format controls the results shown for the
Replace function. This determines the columns displayed and the
filter options to help you choose a replacement part.
Note: Because you have associated the Part number attribute to Part
Number, we also want to be sure that it is included in the Query results
format.
❻ Click Cancel to close the Settings dialog box.

Variant Manager 105

 ❶
Creating Variants
❶ Select the Variant Definition Icon.
❷ From the Variant Definition dialog box, create two variants by clicking
on the Create New Variant button twice.
❸ Name the two variants Variant1 and Variant2 respectively.
Note: Click the cell to edit the values.
❷
❹ Enter the Number and Descriptions as shown.
For Variant1: Number = VAR1, Description = New Var 1
For Variant2: Number = VAR2, Description = New Var 2
❸
❺ The Variant Groups tab is helpful for sorting or filtering for specific
variants when there are many in a single project. Any groups setup on
the Variant Groups tab will be available from the drop-down list shown
❹
below in the main window.
❻ Click OK to save and exit.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Defining Variants ❶

Now that you have configured Variant Manager and created two variants, you
will define the specific variant parameters.
Unplacing Parts
❶ Be sure the Transmit and Receive mode buttons are both depressed to
enable cross-probing. ❷
❷ Click in the cell under the Variant1 column, next to C9. Variant Manager
allows cross probing from the schematic into a variant and vise-versa.
❸ Click [-] next to the schematic sheet Analog_Switch to compress the view.
Note: If you don't see the Analog_Switch [+] icon, make sure that Flat Design
View is unchecked.
❹ Find IO_Port1 and Unplace all of the components in that block by
selecting the cell next to the IO_Port1 definition in Variant1.
❸
❺ Right-click and choose Unplaced to unplace all parts on this hierarchical
block.

Variant Manager 107

 Change Multiple Parts Simultaneously
❶ To change a few select parts simultaneously, click C3 in the Variant1
column. ❶
❷ Ctrl + Click to select C4 and C35. ❷
❸ Right-click over one of the reference designators and choose Reset.
Only the 3 selected parts are reset and their cells in the Variant1
column are cleared.
❸
Replacing (Substituting) Parts
❹ In Variant2 you will replace (substitute) parts. Select the cell for C5 in
IO_Port2, then right-click and choose Replace.
❺ A new window appears that lists the possible replacement parts.
Note: The columns come from the settings in a previous lesson. All of
the replacement parts have the same PKG_TYPE as the original part
because we set the VM Match to PKG_TYPE = in our .dbc configuration
as shown in the Appendix at the end of this Flow Guide.

108 Variant Manager

 Design Capture with PADS Professional
❷
Sorting Parts ❶

❶ The columns in this window not only provide additional information but
they also act as filters. Select one of the column headers and notice you
can either sort (ascending or descending) or filter (on available values)
based upon the part you are looking for.
❷ Replace C5 with the smallest value available for a capacitor, by selecting
the Value column and then sort Ascending, then double-click the part
12308-CAP.

Flatten the Design View

❸
❸ Check Flat Design View check box to flatten the schematic Ref Des list.
❹ In the design view, find and select R29 on the PCI_Connection sheet in the
upper right corner of the sheet. When you select the part in the design
view, it will also select in Variant Manager.

Variant Manager 109

 Replacing Parts Across Library Partitions
❶ We are going to replace the R29 resistor with a
capacitor in Variant2. With R29 highlighted, right-click
over the cell in the Variant2 column and then click
Replace.
Notice that you also have the option to replace parts
across library partitions.
❷ Double-click the first capacitor in the list to apply it.
❶
Note: Don’t forget that you can also filter on Library if you
know what Library your replacement part is in.
❸ Click Save on the Variant Manager toolbar. ❷

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Generating Variant Outputs

❷
Now that you have created two variants we will need to generate
schematics, pass the information to layout, and create BOMs.
❸
Create Variant/Function Schematics
❶ Select File > Close to close all schematic sheets except one so the ❺
Variant Manager remains active.
Note: You can also use the [X] on the schematic sheet tab to close any sheet.
❷ To create the variant schematics, select the title header for the
Variant1 column and then click Create Variant/ Function Schematics.
❸ A message appears in the design view informing you that “PADS Designer
❹
is in Variant Manager Mode (All schematics are read only). Variant
name: Variant1 ”. ❻
❹ Using the navigator, select the BlockReUse sheet and select IO_Port1.
❺ Click Push .
❻ The parts represented in blue are the ones we unplaced in Variant1. In
a previous lesson, we set a particular color (teal) for all unplaced variant
parts.
❼ We also had the option to Markup rather than color unplaced parts which
would have resulted as shown.
❽ Or, we could have configured the Variant Manager to delete unplaced ❻
parts as shown.
❾ Click Reset Schematics to Master.

❼ ❽
❾

Variant Manager 111

 Generating the Variant BOM Reports
❶ To generate the BOMs, right-click in the Variant window
and choose Report > BOM Reports.
❷ Choose the desired output file type: Microsoft Excel.
❸ Select Variant1 and 2 and define an output location. In ❶
this case we will output to
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1 and
name it
Variant_BOM.xls. ❺
❷
❹ Generate a BOM report for the Master and both
Variants using the settings shown.
❺ After clicking OK, all three reports are generated in the
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1 ❸
directory as shown.
❻ Open each report in Excel and observe the differences.
In this graphic notice the file names at the top show ❹
master on the left, then Variant1 middle, and Variant2 ❻
on the right. A few differences have been highlighted
so you can see that Variant Manager has generated the
BOMs correctly.
❼ From the Report menu you can also generate
spreadsheet views of your variants for documentation.
Experiment by creating a report for your variant and
then view the output file. For example, select HTML
Document.

112 Variant Manager

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Review Questions
1 When would I want to use variants?
2 Is PADS Professional Layout aware of variants to the BOM that are created in PADS Professional Designer?
3 Can I have more than two variants in a design?
4 How do I get the variant data to Manufacturing and Purchasing?

Review Answers
1 Many products are built around the concept of a core product design and a number of optional features. PADS Professional
Designer supports this type of design through the use of variants. Each variant design can have specific components placed,
unplaced or replaced. Use Variant Manager to specify and track separate BOMs.
2 The variant data is also forwarded to PADS Professional Layout so you can create individualized Assembly Drawings for each
design variant.
3 Variant Manager allows you to create as many variants of the design as you need.
4 Variant Manager supports a wide variety of output formats so that you can deliver the information to downstream users
in a suitable configuration. You can generate output in HTML, text, Excel spreadsheet, CSV files, and BOM formats so that
Engineering, Manufacturing, Purchasing and others can all share the same design data.

Variant Manager 113

 Lesson 9: Generating the BOM (Bill of Materials) using Part Lister
This exercise shows how to export BOMs from PADS Professional Designer. There are
several optional output formats. For this exercise, we will focus on creating a text file
format.
During this lesson, all of the settings you create are saved within a Part Lister
configuration file or .IPL file. You can create and save as many IPL files as you need for
separate versions or output types. You can recall them later for use in future design
projects.

Opening the Part Lister

❶ If not already open, select File > Open > Project to Open
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\ Lesson1\Lesson1.prj.
❷ Select Tools > Part Lister... . ❷

❸ A new PartsLister dialog box appears. These options affect the part list
content.
❹ For the Config Name, browse and select CORPORATE from the dropdown
list.
Note: This is a customizable Part Lister configuration. Any changes you make are
saved in this file for future use.

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional
❷
Part Lister Property Selection
❶ Select Columns. ❶
❷ The list on the left side of the dialog box contains some of the properties
currently in the design. Using the four buttons above the list, you can
add, remove and modify the order of the property columns included
in the output. Each of the properties in the Columns list will become a
separate column in the output file.

Adding A Property
❸ Select the last property in the list (C0ST), then click New to add a new ❸
property at the end of the list. ❺
Note: To add a property in the middle of the list, click on the list item directly
above the location where you wish to add the new property. You can also use the
Up and Down Arrow buttons to reposition the order of the properties in the list.
❹ Enter the Column Label Name DESCRIPTION. ❹

❺ Verify that Property is selected for the Type, and for the Property, select
Description from the dropdown list to specify the content of the column. ❺
❻ Enter a Column Width of 50.
❼ Enter 0 for the decimal places.
The new property is now complete.

❻
❼

Generating the BOM (Bill of Materials) Using Part Lister 115

 Editing A Property
❶ Double-click the cursor over the Column Label Name C0ST. This allows ❸
you to edit the name.
❷ Change the Column Label Name from C0ST to COST. ❶
Note: COST is spelled with a Zero (0) and it should be an O.
❷
❸ You can rename any of the Column Label Names as your reporting
needs change.
Increasing the Page Size
❹ If you add additional properties, you may have to increase the page size.
❺ Select Advanced.
❻ Verify that Split into pages is enabled.
❼ Enter the appropriate values for the number of lines each.
❺
(For this lesson set it to 150.)

❻ ❼
Specifying the Output Type
❽ Define the desired output type (Text File, HTML or EXCEL) by choosing
Text File from the Output Format dropdown list.
❾ Click Run to generate the report.

116 Generating the BOM (Bill of Materials) Using Part Lister

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Viewing the Part Lister Output

❶ In Windows Explorer, browse to and open
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1\CORPORATE.txt in
any text editor.
❷ Expand the view of the BOM to fit the full screen.
Note: This is just one example of a BOM. You can create different formats
including an HTML version that can be opened inside a web browser or an
Excel version that can be viewed and edited within Microsoft Excel.
❸ Select File > Exit to close the Notepad file.
❹ Select File > Exit to exit PADS Professional Designer.

Generating the BOM (Bill of Materials) Using Part Lister 117

 Review Questions
1 Is a BOM a printed report or a data file?
2 How much detail can be contained in a BOM?
3 Will a BOM show detail for each part or condense the list of identical
parts?
4 Can I save a BOM setup for use in a future design?

Review Answers
1 You can generate a BOM in different formats to suit the needs of the
target audience, including Excel spreadsheets, PDFs, text files, CSV files
and others.
2 A BOM can contain as much or as little detail as you require. During
the setup of the BOM, you are offered a number of options to fully
customize the report.
3 You can configure the BOM to show both. Typically, you show a
condensed listing that has one entry for each different component and
a field that indicates all of the Reference Designators that use that
particular component. Alternately, you can also include a listing that
includes one entry for each component in the design.
4 You can save specific BOM configurations in the Reports dialog box. These
are stored with the PADS Professional Designer application configuration
and are available in future design project sessions.

118 Generating the BOM (Bill of Materials) Using Part Lister

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

❶
Lesson 10: PADS Professional Designer Integration with HyperLynx LineSim
HyperLynx LineSim is a pre-layout PCB design simulation and analysis tool
that enables you to evaluate the signal-integrity performance of signal nets.
Using HyperLynx LineSim Simulation
This exercise will instruct you how to select a net for simulation and easily
create a virtual prototype for signal integrity(SI) analysis. You will then run an
interactive SI simulation, determine the optimal termination value, apply that
termination then rerun the simulation to validate the solution and save the ❷ ❹
results for future use.
PADS Professional Designer LineSim Model Configuration ❸
You will review and configure your models for use in simulation.
❶ Using PADS Professional Designer, select Open, then browse and select
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal\LessonFinal.prj.
❷ Double-click the CORPORATE schematic in the Project Navigator.
❸ Double-click on the memory schematic sheet in the Project Navigator.
❹ Zoom to the upper left IC shown on the memory sheet. Select the IC ❺
U15. Note: Set the Selection Filter to Symbol if necessary.
❺ In the Properties window, review the assigned Simulation IBIS models:
SIM_MODEL and SIM_MODEL_FILE. (You may need to scroll down to
see them).
❻ With nothing selected in PADS Professional Designer, select Tools >
HyperLynx LineSim and then click Export to HyperLynx in the HyperLynx
LineSim window.
❼ From the Menu bar select, Models > Edit Model Library Paths.
Click the Edit… (button) as shown. ❼
❽ In the Select Directories of IC Model Files dialog, click the Add button.
❾ In the Add Model Folder dialog, traverse to
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal and click Select
Folder.
❿ The result of adding the directory displays in the Select Directories for
IC-Model Files dialog, click OK on all dialogs. Exit HyperLynx and save.
PADS Professional Designer Integration with HyperLynx LineSim 119
 PADS Professional Designer LineSim Launch
❶ Back in PADS Professional Designer, select the
net DATA_BUS0 starting from U15.13. Right-click
and choose HyperLynx LineSim.
❷
❷ Enable Complete schematic (export including
interconnections) in the Schematic Contents
section, then click Load Data from PADS Designer.
Note: You can change parameters to the Transmission
Line Properties. We will not make any changes and use
the default settings.
❸ In the Schematic Topology tab, review the drivers
and receivers for this net. Expand both Electrical
Net 1 and DATABUS0. ❸
Note: U13 is set as a driver, and U15 and U26 are
receivers. ❶
❹ On the Options tab, select Export to HyperLynx.
❹
Click Yes to overwrite existing files, if needed.

HyperLynx LineSim
❺ HyperLynx LineSim will open with the Free-Form
schematic. The DATABUS0 net
is loaded for simulation using ❻
the models assigned in ❺
PADS Professional Designer.
❻ In HyperLynx, select
the Edit Stackup icon.
Review the cross
section of the 6
layer board, then
close the Stackup
Editor.

120 PADS Professional Designer Integration with HyperLynx LineSim

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

HyperLynx LineSim (continued)

❼ You need to assign a missing model to U13. Select
U13, right-click, and select Assign Models. ❼
❽ In Assign Models, click Select. ❽

❾ In Select IC Model, choose xc9500.ibs from

the Libraries list, and then choose XC95216_
BGA352[SLW=0;VIO=0] from the Devices list, then
click OK.
❿ In Assign Models, select U13.io pins and change the
Buffer settings to Output.
⓫ Click OK. All of the models are assigned and are
ready for simulation.

PADS Professional Designer Integration with HyperLynx LineSim 121

 HyperLynx LineSim (continued)
⓬ Click Run Interactive Simulation and Show Waveforms.
The Digital Oscilloscope window opens. 12
Select Rising Edge. Make sure different colors are
assigned to the probes, and select Start Simulation. 13
⓭ In the Digital Oscilloscope window, on the waveform, select the
top and bottom of the overshoot of the waveform to review the
span of the voltage overshoot. (For Example, Receivers have over-
shoot of about 1.98V.).
⓮ Save the results of the simulation for future use with the routed
board. Click Save/Load, select HyperLynx .LIS and then click
Save As. Save the file to the location C:\PADS_Professional_
Eval_<release>\LessonFinal with name
DATA_BUS0_no_termination.lis. Click Yes to replace the existing
file.
⓯ Close the Load/Save Waveforms dialog box.

14

122 PADS Professional Designer Integration with HyperLynx LineSim

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

HyperLynx LineSim (continued)

16 To fix the Signal Integrity problems, add RC Termination to the U15.13

receiver. Click Add RC Terminator to schematic and position the top of

the resistor so that it touches the left blue dot at the output of TL2 .
17 To assign values to the terminators, click the Run Terminator Wizard icon.
Choose 5% from the Apply Tolerance dropdown list.
18 Click Apply Values, then click OK. The value is assigned to the terminators.
16
19 In the Digital Oscilloscope window, click Erase and rerun the simulation with
RC Termination and the values assigned. You will notice that we cut down the
overshoot by more than double (about 1.25V). We can continue to refine if
necessary.
20 Save the results as we did in Step 19 with file name:
DATA_BUS0_terminated.lis. Click Yes to replace the existing file.
21 Close Digital Oscilloscope and exit HyperLynx LineSim. Click Yes to save
changes, then select File > Close Project.

17 18

17

19

PADS Professional Designer Integration with HyperLynx LineSim 123

 Review Questions
1 When would I want to use HyperLynx LineSim?
2 How does HyperLynx LineSim know how the signal will perform on the
printed circuit board?
3 How does HyperLynx LineSim fix signals that don’t perform as expected?
4 Does HyperLynx LineSim select the actual components for terminators?

Review Answers
1 HyperLynx LineSim lets you model critical signals in your design and
attempts to predict their expected behavior in the final board design.
You can model a signal, use the tool to experiment with corrective
measures, and save the simulations for future results comparisons.
2 HyperLynx LineSim uses industry standard component models to
predict signal behaviors along with sophisticated internal algorithms
and proprietary technologies.
3 HyperLynx LineSim features Wizards that can suggest possible
modifications to your signal chain to correct aberrations and
performance issues. Simply run the Wizard and the system presents you
with suggestions to correct signal integrity issues.
4 HyperLynx LineSim offers suggested values for terminators, not specific
part numbers. You must determine which manufacturer’s part number
will meet the required specifications for the design.

124 PADS Professional Designer Integration with HyperLynx LineSim

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Lesson 11: PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout Integration
This exercise walks you through the process of Packaging and integrating your
PADS Professional Designer schematic to PADS Professional Layout. Once completed,
you will have a single integrated database that can exchange information easily
through Forward and Backward Annotation.

Database Integration
This lesson will highlight the basic tasks utilized in Packaging, Integration through a
Layout Template, Forward Annotation, and setting up embedded and cross probable
views of the schematic and PCB databases for use in completing the design.

PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout Integration 125

Packaging the Schematic
The Packager in PADS Professional Designer prepares the schematic database for
integration with the PCB layout by mapping each logical component to a physical
component in your Personal Library. It also automatically assigns reference
designators to components, if you have not already manually assigned them.
The Packager flattens hierarchical designs and checks the design for pin and ❶
property mismatches with components in the library. For each error found
during packaging, a hyperlink appears in the Output Window that helps you find
and resolve these errors easily. ❷

Running the Packager

❶ If not already open, open the
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1\Lesson1.prj, and open
the CORPORATE schematic.
Note: If you have not done so, first run an PADS Databook Verification on your
design and make sure you have ALL Green Lights.
Review the PADS Databook lesson if you need to.
❷ Click Tools > Package… to open the Packager setup dialog box. Take a
moment to look over the available settings. We will leave the settings as
shown for this exercise.
❸ Click OK to run the Packager.
❹ Success! Your schematic has been Packaged for integration without
errors. Review the output in the Packager tab in the Output Window, if
you did have errors, you would need to correct them and would then
re-run the Packager.
Note: Successful Packaging is very important to you as a designer. It
means that all of the parts on your schematic match pin for pin and
property for property with the Personal Library. This is a key element
❹
that saves you time with the “Correct by Construction” methodology in
PADS Professional. ❸

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 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Personal Library - PCB Layout Templates

❶
PCB Layout Templates are used to construct a new PCB design. They can be
completely blank PCB databases, or they can have pre-configured information
like: fabrication and assembly drawing information, pre-defined layer stackup
information, notes, library components, and even Constraint Manager
baseline constraints. PADS Professional provides you with a few examples in
the Sample Personal Library provided with the installation.
You can make a new PCB Layout Template from any pre-existing PCB Layout.
You can have as many templates as you need in your own Personal Library. ❸
Layout Template Editor
❶ From the Start menu, launch PADS Pro Library Tools to open your
Personal Library. The Library management environment opens. Select
File > Open and browse to C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\
Library\Library.lmc then click Open.
❷ Select Tools > Layout Template Editor….
❷
❸ Select the VX Template_6Layer_Formatted template and open it in
❸
the PADS Professional Layout editor by selecting the Edit Template
icon.
❹ In the PADS Professional Layout Editor window, ❺
choose the Loc: Min Contents display scheme from
the dropdown list, then select View > Fit All.
❺ Notice the Template has Formats, Fabrication Notes,
and a Layer Stackup Drawing already placed. These
items could be adjusted as needed within the template
for future re-use. We will use this one as is, so once you
have finished reviewing the template, click File > Exit.
❻ Close the Templates selection dialog box, then click ❹
File > Exit to close the PADS Pro Library Tools and
return to your design.

PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout Integration 127

 ❶

Connecting the Schematic and Layout

Now you have an error free and packaged schematic database. You also have
a set of Layout Templates in your Personal Library you can use to create new
PCB layout databases.
All we need to do now is integrate them…
❷
Create the PCB Database
❶ Click Tools > PADS Professional Layout. ❸
Note: This command opens the Create New Design dialog box. When a
PCB database is currently linked to a schematic, PADS Professional Layout ❶
will open the layout. ❹
❷ In the Create New Design dialog box, select
VX Template_6Layer_Formatted from the "Select template"
dropdown list.
❸ The PCB design database is created in the directory:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson1\PCB, as shown.
Note: The Central Library path is already set because it is in the Project
File.
❹ Click OK, then click Yes to answer the PCB Directory message.
❺ Click OK to close the Import Layout Template warning.
Note: When Importing a PCB Template into your design project, any
previous layer stackup settings will be overwritten by the imported
template.
❻ Click OK to close the back annotation message received the first
time you integrate your design to a PCB template.
❼ Once the Layout tool activates, click No and do not start the
❹ ❺
Forward Annotation. The PCB database will load.
Note: Typically you will answer Yes and Project Integration will load
automatically to start Forward Annotation. In this lesson, we will walk you
through the individual steps.

❼
❻

128 PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout Integration

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

PCB Integration
Now that the schematic database is integrated with the PCB database, we have
to Forward Annotate to load the netlist and constraint information into the PCB.
You can run Forward Annotation in several ways within PADS Professional Layout,
but since this is a brand new design, we will use the Project Integration method.
❷

Project Integration
❶ PADS Professional has opened the CORPORATE PCB design, and
you will see the template we chose from the Personal Library.
Notice the Traffic Signal lights in the lower right corner of
the Status Bar. The First Amber Light signifies that there are
schematic changes ready to be Forward Annotated to the PCB. ❶
❷ Click Setup > Project Integration... ❸
❸ The Project Integration dialog box opens, showing the same
Traffic Signal lights.
❹ Click the Additional Options… button and make sure all three
check boxes are checked. These create some files that we will ❼
use later.
❺ Click Close.
❻ Review the settings in the Project Integration dialog box so ❹
they are set as shown.
❼ Click on the TOP Amber Light to start Forward Annotation. You
❻ ❺
will see several message windows as the process completes.
❽ Click OK to close the Forward Annotation Warning.
Note: Follow good design practice and always view any Log files for
errors that may need to be corrected. Click the File Viewer… icon to
open a list of files to view.

PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout Integration 129

 Project Integration (continued)

❾ The schematic netlist and constraint information are loaded

into the PCB database. Notice the Traffic Lights have updated
to Green.
❿ If a Back Annotation is required, there will be an
Amber Traffic Light for Back Annotation Required. ❶
Click Back Annotation Required to run a Back Annotation and
complete the schematic to PCB integration process.
❿
Note: Whenever you introduce new design changes, you should
always perform a complete Round Trip of the Forward and Backward
Annotation process. This will guarantee that your schematic and PCB
databases remain in sync.
⓫ If needed, click OK to close the Back Annotation message
window. All of the Traffic Lights will now be Green. ❾
⓬ Click Close to exit the Project Integration dialog box. ⓫
⓭ Now is a good time to save your new PCB database by clicking
File > Save.

Your PCB database is ready to start the layout process!

130 PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout Integration

 Design Capture with PADS Professional

Embedded Schematic and PCB Views ❶

Prior to running Forward Annotation, you used the Additional Options button
in the Project Integration dialog box to create files for later use. These files
are the Embedded PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout
views.
Embedded PADS Professional Designer or Schematic View
This embedded view is a snapshot of the PADS Professional Designer schematic
at the moment of Forward Annotation. Use this view for viewing and cross ❸
probing within PADS Professional Layout without the need to open PADS ❷
Professional Designer.
❶ In PADS Professional Layout, click Window > Add Schematic View.
❷ Click on the 2:CORPORATE tab to view the schematic.
❸ To view additional sheets of the schematic, right-click, click Sheet and
choose the sheet you want to view.

Embedded PADS Professional Layout

Like the embedded schematic view, the PCB view is a snapshot of the PADS
Professional Layout PCB database at the moment of Backward Annotation.
Use this view within PADS Professional Designer to view and cross probe to
the PCB without having to open PADS Professional Layout.
❹ In PADS Professional Designer, click the PADS PCB Viewer icon or select
View > PADS PCB Viewer. The new embedded PCB window opens.
❺ Right-click inside the PADS PCB Viewer window and select Show/Hide
Toolbar to open the PADS PCB Viewer window display controls.
❹
We will learn more about these views and how to use them effectively in your
design process in upcoming lessons. ❺

PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout Integration 131

 Review Questions
1 Why do I need to package the design?
2 Why use PADS Professional Designer to PADS Professional Layout and
Project Integration?
3 Do I need to create a PCB Layout Template?

Review Answers
1 Packaging your design is an essential step in making sure that all of the
symbols placed in your schematic match the physical component land
patterns within the library. It also checks the logical pin information
between the symbols and the components. It is a key element in
making your design “Correct by Construction”.
2 When you have finished your schematic, you need to forward annotate
the design to PADS Professional Layout for physical design. Instead of
manually sending files back and forth, Project Integration lets you establish a
seamless bidirectional link between the applications and automatically pass
design data from one application to the other. This simplifies the process and
eliminates any possible problems that might be encountered in a manual
data exchange.
3 Several PCB Layout Templates are included with the installation of
PADS Professional. You can use these for your designs, edit them for your
requirements, or create new ones that are specific to your company’s
requirements. In order to integrate your schematics with a PCB layout
database, you must have at least one PCB Layout Template in your
Personal Library.

132 PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout Integration

 PCB Design with
PADS Professional Layout
In this section:
„„ PADS Professional Layout Environment
„„ Setting Up a New Board Design
„„ Placement
„„ Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager
„„ Variant Management
„„ AutoActive Interactive Routing
„„ Final Layout Considerations
„„ Design and Manufacturing Verification

133
Lesson 12: PADS Professional Layout Environment
PADS Professional Layout is fully integrated with PADS Professional Designer and
follows the same Windows navigation standards. It supports pulldown menus,
hot keys, customizable toolbars, toolboxes, and enhanced tooltips. Context
sensitive menus are supported; when you right-click, the popup menus options
vary depending on the object you select or the operation you are entering.
As with PADS Professional Designer, the interface is fully customizable. PADS
Professional Layout also includes the Advanced Windows navigation features of
Tear-off Menus, Dockable and Auto hide capable Windows.
Maintaining the interface features across all of the PADS Professional tools
minimizes the transition between them. ❶

Opening PADS Professional Layout

❶ From the Start menu select
All Apps > PADS Pro Tools <release> > PADS Pro Layout <release>. Feel
free to drag this entry to your app area for frequent use.
❷ From the PADS Professional Layout Start Page click Open, then browse
and choose:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal\PCB\
CORPORATE.pcb. ❷
IMPORTANT: Select PADS Professional DL license.
NOTE: If you are notified of the need to Forward Annotate, click No.

134 PADS Professional Layout Environment

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Introduction to the User Interface (Main Window)

Menus Toolbars Workspace

Status Bar Action Keys Toolbar

PADS Professional Layout Environment 135
 ❹

Toolbars
All of the Toolbars in PADS Professional Layout are Dockable/Undockable in
different locations within the Editor Window. They are fully customizable,
so you can add or remove buttons that you commonly use in your designs.
❶ Add Toolbars by selecting View > Toolbars, and choose the toolbar
you want to add. The example shows the Route toolbar.
❷ You can Order and Dock Toolbars along any edge of the Editor
Window simply by dragging them to a new location.
❶
❸ You can Undock Toolbars by dragging them away from the edge.
Re-Dock them by dragging them back to the edge.
❹ To customize toolbars, select View > Toolbars > Customize.
❺ To add or remove buttons from any toolbar, click Toolbar Options,
then click Add or Remove Buttons, and choose the buttons you want
to add or remove.
❻ To reset a toolbar, click Toolbar Options and click Reset Toolbar.

❹
❷
❺

136 PADS Professional Layout Environment

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Toolbars
The Standard Toolbar
Highlight Fit Next Constraint Editor DRC File Selection Filtering for Net
Save Undo Selected Board View Manager Control Visualization Viewer List Selection - On/Off

Display Scheme
Find Redo Unhighlight Previous Display Constraint Hazard Batch Batch Design Properties Dropdown List
All View Control Editor Explorer DRC DFF Status

The Place Toolbar The Snap Toolbar

Component Rotate Add Selected Toggle
Explorer 180 to Active Place Tentative Use Snap Hover Previous
Group Snap Point Snap Snap Keypoint

Rotate Push Dissolve

90 Group Place Static Remove Next Snap Toggle Hover
Snap Snap Pt Keypoint Align
The Route Toolbar
Add Plow/ Manual Hug Sketch Route Remove Netline Change Teardrops Plane
Via Multiplow Tune Trace Style Hangars Manipulation Width and Trace Assignments
drops The X-Y Readout Toolbar

Net Fanout Sketch Manual Multiple Gloss Copy Modify Plane

Explorer Route Saw Tune Hug Traces Trace Corners Classes and
Parameters

PADS Professional Layout Environment 137

 Toolbars (continued)

The Draw Create Toolbar The Utilities Toolbar

Add Tile
Drawing Snap To Add Add Add Schematic Add 3D Windows Project Extended
Angle Lock Draw Grid Line Polyline Rectangle Properties Print View View Horizontally Integration Print

Active Add Add Arc by Add Add Print Add Cascade Tile Gerber
Radius Text Radius Polygon Circle Preview PCB Windows Windows Plot Setup
View Vertically

The Draw Edit Toolbar

Create Delete Place
Flip Bring Draw Copy Polyline or End Point Tangent Segment Split
Vertically Forward Copy Perpendicular Polygon Handle Arc Line Merge Shape

Flip Rotate Send Copy Join Dissolve Trim Extend Scale Subtract Select
Horizontal Backward Parallel Polyline or Object
Polygon Handles

138 PADS Professional Layout Environment

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Toolbars (continued)

The Edit Toolbar

Cut Paste from Rotate 180 Align Align Align Fix Unfix Unlock
Clipboard Left Right Middle

Move Copy Rotate 90 Change Align Align Align Semi-fix Lock Delete
to Layer Center Top Bottom The Dimension Toolbar
Clipboard Angular
Place Dimension Place Dimension Place a Place a
Along a Stacked Between 2 Linear Geometric Leader
The Select By Area Toolbar Linear Element Dimension Elements Datum Note
Set Selection Set Selection Segment Split Traces
Area Shape Area Shape Based at Area
to Polygon to Circle Selection Extents

Dimension Place Angle From Place a Place a Place an

Params Dimension X Axis of Radius or Feature Ordinate
Between Linear Element Diameter Control Dimension
Set Selection Set Selection Shape Inside Reset 2 Elements Dimension Symbol
Area Shape Area Shape Properties Area Selection
to Line to Rectangle Selection The Measure Toolbar
Measure Center Segment
Distance Mode Mode
The Active Group Toolbar

Measure
Measure Edge Centerline Cumulative Readout
Minimum Mode Mode Mode
Distance

PADS Professional Layout Environment 139

 Extended Tooltips
All of the toolbar icons contain tooltips to help you understand the commands ❷
you select. PADS Professional Layout also contains extended tooltip animation
for most of the commands on the toolbars. These animations provide you
with a brief video of how to use the command. Quick-key commands are also
provided within the tooltips.
❶ Select View > Toolbars > Route. This adds the Route toolbar to the
❶
toolbars section of the interface.
❷ Hover over the Plow or Multi-Plow selected nets icon. The normal
tooltip is shown along with the Quick-key command.
❸ Hover over the Plow icon again, but leave your cursor over the icon for
brief time (about 3 seconds). The animation for the command begins ❸
playing and shows additional information about the command usage.

Action Keys Toolbar

In PADS Professional Layout there are many ways to use the same commands.
The Action Keys are a context and command sensitive toolbar that changes
dynamically depending on the command you are using.
❹ To use an Action Key, either click with your mouse or press the
corresponding Function key on your keyboard.

140 PADS Professional Layout Environment

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Modeless Commands and Mouse Usage

Just like PADS Professional Designer, PADS Professional Layout has command line
shortcuts and Mouse Strokes. ❶

Keyin Commands ❷
Keyins are two-character modeless action-object commands.

❶ In the Editor Window, type the characters “pr”. The Keyin Command
dialog box opens showing the command syntax for Place Ref-des.
Note: The keyin command example shown (pr -dist r*) will Place all of the R*
❹
reference designator components in a Distributed pattern.
❷ Entering “?” in the Keyin Command dialog box will open Help for Keyin
commands. ❸ ❺
NOTE: You will receive an error message if you have not loaded the ❻
documentation for this release.

Mouse Usage and Strokes

❸ Use the left mouse button for selection and deselection of
objects under the cursor.
❹ Use the middle mouse button or scroll wheel for Zoom In and
Out. Pan by holding down the middle mouse button and
moving the cursor in the direction of pan.
Use the Shift + middle mouse button to create a zoom window
in and out of an area and use the CTRL + middle mouse button
to fit the board to the screen.
❺ Use the right mouse button for context sensitive popup menus.
❻ Drag the right mouse button for Strokes.
Dragging a “?” in the Editor Window will view Help for Strokes.
NOTE: You must load the documentation for this release in order to view Help
for more information about Keyins, Mouse Mappings and Strokes as shown in
Table 2-9 at right

PADS Professional Layout Environment 141

Additional PCB Layout Navigation Tools
During the layout of your PCB, you need to do Placement and
Routing. PADS Professional Layout has several navigation tools
that you will be using throughout the layout process.

Component Explorer
This spreadsheet interface allows you to create Component
Planning Groups, Filter and Mark components. You can
use this with Display Control features to view Netlines for
Marked Components, Nets Between Marked Components,
and Nets From Marked Components functions to show only
the netlines of interest.
Component Explorer helps you navigate to the components
in your layout and reduce the time required to complete
placement.
NOTE: Use Place > Component Explorer to display this navigation
tool.

Net Explorer
This spreadsheet interface provides methods to organize and view nets. We
have moved net filtering to Net Explorer from Editor Control so you can easily
create netline Planning Groups to display only the netlines you want to view.
You can also apply Filtering and Marking to netlines, and can use the same
Display Control Marking capabilities used in Component Explorer. Common
features between these two navigation tools means you do not have to learn
different interfaces. Net Explorer helps you view the nets you need to route
and reduces your overall routing schedule.
Explore some of the new Net Explorer toolbar options:
„„ Toggle Net Filter On/Off
„„ Enable Net Filter on selected net/group
„„ Unfilter all nets/groups
„„ Reverse Net Filter
NOTE: Use Route > Net Explorer to display this navigation tool.

142 PADS Professional Layout Environment

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout
❷
❶
Editor Control
In PADS Professional Layout, there are many option
settings that you can use while placing and routing
❸
your layout. These settings are controlled with
Editor Control. You can save groups of settings in ❹
Editor Control as schemes for recalling later in a
design or share with other designs.
❶ Select Setup > Editor Control or click the ❶
Editor Control icon on the Standard
Toolbar. ❼
❷ Editor Control contains three tabs:
Place, Route and Grids.
❸ Placement settings are available on the ❺
Place tab.
❹ Routing controls are available on the
Route tab.
❺ Grid settings for Placement, Routing, Vias,
and Draw items are on the Grids tab.
❻ The Common Settings section allows you
to disable Online DRC, receive warnings
when moving fixed objects, change
the time between Autosaves, and save
Schemes. This section displays at the
bottom of each tab for easy access.
Note: Disabling Online DRC is NOT
recommended.
❼ Since you use Editor Control often during
❻
your layout, Autohide the dialog box so
that when hovering over the collapse
tab it will allow the dialog to slide open
automatically for your use.

PADS Professional Layout Environment 143

 ❶ ❸
Display Schemes and Display Control ❷
Display Schemes work with Display Control to provide the best display of
your design for the task you wish to complete. A large number of schemes
are provided with PADS Professional Layout and are easily available from the
Standard toolbar.
Display Control provides access to the commands and options that define the
display view characteristics and selection filtering in your design. Each of the
Display Control tabs shares a common set of elements: color boxes, radio
buttons, item check boxes and group check boxes. These provide an intuitive and
consistent environment.
Display Control is also customizable. You can Hide sections that you do
not use often to increase the screen area for the sections that you do use.
A Favorites section is also available to place items that you use often
during a design to increase productivity. You can save all of these customizations
to a Local, System, or a User Defined location Scheme for use with other
designs. As with Editor Control, Display Control is a primary navigation tool
used during your design process. ❹
❶ Click Fit Board.
❷ From the Standard toolbar, click the Scheme dropdown list and choose
Loc: Min Contents.
❸ Select View > Display Control or click the Display Control icon. Review
the options available in each tab. ❺
Note: Since Display Control is used often during a design, you may wish to ❹
Auto Hide it.
❹ In the Global View & Interactive Selection section of the Edit tab,
deselect visibility for Route Objects and Draw & Fab Objects. Expand
Board Objects and enable Visibility for all of the objects. ❼
❻
❺ Zoom to the lower left of the board and hover your mouse cursor over
the Board Outline and note that nothing highlights.
❻ In the Global View & Interactive Selection section, enable Selection
for all of the objects.
❼ Repeat step 5 and note the Board Outline now highlights and can be
selected.

144 PADS Professional Layout Environment

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Display Control Search ❷

❶
The Display Control dialog contains a vast amount of information for viewing
and selecting objects within your layout. If you add User Draft Layers to your
designs, the amount of objects will increase. Display Control Search makes it
easy to find objects within the dialog when needed.
❺
❶ Click the Edit tab in Display Control.
❷ Click the Display Control title bar and start typing the text “Net”.
❹
❸ The Search Bar appears, and the first instance of the text “Net” in
Display Control appears highlighted.
❹ Click the Find next button in the Search Bar to find the next instance of
the text “Net” in Display Control.
Note: You can also use Find previous for your searches.
❺ Once you have found the object you were searching for, click Finish
search.

PADS Professional Layout Environment 145

 Select Mode, Intelligent Cursors, and ❶
Context Sensitive Menus
When designing in PADS Professional Layout, you are in Select Mode. This ❸
mode uses the Selection Filters in Display Control to provide intelligent cursor
feedback and context sensitive right mouse button menus based on the ❷
objects you select.
❶ Hover the cursor over the Fiducial. Note the Locked Cursor.
Note: The Status Bar also provides information on the object.
❷ Right-click on the fiducial and click Fix/Lock > Unlock.
❸ Repeat step 1, but note the Move Cursor showing that this fiducial can ❶
be moved.
❹ Repeat step 2 and click Fix/Lock > Fix. Note the Fixed Cursor. ❹
Selection List
In PADS Professional Layout, selected objects are placed in the Selection List.
You can easily access this list to verify or refine a selection set. ❺
❺ Drag a frame select to define a selection area around the Board Outline,
Fiducial and Mounting Hole as shown. The objects are selected.
❻ Right-click and click Selection > Selection List.
❼ The Selection List shows four objects selected.
❻
❽ You can select any object in the list to: Fit It in the view, Blink It so it can
be seen, Define the Sort Order, or Remove it from the Selection set.
❾ Close the Selection List.

146 PADS Professional Layout Environment

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Creating a Scheme
There are many schemes already provided with PADS Professional Layout.
❷
You can edit any of them to your personal requirements, or you can
easily create new ones.
❶ Click Fit Board.
❸
❷ In Display Control, choose the Placement_Create scheme. The scheme
has been started for you, but a few items should be added to make it
more effective. Note the layers currently viewed.
❸ In the Display Control > Objects tab, expand ❺
❻
Place and enable both Top and Bottom ❽
Facement: Group Outlines, Part Ref Des, and
Place Outlines.
❹ Expand Place Obstructs & Rooms, and Part Items. ❹
Enable Rooms for Top and Bottom Facement, and
Part Hazards.
❺ Right-click on Part Ref Des and Add to Favorites
so you can easily access it from the Edit tab.
❼
❻ Enable Place Obstructs for the Top and Bottom
Facement.
❼ Expand Netlines > Netline Types and add
Non-Ordered Open and Ordered Open to your
Favorites.
❽ Click the Edit tab and review the Favorites you
added.
❾ Save the scheme and name it Placement_FirstLast
then enable Save locally with design and click OK. ❾
❿ Note the new layer objects available in your
Placement layout.
❿

PADS Professional Layout Environment 147

 Adding Views ❶
❷
PADS Professional Layout allows you to add view windows to create multiple
work areas that can be set for different graphical settings and areas within a
design. These views are used individually but updated simultaneously.
❶ Select Window > Add PCB View.
❸
❷ The view is added as a second tab, 3: CORPORATE.
❸ Select Window > Tile Vertically.
❹ Click the 2:3D view to make it active.
❺ From the Standard toolbar, change to the Routing scheme. ❹
❻ In the 2:3D view, zoom to and select U25.
Notice that U25 is also selected in the 3:CORPORATE
and 1:CORPORATE view.
❼ Right-click the Tab for 3:CORPORATE and click Floating. ❻
The view is undocked and can be re-sized and moved
where you want it.
❺
❽ Close the 3:CORPORATE view and Maximize the
1:CORPORATE view.

148 PADS Professional Layout Environment

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

3D Layout with Photo Realistic Visualization

PADS Professional Layout also gives the PCB designer the capability to visualize
and validate the design as if it was already manufactured. Integrated 2D and 3D
editing makes it easy to understand the physical product and gives the designer
the ability to check for electro-mechanical issues and avoid costly re-design late
in the design cycle. Complete photo realistic visualization of all board elements
and full viewing controls are available, and 3D layout eliminates the challenges
of integrating your PCB design process into the electromechanical world.
❶ Fit the board and select Window > 2:3D View to bring the 3D layout
editor window forward. ❶
❷ Open Display Control and select the 3D tab.
❷
❸ On the 3D tab enable (as needed) Vias, Traces, Planes, Soldermask, and
Silkscreen in the Objects section and note the photo realistic display in
the 3D editor window.
Hint: You may need to make the Soldermask transparent to visualize
the traces by selecting the color pick and adjusting the Transparency
level.
❹ Expand the Options section of the 3D tab and review the visualization ❼
options in the 3D editor window. Try toggling on and off a few of the
options to see the changes.
NOTE: The user has complete control of the photo realistic capabilities of the
3D editor window.

3D Quick Navigation
PADS Layout 3D has quick navigation keys you can use to easily change views or
you can use the 3D View Toolbar or the 3D View Menu selections.
„„ Ctrl + Middle Mouse Button - to Fit All
❸ ❹
„„ Shift + Middle Mouse Button - to Zoom Out
„„ Shift + T - View Top
„„ Shift + B - View Bottom
„„ Shift + L - View Left
„„ Shift + R - View Right
„„ Shift + F - View Front
„„ Shift + K - View Back

PADS Professional Layout Environment 149

 Manipulating the 3D View
The 3D Model of the PCB can be easily tilted or rotated in order to get a better
view of the bottom of the design or allow viewing of the PCB from different ❶
perspectives.
❶ Drag the Shift + Middle Mouse Button to rotate the design showing
the back of the board.
❷ Drag the CTRL + Middle Mouse Button to tilt the design.
❸ In the 3D tab of Display Control disable Soldermask, and enable Holes
and Include Internal Layers in the Options section.
❹ Enable Z-Axis Scaling and apply a value of 10.
❺ Zoom into an area of the board to see the internal layers and vias
structures.
Hint: You may need to rotate and tilt the design more to visualize the
internal structures within the board.

❹
❺

150 PADS Professional Layout Environment

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Enclosures and the 3D View

PADS Professional Layout can also fully visualize enclosures, brackets,
mechanical hardware, and even other PCB assemblies as seen in their
mechanical authoring tools. ❶
❶ Select 3D > View > Top, and press Ctrl + click Middle Mouse Button to
Fit All to reset the design view. ❷
❷ Disable Include Internal Layers and Z Axis Scaling in Display Control.
❸ On the 3D tab of Display Control, expand and enable the Assemblies
section, then Add and enable the visibility for the four mechanical
assemblies. Zoom out to see the entire assembly.
❹ These mechanical hardware components were imported for you, but
you can easily import mechanical STEP format files from the 3D menu.
❺ To see the PCB, select the color pick for Enclosure Top in Display Control
and set the Transparency slider to approximately 25%.
You can now see the PCB board inside of the enclosure.

PADS Professional Layout Environment 151

 Adding Cut Planes
X, Y and Z axis cut planes can be added to the 3D view to allow the designer
to better visualize details within the solid model. These cut planes locations
and angles can be easily modified to properly position them for the best view
❷ ❹
within the model.
❶
❶ Rotate and board slightly.
❷ Select 3D > View > X Cut Plane and use the slider to edit the location of
the cut.
❸ Zoom into the cut area to visualize the section.
❹ Select Setup > Settings to turn off 3D automatic rendering upon design
open to save time when opening this design. Click OK.
❺ Exit PADS Professional Layout without saving.

Now that you have seen the PADS Professional 3D Layout ability to control
and view all of the board elements in your design with a photo realism that
looks like the actual manufactured product, the challenges of designing in the
3D realm have been removed.
We will explore more of the 3D Layout capabilities in the Placement lesson. ❸

152 PADS Professional Layout Environment

Review Questions
1 Do I need to have all of the Toolbars visible?
2 Can I create my own menus and toolbars?
3 Are my Favorites and Hidden Rows saved with my schemes?
4 Can I view multiple schemes at the same time?

Review Answers
1 Some designers like to have all of the toolbars visible, but this is your
choice. In PADS Professional Layout, all of the commands needed during a
design session are available on the Standard Menu. Additional
commands are also on right mouse button context sensitive menus and
the Action Keys.
2 Using the menu and toolbar Customize menus, you can create menus
and toolbars that contain only the commands you wish to use. These
are saved into your local configuration.
3 Anything you change in Display Control that you save into a scheme is
saved. This includes Favorites, Hidden Rows, and also anything in the
Color by Net, Class, or Group sections.
4 Only one scheme per Editor Window view is allowed, but by using
Multiple PCB view windows, you can use different schemes in each
window, and move easily between the windows as you design.

PADS Professional Layout Environment 153

Lesson 13: Setting Up a New Board Design
Now that you have integrated your PCB database, you are ready to start your
PCB layout. First, setup the PCB database for any specific design
requirements. This includes the Board Outline, Mounting Holes, Fiducials,
and Keepouts. Settings for Database Units, Layer Stackup, and Vias will also
be needed to prepare your database for layout.

Setup Parameters ❷
General Settings
❶ Open PADS Professional Layout.
❷ Select File > Open, then browse to
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson2\PCB , then double‐ ❶
click CORPORATE.pcb. Do not Forward Annotate.
❸ Select Setup > Setup Parameters...
❹ Click the General tab and review the settings shown in the figure.
❹
Verify that they match.
The Units you will design in will be Thousandths or Mils.
Note: The General tab is also where you:
„„ Add or remove User Defined Layers
„„ Change Padstack Technology files
„„ Modify Test Point settings.

(Note: All of these settings in Setup Parameters were preset in your

Layout Template. This is an easy way to be consistent and more
efficient with your layouts.)

154 Setting Up a New Board Design

 ❶
Setup Parameters (continued)
Via Definition
❶ Click the Via Definitions tab. ❸
There is currently a Through Via setup in this design. In Via Definitions,
there can be only one Through via defined. If you need additional
Through via sizes in your design, they are added in Constraint Manager. You
will add one for Power and Ground signals prior to routing the layout.

Creating HDI Vias (Blind and Buried)

PADS Professional Layout makes it easy to set up HDI vias. When used during routing,
PADS Professional Layout will automatically recognize the HDI via layer structure
for you. ❷
❷ You need to change the outer layers of the design to Buildup layers. Click the
dropdown list for Laminate 1‐2 and change to Buildup 1‐2. Repeat the steps
for Laminate 5-6 and change it to Buildup 5‐6.
❸ Click the New icon to add a via. A new column appears in the dialog box.
❹ In the new via column, for the Padstack row, click the dropdown list and ❽
select the VC025D010P_UVIA_NSM via padstack. This via padstack is a
Micro Via, typically laser drilled during PCB fabrication. ❼ ❻
❺ In the new via column, click in the green box for the Buildup 1‐2 row. This
establishes the via padstack to be used when routing between layers 1 and 2. ❹
❽
❻ Using the previous steps 3 through 5, create a new Micro via that will be used
to route between Buildup layers 5 and 6.
❼ Again, use the previous steps 3 through 5, select the padstack VC060D030P
❺
from the dropdown list to create the Buried via padstack on Laminate layers
2 through 5 that will connect the 2 Micro vias, creating a 1‐4‐1 HDI via
structure.
❽ Click the Sort icon and review the Via Definitions you created. They should
match the figure shown. You may need to click the sort icon a second time
to match the screenshot.

Setting Up a New Board Design 155

 Setup Parameters (continued)
Via Clearances ❶
❶ Click the Via Clearances tab.
The Via Clearances tab is used to override same net Via to Via clearance
rules between different via stack definitions. Take a moment to review
the dialog box.
❷ Click OK to save the settings and close Setup Parameters.
The board will reload with the new settings.
Layer Stackup
You can define the conductive and dielectric materials that make up the
structure of the board. Layer stackup structures are modified in the Stackup
Editor.
You will need to adjust the thickness of the outer layers of the board since we
modified these as Buildup layers for the HDI vias.
❸ Select Setup > Stackup Editor.
❷

156 Setting Up a New Board Design

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout
❽
Setup Parameters
Layer Stackup (continued)

❹ Select the text entry field in the Thickness column for

Layer Name SIGNAL_1, enter the value 0.7.
❹
❺ Repeat step 5 for Layer Name SIGNAL_6. ❻
❻ Select the text entry field in the Thickness column for the Dielectric
layer between SIGNAL_1 and SIGNAL_2, and change the value to 2.
❼ Change the Thickness of the Dielectric between SIGNAL_5 and ❺ ❼
SIGNAL_6 to the value 2.
❽ Review the figure shown for the Layer Stackup settings you will use
in your board.
You can also change the Layer Name in the Stackup Editor, but the names
must be unique.
❾ Select the text entry field in the Layer Name column for SIGNAL_3
and enter the name change to PLANE_3.
❿ Repeat step 10 for Layer Name SIGNAL_4, and change it to PLANE_4.
⓫ Click OK, to close the
Stackup Editor and save
the changes.
⓬ The New Layer Names
are reflected in ❾
Display Control. ❿

⓬
⓫

Setting Up a New Board Design 157

 Drawing the Board Outline
Your PCB design must have a Board Outline which defines the physical border of ❶
the PCB board. PADS Professional Layout allows only one for standard boards.
If you define a new outline, it replaces the existing outline. Your board will also
need a Route Border to define the route and plane area of your board. ❷
❶ Click Fit Board to fit the Board Outline to the view.
❷ Select Draw > Board Outline.
❸ In the Properties dialog box, the Type is set to Board Outline. Type 5 in the
Line width text entry field.
❻
❹ Click in the Vertices 1 X text box, type 0, then press the Tab key.
❺ In the Vertices 1 Y text box, type 0, then press the Tab key. A line now
❸
extends from the 0,0 coordinates to your cursor and the Properties dialog
box is ready to accept more coordinate entries.
❹❺
❻ Use steps 4 and 5 and starting from the Vertices X text box for
coordinate #2, enter the rest of the coordinates from the table shown.
Your cursor will show the coordinates as they are entered.
❼ When you enter the last coordinate from the table, the polygon will
complete and a warning message will appear. Click OK and your Board
Outline is completed.
NOTE: Check the box in the warning dialog to not display the warning message
again.
❾ ❽
❽ Close the Properties dialog box.
❾ Save your design, but do not close it. ❼
Note: All shapes (including the Board Outline), can be created using
coordinates entered manually in the Properties dialog box, or by
digitizing the coordinates with the mouse.
You can also use the File > Import DXF or IDF commands to import any
shape coordinate files created on 3rd party mechanical EDA systems.

158 Setting Up a New Board Design

 ❶
Modifying Shapes (Board Outline)
You can easily edit all shapes, including the Board Outline. In order to edit ❸
shapes, you must first have the proper selection filters enabled. You can also
easily Add Corners, Chamfers and Radii to any shape.
❶ Click Display Control, or click the Display Control Auto Hide tab.
❷ Click the Edit tab, and in the Global View and Interactive Selection
section, expand the Board Objects and make sure they are checked
for Visibility and Selection.
❸ Zoom into the Board Outline in the area shown, and select the outline. ❷ ❹
❹ Select the White Corner Handle at 590,324 and right-click Properties,
change the Vertex Type to Round. The handle box should appear filled.
❺ Select the White Corner Handle at 590,0 and in Properties, change the
Vertex Type to Chamfer. ❻
❺
❻ Select any Red Center Handle and Drag to move the segment. Click
Undo to put the segment back.
❼ Select any Red Center Handle, press the CTRL key and Drag to add a
new Corner Handle. Click Undo to remove the new handle.
Note: You can Select and Drag any Corner Handle to move it.
❽ Using step 4 and 5, change the vertices in the edge connector area as
shown, then Save your board. ❺

Setting Up a New Board Design 159

 Drawing the Route Border using Copy Shape ❶
You could redraw the Route Border for this board, but you can also use Copy
to duplicate any shape. When a new Route Border is defined, it replaces the
existing one.
❸
❶ Select the Board Outline.
❷ Hold the CTRL key and double‐click on the Board Outline. It copies the
shape and highlights the newly-created copy.
❸ Right-click and open Properties. The new shape is shown as a Draw
Object on the Assembly Top layer.
❹ Change the Type to Route Border.
❷
❺ Make sure that all routed copper is pulled back from the edge of the
Board Outline by 20th, in the Grow/Shrink text entry field enter ‐20 to
Shrink the Route Border. Press <Enter>. Your Route Border is now
completed.
❻ Close the Properties dialog box.

160 Setting Up a New Board Design

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Plane Classes and Parameters

Before you assign planes, you need to define the settings for generated plane
copper. Plane Classes and Parameters define Thermal definitions, General ❶
clearances, and Hatching options for planes. You can also create Plane Classes ❷
when differences are required between plane structures.
❶ Select Planes > Plane Classes and Parameters…
❸
❷ Click New Plane Class, and enter POWER for the Plane Class.
❸ Click the Thermal Definition tab, and choose Buried from the Default
via connections > Tie legs dropdown list.
All vias in your board will be directly connected to the planes.
❹ Click the Clearances/Discard/Negative tab, and select All untied areas from
the Discard plane area options.
This setting allows the planes automation to remove any small or large plane
area that is not directly connected to a pad or via.
❺ Click the Hatch Options tab, and verify that the Width and Distance are 6(th),
and the Metal is 100%.
These settings create a Solid plane with no hatch pattern.
❻ Click OK to save the settings.

❺
❹

Setting Up a New Board Design 161

 Planes Setup ❶
Set up planes for your main power rail signals at the beginning of the design so
they can be used as a reference during placement and routing.
Plane generation is dynamic and WYSIWYG. You can have Positive, Negative and
Split-Mixed planes in your board. ❹ ❷ ❸
❶ Select Planes > Plane Assignments…
❷ Click the dropdown box for Layer Usage on Layers 3 and 4, and choose
Plane.
❸ Click the dropdown box for Plane Data State on Layers 3 and 4, and choose
Dynamic.
Note: There are other states for plane data: Draft and Static, but to use true
WYSIWYG, set your planes to Dynamic. ❹
❹ Click the Assign Nets icon for Layer 3, Add/remove nets from plane
layer.
❺ Find netname GND in the Excluded column and move it to the Included
column. Click OK. ❺
HINT: Select the first entry in the list and type "G" on the keyboard to quickly ❺
locate the GND net.
❺
❻ Using steps 4 and 5 for Layer 4, and add netname VDD.
❼ Click the option button for Layers 3 and 4, Use route border as plane
shape. Since you added a Route Border, for these planes you will not need
to add a separate shape.
❽ Setup and verify your Plane Assignments to the figure shown.
Note: The Plane Class is POWER. The Plane Data State is Inherited for
❼
these two planes. They will adopt the Dynamic state and POWER class.
❾ Click OK to save and close the Plane Assignments.

❾
❽

162 Setting Up a New Board Design

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout
❶
Defining Routeable Layers ❶
Once you have defined planes, you must change the Layer Settings to Enable
or Disable layers for routing. You must also set the routable layer pairing and ❷
direction bias.
❶ Click the Editor Control button or the Editor Control Auto Hide tab, and
then click the Route tab in Editor Control.
❷ Expand the Dialogs section and click Layer Settings... ❸
❸ Change the settings for Layers 3 and 4 (Note the ”P” signifying that this
is a Plane layer)by unchecking the box for Enable Layer. Since these are
planes, you do not want to be able to route traces on them.
❹
❹ The Bias column sets the direction for routed traces.
❺ In the Layer Pair column, click the dropdown box in the Layer 1 row, ❺
and choose Layer 6 to pair these layers.
❻ Repeat step 5 for the Layer 2 row, and choose Layer 5 to pair these
layers.
Note: Layer Pairing defines the complement layer for routing when an automatic
❻
layer change method is used.
❼ Click OK to save and close the Layer Settings.
❽ Click the Display Control tab, and then click the Edit tab.
In the Layer Display section verify:
❽
„„ the Active Layer and its pair are highlighted
„„ the Planes are disabled (shown dimmed)
„„ the Bias directions are shown

Setting Up a New Board Design 163

Adding Mechanical Features
When setting up a new board you may need to add mechanical features like
❷ ❸
Mounting Holes, Fiducials, and Keep Out Areas.
❹
Placing Origins
❶ Click Fit Board to see the entire board.
❷ Select Place > Origin…
❺ ❺
❸ Click the Type dropdown, and choose Board, and for the Location enter
X: 295.28 and Y: 190.16.
❹ Click Apply, then click Fit Board to see that the Board Origin has moved.
Note the warning dialog and dismiss it by clicking Yes.
❺ Repeat steps 3 and 4 again, but choose NC Drill as the origin to move, ❼ ⓬
and for the Location enter X: 0 and Y: 0. ❽

❻ Close Place Origin.

Placing Mounting Holes ❾
❿
❼ Select Place > Mounting Hole…
⓫
❽ Choose the Padstack MC100D380N dropdown box.
❾ Enter X: 0 and Y: 0 for the first Location.
❿ Choose Locked from the Lock Status dropdown to keep the mounting
hole from being moved after placement.
⓫ Click Apply to place the first mounting hole.
⓬ Repeat steps 9 through 11 using the coordinates in the chart to place
the last 3 mounting holes.
⓭ Close Place Mounting Hole.

164 Setting Up a New Board Design

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Placing Fiducials
❸
❶ Zoom in on the lower left mounting hole. ❷
❷ Select Place > Fiducial...
❸ Choose the Padstack Fiducial Round Cell 100.
❹ Click Apply, the Fiducial attaches to the cursor.
❺ Place the first Fiducial as shown.
❶
Note: The Fiducial is placed on the Top (Layer 1), which is the active
layer as shown in Display Control by the gray highlight. ❹
❻ Right-click and select Push to switch the active placement layer to the
Bottom of the board.
❼ Place the Bottom Fiducial in the same location as the previous one you
placed on the Top.
❽ Repeat steps 2 through 7 to place 2 more sets of fiducials as shown.
❾ Right-click and select Cancel Place to end placement mode.
❺
❿ Close the Place Fiducial dialog box.

Setting Up a New Board Design 165

 ❶
Placing Obstructs (Keepouts)
❶ Zoom in on the lower left mounting hole.
❷ Click Display Control > Objects and expand Route Obstructs.
❸ Check the Obstructs as shown to make them visible.
Note: The mounting holes and fiducials have routed trace and via
obstructs built into the library components.
❷
❹ Click Editor Control > Grids > Other Grids, then enter 25 for the
Drawing grid.
❸
❺ Select Fit Board, then zoom in on the right hand board edge.
❻ Select Draw > Placement Obstruct.
❼ In Properties, choose Top from the Layer dropdown.
❹
❽ Draw the Placement Obstruct approximately as shown to protect
placement of components too close to the board edge.
❾ Save and Close your design.

❻
❽

166 Setting Up a New Board Design

Review Questions
1 Why do I want to create a Board Outline and Route Border?
2 Does the Board Outline need to be a single continuous polygon?
3 Can I add cutouts to the board outline?
4 Can additional planes be added to the board at any time?
5 What types of Mounting Holes can I use?

Review Answers
1 The Board Outline acts as the design boundary. Components and
routing can be setup to maintain specific clearances from the Board
Outline and Route Border. The Board Outline is used as a reference
point for offsetting plane edges, and also represents the routing
(milling) path for producing the final board shape extents.
2 The Board outline is constructed as a continuous closed polygon to
maintain the integrity of the design object.
3 Yes, Contours can be used to add Cutouts and Slots to the interior of
the Board Outline to accommodate any mechanical requirements.
4 Planes can be setup at the beginning of the design, but you may add
additional planes during the placement, routing, or any phase of your
design.
5 Mounting Hole types are defined within your Personal Library. They can
be Plated or Non‐Plated. They can be any shape, including slots. They can
also include Routing and Placement Obstructs as needed.

Setting Up a New Board Design 167

Lesson 14: Placement
When designing a PCB, the actual percentage of route completion depends
on your placement strategy. Careful placement will minimize issues later in
the design cycle. ❹
❸
You can place parts in PADS Professional with multiple methods. The most
common method is with Component Explorer, but you can also place by
❺
schematic or the embedded schematic file created during forward
annotation. Component Explorer allows you to Group, Filter, Search, Sort and Mark
components for ease of use during the placement phase.
Open the Design File for Placement
❶ Open PADS Professional Layout and from the Start Page select Open,
then browse to and choose:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson3\PCB\CORPORATE.pcb
Click Yes to allow Forward Annotation. When the Project Integration dialog
appears, click the top Amber light to Forward Annotate the design.
❷ Select Display Control, then choose the Placement scheme from the drop-
❷
down list.
❸ Select Editor Control > Place and verify that Online 2D Placement DRC is
set to Warning.
❹ Select Editor Control > Grids.
❺ Expand the Part Grids section, then enter 25 for the Primary and 5 for ❻
the Secondary grid values.
Note: Components with more than 14 pins will use the Primary Grid.
❻ Click the Constraint Manager toolbar icon, then click the Clearances
within the Navigator. ❻
❼
❼ Click General Clearances, (or select Edit > Clearances > General Clearances
from the Constraint Manager toolbar) and change the Placement Outline to
Placement Outline value to 10.
Note: This will allow component packages bodies to be placed at a
minimum distance of 10 without DRC violations.
❼
❽ Click OK to save your changes, then close Constraint Manager.
❽

168 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Component Explorer ❽ ❾ ❸
Component Explorer is a spreadsheet interface used during component
placement. It allows you to place individual components or Planning Groups
of components. Search and Sort features will also allow you to find and mark
components easily. ❷

❸
The Component Explorer Spreadsheet and Toolbar
❶ Select Place > Component Explorer...
❷ Click the Ref Des header in the first column to sort the column. ❶
❽
❸ Click Toggle Filters to enable/disable these panes that allow you to use
a drop‐down filter or enter your own search criteria for the column.
❹ The Navigator lists all of the Components, Planning Groups, Spares,
Mechanical and Drawing Cells available for placement.
❺ The Components tab lists all electrical components. The Other tab
lists Mechanical and Drawing items.
❻ Review and Scroll through the available column information. Move the ❾
column locations by selecting and dragging them to a new location.
❼ Right-click on any column to choose which columns to display.
❽ Select any component and click Component Preview for a preview of
the Cell.
❾ Based on your selection criteria, Connection Options provides
netlist information in the Connections column about components.
Connection options drive the connection count in the connections ❹
column of the spreadsheet.
Explore the spreadsheet interface, and when you are ready, you can ❻
start placement. ❺

Placement 169
 Placing Planning Groups
Component Explorer helps you to quickly floor plan your layout. Placing
these Top level groups first, then extracting components from within the
❸
groups will allow you to place your design with more efficiency. ❷
❶ Click Fit Board.
❷ In the Component Explorer Navigator, click Hide List to collapse the
spreadsheet and then select the planning group CONNECTORS and drag
it onto the board.

❸ Inside of the bubble, right-click on the reference designator and choose

P1 from the list of available parts, then drag it to the location shown.
❹ Click on each new Ref Des within the bubble and drag it to the
placement locations shown. The bubble disappears when the
group has been completely placed and the Group Outline now
represents all of the placed items in that group.
NOTE: The nets won't always look the same as the flowguide.

170 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Placing Planning Groups (continued)

❺ Repeat step 2 to place the remaining Note: The Navigator shows the CONNECTORS group Placed, (notice the icon next to the name has changed) and
the other groups Unplaced. You may right-click the group name for a status report.
Planning Groups as shown.
Also, the LOGIC_REUSE group has Unplaced sub‐groups which will be placed later. The State column provides
Connectivity relationships are also information if the components are: Placed, Unplaced, or Dispersed outside of the board outline.
shown between the Planning Groups.

Placement 171
 Placing Components Individually or Sequentially
❶
❶ Enter U2 in the Filter pane of the Ref Des column and press enter to
search for the component (be sure the top level of the Navigator pane
is selected).
❷ Select U2 and drag it into the board. Zoom into the area if needed.
❸ Using the dropdown list in the Filter pane of the Ref Des column,
choose U*.

❷
❸

❹ Select U3 thru U5, and drag them into the board. Each
component will attach to the cursor and be placed sequentially in the
order selected in Component Explorer (you may need to sort the Ref
Des column to make this task easier).

172 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Create a New Planning Group

You can easily create New Planning Groups or add to existing groups within
Component Explorer and these group changes will be back annotated to your
schematic. ❶
❶ Right-click the Root Navigator group and select New.
❷ Rename Newgroup1 to DIFFRECV.
❸ Select and right-click the group DIFFRECV, and select Set to Active
Group.
❹ From the Ref Des column select the components U2 thru U5 that you ❷
just placed. Right-click and select Add to Active Group to complete the
group.

❺ You may also add components directly from the layout view right-click ❺
Selection>Add Selected to Active group).
Note: Making any existing group the Active group will allow you to add more
components to that group.

Placement 173
 Creating Placement Rooms
In the PADS Professional Designer lesson Adding Rules and Constraints Using ❶
Constraint Manager, you created a placement rule to constrain components
to a specific area of your board. This is called a Room. You will now add the
Room to your board. ❷
❶ Click the Fit Selected and Toggle Cross Probe icons in the Component
Explorer toolbar.
❷ Select the ANALOG_SW group in the Navigator and scroll the
spreadsheet to the last column. The Assigned Area (Room) is named
RM-ANALOG for this group.
Note: The Group has been selected and fitted in the editor window
❸ Zoom out slightly.
❹ Select Draw > Room, then in the Properties dialog box Layer dropdown
list choose Both. In the Name dropdown list, choose ANALOG and ❺
press F9 on your keyboard. The Properties dialog changes as shown.
❺ Draw the Room as shown (the F9 Action key activates draw rectangle ❹
mode).
❻ Close Properties.

❼
Add New Components to Room
❼ Select the Root level in Navigator and find Ref Des U101.
❽ Scroll right to the Assigned Area column, and choose RM‐ANALOG from ❽
the drop‐down list.
❾ Right-click on the ANALOG_SW group and Set to Active Group.
❿ Right-click on U101 and Add to Active Group.

❿
❾

174 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Placing Components from the Schematic

If you choose not to use Component Explorer for placement, you can
always cross probe and place from the PADS Professional Designer
schematic. ❷
❶ Click Fit Board.
❷ Click Setup > PADS Designer, then double‐click the control_
buffers schematic sheet. ❸
❸ Zoom into the area of U15 and U16.
Note: The symbols for U15 and U16 are highlighted Gray, denoting that
the components are not placed on the PCB.
❹ In the Layout, click Place by Schematic in the Component
Explorer toolbar.
Note: Make sure that Component Explorer is not in AutoHide
mode. Place by Schematic Cross Probe is intentionally disabled when ❹
Component Explorer is hidden by Auto Hide. This protects the user
against inadvertent operation in Place by Schematic Cross Probe mode
when it remains active after Component Explorer is hidden.
❺ ❻
❺ Select U15 in the schematic, then move the cursor into the board
area. U15 is attached to the cursor. Place the component as
shown.
❻ Repeat step 5 for U16.
Note: U15 and U16 are now highlighted in Color indicating that the
components are now placed in the PCB.
❼ Close PADS Professional Designer.

❺ ❻

Placement 175
 Placing Components from the Embedded Schematic View
The Embedded PADS Professional Designer schematic view can be used for
cross probing and placement, without having to open PADS Professional
Designer.
❶ Click Fit Board.
❷ Select Window > Add Schematic View, then select Window > Tile
Vertically to show both windows side by side. ❷
Note: You can also Undock the embedded view by right-clicking on the window
tab and choosing Floating.
❸ In Layout, ensure Place by Schematic in the
Component Explorer toolbar is still engaged.
Note: Make sure that Component Explorer is not in AutoHide mode. Place
by Schematic Cross Probe is intentionally disabled when Component Explorer ❸
is hidden by Auto Hide in order to protect against inadvertent operation in ❹ ❺
Place by Schematic Cross Probe mode when it remains active after Component
Explorer is hidden.
❹ Right-click anywhere inside the embedded view and
click Sheet > CORPORATE(control_buffers).
❺ Select U23 in the embedded view, then move the cursor into the
board area. U23 will be attached to the cursor. Place the component as
shown.
❻ Repeat step 5 for U17 and place it above U23 as shown.
❼ Close the Schematic view and maximize the editor window.
❽ Close Component Explorer.

❺
❻ ❻

176 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Placement Editing ❶
PADS Professional Layout has multiple methods in which to edit the
component placement in your board. Context sensitive selection and menus ❸
make it easy to Move, Rotate, Align, Fix and Lock, or Push components to
the bottom side of the board. The editing commands also can be used during
placement of components. ❹

Moving Components
❶ Zoom into the lower left of the board near L1 thru L4.
❷ In the Display Control > Edit tab > Global View and Interactive
Selection, expand Place. Disable the Selection of both the Top and
Bottom Facement Group Outlines. ❷
❸ Select L1, then drag and drop L1 outside the board edge.
❹ Select L2, then CTRL+Click to add L3 and L4. Right-click and click
Move. Move the 3 components outside the board edge, then click
to place them under L1.
Note: You just used two different methods to Move components. You
could have also used the Move Action Key or Place > Move Part from the
Main menu.
All of the PADS Professional Layout editing commands work with ❺
any of these methods. It’s your choice how you want to use them.

Rotating Components
❺ Frame select L1‐L4 by dragging a window over the components. ❻
❻ Right-click and choose Individual Movement > Rotate 90.
Note: You can easily Rotate individual or groups of components to any
angle needed in your board.

Placement 177
 Aligning Components
❶ Select L4 and move it to the location shown.
❷
❷ With L4 still selected, CTRL+ Drag Frame select L1‐L3. ❸
❸ Right-click and choose Align > Align Right.
Note: Components can be aligned to the Top, Bottom, Right or Left
according to the Editor Control > Place > Part Alignment setting. ❶

Pushing Components to the Opposite Side of the Board

❹
❹ Zoom out to the area of the board shown.
❺ Select the two groups of resistors near L1 through L4 and near the
connector P2.
❻ Right-click and choose Individual Movement > Push. The ❸
components are moved from the Top side to the Bottom side of
the board. Individual Movement will ‘Push’ the components to the ❺
back side and maintain their current rotation when more than one
component is selected.
❽ ❻

Fixing/Locking Components ❾

❼ Click Fit Board.

❽ Select component P2.
❾ Right-click and choose Fix/Lock > Fix to keep this component from
moving during other placement editing.
Note: The pads on P2 have a stipple pattern denoting the component is ❾
Fixed. This pattern can be changed in Display Control > Graphic > Fixed
and Locked Patterns.
❿ Practice using the placement editing methods you have learned,
and clean up the placement of the L1‐L4 area of your board as ❿
shown.

178 Placement
Copying and Moving Circuits
❷
In this design, there are four matching circuits, IO_Ports 1 through 4. The Placement
features in PADS Professional Layout easily allow you to place these circuits individually,
but there is an easier method. Copy and Move Circuits allows you to Place, and even ❸
Route, like type circuits. Then, you can replicate the other circuits on your host design
or even a different design containing the same circuit.

Placing Hierarchical Groups

Planning Groups in PADS Professional Layout can have multiple levels to separate
individual circuits within a main group.
❶ Click Fit Board, then click Display Control > Edit > Global View and ❹
Interactive Selection, and enable Visibility and Selection for Top and Bottom
Facement Group Outlines.
❷ Zoom into the area of the LOGIC_REUSE group bubble.
❸ Select IO_Port1 inside of the LOGIC_REUSE bubble, then drag the IO_Port1
bubble onto the board.
❹ Repeat step 3 for IO_Ports 2 through 4 and place as shown.

Auto Arrange a Group

❺ Zoom into IO_Port1, then select the Group Outline.

❻ Right-click Arrange > Arrange One Level, then place the group.
Note: All of the components within the Planning Group are dispersed
within the Group Outline.
❺
❼ Using the placement editing commands from this lesson, place the
group as shown.

Placement 179
Copying and Moving Circuits (continued)
❶
Deleting or Unplacing Placed Components
To make room for our Circuit Copy, you will delete a few placed components.
These components are not deleted from the database; they are just put back ❷
into Component Explorer as Unplaced.
❶ Select just the resistors placed near P2.
❷ Right-click Delete, the components are Unplaced.

Copying Circuits
❸
❸ Select the IO_Port1 group that you arranged and placed, then
right-click Copy, or press CTRL+C.
Note: The next available duplicate circuit, IO_Port2, is attached to the cursor
for placement.
❹ Place the IO_Port2 group, and watch the next circuit attach to the
cursor.
❺ Place the last two circuits as shown. You can easily Move the groups ❹
by selecting the Group Outline.
❻ Cancel out of the Paste Map dialog box.
That was easy!
Note: Copy Circuit can also be used between two board layouts by Copying
the Circuit, then opening another board with the duplicate or similar circuit;
then Pasting the circuit into the new board.

❺
❻

180 Placement
 ❶

Placement Optimization
When placing components, your task as a designer is to shorten and ❸
untangle routing paths. Placement of the components alone may not
accomplish this, so you may need to optimize the placement by swapping
components or gates and pins within the individual components. You may
also need to use an alternate package due to component availability, or even
just to create space. ❹
Note: Your library components will need to be created with swapping capability or
alternate cell definitions to use these features.
Swapping Components
❷
❶ Zoom to the area around U15 and U16 on the board.
❷ Select Place > Swap Parts.
❺ ❿ ❼
❸ Select U15 as the first component to swap, then select U16 as the ❻
component to swap it with.
❹ Click anywhere in the Editor window to Confirm the swap.
❺ Click Undo or press CTRL+Z to undo the swap.

Swapping Pins and Gates

❻ Select Route > Swap > Gates, then select pin 1 on U16. The Gates
available to swap with will highlight.
❽
❼ Select the highlighted Gate on pin 4, then click again to confirm ❾
the swap. Note the netlines have changed with the swap. Right-
click or press the Escape key on your keyboard to clear this mode.
❽ Select Route > Swap > Pins, and select pin 1 again on U16.
The Pins available to swap with will highlight.
❾ Select the highlighted Pin, then click again to confirm the swap.
❿ This swap caused the netlines to cross, so Undo the pin swap.

Placement 181
 Using Alternate Cells
❶ Select Place > Component Explorer. Toggle off Place by Schematic if
it is still engaged.
❷ Select U15.
❸ Within Component Explorer select the dropdown box in the Cell
❸
column and choose the Alternate Cell, SOIC16 from the dropdown ❷
list in the Cell column.
❹ Move the modified footprint to the location shown.
❺ Repeat steps 2 through 4 for components U16 and U17, and change
them to the Alternate Cells, SOIC14.

182 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

3D Component Planning and Placement

Earlier in this guide, you were shown the PADS Professional 3D layout
visualization capabilities. This 3D layout environment is also tightly
integrated with the Placement capability within PADS Professional Layout.
In order to get the placement of your design correct the first time, you need
to take into account mechanical constraints. This gives you an opportunity
to eliminate rework during systems integration where the costs are high.
PADS Professional 3D placement allows the designer to visualize and
validate the mechanical constraints early in the layout process reducing
costly iterations with a mechanical engineer. Symmetric implementation
for component planning and placement in both 2D and 3D editors, including ❹
dynamic graphics synchronization, minimize the impact on your existing PCB ❶ ❸
design processes. Dynamic DRC validation allows for correct-by-construction
placement that adheres to your constraints.
Let’s complete the placement of your design using 3D placement.

Establishing the 3D View

❶ Fit the board and select Window > Add 3D View.
❷ Tilt the board as shown by pressing the Shift + Middle Mouse
Button and Dragging upwards on the screen.
❸ On the Display Control Edit tab disable Group Outlines under the
Global View & Interactive Selection > Place section.
❹ On the Display Control 3D tab enable Planning Groups in the
Objects section.
❷

Placement 183
3D Component Planning and Placement (continued)
Placement Manipulation
In PADS Professional 3D layout, selection and manipulation of components is
the same for both the 2D and 3D editor windows. ❶
❶ Zoom into area of U15 and U16.
❷ Select and drag on one of the IC 3D component models to start
movement. While moving, use the same rotation and push commands
that are used in the 2D view.
❸ Frame Select U15 and U16 and caps, Drag move, Rotate, and Push using
the right mouse button menu.

184 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

3D Component Planning and Placement (continued)

Working in 3D Planning Groups
Working with Component Planning Groups is also the same in the 3D view.
❶ Zoom into the area of the Memory planning group bubble.
❷ Select the first Memory IC in the planning group by dragging on the
Reference Designator in the planning bubble. The IC will attach to the
cursor for placement. Place the IC as shown.
❸ Continue to place the components from the Memory planning group
❶
until they are all placed.
❹ To better optimize your placement, enable Netlines in the Objects sec-
tion of the Display Control 3D tab.
❺ Frame select the Memory ICs and right-click Align > Left to align the
components to the left edges.
NOTE: The same command is used as the 2D view.

❷
❺

Placement 185
3D Component Planning and Placement (continued)
Using Group Outlines
❶ Right-click on the planning bubble for the FPGA planning group and
select Arrange > All Levels and place the components.
❷ Enable Group Outlines in the Objects section of the Display Control
3D tab and enable Group Outline selection on the Display Control
Edit tab.
❸ Once components are placed they can be moved as a group by
selecting the Group Outline.

186 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Synchronized 2D and 3D Placement

Graphic synchronization can be used between the 2D and 3D editor windows
to allow placement from either window during placement optimization.
❶ In the Display Control 3D tab, enable Drive 2D View and Follow 2D
View in the Options section.
❷ Select the 2D view window tab 1:CORPORATE, then select Window >
Tile Vertically. ❶ ❷
❸ Zoom to the area of the planning group ANALOG_SW.
❹ Right-click the ANALOG_SW planning bubble and select Arrange > All
Levels from the menu. The components are attached to the cursor in
both views for placement. Place the components.
NOTE: As you manipulate parts in either view, the dynamic graphics
are reflected in both views.

Placement 187
3D Component Planning and Placement (continued)
3D Clearances and Dynamic DRC Validation ❷
PADS Professional 3D layout supports two levels of clearances, Minimum and
Optimal. They are defined in the Constraint Manager and used during 3D ❶
model manipulation. They can also be augmented to be instance specific.
❶ Zoom in and select the U12 FPGA.
❷ Select 3D > Clearances, and click the New button in the dialog.
❸ Add an instance specific clearance as shown for U12 and click OK to
close the dialog.
NOTE: The Any to Any clearance is set in Constraint Manager.
❹ Move the capacitor C14 near U12 to create DRC Optimal and Violated
situations.
NOTE: The components will dynamically highlight RED if the spacing is less
than the Minimum requirement, and in YELLOW when less than the Optimal
clearance set.
PADS Professional 3D planning and placement allows a designer to quickly
visualize and implement the engineer’s design intent to produce an optimal
component placement while taking into account electromechanical
constraints.
❸

Finishing Placement
Now it’s your turn! Finish placing the board using the methods in this lesson.
For hints on placement, the finished placement is shown on the next page.
If you do not want to finish the placement at this time, you can continue to
the next lesson – the board will be placed for you. ❹ ❹
Note: When you are finished, Save your design and close PADS Professional Layout.

188 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

The Finished Placement

Placement 189
 Review Questions
1 Can I place components directly in PADS Professional Layout?
2 How do I place components without creating spacing violations?
3 Can I rotate a component while moving it?
4 How would I utilize Group Planning and Placement?
5 When would I use Radial Placement?

Review Answers
1 Although Component Explorer is the most powerful method for grouping and selecting components
for placement, you can disperse components outside the board edge in PADS Professional Layout and
then use the placement editing methods to complete your placement. The place and disperse Keyins
are listed in the Help menu.
2 PADS Professional Layout supports checking of spacing violations during placement and routing
operations. In Editor Control, on the Place tab you can set Place Online DRC to Prevent mode. Also, you
can allow components to be shoved when a spacing violation occurs.
3 During placement and move operations you have many options that allow you to rotate and push
components. The options can be accomplished using the Toolbars, Menus, Action Keys, Right Mouse
Button Context Sensitive Menus, and modeless Keyin Commands.
4 Many designers partition a design into functional blocks before final placement, which can be done in
the schematic or in the PCB. Rather than placing each component individually directly onto the board,
you can create planning groups of the parts in a particular circuit. You then move them to a clear area in
the workspace for placement arrangement. Once you have the planning group optimally arranged, you
can move the entire planning group to the desired location on the board. As the layout matures, you can
also use the group selection capability to move clusters of components around the design as required.
You can even rotate, push, and freeze groups during move operations.
5 Radial placement is useful when you have components that you want to place on an arc or in a radial
array. An IC test fixture board is a common example of a design requiring radial placement. There are
also many modern products that have form‐fitting smooth curves in their design that would require you
to place parts in a radial pattern.

190 Placement
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Lesson 15: Creating Rules and Constraints with

Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout
In the PADS Professional Designer lessons you learned that PADS Professional
has a built-in constraint management system. This lesson will review some of
the features within Constraint Manager. You will add constraints using the same
graphical spreadsheet interface you used in PADS Professional Designer, and see
❷
how PADS Professional Layout is linked through the integrated database to your
schematic to keep the design constraints synchronized. You will discover that
constraints are easily maintained in PADS Professional Layout and you do not
have to learn a new tool or interface for constraint management.
To review the Constraint Manager interface and toolbars, refer to Lesson 7:
Adding Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager.

Entering Constraints ❸ ❸
❶ Open PADS Professional Layout.
❷ From the Start Page, select Open and browse to:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson4\PCB\
CORPORATE.pcb.
❸ Select Setup > Constraint Manager, or click the toolbar
button to open the Constraint Manager spreadsheet
interface.
The Spreadsheet interface is exactly the same as the one
you used with PADS Professional Designer. You do not
need to learn a new interface.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout 191
 Constraint Manager Cross Probing to the PCB
In PADS Professional Layout, cross probing is bi-directional to Constraint Manager
and works the same as in PADS Professional Designer. ❶
❸
❶ Look at your Constraint Manager Interface. On the Main toolbar, the Cross
Probe toggle icon should be enabled. If not, enable it. You can also turn on
Cross Probing using Setup > Cross Probing.
❷ In the Layout Editor window, click Display Control and choose the Routing
scheme.
❸ In the layout, select Setup > Cross Probe > Setup and enable the settings ❸
for Select, Highlight, and Fit view in PCB, then click OK.
❹ Select Edit > Find or the Find button and choose the Net Tab.
❺ Enter CLK_IN in the search text box, then click Find net.
❷
❻ Double-click the CLK_IN netline highlighted in the Find dialog box.
Notice the CLK_IN net is Selected, Highlighted, and Fit within the Editor
window, and the net is also highlighted in Constraint Manager.
Note: In Display Control > Graphic Tab > Graphic Options you may need
to expand the Selection & Highlights section and adjust Dim Mode
to better view highlighted objects.
❼ Close the Find dialog box.
❹
❻

❻
❺ ❻

192 Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout
Constraint Manager Cross Probing to the PCB (continued)
❶ In Constraint Manager, on the Nets tab, scroll down to the Constraint ❶
Class/Net BSYNC and click on the Box to the left of the Constraint Class.
Notice that both of the nets in the Constraint Class BSYNC are selected ❶
and viewed in the PCB Editor window.
❷ Select Filters > Level > Pin to filter down to the pins level of a net.
❸ Expand the BSYNC+ net and select the box next to the P1-1 pin within
the net.
Notice that the P1-1 pin is now selected and highlighted in the PCB
Editor window.
❹ In Display Control, choose the Placement scheme.
❺ In Constraint Manager, select the Parts tab, then expand the 101-RES
part type.
❻ Select the box next to R24. R24 is selected and highlighted in the Editor ❷
window.
Constraint Manager can Cross Probe to Constraint Classes, Nets, Pins, and Parts ❸
in PADS Professional Layout as well as in PADS Professional Designer.
All at the same time! ❸

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout 193
Updating Constraints and Clearances ❶
Although constraints were entered into the schematic in PADS
Professional Designer and passed to PADS Professional Layout during
Forward Annotation, often a PCB designer needs to modify those
constraints. Constraint Manager allows you to easily update constraints
in the PCB layout and keep the schematic design synchronized. ❷

Updating Powers and Grounds

❶ In Constraint Manager, select the Nets tab.
❷ From the Group Box dropdown list, select Power Nets.
❸ Scroll and find the Physical Net PWR and check the Power Net box and ❸ ❻
enter 0 for the Supply Voltage (V).
❹ Repeat Step 3 for Physical Net V2.7. and enter Supply Voltage (V) value
of 2.7.
❺ Note the Power Net icon on the net names in the Constraint Class/Net
column.
❻ Update the Net Class dropdown list for Net Name PWR to
PWR_020_MIL.
❼ Sort by the Net Class column to easily view the net names in the
PWR_020_MIL Net Class.

194 Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout
❶ ❸
Updating Constraint Manager Schemes
Schemes in Constraint Manager define categories of physical design rules
that will be used during PCB Layout. The Master and Minimum schemes are
the default schemes.
In this lesson we will update the Master scheme and create a new scheme
that will be used for a Rule Area on the PCB.
❹
❶ In the Navigator window, expand the Master scheme and expand
Trace & Via Properties tab.
❷ Select the Group Box dropdown list and choose All. ❻
❸ Click on the Master Scheme to see the trace and via properties
❷
currently set for the design.
❹ Follow the illustration at the right to update the Trace Widths for
Minimum, Typical, and Expansion, and the Differential Spacing for all
of the Net Classes in the Master scheme.
❺ Click OK when the dialog box appears, or check the box if you do not ❼
want to be warned about further changes being made.
❻ Expand the BSYNC Net Class to see that your updates were
propagated to all layers in the Net Class.

Creating a New Scheme

❼ In the Navigator, right-click Schemes and choose New
Scheme.
❽ Right-click on the new scheme and Rename it to ❽ ❺
FPGA.
❾ Expand the FPGA scheme and change the values for
the Default Net Class to match the picture.
❿ Click the AMBER indicator to update the Pending CES
❾
Changes.
You will now create a Rule Area on your PCB to use
this scheme when routing.
❿

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout 195
 Creating a PCB Rule Area ❶
Rule Areas are used on PCB Layouts to create an area where specific routing
constraints may need to be overridden due to density, circuit impedance, or
other engineering requirements.
The New Scheme that you just created contains reduced trace widths that
will be used during routing of a smaller pitch FPGA device.
❶ In the Editor Window, Zoom to U12, the FPGA device on the right side of
the board.
❷ In Display Control > Objects > Route Areas, verify that Route Border
and Rule Areas are enabled.
❸ Select Draw > Rule Area. ❷
❹ In the Properties dialog box, select the dropdown list for Layer and choose
(All).
❹
❺ In the Properties dialog box, select the dropdown list for Name and choose
the FPGA scheme that you just created in Constraint Manager. ❺
❻ Select View > Toolbars > Draw Create and choose Add Rectangle.
❼ Select a coordinate at the upper left of the FPGA, then drag the
rectangle and select a second coordinate at the lower right of the FPGA. ❸
❽ Close Properties.
This new Rule area reduces all traces that pass through it to 4(th) for All
layers. You can also use Rule Areas to change the required Via within the
area if needed.
Note: You created this Rule Area in the PCB database. Rule Areas can ❼ ❻
also be created inside your Cells using the Cell Editor in PADS Library Tools.

196 Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Updating Clearances
❶ In the Constraint Manager Navigator, expand Clearances under
the Master scheme.
❸
❷ Select the HS_3W Clearance rule.
❸ In the spreadsheet, find the Trace To Pad column, then in the
HS_3W row update the parent entry to 8 and press Enter. ❶
❹ Repeat step 3 and update the columns: Trace To Via, ❷
Trace To Plane, and Trace To SMD Pad to 8.
Note: You may also paint the number across any spreadsheet entry by
selecting the entry box and dragging the small + indicator across the
spreadsheet.

Assigning Clearances ❹
❺ Click the Class to Class Clearance Rules icon in the Clearances
toolbar.
❻ The Class to Class Clearances dialog box opens and is set to the
Master Scheme.
❼ Under the (ALL) column, choose the dropdown list for the CLOCK2
Net Class and choose HS_3W. This assigns the HS_3W rule to all ❹
nets within the Net Class CLOCKS2, and applies it against ALL
other nets within the design.
❽ Click OK. Your Clock signal spacing rule has been completed and ❻
❺
saved to the database.
Note: If you do not assign a Class to Class Clearance rule to a Net Class, then the
Default rules will be used.
❼

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout 197
 Creating Net Classes
❶ In the Navigator, right-click on Net Classes and select New Net Class.
❶
❷ Name the New Net Class FADDR and click on the FADDR Net Class.
❸ Right-click on FADDR, and select Assign Nets…. ❷
❹ In the Assign Physical Nets to Net Class dialog box, make sure the
Source Net Class is Default and the Target Net Class is FADDR.
❺ In the Search Bar, search for FADDR* nets, then click on the Search icon. ❸
❻ Click “>” to move the FADDR* nets to the FADDR Net Class, then click OK. ❹
❼ Create a New Net Class called FDATA.
❽ Repeat steps 1 to 6 and add the FDATA* nets to the FDATA Net Class.

Deleting Net Classes

When you create constraints you may find that you no longer need some Net
Classes. You can easily delete them. ❻
Warning: Any constraint information you entered into a Net Class will be
deleted also.
❾ Right-click on the Net Class ANALOG and choose Delete. ❺
❿ Verify that you want to delete the Net Class by clicking Yes.

198 Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Automatically Creating Differential Pairs

In the Constraint Manager lesson for PADS Professional Designer, you created
a differential pair manually. For this lesson, you will learn how to automatically
assign multiple nets as differential pairs to help speed up constraint entry.
❶ In Constraint Manager, select Edit > Differential Pairs > Auto Assign
Differential Pairs…
❷ Select Assign by Net Name, then choose *_P from the Net Name ❶
dropdown list.
❸ Choose *_N from the Pair net name dropdown list.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout 199
 Automatically Creating Differential Pairs (continued)
❹ Click Assign Matches. The Diff Pairs matching the search criteria appear in ❹
the Proposed differential pairs list.
❺ Click Apply to create the differential pairs.
❻ Close the Auto Assign Differential Pairs dialog box.
❼ On the Nets tab, sort the net column so the new Diff Pairs appear at the
top of the listing. Right-click and select Sort > Ascending.
❽ Select the box for the first Diff Pair, then press and hold the Shift key to
select the last of the four Diff Pairs. ❺
❾ Now press the Ctrl key and click the Net Class dropdown list, then choose
DP_ 100_OHM to add all of the diff pairs to the Net Class.

❽
❾

200 Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Customizing Constraint Groups

There are several preset Constraint Groups within Constraint Manager, but you
have the ability to customize them or create your own based on the needs of
your design.
❶ Click the Group Box dropdown list and select Edit Constraint Groups. ❶
❷ Click the Select constraint group dropdown list and select the Delays and
Lengths group. ❷
❸ In the All constraints: section scroll down and select Stub Length Actual
and Stub Length Max.
❹ Click the Move selected right button to move these constraints to the
Constraints assigned to group section.
❺ Click Apply to save the changes, and the Stub Lengths columns will now be
available from within the Lengths group.
❸
❻ Click Close to exit Edit Constraint Groups.

❺ ❻

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout 201
 Creating a Constraint Class
❶ In the Navigator, right-click on Constraint Classes and select New ❶
Constraint Class.
❷ Name the New Constraint Class MATCHTRACK. ❷
❸ Right-click on MATCHTRACK and choose Assign Nets…
❹ In the Assign Nets to Constraint Class dialog box, make sure the Source ❸
Constraint Class is All and the Target Constraint Class is MATCHTRACK.
❺ In the Search Bar, search for ASYNC* nets, then click on the Search icon.
❻ Click “>” to move the ASYNC* nets to the MATCHTRACK Constraint Class, ❹
then click OK.

202 Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Creating a Constraint Class (continued)

❼ Select the Nets tab, then select the Group Box dropdown list and
select Delays and Lengths to set the columns for length constraints.
❽ While on the Nets tab, select the MATCHTRACK Constraint Class in
the navigator to isolate it in the spreadsheet, then scroll to the
Length or TOF Delay Columns. ❼
❾ In the Length or TOF Delay > Match column for nets ASYNC+ and
ASYNC-, enter the text ASYNC.
❿ In the Length or TOF Delay > Tolerance column 'Tol(th)|(ns)' for
MATCHTRACK, ASYNC+ and ASYNC-, enter a value of 200. You will
NOT need to re-add the 200th tolerance as it’s assumed for the ❽
match group ‘ASYNC’. ❿
⓫ Repeat steps 8 and 9 to add Length Matching Constraints to the
Diff Pairs you auto-assigned. (Click ‘Constraint Classes’ in the
navigator and sort to see the other nets). ❾
Note: Follow the illustration to set the correct Min Length and Max
Length.
⓫
⓬ Update the Stub Length for the Diff Pairs to a Max of 300.
Note: Normally you would need to change the Group box back to ALL to
view these columns, but since you added these columns through Edit
Constraint Groups, they appear in the Length group.
⓭ Close Constraint Manager and save your layout in PADS Professional
Layout to save the updates to the integrated database.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout 203
 Ordering Nets with Netline Manipulation
In the Constraint Manager lesson for PADS Professional Designer, you created
Ordered Nets within Constraint Manager. You can also set up Net Ordering
graphically in PADS Professional Layout using Netline Manipulation. Any netline
❷
topologies that you graphically order are automatically updated in Constraint
Manager.
Using Color by Nets or Net Class ❸
In PADS Professional Layout, you can easily change the color of individual
Netlines, Net Classes, and Constraint Classes to make them more visible.
❹
❶ Click Fit Board, and in Display Control, select the Routing scheme.
❷ So you can identify the nets to be ordered, select Display Control > ❹
Graphic > Color By Net or Class and enable Constraint Classes.
❸ Click Add… and enable the MATCHTRACK Constraint Class, then click OK.
❹ Click on the MATCHTRACK color selector and change it to a color that is ❸
easy for you to see, then click Close.
❺ The MATCHTRACK Constraint Class is highlighted. These are the two nets
you will re-order.

204 Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout
 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Ordering Nets with Netline Manipulation (continued) ❸

Using Net Filter to Control Netline Visibility and Selection ❶ ❸
Even though you have highlighted your nets to make them easier to see, ❺
you may want to turn off the visibility of the other netlines that you are not
currently editing. Do this using Net Filter.
❶ Select Net Explorer and enable Net Filter by clicking the Filtering for
Net Selection icon. We will create an include filter first.
❷ Expand Constraint Class from the Navigator,
and click MATCHTRACK so that those nets display in the list.
❸ Click Filter/Unfilter which adds a Group Filter to these individual nets.
❹ In Net Explorer, save the Selection Scheme as Matchtrack and choose
Save local, then click OK. ❷
❺
❺ Disable Net Filter and click Unfilter all Groups to remove all
filtering. Click Filter/Unfilter all Nets to apply a filter to all nets in
the design then select the MATCHTRACK Constraint Class and click ❹
each net followed by clicking the Filter/Unfilter button to remove
filtering and move the nets to the Excluded list. Save this scheme as
MATCHTRACK_EXCLUDED.
❻ Use Display Control to change your display to see your filtered nets.
Enable and expand the Netlines section and enable the checkbox op-
tion for Netlines from Filtered Nets.
❼ Toggle Net Filter to see the excluded filter display. View your changes ❼
in the Editor window. ❻
❽ Change to the MATCHTRACK scheme and toggle Netline Filter to view
this include filter.
Note: You can save as many Net Filtering schemes as you need in your design
and recall them later for easy net handling. Schemes are saved to the PCB/
Config directory locally but may be saved at other locations.
❾ Close Net Explorer but before you do, be sure that the MATCHTRACK
scheme is active and net filter is enabled as shown in Step 1.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout 205
 Ordering Nets with Netline Manipulation (continued)
Netline Manipulation ❶
The nets ASYNC+ and ASYNC- are currently ordered from components P2 to P1
to U11. You will adjust the ordering and make it: P2 to U11 to P1. ❷ ❸
❶ Select Display Control > Objects > Place and enable Top Facement.
❷ Zoom into the area near P1 and U11.
❸ Select Route > Netline Manipulation. The highlighting changes while
you are in this command.
❹
❹ Select the ASYNC+ netline between P2 and P1.
❺ Drag the netline to the pin location on U11.
NOTE: Topology must be set to CUSTOM. Use Action Key 5 at the bottom of
the workspace to Toggle Topology.
❻ Repeat steps 4 and 5 for net ASYNC-.
❼ Right-click and choose Save Changes and Exit.
❽ Open Constraint Manager, and the ASYNC+ and ASYNC- nets are
ordered.
❾ Close Constraint Manager.
❼
❿ Save your PCB layout and close PADS Professional Layout. ❻

206 Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout
Review Questions
1 Why would I want to change the rules and constraints entered by the engineer in the schematic?
2 If the schematic and PCB are both open, will Constraint Manager Cross Probe to both at the same
time?
3 When would I want to use a Net Class?
4 Do Diff Pair nets need to be named to a specific naming convention?

Review Answers
1 The rules and constraints you entered during the schematic design are very helpful to a PCB layout
engineer, but often an engineer can over-constrain a design, making the layout impossible to
complete. Constraint Manager allows the PCB layout engineer to adjust the constraints to make the
design easier to manufacture but still maintain the intent of the engineer.
2 Constraint Manager cross probes to PADS Professional Designer and PADS Professional Layout
simultaneously if you have the cross probe settings enabled in both applications. Cross Probing is
linked through different dialog boxes and features throughout PADS Professional.
3 Use Net Classes to group nets that require the same physical constraints in the board. By grouping them
in a Net Class, if the physical constraints require changing, you can change them for all of the nets within
the class.
4 There are no standard naming conventions for Differential Pairs, but following a few good practices
can make it much easier to assign constraints to them. If you use the suffixes “_P” and “_N” or “_HI”
and “_LOW”, or something similar, you can take advantage of the Auto Assign Diff Pairs command. This
command allows you to assign multiple differential pairs at one time.

Creating Rules and Constraints with Constraint Manager in the PCB Layout 207
Lesson 16: Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout
In the PADS Professional Designer lesson Variant Manager, you learned how multiple
variants can exist in a single design. You can generate separate schematics and BOMs
for each variant of your design, and can integrate them with PADS Professional Layout
to create the necessary assembly drawings based on each variant. Please review the
PADS Professional Designer Variant Manager lesson, if needed.
In PADS Professional Layout, you can also use Variant Manager to create a unique
BOM for assembly variants. This information is integrated with PADS Professional
Designer and you can back annotate it to the schematic.

❷
Launching Variant Manager
❶ Start PADS Professional Layout, and from the Start Page select Open and
browse to and open
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson5\PCB\CORPORATE.pcb.
❷ Launch Variant Manager by selecting Output > Variants. Variant Manager
opens with the same familiar interface, and the two variants you created in
PADS Professional Designer.

208 Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Reviewing the Variant Manager Settings

❶
The General Tab
❶ In Variant Manager, click Settings.
❷ Use the General tab to name unplaced parts and to set report options.
Any parts that you choose not to install in the PCB Assembly process are ❷
labeled with the Unplaced keyword. You can also use keywords such as;
DNI, DoNotInstall, or DEPOP.
Note: This tab contains the information you entered in PADS Professional Designer.
You do not need to change it for this lesson.

The PCB Interaction Tab

❸ The PCB Interaction tab lets you determine which items you want to
display for the Assembly and Silkscreen layers when creating PCB
Variant views. Disable Reference Designators and Outlines for these
layers so they will be removed from your variant views.
❹ You can also remove the Soldermask and/or Solderpaste padstacks
from Unplaced parts. (This is not typical for most designs).
❺ Enable Display Nested Mechanical Cells so they appear in the grid
when you have them in your designs.
❸

Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout 209

 The Library Query Setup Tab
The settings for the Library Query Setup tab were setup during the schematic
design and were transferred to PADS Professional Layout. Below is a review of
the tab settings.
❶ The Library Query Setup tab allows you to define and edit how the
project interacts with the PADS Databook database. The Data source con-
figuration file indicates the PADS Databook file you access when creating
your design variant. ❷
❷ The Define Libraries button allows you to edit your PADS Databook
configuration. The data source configuration is required when you ❶
make Part Number replacements (overrides) in your variants. For
this lesson, the setup is done for you but you can refer to the ❸
Appendix: Configuring Variant Manager if you are using your own
database.
❸ The Query settings section controls the database search when using the ❹
Replace function. Allow sufficient results to be returned from each library
by setting the Results/library value appropriately. If you want to use ❺
replacement parts from more than one library, you must set the Results
total number to be larger than the number of results returned from each
individual library. Verify that the Part number attribute dropdown list is
set to Part Number.
❹ The Output format controls your database query results. The Part number
feedback line allows you to display more information about a particular ❻
part. This will be shown later.
❺ The Query results format controls the results shown for the Replace
function. This determines the columns displayed and the filter options to
help you choose a replacement part.
Note: Because you have associated the Part number attribute to Part Number, we
also want to be sure that it is included in the Query results format.
❻ Click Cancel to close the Settings dialog box.

210 Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout
❶
Adding a Variant
❶ Select Variant Definition.
❷ From the Variant Definition dialog box, click Create New Variant to add a
third variant to this database.
❸ Name the variant Variant3. ❷

❹ Enter the Number and Description as shown.

For Variant3: Number = VAR3, Description = New Var3
❺ The Variant Groups tab is helpful for sorting or filtering for specific variants
when there are many in a single project.
Note: Any groups setup on the Variant Groups tab will be available from the
dropdown list in the main window. ❺
❻ Click OK to save the new variant and exit.
❼ In the Variant Manager window you can see the added variant.
❽ Disable Flat Design View so you can see the Blocks containing variant ❸ ❹
modifications that were done in the schematic.

❽
❼

Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout 211

 Defining Variants
Now that you have added a new variant, make some modifications to the ❶ ❷
current variant parameters and define some new ones.
❶ Enable the Transmit and Receive buttons to allow cross probing.
❷ In Display Control, select the Loc:Placement scheme.
❸ Click the cell under the Variant1 column, next to C9. Variant Manager
cross probes from the PCB layout to the variant and vice-versa.
❸
❹ In the Analog Switch block Variant3 column, select R5 and drag select to
R7.
❺ Right-click Unplaced or click Unplace Selected Cells in the Variant
Manager toolbar.
❻ Repeat steps 4 and 5 for the Variant1 column.

212 Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Change Multiple Parts Simultaneously

❶ To change several parts at the same time, select R7 in the Variant1 column.
❷ CTRL + Click and select R7 in the Variant3 column.
❸ Right-click on one of the selected reference designators and click Reset,
or click Reset on the toolbar. The selected parts are reset and the variant
cells are cleared.
❶ ❷
Replacing (Substituting) Parts
❹ Select the cell for C5 in IO_Port2 in Variant3, then right-click and choose
Replace. You can also select Replace Part from the toolbar. ❸
❺ A new window appears that lists the possible replacement parts.
Note: The columns in the list are based on the settings you created. All of the
replacement parts have the same PKG_TYPE property as the original part. Also,
the VM Match is set to PKG_TYPE in the .dbc configuration as shown in the
Appendix at the end of this Evaluation Guide.
❹

Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout 213

 ❶
Sorting Parts ❷

❶ Select the Column Header for the Value column.

❷ From the dropdown Filter list, select Ascending. Do the same for the
Library column.
❸
❸ Replace C5 with the smallest value capacitor by double-clicking the part
12308-CAP.

Flatten the Design View

❹ Enable the Flat Design View checkbox to flatten the Variant Manager grid
to a Ref Des list.
❺ In the layout Editor window, find and select R29 near U11 in the
middle of the layout. The part is also selected in Variant Manager.
Hint: You may need to choose the Placement display scheme to select the ❹
component.

214 Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Replacing Parts Across Library Partitions

❶ Replace the R29 resistor with a capacitor in Variant3. With R29 selected,
right-click over the cell in the Variant3 column and click Replace.
❷ Sort the Library column by Capacitor and double-click the first capacitor ❶
in the list.
Note: Since the PKG_TYPE property is the same for both the resistor and capacitor,
you are able to replace these parts.

Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout 215

 Mutually Exclusive Variants
In PADS Professional layout, you can overlap two components provided they do
not exist in the same variant. These components can share a pin location if they
are tied to the same net, use the same padstack, and the pin is placed at the ❸
same X-Y coordinate.
❶ Select R2 from the upper right corner of the layout in the Analog Switch ❷
group.
❷ Unplace R2 in Variant3.
❸ Select C9 and Unplace it in Variants 1 and 2.
❹ Move C9 so that it is placed directly on top of R2.
Note: You do not get a placement DRC for the two components because C9 only
exists in Variant3, and R2 does not.
Once you have created the variant view, you will see how PADS Professional
places the correct markings on your PCB layout.

216 Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Generating PCB Variant Outputs

Your design now has three variants and you will need to Generate PCB Variant
Views for Assembly Drawings, create BOMs, and Back Annotate the new variant ❶
information to your schematic.
Back Annotating the Variant Manager Changes
❶ In PADS Professional Layout, select ECO > Back Annotate to update your
schematic with your Variant Manager changes.

Unplaced Cell Graphics in Variants

You can define the graphics that appear in your variant views for the Silkscreen
and Assembly Layers. The graphics are defined in the Cell using the Cell Editor in
PADS Library Tools. We have already created some graphics for you in this design.
❷ Your design has No Graphics displayed for Unplaced components on the
Silkscreen layers.
❸ Your design has an “X” and Outline graphics displayed for the Assembly
layers.

Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout 217

 Generating PCB Variant Views
❶
❶ In Variant Manager, select the Variant3 column and then click Generate
PCB Variant View.
❷ In Display Control, select the scheme SILK_TOP.
❸ Notice that the Unplaced components R5 and R6 have no silkscreen, and
the mutually placed C9 has silkscreen, but R2 does not.
❹ In Display Control, select the scheme ASSEMBLY_TOP to see the variant
view for the assembly layer.
Note: After generating a variant view, you can use the view to create printed
documents or fabrication outputs.
❺ In Variant Manager, select Reset PCB Variant View to Master. ❷
Note: To create views for the other variants in the design, select the Variant
column and re-generate the variant view.

❺
❹

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 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Generating a Variant BOM Report

❶ To generate Variant PCB BOMs, right-click in the Variant window and
choose Report > BOM Reports.
❷ Choose HTML Document for the output file type.
❸ Select all three variants and define the Output location:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson5 and name it VariantPCB.
❹ Click OK to create the BOM reports.
❺ You may review the HTML documents in any browser.
❻ Close Variant Manager and Save your PCB layout.
❶

❷
❸

Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout 219

 Review Questions
1 When creating library component land patterns, do I need to add special
graphics in order for variants to display correctly?
2 Does PADS Professional Designer see the changes made in the Variant
Manager in PADS Professional Layout?
3 Can I generate Gerber outputs from my PCB variants?

Review Answers
1 No, it is not a requirement. Variant Manager will automatically remove
silkscreen and assembly graphics from your components when variant views
are generated. If you do add special graphics in your land patterns, Variant
Manager will use them in your variant views.
2 PADS Professional Designer will see any changes or additions made while
you are working in the layout tools when you run a Back Annotation.
3 Once you have generated a PCB variant view, you can create PDF prints or
Gerber output files from that view.

220 Variant Manager in PADS Professional Layout

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Lesson 17: AutoActive Interactive Routing

In this lesson you will learn about the award winning AutoActive® Routing
Technology in PADS Professional Layout. The routing capabilities allow you to
quickly and easily Fanout, Plow (Route), and Multiplow (Multi Trace Route)
nets. You can also easily route differential Pairs and tune high speed nets.
Sketch Router helps you to Auto-Actively route bundled netlines. While you
❷
route your design, Online DRC (Design Rule Checking) funtionality keeps you
from introducing errors. You can customize your routing style to help you
route your designs more efficiently.
❷
Open the Design File for Routing
❶ Open PADS Professional Layout.
❷ From the Start Page select Open and browse to and choose:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson5\PCB\CORPORATE.pcb.
Click Yes to allow Forward Annotation. When the Project Integration dialog
appears, click the top Amber light to Forward Annotate the design.

Routing with Online DRC

In PADS Professional Layout the default for Interactive Place and Route DRC is
ON. While routing, Online DRC maintains all of the spacing constraints and does not
allow for copper to copper errors within your design. The preferred routing method ❹ ❸
is to leave DRC on, but you can turn it off when needed.
INTERACTIVE DRC OFF
❸ Select Editor Control > Common Settings, then disable Interactive Place/
Route DRC.
❹ Click Yes to turn off Online DRC checking. The DRC Off Warning dialog box
remains open until you turn DRC back On.
❺ Close the DRC Off Warning dialog box, then click No for the Batch DRC
message. You will run Batch DRC in an upcoming lesson.

Note: If you do any Placement or Route edits with Interactive DRC Off, you should ❺
always run Batch DRC on your design prior to releasing it to manufacturing.

AutoActive Interactive Routing 221

 ❶

Netline Display with Net Explorer

Routing a PCB requires the selection of Netlines. Boards that have thousands
of nets can present a problem. Netlines can completely fill a viewing area,
making it impossible to select the one you want to route. The best way to
avoid this problem is to organize netlines into groups and then display them Filtering for Filter/ Toggle
as you route them. Fit Net Selection Unmark Filter/ Unfilter Filter
Net Explorer is a spreadsheet interface that provides many methods of Selected On/Off All Unfilter All Columns Help
organizing and displaying nets. You can create User Planning Groups of
netlines, then Filter and Mark them so that you only display those groups.
Net Classes, Constraint Classes, Diff Pairs, Tuned/Matched Nets, and Ordered
Nets also appear as groups within Net Explorer. Once you have your groups
created, you can save Net Explorer schemes similar to Net Filter in the
previous lesson.
Toggle Mark/ Mark/Unmark Unfilter Allow/Disallow Enable
The Net Explorer Spreadsheet and Toolbar Cross Probe Unmark All All Loops on Nets Cross Highlight
The Net Explorer interface is similar to Component Explorer that you used for ❷
placement, and contains many of the same features.
❶ Select Route > Net Explorer… ❸
❷ Click the Net column to sort the column.
❸ Expand CORPORATE, then expand Planning Groups. This is where any
User Groups you create appear.
❹ Click Toggle Filter. These panes allow you use the dropdown filter or enter
your own search criteria for the column.
❺ The Navigator lists all of the User Planning Groups, and pre-defined groups
created from the constraints you entered in Constraint Manager.
❻ Review and Scroll through the available column information.
❼ Click Fit Selected and Toggle Cross Probe on the Net Explorer ❻
toolbar so that Net Explorer cross probes to the Editor window.
Explore the spreadsheet interface, and when you are ready, you can move on
to the next section to prepare for routing.

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 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Creating Net Planning User Groups

❶
You can create user Planning Groups by selecting nets within the spreadsheet, or
by selecting Netlines within the Editor window.
❶ Select CORPORATE, and using the Filter Pane dropdown in the Net
column choose DATA*.
❷ Select the DATA_BUS* nets, right-click and click Create User Group.
❸ Name the new User Group MemData.
❹ Repeat Steps 1 through 3 to select the ADDR* nets and Create the User
Group MemAddr.

AutoActive Interactive Routing 223

 Creating Net Planning User Groups (continued)
❺ Fit the board, then select the MemAddr User Group. The Memory
Address nets are selected and highlighted in the Editor window.
❺
❻ If you ever need to remove a User Group, select the group then
right-click Dissolve. Do not remove any User Groups at this time. ❼
❼ Expand Net Class.
❽ Select the Net Class FDATA that you created in Constraint Manager.
❽
❾ The nets in the FDATA Net Class are selected and highlighted.

❻ ❾

224 AutoActive Interactive Routing

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Marking Nets and Creating Schemes

Similar to using the Net Filter, you can use Net Explorer to mark nets or
groups of nets so that they are the only nets displayed in the Editor window.
Also, just like Net Filter, you can save these settings as Schemes for future ❹
routing.
Marking nets in the Net Explorer works in conjunction with the Netlines
Settings in Display Control. ❶
❶ Select Display Control > Objects > Netlines and expand the Netlines for
Marked Comps and Nets section.
❷ Enable From Marked Nets.
❸ Right-click From Marked Nets and choose Add to Favorites.
❹ From Marked Nets now appears on the Display Control > Edit tab in ❷ ❺
the Favorite section making access easy.
❺ Select the MemData User Group, then click Mark/Unmark. ❸
❻ The MemData User Group nets are now the only nets displayed in ❻
the Editor window.
❼ Click Mark/Unmark again, and all of the nets in the design are displayed.
❽ Select the MemAddr User Group, then click Mark/Unmark.
❾ Save a Scheme called MemAddr, then Unmark the MemAddr User Group.
❿ Select the scheme you just created and notice that the marking of the
User Group MemAddr has been restored.
❽
⓫ Select Display Control > Edit > Favorites section and disable
From Marked Nets.
You can create as many different Net Explorer schemes as you want when ❼
designing your PCB.
❿

AutoActive Interactive Routing 225

Routing Options
While routing in PADS Professional Layout, there are several methods of
specifying the way traces are edited, plow styles, and glossing. Editor Control is ❶ ❸
used to specify these settings, as you route, you can change these settings using the
right-click context sensitive menus. You will use these settings throughout the
lesson. ❹
❷
Editor Control ❺
❻
❶ Click the Editor Control > Grids tab and expand the Route Grids section.
❷ Ensure that 5 is entered for the Via Grid value.
Note: You will route the design with no Routing grid. This is the optimal setting for ❹
dense designs. In HDI layer buildup designs it may also be beneficial to use a Via
grid of None. ❺
❸ Click the Editor Control > Route tab and expand the Dialogs section.
This section controls the settings for nets and route handling. You have
used some of these settings in previous lessons.
❹ Click Tuning....
Tuning Patterns specifies the patterns used when you Manual Tune nets
with a length constraint requirement.
Close Tuning Patterns.
❺ Click Diff Pairs….
Diff Pairs specifies how Diff Pairs are coupled during routing and editing:
Coplanar (same layer) or Broadside (adjacent layer). ❻
Close Diff Pairs.
❻ Click Pad Entry…. ❼
Pad Entry specifies how you would like traces to enter or exit a pad when ❽
you route. ❾
❼ You can specify settings for groups of pads or individual pads.
❽ You can specify the trace entry angle and location, including Extended Pad
Entry which allows Odd Angle entry.
❾ For surface pads, you can specify if Vias are allowed within the surface pad
area. Close Pad Entry.

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 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout
❶
Editor Control (continued)
❶ Click Expand Traces….
Expand Traces defines the minimum distance rules for increasing or
❸
decreasing the trace widths defined in Constraint Manager during
interactive routing.
❷ Click OK to close Expand Traces.
❷
Plow Styles and Edit & Route Controls
❹
❸ Expand the Plow section. This section specifies the Mouse Up and
Mouse Drag plow styles you are using, and how DRCs, Vias, Loops
and Angles will be defined when routing. ❺
„„ Mouse Up Styles add traces by clicking to place distinct Anchor
Points for trace segments.
„„ Mouse Drag Styles use a click and drag method for adding traces.
❹ Expand the Edit & Route Controls section. This section defines the
Glossing method you use when routing or editing traces and vias. ❼
❺ Enable Via Move to allow vias to be shoved when Plowing, and ❻
Remove excess meanders to provide additional cleanup to routed
traces upon completion.
❻ Expand Angles, Corners. This section provides settings to allow Any
Angle Routing and Curved trace routing.
❼ Expand Vias & Fanouts. This section provides settings for Via and Fanout
controls during plowing and editing.
❽ Expand Net Rules On/Off. This section allows you to override
settings placed in your constraint in Constraint Manager. ❿
❾ Disable all of the Net Rules.
❿ As with other dialog boxes in PADS Professional Layout, you can save your ❽
Editor Control settings as a Scheme. In Common Settings, save the
Editor Control scheme locally as Route.
❾

AutoActive Interactive Routing 227

 ❶
Plowing with Active Clearances and DRC Visualization
❷
When you are routing or editing, PADS Professional Layout can help you to
visualize both Clearances and DRCs.
Let’s practice plowing a few traces with the settings you have learned so far…
❶ Zoom into the Area of U2 through U5.
❷ Click the Display Control > Graphics tab and expand the Graphics
Options section.
❺
❸ Expand the General options and change the color of Active Clearance to
a color of your choice. ❺
Note: To be able to use Active Clearances your system will require an OpenGL
capable video graphics card.
❹ Click the Editor Control > Route tab, and in the Plow section set your ❸
Mouse Up style to Hockey Stick/On Click.
❺ Select U5 pin 8 as shown and click the F3 Action Key Plow/Multi to ❻
route the trace as shown. Notice that you must click multiple trace ❺
anchor points to get the trace to pass through the pins.
❻ In Editor Control, set your Gloss to Local, or use the F10 Action Key
Toggle Gloss. Local Glossing minimizes the area of the trace that is glossed
during routing or editing.
Note: Practice using the different Gloss Modes throughout this lesson to become
comfortable with the differences between them.
❼ Select U5 pin 7 as shown, right-click and choose Mouse Up Plow Style > ❼ ❼
Real Trace Delayed, then route the trace as shown. Notice as you route,
the shoving of the previously routed trace is Delayed until you click a new
anchor point.
❽ Continue to add anchor points for the trace. Notice you do not have to ❽
❼
enter as many and the Active Clearance circle displays all of the
spacing clearances per your
design constraints as you
route.

228 AutoActive Interactive Routing

 ❶
Plowing with Active Clearances and DRC Visualization (continued)

❶ Select U5 pin 6 as shown, right-click and choose Mouse Up Plow Style >
Real Trace Dynamic, then route the trace as shown. Notice that your ❶
trace will immediately shove other traces as you route.
❷ Select U5 pin 5 as shown, then right-click and choose Mouse Up Plow Style >
Segment/On Click. ❷
❸ Right-click and click Angle Mode and choose Any, then route the trace
as shown. Notice that each Segment requires an anchor point, and you ❸
can route at Any Angle in this plow mode.
❹ Reset your Angle Mode back to 45.
❸
❺ Route U4 pins 7 and 8 using Mouse Drag Plow Styles. These work exactly
like their Mouse Up counterparts, but you use a click and drag method.
The drag method is very helpful when a trace you are routing travels off
screen because these plow styles will auto pan as you route.
❻ Click Editor Control, and in the Common Settings section disable ❺
Interactive Place/Route DRC and answer Yes to the warning.
❼ Using any plow style, route the connection from U4 pin 5 as shown.
❽ Zoom in on the trace and notice the DRC Visualization patterns showing
trace to trace DRCs.
❾ Enable Interactive Place/Route DRC and click No. We will not run Batch
DRC at this time.
❿ Right-click to Cancel Plow, or press Esc. ⓫
⓫ Select Route > Edit Routes > Delete all Traces and Vias to remove your ❺
❾
practice routing.
⓬ Click Yes for the Delete all traces and vias warning. ❽
Now let’s move on to Routing the rest of the layout…

❿
❼

AutoActive Interactive Routing 229

Fanouts and Fanout Patterns
When there are Surface Mount components in a layout, fanout vias must be
created to allow connections to other layers. While routing you can place
vias to complete connections, but it is best to place all fanouts initially to ❶
keep routing from blocking future fanout locations.
Interactive Fanout
❶ Click Display Control > Graphic and expand the Color By Net or Class ❸
❷
section. ❹
❷ In the Nets section, click Add, then enable netnames GND, VDD, and
VDDQ3.3V from the list of nets.
❸ Change the Color Fill so that each net has a different color.
❹ Zoom to U5 and select the VDD net pin, then click the action key F3
Plow/Multi.
❺ Use plow to add a fanout via at a location just inside U5 pin 1 as shown. ❺
Double-click to add a via.
❻ Right-click to Cancel Plow, or press Esc.
❼ Select the GND net pin on U5, then click the action key F2 Fanout.
The fanout via is added close to the pin and on the via grid you set
previously.
❽ Triple-click the VDD net pin on U4, the entire VDD net will be selected in
the layout.
❽
❾ Click the action key F2 Fanout and all of the selected VDD pins in the
layout will be routed with a fanout vias.
❿ Repeat steps 8 and 9 for the GND net. ❼

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 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Fanout Patterns Wizard

In PADS Professional Layout you can also use the Fanout Patterns Wizard to
create specific fanout patterns in commonly used surface mount device ❷
❶
packages.
❶ Click Display Control > Edit, and enable selection of Place in the Global
View and Interactive Selection section.
❷ Zoom to U7 in the upper left section of the layout, then select the U7
reference designator text to select the component.
❸ Select Route > Fanout Patterns.
❹ Click the SOIC/QUAD package tab and set the dropdown box settings as
shown.
❺ Click Fanout Selected and U7 will be routed with fanout vias with the
pattern you selected. ❹
Note: Patterns can be created for SOICs, Quad Flat Packs, BGAs, and Staggered
BGAs.
❻ Click OK to close the Fanout Pattern Results.
❼ Close Fanout Patterns.

❸
❺

AutoActive Interactive Routing 231

Creating Split/Mixed Dynamic Planes
❷
In Lesson 14: Setting Up a New Design, you learned how to create
plane layers. Please review the lesson if needed.
In this lesson you will create a Split Voltage Plane and a Mixed Plane.
PADS Professional Layout Dynamic Planes Engine maintains the spacing
❸
clearances you created in Constraint Manager between planes and other copper
objects in your design.
❶ Click Fit Board.
❷ Select Planes > Plane Assignments.
❸ On Layer 4, Add the net VDDQ3.3V, then click OK to close
Nets and Plane Assignments.
❹ Click Net Explorer and click PWR_020_MIL in the Net Class section. If
needed, reset the Net column filter to (ALL).
❺ Click net VDDQ 3.3V to select the net.
NOTE: Make sure that Cross Probe is engaged in Net Explorer.
❻ Click F2 Fanout to route fanout vias for the entire net.
❼ Click Display Control > Edit Tab > Layer Display and enable the
PLANE_4 layer.
❺ ❼
❽ Select Planes > Plane Shape and set the Properties as shown.
❽

❹
❽

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 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Creating Split/Mixed Planes (continued)

❶ Draw the plane shape as shown to include the connections for net
VDDQ3.3V. Close the Properties dialog box when completed.
Note: The net automatically connects to the plane, and the plane shape is also
automatically Split from the existing VDD plane.

AutoActive Interactive Routing 233

 Creating Split/Mixed Planes (continued) ❷
Now you will create a Mixed Plane on layer SIGNAL_1 for the Analog_SW group.
❶ Click Display Control and disable the Plane_4 layer. ❸
❷ Select Place > Component Explorer, then enable Fit Selected and Toggle
Cross Probe.
❸ Select the ANALOG_SW group, then Auto Hide Component Explorer.
❹ Select Planes > Plane Shape and use the Action Key F9 Add Rectangle
to draw a shape with the specified Properties around the ANALOG_SW
group as shown. Close the Properties dialog box when completed. ❶
Hint: Try copying the Room shape you created for this group in the
Placement lesson to create the new plane shape. In the Setting Up
a New Board Design - Drawing the Route Border Using Copy Shape,
you learned how to copy existing shapes to create additional objects.
Note: The plane shape automatically connects to the GND connections and
clears objects per your assigned Constraint Manager clearances.

234 AutoActive Interactive Routing

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Plowing and Plow Editing Features ❶

Let’s take a look at a few more Plowing (Routing) and Plow Editing features in
PADS Professional Layout.
In this section you may use the Plow Style of your choice.

Multi-Plow ❷
Multi-Plow allows you to route multiple traces at one time.
❶ Zoom to the area of U2 through U5.
❷ Frame select the four pins for the four nets on U5 as shown, then click ❸
F3 Plow/Multi.
❸ Route the traces to U3 as shown.
❹ Click near one of the pin connection points on U3 to complete the ❹
routes.
❺ Right-click then Cancel Multi-Plow. ❺

Plow Auto Finish

❻ Select the pin on U4 as shown, then click F3 Plow/Multi.
❼ Route the trace towards U2, pausing near U3 as shown.
❽ Click F5 Auto Finish to automatically complete the route.
❾ Route the additional connections on U4 using Auto Finish.
❻
❿ Cancel Plow.

❽
❼

AutoActive Interactive Routing 235

 Deleting Traces or Trace Segments
❶ Select the trace segment from U5.
❷ Press Delete, to delete the segment.
❸ Click Undo or use Alt+Backspace to undo the delete.
❹ Select two points within a trace segment from U5. ❶ ❷ ❹ ❺
❺ Press Delete to remove the portion of the segment,
then click Undo.
❻ Double-click on the trace from U5, and the entire
connection is selected.
❼ Press Delete to delete the entire connection, then click
Undo.
Note: Previously in this lesson, you used a Triple-click to
select the entire net within the design.
Re-Routing a Trace
You can easily re-route any trace using the Plow command.
❽ Click F3 Plow/Multi, and select the U5 trace. Re-route ❻
begins.

Suspending a Route
If you need to move off screen while routing to change
settings, you can suspend routing for the currently selected ❼
trace.
❾ While re-routing the trace, press the Shift key and trace
❽ ❿
routing is Suspended.
❿ Click in the Editor window to Unsuspend the route.

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 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout
❸
Context Sensitive Right Mouse Button Menus ❶
While you route in PADS Professional Layout the right mouse button menus
can save you time by placing the most common editing features at your
fingertips.
❶ While re-routing the trace, right-click to review the available editing
features.
❷ You can Change Layers by selecting the new layer. ❷ ❹
❸ You can Change Widths or Add Width to a trace.
❹ You can override and change the Via Type for the trace.
❺ Complete the re-route of the trace to U3 and cancel Plow.

Moving Traces and Vias ❺

Once you have completed routing, you can easily Move traces and vias
or groups of traces. There are also context sensitive menus available with
additional edit features.
❻ Select the VDD net via on U5.
❼ Drag the via to the opposite side of the pad on U5.
❽ Drag all of the voltage and ground vias to the new locations as shown.
Notice that the vias will shove the traces as needed.
❼
❾ You will need to drag the voltage vias on U2 and U3 farther to maintain ❻
plane connectivity.
Hint: Enable the PLANE_4 layer to see the plane shape location.

AutoActive Interactive Routing 237

 ❶
Moving Traces and Vias (continued)
Now use Move to clean up the routes in the U2 through U5 area.
❺
❶ Click the action key F10 Toggle Gloss and set to Gloss Local.
❷
❷ Select a pad on U5, then click Editor Control > Route tab > Dialogs > Pad Entry.
The Oblong 24x74 pad is selected.
❸ In the Rules for selected pads section, enable diagonal pad entry. ❸
❻
❹ Click OK.
❺ Zoom to U3 and select the trace segment as shown.
❻ Drag the trace segment towards the inside of the U3 pattern. ❼ ❹
❼ Repeat step 6 to clean up the additional segments on U3 as shown.

Glossing Traces
Use Gloss to quickly cleanup and remove unnecessary segments.
❽
❽ Frame select the traces between U2 and U5, then right-click Selection >
Add Partially Selected Nets. All of the net segments are selected.
❾ Click the action key F11 Gloss to clean up the trace segments.
❿ Press Esc to end the command.
⓫ Save your layout.

238 AutoActive Interactive Routing

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Routing Critical Nets

After fanout, route your critical nets. Critical nets are any nets whose
performance must be managed to achieve a working design. These nets include ❸
Differential Pairs and Length-constrained nets that require tuning. These nets
should be routed first and then fixed before starting other routing.

Routing Diff Pairs

❶ Click Fit Board.
❷ Select Display Control > Edit > Favorites section and enable
Netlines - From Marked Nets. ❸
❸ Click Route>Net Explorer and select Differential Pairs, then Mark.
Only the Diff Pairs are shown in the Editor Window.
❹ Zoom into U5 and select the two pins for the Diff Pair.
❺ Click F2 Fanout and notice the pins fanout symmetrically for the diff
pair spacing. ❹
❻ Select one of the vias and click F3 Plow/Multi. Notice that both traces ❺
of the diff pair are attached to the cursor.
❼ Right-click Layers > 2 HS or press “2” to switch to layer SIGNAL_2 for
routing.
❼
❽ Route the traces as shown and zoom to the connection location. ❻
❾ Click F9 Toggle Via to change the diff vias to a horizontal pattern prior
to placing them.
❽
❿ Switch to Layer SIGNAL_1 and complete the routes by selecting near
one of the connection pins.
⓫ Cancel Plow.

AutoActive Interactive Routing 239

Routing Matched Length Traces
In the previous lesson, you added length and matching constraints to nets
❸
within this design. When you route these traces, they may not fall within
the requirements you provided. PADS Professional Layout determines which
traces are not within constraint tolerances and allows you to interactively
tune them to the required lengths.
Interactive Tuning
The tuning patterns used during interactive tuning are set in Editor ❷
Control.
❶ Click Editor Control > Route > Dialogs > Tuning.
❷ Review the settings in Tuning Patterns, then click OK.
❸ Click Constraint Manager and expand Constraint Classes , then set
the Group dropdown list to Delays and Lengths.
❹ In Constraint Manager, expand the DIFF1 and DIFF2 diff pairs and ❹
scroll right to the Length columns.
❺ In Constraint Manager, Select Data > Actuals > Update All. Notice
that the diff pair you just completed is shorter than the required
length constraints.
You will now tune the diff pair you routed to add length. To help you ❺
know when the length is within tolerance you can use the Tuning Meter.
❻ Click Display Control > Graphic and expand the Graphics Options
> General section.
❼ Enable the Tuning Meter, if needed.

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 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout
❶
Interactive Tuning (continued)
❶ Zoom to the DIFF2 diff pairs connections near U8.
❷
❷ Select one of the diff pair traces.
❸ Select Route > Tune Routes > Manual Tune. A tuning box appears with
one full cycle completed.
❹ Select a Tuning Box handle and drag it to add tuning cycles.
❺ When the Tuning Meter reads GREEN, your net lengths are tuned to the
❸
proper constraint lengths.
❻ You can adjust the size of the tuning window to fit the traces into an
area.
❼ Right-click and choose Cancel Tuning.
❹
❽ Select both diff pair traces and right-click Selection > Add Partially
Selected Nets, then right-click Fix/Lock > Fix to protect the traces from
additional editing.
❾ To verify your length constraints, in Constraint Manager click Data >
Actuals > Update All. ❺
❿ Close Constraint Manager.
❻

AutoActive Interactive Routing 241

Sketch Router
The Sketch Router is an important development in the long quest to provide
effective and productive routing tools. It is a revolutionary approach for
interactively routing groups of netlines. It is easy to setup, use and control;
has quality that rivals that of any designer; is 10 to 40 times faster than ❸
manual routing.
This lesson covers the basic use of the Sketch Router. If you would like more
in-depth information after you complete the lesson, click the Sketch Router Quick
Design Guide link on the right.

❷
Netline Selection
The Sketch Router routes netlines, not entire nets. It automatically selects
the netlines based on proximity to the start and end points of the sketch
path. Or, you can select specific netlines. If you select route objects such as
pins, vias or traces, the Sketch Router attempts to route the net-selected
netlines if no other netlines are selected. ❷
❶ Click Fit Board. ❹
❷ Select View > Message Window to allow you to see Sketch Route status
messages.
❸ Click Route>Net Explorer and Unmark All nets.
❹ In Net Explorer, expand Net Class, then select and Mark Net Class FDATA.
Note: Organize Netlines into groups with one of the numerous methods in PADS
Professional Layout: Net Classes, Constraint Classes, Net Explorer, Net Filter, and Display ❹
Control. This will enable you to easily view and select netlines for routing.

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Drawing a Sketch Path

Sketch Router routes netlines based on a path and direction that you define.
The path that the routes follow is called the Sketch path. ❹
❶ Select Route > Draw Sketch, then press “2” to begin the path on layer
SIGNAL_2. ❶
❷ Click to start the path near P2 and draw the free-form path as shown.
Notice the netlines become selected automatically.
❸ When the path is near U12 press “5” to change the path layer to SIGNAL_5.
❹ Right-click and choose Via Pattern > Reverse Single. ❸
❺ Continue the path on SIGNAL_5 into U12 as shown, then right-click
Finish Drawing.
❻ Click the action key F9 Sketch Route and watch as your netlines are routed.
That was easy! Get ready to do another one…

❷ ❺

AutoActive Interactive Routing 243

 Understanding Sketch Paths and Via Patterns ❶
SKETCH PATHS
❶ By default, the sketch path is free-form. ❷
❷ You can choose a hockey stick sketch path by clicking F10 Toggle
Sketch Style or by using the right mouse menu while drawing the
sketch path.
❸ If you start a new sketch path on the endpoint of another sketch
path, it will extend the sketch path. ❷
❹ If a sketch path exists, starting a new one deletes the previous one.
VIA PATTERNS
❺ There are six different via patterns available for sketch paths. The
color of the via symbol indicates the starting layer. ❺
❻ You can choose a via pattern by clicking F2 Add Via Pattern or by
using the right mouse menu while drawing the sketch path.
❼ (A) The arrow indicates the direction the traces will exit a via
pattern.
❽ (B) The via symbol indicates a single or double row via pattern.
❾ (C) The traces symbol indicate the direction the traces will enter ❻
the symbol.
❻
❿ Rotate via Patterns using F4 Rotate 45 or F5 Rotate 90 or by using
the right mouse menu while drawing a sketch path.
⓫ In some cases, an “X” appears on the via pattern to show that the
rotation is invalid.

❽
❼
❾ ⓫
❿

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Unpacked Sketch Routing

The first sketch route you completed was routed as Packed. The second method of
❷
sketch routing is Unpacked.
❶ Click Route > Net Explorer and Unmark All nets, then select and Mark
Net Class FADDR.
❸
❷ Start your sketch path on SIGNAL_2 near P2, then click F10 Toggle
Sketch Style to change to an angled path.
❸ Click F11 Toggle Route Style to change to Unpacked.
❹ Switch layers to SIGNAL_5 and finish the sketch path near U12 as
shown. You will use the default Automatic Via Pattern.
❺ Click F9 Sketch Route to start the routing. ❶
❻ Right-click and choose Close, then Save your layout.
❼ You can Auto-Hide or Close the Message Window.
❽ Click Fit Board and Unmark All nets in Net Explorer.

❹
❺
❺

AutoActive Interactive Routing 245

Copying Circuits
In the Placement lesson you were able to create the four Logic IO circuit
placements from one placed circuit using Copy Circuit. In this section you
will copy the routing from one of those same circuits to the other three using
Copy Trace. Copying traces can save time when used to copy similar circuits
or fanout patterns on similar device packages. ❶
Note: In this section you will copy routed traces and vias, but you could copy the entire
placement and routing of a circuit using Copy Circuit.

❶ In Place > Component Explorer, select the IO_Port1 group.

❷ Frame select the routing in the IO_Port1 circuit then right-click and choose
Route Category > Copy Trace. The routes are copied to the cursor.
❸ Place the routing over the pad locations on IO_Port2 and click to place the
routes.
❹ Continue to place the routes on IO_Port3 and IO_Port4 as shown.
❺ Right-click and choose Cancel to end Copy Trace.

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 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Placing Via Patterns

In Mixed Signal PCB layouts, you may need to add stitching or shield vias to a
shape. PADS Professional Layout allows you to create interactive via patterns
❶
easily within shapes and around traces using Add Via.
❶ In Component Explorer, select the ANALOG_SW group.
❷ Select Route > Add Via.
❷
❸ Click the Array tab and adjust the Padstack, Span, Netname and
Placement Control settings as shown.
❹ Click Pick Reference, then click the location at the lower left corner of
the GND plane shape.
❺ Click Apply to place the via pattern within the plane shape.
❻ Close Add Via and Save your layout.
❼ Click Fit Board and Unmark All groups in Component Explorer. ❸
Now it is your turn! Using the training in this lesson, continue routing your PCB
layout. An example of the completed routing is on the next page. If you do not
have time to complete the routing, that's OK. The next lesson will start with
the routed board. ❹

AutoActive Interactive Routing 247

 The Finished PCB Layout Routing

248 AutoActive Interactive Routing

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Review Questions
1 What is DRC?
2 Will routing with DRC ON keep me from creating routing errors?
3 When would I want to route with DRC OFF?
4 What is the advantage of using Sketch Router?

Review Answers
1 DRC is an acronym for Design Rule Checking. When DRC is ON, it is 4 When you have a group of signals that follow a similar routing
constantly monitoring and enforcing your design rules. This is path, you can route them as a Packed or Unpacked group (or bus).
powerful technology that helps you to maintain the integrity of your design You can select a group of nets and draw a sketch path for the routing
during placement and routing operations. to follow. The traces route as a group, maintaining proper clearances.
2 During Placement there are three modes of operation: Warning, This is a quick and easy way to route multiple traces with a quality that
Prevent with Shove Parts, and Interactive DRC Off. If you attempt to is very similar to your own hand routing.
create placement violation in Prevent mode with DRC On, the system
does not allow you to complete the operation. Similarly, in Warn mode,
the system presents a message warning you of the potential violation
and asks permission to complete the task. While Routing with Interactive
DRC On you cannot create copper to copper errors. This saves you time
by preventing errors you must clean up later.
3 During routing, you may have a rule that specifies a particular clearance
for your traces as they transition across the board. At times when you
near the end of the route, the signal must attach to a high density
component such as a connector or BGA and there may not be enough
room to get the trace to its destination pin without creating a spacing
violation. You can set up a component rule to allow the trace through at
a smaller spacing, or you can turn off DRC temporarily so that you can
complete the traces. The DRC errors created by turning off DRC
will be given a Visualization Pattern are reported during Batch DRC
Verification.

AutoActive Interactive Routing 249

 ❷
Lesson 18: Final Layout Considerations
After completing the routing of your layout, you may still be required to
make a few additions or changes to it. These changes, or ECOs (Engineering
Change Orders), for example, may require you to add Test Points, Teardrops
on pads, or Component updates. PADS Professional Layout can easily manage these
additions and changes for you.

❷
Adding Test Points ❸
In PADS Professional Layout, you can place test points manually on Through Pins,
SMD pins, Vias, Traces, and open areas on the Top or Bottom sides of the layout.
Define Test Point settings with the Setup Parameters dialog box.
❶ In PADS Professional Layout, from the Start Page, select Open and
browse to and choose:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson6\PCB\CORPORATE.pcb. ❹
❷ Select Setup > Setup Parameters > General tab and review the Test
point settings section.
❸ When you routed the layout, the Via Grid was set to 5. Change the Test
Point Grid setting to 5 to match the via grid setting in Editor Control.
❹ Click OK to update the database settings. ❺ ❻ ❻
❺ Zoom to U5 and select the via from one of the diff pair traces.
Note: You must select a net item prior to placing a test point.
❻ Select Place > Test Points > Place and place the test point directly on
the via on the bottom side of the layout.
❼ Repeat steps 5 and 6 to add a test point to the other via from the diff pair
traces.

250 Final Layout Considerations

Teardrops and Tracedrops
Teardrops and Tracedrops are used to add filleting to pads and/or vias in a
PCB layout. They provide additional stability at the trace entry point, or
provide additional copper for annular ring requirements. You can also add
Teardrops at the junction of two traces or between pads and Multi-Via
objects.
❷
❶ Zoom to P1 on the top edge of the layout. ❸ ❹
❷ Select Route > Teardrops & Tracedrops > Teardrops.
❸ On the Pad Teardrops tab, enable Pad to Trace and Include
fixed/locked traces. ❶
❹ Enable Ratio and enter a value of 1 for the Pad and Via pad ratio.
❺ Select the four routed pads on P1 as shown. (Select individually with
<CTRL> key depressed or frame select and then remove the middle pin
from selection).
❻ On the Process dropdown list, choose Selected Padstacks. ❻
❼ In the Teardrops dialog box, click Apply.
Note: No Teardrops were added to traces where clearance violation ❽
would be created. ❺
❽ Review the Trace Teardrops and Multiple Via Teardrops tabs showing
the many types of teardrops that can be created.
❾ Close the Teardrops dialog box.
❽

Final Layout Considerations 251

ECOs (Engineering Change Orders)
A few more changes may be required prior to releasing your layout for
fabrication. Reference Designator Renumbering will allow the engineers to easily
find components on the board once it is manufactured.
You may also need to replace or reset cells and update the cells and
padstacks from the library to make sure your layout is synchronized. ❷
Renumber Reference Designators
You can renumber Reference Designators by Selection, Individually, or for the
entire layout.
❺
❶ Click Fit Board.
❷ Select ECO > Renumber Ref Des.
❸ In Renumber Reference Designators, enable Test Points and Exclude
“P” Prefixes. ❸
Note: The connectors P1 and P2 will not be renumbered.
❹ Click Auto Renumber.
❺ The reference designators will be renumbered according to the
Direction listed in the Top and Bottom tabs.
❻ The Starting Number is 1, click OK. The Process list is completed.
❼ Click OK in the Renumber Reference Designators dialog box to apply
the changes to the layout.
❽ Review the renumbering changes, then Save your layout.

❹ ❼

252 Final Layout Considerations

 ❷
Replacing and Resetting Cells
In the Placement lesson, you used Component Explorer to replace a cell with
a provided alternate. You can replace or completely reset cells using ECO ❸
also. ❶
❶ Select ECO > Replace Cell.
❷ Click Process type Replace.
❸ Replacement Cell allows you to select individual or all cells for
Alternate Cell replacement.
❹ Click Process type Reset.
❺ Reset allows you to select individual components or component part
numbers to reset from the Local library.
Note: Resetting cells does not update cells from the Personal Library.
❻ Enable Keep text attributes during replace/reset if you have made ❹ ❻
changes to cell silkscreen text items in your layout. Otherwise, the
locations will also be updated from the original placement.
❼ Close Replace Cell.

Update Cells and Padstacks

It is good practice to update all of the components on your layouts from the
Personal Library before verifying the design for fabrication. This verifies that
the components and padstacks on your layout are the most
up-to-date with any library changes that may have taken place during the
❽
layout schedule.
❽ Select ECO > Update Cells and Padstacks, then click Yes to update the ❺ ❼
layout.
Note: Running a Forward Annotation using the Update local libraries
with newer Personal Library data option performs the same process.

Final Layout Considerations 253

Back Annotation of ECO Changes
Once you have completed any required ECO changes, they need to be Back
Annotated to update the schematic database.

Pending Forward/Back Annotation Report

At any time during your layout, you can view a report of the changes that will
take place during the next Forward or Backward Annotation cycle.
❶ Select ECO > Pending FA/BA Report. ❶
❷ The File Viewer opens showing the report. ❷ ❹
❸ Note the differences you created in the Reference Designators
between the Layout and the Schematic.
❹ Close File Viewer.
❺ Select ECO > Back Annotate to synchronize the layout and schematic
databases.
❻ Save your layout.

254 Final Layout Considerations

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Review Questions
1 Do I need to add Test Points to my layout?
2 Should I add Teardrops to every pad in my layout?
3 Why do I need to renumber reference designators?
4 Why should I update my cells and padstacks?

Review Answers
1 Depending on the testing requirements for your layout, you may not
need to add test points. If the board will be mass produced, engineering
will usually require test points so the fabricated and assembled boards
can be tested prior to packaging for customer use.
2 Teardrops on pads in your layout should be discussed with your PCB
fabrication vendors. Dense designs with minimal annular ring on pads,
or fine line technology, may require teardrops on all vias and most pads
in your design.
3 Renumber reference designators to make the components easier for
assemblers and testers to find by creating a sequential pattern. You do
not have to search through hundreds, or even thousands of
components to find a part on the board.
4 If your library components are maintained and edited by someone else,
you may not be aware of changes taking place to library components
that could affect your layout. Updating the cells and padstacks verifies
that you have the most up-to-date library information in your layout.

Final Layout Considerations 255

Lesson 19: Design and Manufacturing Verification
❷
In PADS Professional Layout, the Online DRC capabilities significantly reduce ❷
the errors you may create during PCB layout. In order to completely verify your
design prior to fabrication, you should always complete a Batch DRC and Review
cycle. Verification of all constraints, connectivity, and high speed
requirements are accomplished using Batch DRC. Status reports and Review ❸
Hazards will help you to easily identify and correct any errors.

Status Reporting
When verifying the completeness of your PCB layout, you should check two
reports: Design Status and Dynamic Plane Status.
❶ In PADS Professional Layout, from the Start Page, select Open and
browse to and choose:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson6\PCB\CORPORATE.pcb.
❷ Select Output > Design Status, or click Design Status.
❸ Review the information in the Design Status report.
❹ Look for the following key information in this report when you are
verifying your layout.
„„ Open Connections should read 0.
„„ Percent Routed should read 100%
„„ Parts not Placed should read 0
Note: There is one part that you did not place earlier. You need to
correct this error when you run Batch DRC during the verification process. ❹

256 Design and Manufacturing Verification

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout
❷
Status Reporting (continued)
❶ Select Output > Dynamic Plane Status. ❶
❷ Review the information in the Dynamic Planes Status report.
❸ Look for the following information in this report for each plane layer and
shape when verifying your layout:
„„ Pads Unconnected to Plane for each shape should be 0.
Note: Any error found in these reports will also be reported in Batch DRC.
You can use these reports to quickly review the completeness of your layout at
any phase during the layout. ❸
Batch DRC
You can set up Batch DRC for any number of checking scenarios, and save each
scenario as a scheme for use on other designs. You can also run Batch DRC on
the full layout or a selected section of a layout using a DRC Window.
❹ Select Analysis > Batch DRC, or click Batch DRC.
❺ Batch DRC is set to use the Final DRC scheme to check
❹
the entire design.
❻ You will be checking for Proximity (Clearance) errors on
all layers of the design according to the constraints you ❺
created in Constraint Manager.
❼ In Batch DRC, click Advanced Element to Element Rules.

Design and Manufacturing Verification 257

 ❸
Batch DRC (continued)
Advanced Element to Element Rules allows you to create new DRC checks
between specific element types within your layout or override current Net
Class rules between elements.
❶ Change the DRC checking between elements by clicking the matrix box
for checking Generated Silkscreen to Soldermask and enter a value
of 2. This check will make sure there is no Silkscreen in areas without
Soldermask coverage.
❷ Repeat step 1 to check Generated Silkscreen to Generated Silkscreen ❶
to make sure no Silkscreen is on top of another. You may need to scroll
right to see the other matrix element.
❸ Note that you can add Layer Specific elements and User Layer elements
to the matrix.
❹ Click OK to save your matrix changes.
❷
❺ In Batch DRC, click the Connectivity and Special Rules tab. ❹
❻ Review the sections and elements that you will be checking on your
layout.
❺
Note: Any combination of checks can be created specific to the requirements of
your layout type.
❼ Click OK to run Batch DRC and see the results. Overwrite the current
scheme if asked. Your results may vary.

258 Design and Manufacturing Verification

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Reviewing DRC Errors

You can easily review the DRC errors found with Batch DRC using Hazard
Explorer. This utility allows you to select and cross probe directly to an error
and then correct it, or accept it.
DRC Visualization Update ❷
❶
Before you explore hazards, you will update the DRC Visualization status so
that you can easily see copper to copper errors that may have been created
in your layout if you disabled Online DRC.
❺
❶ Click DRC Visualization to update the status.
Note: This can be done at anytime during the layout, but should always be done ❸
prior to reviewing hazards. ❻
❷ Select Analysis > Hazard Explorer or click Hazard Explorer icon. ❹
❸ Click Update Hazard Count. ❼
❹ Show All hazards.
❺ Note the Graphic options are set to Select, Highlight and Fit view any
selected hazard.
Understanding Verification Hazards
❻ Select Online, these errors were found by Online DRC during the layout.
❼ Select Batch, these errors were found when you ran Batch DRC.
These are the errors you will be correcting.

❻ ❼

Design and Manufacturing Verification 259

Understanding Verification Hazards (continued)
❶
Accepting Verification Hazards
Sometimes in a PCB Layout, errors need to be created intentionally. Although
this is not a good layout practice, it may be unavoidable. When this is the
case, you will need to tell the DRC checking to Accept these errors but mark them
for future reference.
❸
❶ Select Online, then click (9) Components errors.
❹
❷ In Display Control, choose the Placement scheme.
❸ In the Hazards Explorer, click the Violation for L1, then double-click the
first L1 violation in the Description section.
❹ L1 is highlighted and the Description shows that the violation is due to the
component overhanging the Board Outline. This violation is intentional.
❺ Click Accept, the violation is highlighted and the Accepted count is
updated.
Note: This Hazard can also be corrected in your Library by marking the Allow Cell
Overhang switch in Package Cell Properties. This library change will keep the error
from occurring in future designs.
❻ Continue to review the other Component and Online violations, updating
❹
them to Accepted as needed.
Note: You will need to switch back to the Display Control > Routing scheme to see ❸
some of the errors.

260 Design and Manufacturing Verification

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Understanding Verification Hazards (continued)

❶ In the Hazard Explorer utility, click Batch and
choose (1) Unplaced Parts. ❸
❷ This is the Unplaced Part found in the Design ❹
Status report you ran earlier in this lesson.
❸ Placing this Part on the layout will remove the
error.
Note: You can correct this at a later time. C34_1
should be placed on the bottom side of the layout ❶
between U3 and U4 found on the top side of the layout.

Using DRC Visualization and Repair DRC

❺
❹ Select Batch, and click Proximity (xx).
❺ Double-click Hazard #1. The error is a Trace to
Trace violation. ❻
❻ You can see the DRC Visualization pattern where
the error has occurred.
❼ Select the trace containing the pattern.
❽ Right-click and choose Repair Selected and the
trace to trace violation is corrected.
❾ Continue to correct or accept the other listed
Proximity violations. ❿
❿ When completed, Close Hazard Explorer then ❼
rerun Batch DRC and Hazard Explorer to see how
well you corrected the DRC errors.
Note: It is always a good idea to rerun the DRC
Verification process after correcting DRC errors, or if ❽
any changes are made to the layout.
⓫ Save your layout and close PADS Professional
Layout.

Design and Manufacturing Verification 261

 Review Questions
1 Why should I verify my layout?
2 Which Batch DRC checks should I run?
3 What fabrication checks are available with Batch DRC?
4 Do I need to correct every error found in Hazard Explorer?

Review Answers
1 A PCB layout is a very complex project that requires thousands of
design details to be accomplished to complete a finished product.
Managing these details can be a large task, and it is possible for
unexpected errors to occur. Verification allows you to analyze the
details of your layout and correct errors prior to generating
manufacturing outputs.
2 You should always run checks for the entire design, Connectivity and
Special rules, and all of the Proximity options to check clearances on
all layers. Additionally, you can add checks in Connectivity and Special
rules based on the requirements of your design.
3 While routing in PADS Professional Layout, the system tries to maintain
good DFM rules to reduce trace slivers and acid traps. Batch DRC does
provide checking for some manufacturing errors like Missing Pads, Plane
Islands, and padstacks with Minimum Annular Ring.
4 It is a good idea to review every error listed in Hazard Explorer before
sending your design to manufacturing. Some designs may require you
to correct every error found in Hazard Explorer. In some cases, the
errors listed may be considered by engineering as warnings and are
allowed within the design. These errors can be Accepted as intentional
and not required to fix, but logged for future reference.

262 Design and Manufacturing Verification

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Lesson 20: Rigid Flex Design and Verification

You don't need to be developing the latest in wearable technology to have the need
for a flexible PCB. A simple modification of enclosure requirements can change a rigid
design to rigid flex using design elements that optimize your design to achieve the
best use of space and material.
In this lesson you will learn about the Rigid Flex Design option for PADS Professional
Layout. By using Rigid Flex you can easily extend your standard PCB designs to
complex Rigid Flex technology with regional stackups, definition of bend areas
with constraints and accurate output for verification and manufacturing. Designs
are easily viewed in 3D to visualize bending and 3D Design Rule adherance.

Open the Design File for Routing

❸
❶ Open PADS Professional Layout.
❷ From the Start Page select Open and browse to and choose: ❷
C : \ PA D S _ P r o f e s s i o n a l _ E v a l _ < r e l e a s e > \ L e s s o n 6 \ P C B \
CORPORATE.pcb.
The Rigid Flex License
In PADS Professional Layout the Rigid Flex license is available from the splash
screen as well as within the layout environment giving you the flexibility to
acquire it and release it at the end of your design session.
RIGID FLEX OFF
❸ When the PADS Professional Layout splash screen appears, ensure that
the PADS Professional Rigid Flex license is unchecked (off). ❹
Note: Click within the header of the splash screen to keep the splash screen in place
as you review selections. Click OK to confirm your selection and release the screen.

Forward Annotate Your Design

❹ PADS Professional Layout notifies you that new changes are ready to be
Forward Annotated. Click Yes to launch the Project Integration dialog.
❺ Click the Amber Indicator to start Forward Annotation and click OK to
the notification window that displays. Close the Project Integration dia-
log when the annotation completes and all indicators turn green. ❺

Rigid-Flex Design and Verification 263

 Enabling Rigid Flex Licensing Within Layout
PADS Professional Layout provides easy access to enabling the Rigid Flex
license when needed. When this license is active, the Setup > Settings
command is used to convert your design to Rigid Flex. Once the license is
activated, it does not release until you exit your Layout session. ❶
❶ Your design appears as shown. Enable the Display Control and review
the layers of your board. Click SIGNAL_1 to move to that Layer.
❷ Select the Setup menu and then select Licensed Modules and then
PADS Professional Rigid Flex.

If you open a flex PCB design without the required flex license, the
flex-specific elements are visible, but are read-only.

264 Rigid Flex Design and Verification

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Converting to Rigid Flex Design Technology

Once Rigid Flex technology is enabled, not only are changes seen at the design
level, other changes are made within the design environment that are not so
apparent.
❶ From the Setup menu select the Settings command. ❷
❷ The Settings dialog displays. Use the dropdown pick list to select
RigidFlex technology and then click OK.
❸ A conversion warning dialog will appear. Click Yes to launch the
conversion process.
❹ Once the conversion process completes, notice your Display Control.
The first thing you will notice is the display of the Top and Bottom
Soldermask pads. A new List Dielectric Layers option now is available
to control display of these layers.

❷
❶

Rigid Flex Design and Verification 265

 Creating Regional and Master Stackups
With Rigid Flex design, each Region is defined by a board outline that is
identified as Rigid or Flex. This means that you may have more than one board
outline in a design. Each board outline has an associated stackup. Your Master
Stackup reflects all of the associated regional stackups.
In order to set up the master stackup and then create stackup subsets for each ❶
board outline, we need to first plan our design and consider what stackup we
need in each board outline and then merge all subsets into a master stackup
that we can enter into the Stackup Editor.
❶ Click the Constraint Manager toolbar icon to launch the application.
❷ Launch the Stackup Editor from Constraint Manager. We see the
stackup with our new Soldermask_Top and Soldermask_Bottom layers
that were added when the design converted to Rigid Flex. Click the
Usage column entry for the Soldermask_Top layer to see the usage ❷
selections available.
NOTE: In traditional PCB designs, you are only allowed to define soldermask for
the top and bottom layers. For flex designs with multiple rigid boards, having
different stackups, you can define named soldermask layers internal to the
master stackup. The soldermask name is customizable so you can more easily
associate the soldermask with the correct electrical layer.

When you start a new flex design, you

should consult your PCB manufacturer ❷
for guidance in determining the most
manufacturable and cost-effective
materials. Collaborating before defining a
master stackup helps ensure the completed
design is manufacturable.

266 Rigid Flex Design and Verification

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Creating Regional and Master Stackups (continued)

In our design we have a Rigid board (Outline1) which will be connected to a Flex
Multi-layer (Outline2). The stackups for each outline/region are shown to the right.
Both stackups must now be merged into a single master stackup where all layers are
defined and in correct order. There is no command or function to do this merge. You
manually enter each layer in the Stackup Editor. If there are no routing requirements
between these two sections, place the flex signal layers above or below the rigid signal
layers and include only the rigid signal layers within the rigid stackup.
❸ Right click Layer Name SIGNAL_2 then select Insert Above > Cover
Layer from the right-click menu. Change the name of this new Layer to
CoverTop.
NOTE: When defining the layer stackups, specify the cover layer as a complete
sheet by including it in the layer stackup for all outlines, or “bikini” style by
including it only in the flex sub-stackups.
❹ Right click Layer Name SIGNAL_2 then select Insert Above > Adhesive
from the right-click menu. Change the name of this new Layer to
Adhesive1. Click OK to commit your changes. Click Yes to the Constraint
Manager warning box and then select File > Exit in Constraint Manager. ❸
NOTE: When you define the layer stackups, the adhesive
layer can cover the entire design, or just the flex portions.
Specify where adhesive exists by creating a filled shape on
the adhesive layer. You can create holes in the shape using
the subtract command.You can also integrate the adhesive
with the copper film or cover layer - in which case, you
model it as one layer in the stackup, instead of two layers.

When defining the layer stackups, specify the

cover layer as a complete sheet by including it in
the layer stackup for all outlines, or “bikini” style
by including it only in the flex sub-stackups.

❹
❹

Rigid Flex Design and Verification 267

 Creating Stackups within PADS Professional Layout
The Stackup Editor is also available within PADS Professional from the Setup Menu.
We will use this method to add the rest of our regional stackups to our Master
Stackup.
When you modify the Master Stackup on a routed or placed Rigid Flex design, the
system will notify you of the need to Modify Board Outlines. ❶
❶ Click OK in the PADS Professional Layout notification box. Your design appears
with your new CoverTop and Adhesive1 layers visible in Display Control.
❷ Select Setup > Stackup Editor from the menubar.

268 Rigid Flex Design and Verification

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Creating Stackups within PADS Professional Layout (continued)

We will now add the two signal layers and the Flex base.

❸ Right-click SIGNAL_2 and select Insert Above > Signal from the right-
click menu. Rename this signal layer Flex_Signal2.
❹ Because Signal Layers must have a Dielectric layer with them the system
has added DIELECTRIC_01 to the stackup. Rename this layer Flex_base.
In the Usage Column, select Flex Substrate. ❸

❺ Right-click SIGNAL_2 and select Insert Above > Solid Plane from the
right-click menu. Rename this plane layer Flex_Plane3. Rename the
DIELECTRIC_02 to Adhesive2.
❻ Finally right click SIGNAL_2 and select Insert Above > Cover Layer from
the right-click menu. Rename this layer Cover Bottom (with a space).
❺
❻

Rigid Flex Design and Verification 269

 Creating Stackups within PADS Professional Layout (continued)
Complete the Master Stackup
❼ Notice the Red Warning text in the stackup viewer. You cannot have blank characters
in a layer name. Remove the space between Cover Bottom to where it is all one
word. The stackup is now valid. You can use either print command to print your
stackup to a PDF document to use for review with others. ❼
❽ Click OK to apply the stackup changes.

270 Rigid Flex Design and Verification

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Creating Board Outlines

The RigidFlex license places additional Flex commands on the Draw Menu.
❷
❶ Select View > Toolbars > Draw Create to add this toolbar to your PADS
Professional Layout display.
❷ Click the Draw menu on the PADS Professional Layout. Notice the
additional Flex commands added (outlilned in yellow) when the PADS
Professional Rigid Flex license is engaged. The Flex Draw menu and the
standard Draw menu appear to the right. Select Board Outline and then
click the rectangle on your Draw Create toolbar.
❸ Draw the rectangle as shown on the right side of the design. Click OK to
the Warning message that appears.
Consider the design below

If you had to work with just one board outline you would not be able to ❸
independently manage each zone in case of overlapping layers. This design
would have over 8 zones with each zone being impacted if the most minor
board outline change occurred.
Now consider this design where
separate board outlines are used:

Board outlines must have at least one side in

common with at least one other board outline.
Overlaping outlines may not have layers in common.
By using individual board outlines to define the Rigid Flex design, we assign
stackups per board outline to make managing complex flex structures (as in
overlapping designs) easy.

Rigid Flex Design and Verification 271

 Creating Board Outlines (continued)
Board outlines must have at least one side in common with at least one other board
outline. Overlapping outlines may not have layers in common.
❹
❹ The Properties dialog displays for your new outline. Click within the Type column to ❺
see the dropdown list of selections. Set the Type to Flex.
❺ Click the Stackup dropdown to view available selections. Click Custom...
❻ The Stackup Layers dialog displays. It shows our entire Master Stackup. Click the
Select All twice to turn off all layers (clears the checkboxes) and then engage the
checkboxes for CoverTop to CoverBottom as shown below. Click OK.

❼ Right-click the rigid board outline of your design and select Properties from the right-
click menu. The Properties dialog displays.
❽ The Stackup Layers dialog displays. Click the Select All to turn on all layers (engages
all chckboxes) and then turn off (clear) the CoverTop, Adhesive1 and CoverBottom
layers. Click OK.
❽

272 Rigid Flex Design and Verification

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Creating Stackup Schemes

Stackup Schemes assist you in applying a stackup to multiple board outlines. ❶
❶ Select Setup > Stackup Schemes to launch this dialog. Click the New
icon to create your first stackup scheme.
❷ A new Scheme row appears named New_1. Click the board outline
dropdown list to see the available outlines of (None), BoardOutline_1
and BoardOutline_2. Select BoardOutline_1 for this new scheme. ❷
❸ Click the Edit icon in the Stackup Schemes dialog to launch the Stackup
Layers dialog. Select the layers as shown and click OK.
❹ Repeat this process (Steps 1-3) to create a second Stackup Scheme ❸
named New_2 and assign the layers from CoverTop to CoverBottom
to this scheme. Click OK on the Stackup Schemes dialog to apply the
changes and dismiss the dialog.
❺ Right-click the Flex board outline and select Properties. From the
Properties dialog click the Stackup dropdown list and notice the
❹
selections available to you.

❺
When you have several flex boards that have
the same stackup, Stackup Schemes are helpful
in order to declare your stackup once and then
apply it to multiple boards.

❸❹

Rigid Flex Design and Verification 273

 Creating Route Borders for Flex Designs and Verification
Generate Route Borders efficiently creates a border based on your board outline.
❶ Extend your flex BoardOutline_2 so that it overlaps the rigid board as shown. You
can do this either by dragging one of the draw anchors or by moving the board ❷
outline to where it overlaps the rigid board.
❷ With the board outline still selected, use Draw > Trim Board Outlines to ensure
that your two outlines are matched properly with no overlap.
❸ Select Draw > Generate Route Borders.
❶
❹ In the Generate Route Borders dialog, select the option button for Single route
border for entire design then click OK.
❺ Select Draw > Generate Route Borders again.
❻ This time select the option button for One route border for each board outline
and click OK.

❸❺

274 Rigid Flex Design and Verification

 PCB Design with PADS Professional Layout

Defining and Viewing Bend Areas

PADS Professional Layout uses your 3D view to efficiently inspect
flex bend areas When two flex boards overlap it becomes necessary ❶
to specify which outline is associated with the bend. You should
specify the Board outline even if the flex board doesn't overlap.
Default is “Auto Assign” which works well when board outlines don’t overlap.
❶ Select your flex board outline and extend it to the right to make it longer.
Click OK to the notification box that displays.
❷ Select Draw > Bend Area. Select BoardOutline_2 from the Board
Outline dropdown list.
❸ Click outside of the board outline and drag your cursor upward until the
bend area outline clears both sides of the board outline.
❹ Click the 2D3D View tab at the bottom of the workspace to view your
flex in 3D.
❺ Select Display Control and select the 3D tab. In the objects area, scroll
down and select the checkbox option for Flex Opjects, Flex Bend and
Stiffener. Click Refresh. Practice changing Bend Angle and Bend
Radius and view the results. When finished set to 180 for both. ❷

Rigid Flex Design and Verification 275

 Viewing and Exporting Flex Designs in 3D ❶ ❶
Visualization of 3D Flex Designs can be easily exported for review.
❶ Double click your bend area to enable editing. The Properties dialog
displays. Change the Bend Radius to 90 and change the Bend Origin to ❷
Center using the dropdown list.
❷ Select Draw > Bend Area and create a second Bend Area to the right
of your first one. Set Bend Radius to 180 and Bend Angle to -180.
Select the 2D3D View tab in your workspace to view your new flex.
NOTE: Use 3D > View > Front to achieve the view shown. ❷
❸ Select the CORPORATE tab to return to the Layout View. Double click
the second Bend Area to enable editing. Change the Angle to 70. Notice
how the bend area changes.
❹ Select the 2D3D View tab to examine your new flex. Use the XYZ guide
in the lower left corner to rotate the view so you can see the difference
that 70 degrees of angle creates.
❺ Once you are satisfied with your view, select 3D > Export and select
3D PDF from the Type dropdown list and click Save. Inspect your PDF ❸
for comparison.

❺ ❹

276 Rigid Flex Design and Verification

Simulation with HyperLynx
BoardSim & Thermal
In this section:
„„ Simulation with HyperLynx BoardSim -
NOTE: Not Available with PADS Professional Student Edition
„„ Thermal Analysis with HyperLynx Thermal -
NOTE: Not Available with PADS Professional Student Edition

277
 Lesson 21: HyperLynx BoardSim Simulation
This exercise walks you through the process of sending a finished design from
PADS Professional Layout to HyperLynx BoardSim and selecting a net for
simulation. You will run a post route simulation to validate the simulation
results from LineSim completed in the pre-layout stage. HyperLynx BoardSim
simulation validates the signal quality and will help you to determine if the
routing topology, board stackup, trace lengths, widths, and termination are
suitable for a given interface.
NOTE1: If you did not complete Lesson 10, you will need to configure the HyperLynx
models as described in Appendix 4.
NOTE2: This feature is not available with PADS Professional Student Edition ❷
❹
HyperLynx BoardSim
❶ From the PADS Professional Layout Start Page, click Open and browse
to and select:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal\PCB\
CORPORATE.pcb.
Click OK to Forward Annotate and then click the Amber indicator on
the Project Integration dialog.
❷ Select Analysis > Export to HyperLynx SI/PI/Thermal.
HyperLynx BoardSim opens with your PCB database loaded.
Note: HyperLynx Power Integrity analysis requires additional HyperLynx
licensing.
❸ In HyperLynx BoardSim, click NET.

❸
❹ In the Select Net by Name dialog box, scroll down, select the
DATA_BUS0 net and then click OK. This shows only that specific net
routed on the board.

278 HyperLynx BoardSim Simulation

 Simulation with HyperLynx BoardSim & HyperLynx Thermal

HyperLynx BoardSim (continued)

❺ Select Assign Models. ❾

❻ In the Assign Models dialog box, double-click on pin U13.M26.

❺
Hint: These are the same steps used in the HyperLynx LineSim lesson
(Lesson 10).
❼ In Select IC Model, choose xc9500.ibs from the Libraries list, and then ⓫
choose XC95216_BGA352[SLW=0;VIO=0] from the Devices list, then click
OK.
❽ In Assign Models select U13.M26 pin and change the Buffer settings to ❻
Output.
❾ Repeat steps 6 and 7 for U15.13 and U26.13 and choose mc74lcx125.ibs
from the Libraries list, and then choose MC74LCX125 from the Devices
list, then click OK.
❿ Close Assign Models.

⓫ Select Run Interactive simulation and show waveforms.

⓬ In the Digital Oscilloscope dialog box, select the Rising edge radio ⓭
button. Make sure you have a probe color assigned to pins and click ⓬
Start Simulation.
⓭ Click two points in the Oscilloscope window on the top and bottom
of the overshoot of the waveform to review the span of the voltage
overshoot.
Note: Receivers have a lot of voltage overshoot (about 1.95V, in LineSim we had
2.1V).

HyperLynx BoardSim Simulation 279

 HyperLynx BoardSim (continued)
Now we want to compare the pre-layout simulation results from LineSim with
the BoardSim results that we just observed.
⓮ In the Digital Oscilloscope dialog box, click Save/Load and then select the ⓯
HyperLynx.LIS radio button.
⓯ Click Load and browse to C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>
\LessonFinal.
⓰ Select the file DATA_BUS0_no_termination.lis, then close ⓮
Load/Save Waveforms.
⓱ You can toggle to see both the pre-layout and post layout simulation
results by checking the Loaded results check box.
Note: Differences between pre- and post-layout simulation results for receiver
propagation delay (Green and Cyan color wave forms) are due to topology and
trace length differences. However, the overshoot is almost the same (1.95V versa ⓲
2.10V).
⓲ To fix the Signal Integrity problem, click Termination Wizard.
The Termination Wizard dialog suggests using AC termination at the U15.13
receiver pin.
⓳ From the Apply tolerance dropdown list, choose Exact value. ⓱
21 Click Apply Values. This assigns the terminator and its value.
⓴
Click OK.

21

280 HyperLynx BoardSim Simulation

 Simulation with HyperLynx BoardSim & HyperLynx Thermal

HyperLynx BoardSim (continued)

22 Click Erase, then Start Simulation to rerun the simulation with the AC
Termination in place.
Notice that we removed almost all of the Signal Integrity problems related
22 22
to overshoot.
Now we want to compare pre-layout simulation results from LineSim with
BoardSim results after termination.
23 In the Digital Oscilloscope dialogbox, click Save/Load, then select the
HyperLynx .LIS radio button.
24 Click Load and browse to and select the file
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal\
25 DATA_BUS0 _terminated.lis
Check the Loaded results check box so you can toggle to see both the pre-
and post-layout results of the simulation.
Note: Differences between pre- and post-layout simulation results with
Termination in place for receiver propagation delay are due to topology and trace
26 length differences.
Close Digital Oscilloscope, then close HyperLynx BoardSim.

25

HyperLynx BoardSim Simulation 281

 Review Questions
1 When would I want to use HyperLynx BoardSim?
2 Can I compare HyperLynx BoardSim results with those from HyperLynx
LineSim?
3 What do I do with the results?

Review Answers
1 Early in the design process, you can use HyperLynx LineSim to model
the behavior of specific signals and/or specify terminations that might
be required. HyperLynx BoardSim then lets you model the actual
physical trace on the board to see if the physical implementation of the
signal performs as expected against the earlier simulation.
2 HyperLynx BoardSim lets you run simulations on specific signals and also
lets you compare the simulation results with previous simulations created in
HyperLynx LineSim. This capability lets you carefully examine the projected
performance against the actual layout to determine if any tweaking is
required.
3 The results provided by HyperLynx BoardSim help you determine if any
additional components need to be added to the design or if values of
current components need to be adjusted. Any changes can be
incorporated into the design at the schematic level and forwarded to
Layout.

282 HyperLynx BoardSim Simulation

 Simulation with HyperLynx BoardSim & HyperLynx Thermal

Lesson 22: HyperLynx Thermal Analysis

This exercise walks you through the process of sending a finished design from
PADS Professional Layout to HyperLynx Thermal to evaluate possible heat
problems and corresponding solutions for eliminating areas of excessive heat. ❷
This exercise does not cover all of the aspects of the HyperLynx Thermal software
but highlights a few important features.
NOTE: This feature is not available with PADS Professional Student Edition

HyperLynx Thermal Analysis

This section demonstrates how to perform a HyperLynx Thermal simulation.
❶ From the PADS Professional Layout Start Page, select Open, then
browse and select ❸
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal\PCB\ ❷ ❸
CORPORATE.pcb.
❷ Select Analysis > Export to HyperLynx SI/PI/Thermal. BoardSim will
open.
❸ In BoardSim, click Run Thermal Simulation. The simulation is displayed
along with the Components dialog box.
Note: Some components are running as hot as 60 degC. We will try to resolve
some component problems.
❹ You can view the simulation results in 2D or 3D by selecting
View > Toggle 2D/3D mode.
❸
❹

HyperLynx Thermal Analysis 283

 HyperLynx Thermal Analysis (continued) ❻
❺
❺ Create a screw component in the Master Library by selecting Library >
Master.
❻ In the Edit Master Library dialog box, highlight the first component and
click Copy Part.
❼
❼ Enter the name Screw_#6 for the new part.
❽ Click OK. ❽
❾ In the Edit Master Library dialog box, scroll down and, select the Screw_#6
part then click Edit part.
❿ In the Edit part dialog box, change the parameters for this screw as shown
and click OK.

284
284 HyperLynx Thermal Analysis
 Simulation with HyperLynx BoardSim & HyperLynx Thermal

HyperLynx Thermal Analysis (continued)

⓫ In the Edit Master Library dialog box, select Save to disk and click ⓬
Close.
⓬ Copy the ‘Screw_#6’ part from the Master Library to the Working
Library to be used in this design by Selecting Library > Working.
⓭ In the Edit Working Library dialog box (in the left-hand window) Master
library: scroll down and select Screw_#6.
⓮ Click >> to copy it to Working Library: window.
⓯ Click Close. ⓫
⓰ Select Placement > Screw and the part attaches to your cursor.

⓰
⓮

HyperLynx Thermal Analysis 285

 HyperLynx Thermal Analysis (continued)
⓱ Place the part in the location as shown, then click OK in the Component ⓱
properties dialog box.
⓲ Repeat step 17 and place the remaining 3 screws at the locations shown.
⓲
⓳ Rerun the analysis by clicking Run Thermal Simulation.
Note: After adding screws around the upper left IC component, the
temperature decreased from 67degC to 51degC. Overall temperature
for the board decreased to 52degC. ⓱
⓴ Save and exit HyperLynx, then save and close PADS Professional Layout.

286 HyperLynx Thermal Analysis

 Simulation with HyperLynx BoardSim & HyperLynx Thermal

Review Questions
1 When would I use HyperLynx Thermal?
2 How does HyperLynx Thermal compute the temperature of areas of the board?
3 Can I add my own custom heat sinks and mechanical components to HyperLynx Thermal?
4 How do I utilize the results?

Review Answers
1 Many designs can be temperature sensitive depending upon their
application. You can use HyperLynx Thermal to create a thermal model
of your design and determine if you will need to add heat sinking
components or adjust your system cooling and air flow specifications to
guarantee proper performance.
2 HyperLynx Thermal uses an extensive library of thermally modeled
components and air velocity statistics to create a sophisticated model
of the thermal behavior of your design. Through careful monitoring
and adjustment of these parameters, you can discover what changes
you need to consider in order to bring your design into an acceptable
window of thermal performance.
3 You can add additional models to HyperLynx Thermal to represent
specific components that you might add to your design to improve
thermal performance. You must give careful attention to the creation
of these models so that the application can properly interpret their
thermal characteristics.
4 Once you identify problem areas and possible solutions, you can
incorporate the necessary changes into your design and rerun
additional simulations to confirm the adjusted behavior of your design.

HyperLynx Thermal Analysis 287

 End of section. This page intentionally left blank.

288 HyperLynx Thermal Analysis

Completing the
Design
In this section:
„„ Adding Drawing Documentation
„„ Generating Manufacturing Outputs

289
Lesson 23: Adding Drawing Documentation
Once you have completed your design, you will need to prepare documentation
for releasing it to manufacturing. PADS Professional Layout has built-in functionality to
add drawing details, formats, notes, and dimensioning. You can add Drawing Details
from your Personal Library, or import them using DXF drawings from third party design
tools. Dimensioning in PADS Professional Layout is associative, and can be created using
both Linear and Ordinate methods.
❸
In this exercise, you will learn how to update your fabrication drawing to prepare it for
release output for manufacturing.
Dimensioning Setup
Before you dimension your design, you need to prepare the dimensioning
environment. You must set the layer display or set up display schemes for repeated
use. You must also determine which type of dimensioning method is most
appropriate.
❶ In PADS Professional Layout, from the Start Page, select Recent and choose:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson6\PCB\CORPORATE.pcb. ❹
❷ Click Fit Board, then open Display Control and select the FAB_DWG_SH2
display scheme. ❷
❺
❸ Select View > Toolbars > Dimension to add the Dimensioning Toolbar.
❹ On the Dimensioning toolbar, click Dimension Parameters and select the
Local: Default dimension scheme.
❺ Review the settings in the scheme on the General tab of the
Dimension Parameters dialog box. ❻
Note: You create the Dimension Style, Layer, and Font settings here.
❻ Review the settings on the Placement tab then click OK.
Note: You create the Dimension Leader Terminations, Line Styles,
and Placement here. You can save all of the Dimension Parameters
as multiple schemes for your designs. ❹

290 Adding Drawing Documentation

 Completing the Design

Associative Dimensioning
PADS Professional supports two types of associative dimensioning; Linear and
Ordinate. Linear measures the distance between one feature of an object to ❸
another. Ordinate measures all dimensions from a common origin point (0,0) for ❶
the entire board. Once you have dimensioned an object with either method, if
❹
you edit the object location, the dimensions will update automatically for that
object.
Placing Ordinate Dimensions
❶ Zoom to the lower left area of the board, near the Board Origin.
❷ From the Dimension toolbar, click Place An Ordinate Dimension.
❷
❸ Select the mounting hole and place the dimension as shown.
❹ Select the Board Outline locations and the dimensions are placed in
alignment with the first dimension.
Note: The added dimension values are measured from the (0,0) Board Origin.
Automatically Updating Dimensions
❺ Zoom to the lower right area of the board and place a dimension for the
mounting hole.
Note: Right-click and select Cancel to exit Placement mode.
❽
❻ Select the mounting hole, then right-click and select Fix/Lock > Unlock
❺
from the menu.
❻
❼ Right-click the mounting hole and click Properties > Padstack Properties.
❽ Change the X: Location of the mounting hole to 5,500 and click OK.
Note the dimension changes automatically.
❾ Click Undo to move the mounting hole to the original location and Lock it.

Adding Drawing Documentation 291

 Associative Dimensioning (continued)
Placing Linear Dimensions
❶ Click Dimension Parameters on the Dimensioning Toolbar to launch the ❶
Dimension Parameters dialog. Then, on the Dimension Parameters
General tab change the Dimension Method to Associative and click OK.
❷ Click Place Dimension Between Two Elements.
❸ Select the two Board Outline locations to place a dimension for the overall
length of the board as shown.
❹ Using both Ordinate and Associative dimensioning, complete the
dimensioning of your board as shown.

❶ ❷

292 Adding Drawing Documentation

 Completing the Design

Adding and Editing Text ❶

You can add and edit text in your documentation using WYSIWYG True Type fonts.
You have full control over the size, justification, and rotation. You can even create
Mirrored text if needed for the bottom side of your layout. You can also edit multiple
text items simultaneously to save time.
Adding Text
❶ Zoom to the area around the Film Title Block below the Board Outline.
❷ Select Draw > Text. ❸
❸ In the Properties dialog box, setup the Layer, Font, Size, and Justification as
shown.
❹ Enter My Design Inc. for the String value, and place the text as shown by
clicking the location.
Editing Text
❺ Double-click on the text string First Last.
❻ In the Properties dialog box edit the String value and enter your name. ❷
❼ Close the Properties dialog box.

Adding Drawing Documentation 293

 Adding and Editing Text (continued)
Editing Multiple Text Items
In this design, the Drawing Number is a text item that appears in several places
and is identical in all locations. You do not have to edit these individually; you can
change them all with one edit. ❶ ❷
Hint: In most designs, text strings like the Drawing Number can be in multiple places on
multiple pages. So editing them all at the same time can reduce the chance for errors.
❶ Select the Drawing Number text string in the Film Title Block.
❷ Select View > Fit All to see the entire Title Block. ❸
❸ Using Ctrl + Select, select the other two text strings on the title block for
the Drawing Number.
❹ Right-click Properties and edit the String with the value 12345-000.
❺ Close Properties and note that all of the text strings you selected are edited.

294 Adding Drawing Documentation

 Completing the Design

Placing Drawing Cells ❶

You can create Drawing Cells in your Personal Library to use as drawing details,
formats, and notes. You place Drawing Cells using Component Explorer.
❶ Select Place > Component Explorer.
❷ In the Component Explorer Navigator, click Drawing Cells. ❸
❸ Select the Drawing Cell Fab_PCI_EdgeConnDetail, then right-click Place.
❹ Place the Drawing Cell as shown.
Note: Once you place a Drawing Cell, you can move it or edit it like any other cell item
by selecting it and using the Move and editing commands.

Adding Drawing Documentation 295

 Copying Data for External Documentation
Sometimes the documentation for a PCB Design may be completed in other tools; ❷
for example word processor or spreadsheet programs. PADS Professional provides
an easy method for grabbing screen shot data to supply to other tools.
Copy Bitmap
❶
❶ Select Edit > Copy Bitmap to Clipboard.
❷ Frame Select the area of the design that you want to capture for use
externally.
Note: The area is captured to the clipboard using the current Display settings.
❸ Open a word processor or spreadsheet document of your choice, and Paste
the contents from the clip board into the document.
❹ Save your design and Exit PADS Professional Layout.

296 Adding Drawing Documentation

 Completing the Design

Review Questions
1 How do I set the Tolerance for Dimensions in my design?
2 Can I change the Dimension units to be different than the design units?
3 Can I add text on trace and plane layers?
4 How are Drawing Cells created?

Review Answers
1 You set the tolerances for your dimensions using the Dimension
Parameters dialog box. You can set the decimal Precision, Tolerance Style,
and Plus and Minus tolerance values for your dimensions.
2 The units for your dimensions need not be the same as the design units.
You can dimension in Inch, Thousands, Millimeter, and Micron units. You
also have the capability to dimension in two different units using the
Dual Dimensioning feature.
3 You can add Free Text on any layers within the design, including Trace and
Plane copper layers. Text added on copper layers is subject to all of the
spacing DRC checks used for traces, vias, pads, and planes.
4 You create Drawing Cells using the Cell Editor in PADS Library Tools for your
Personal Library. Once created, you can import them into your local design
cache.

Adding Drawing Documentation 297

Lesson 24: Generating Manufacturing Outputs
This section will step you through the process of creating Manufacturing outputs.
PADS Professional Layout supports many different file formats to facilitate automated ❷
manufacturing and design operations. ODB++ or Gerber outputs are usually ❹
required to fabricate a PCB. ODB++ and Gerber files contain design information
for each layer. There are also other critical outputs such as NC Drill Files, PDF
Drawings, Bill of Materials, and other interface report files for manufacturing of
Pick and Place and Testing.

Creating NC Drill Files

When creating manufacturing outputs, create NC Drill files first to make sure that
the output files created afterwards contain the correct drill data.
❶ In PADS Professional Layout, from the Start Page, select Recent and choose:
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson6\PCB\CORPORATE.pcb.
NOTE: If you are notified of the need to Forward Annotate, click Yes and then click
the Amber indicator on the Project Integration dialog.
Click Fit Board, then open Display Control and select the FAB_DWG_SH2
display scheme if not already set.
❷ From the Output menu, select NC Drill… to open the NC Drill Generation
❺
dialog box for defining the Drill Options, Drill Chart Options, Drill Symbols,
Custom Columns, and Feature Control Frames.
❸
❸ Select the Drill Scheme Loc: Default. You can save all of the drill options to a
scheme for use in future layouts.
❹ Review all of the tabs in the dialog box for the features available. ❻
❺ Click OK to create the NC Drill files and Drill Chart for the drawing. You are
asked to save the Default Scheme changes. Click Yes and then select Save
locally with design in the Save scheme dialog and click OK. Click OK to
overwrite.
Drill files are placed in the \PCB\Output\NCDrill project directory.
❻ Once the drill is completed, select the Drill Chart in the editor window and
Move it to the location as shown.
Note: If your design has multiple via layer spans, a drill chart for each span will be
created.

298 Generating Manufacturing Outputs

 Completing the Design

Generating Silkscreen
Although the Silkscreen layers in PADS Professional Layout can be used for your
silkscreen output, fabrication vendors prefer to generate silkscreen based on the
❷
native layers. Silkscreen generation extracts reference designators and component ❸
outlines from each cell in the design and uses a process known as “clipping” to
ensure that no silkscreen data touches pads or solder mask areas. As shown in
the previous verification lesson, you can also check generated silkscreen using
the Batch DRC process.
❶ Click Fit Board, and in Display Control select the scheme SILK_TOP.
❷ In Display Control > Edit tab, enable the (Left Checkbox Top) Fabrication
Objects – Solder Mask and the (Left Checkbox for Top) Route Objects as
shown.
❸ Select Output > Silkscreen Generator, and setup the dialog box as
shown.
„„ Process Both sides of the board on All Package Groups using the
Silkscreen Reference Designators and Outlines design layers.
„„ Break silkscreen with Soldermask Pads using a Pad Clearance of
2(th). ❷
„„ Set Graphics Lines and Text widths to 5(th).
❹ Click OK to generate silkscreen, then click OK to close the results
message.
❺ In Display Control > Fab tab > Fabrication Objects, expand the Silkscreen
Items and disable Outlines and Ref Des to see only the Generated
Silkscreen. ❹
Hint: You can make a Display Scheme for the Generated Silkscreen layers.
❻
❻ Select any Reference Designator. Note that the generated silkscreen is just
a graphic line.
Note: If you make changes to your design that require you to update the silkscreen
layers, you will need to re-process the Generated Silkscreen prior to output for
fabrication.
❼ Deselect the silkscreen and Save your layout.
❺

Generating Manufacturing Outputs 299

 ❶

Creating Gerber Output

Gerber format is still used in the industry for PCB manufacturing outputs. There ❸
are two typical format standards: RS-274X and RS-274D, and both are
unintelligent vector and raster data for plotting trace, via, and pad circuitry. In the next
section you will use a more intelligent form of data output. PADS Professional Layout ❹
can provide both. It is a good idea to set up Gerber output in your design, although
you may not use it.
❶ Select Output > Gerber. Note the \Output\Gerber project directory. This is
where any files will be saved.
❷ The Loc:GerberMachineFile1.gmf has set the format to use the RS-274X
Data type.
❸ On the Parameters tab, select GeneratedSilkscreenBottom.gdo and Copy it to
create a new Gerber file to process. ❷
❹ Rename the new file to Generated SilkscreenTop.gdo.
❺ Click the Contents tab with the new Gerber file selected.
❻ In the Design items section, select Generated Silkscreen – Top. Note the
other sections and the selected items that will be processed to create this
❺
Gerber layer output.
❼ Click OK and then click Yes to save the GerberPlot setup. All of the selected ❻
Gerber layers will be processed.
NOTE: You may receive an error message on first run. Should this occur, select
Output > Gerber and click OK to process the gerber again.
❽ It is good practice to check the GerbPlot.txt log in the File Viewer to verify
that there are no Gerber processing errors on any layers.

❽ ❼

300 Generating Manufacturing Outputs

 Completing the Design

ODB++ Fabrication Output

In the PCB Manufacturing and Assembly industry, vendors prefer
to receive a complete and intelligent database output from PCB
designers. ODB++ is an open format that captures the CAD/
EDA, assembly, and PCB fabrication data in a single, unified,
and intelligent database. ODB++ interfaces directly with Valor
assembly and manufacturing software which is the most widely
used tool by PCB manufacturing vendors worldwide. ODB++ also
interfaces with many third party applications. ❶
Providing ODB++ data format to your fabrication vendors offers a
time-to-market advantage that gerber data cannot provide.
❶ Select Output > ODB++.
❷ Enter the Output job name 12345-000. The file
12345-000.tgz will be saved in the \Output project ❷
directory. This is the file you send to your PCB
fabrication vendor.
❸ Enable Generated Silkscreen data. ❹
❹ Note the other options available for output, and the
❸
selected layers that will be included in the ODB++ data
output.
❺ Enable Launch ODB++ Inside to automatically start the
Cam Compare process.
❻ Click OK and then click Yes to save the ODBSetup and start
the ODB++ output processing.
❼ Click OK to close the warning message.

❺ ❻

Generating Manufacturing Outputs 301

 ODB++ Inside Cam Compare ❶
ODB++ Inside creates a temporary copy of the NC Drill and Gerber output ❺ ❹
based on your settings in those dialog boxes. Then, it runs a Valor Cam Compare,
which compares the ODB++ output with the temporary NC Drill and Gerber
versions.
❶ When ODB++ Inside launches, the Cam Compare has been completed.
❷
❷ You can select layers to display the compare results. Note the two colors for
the layer: one for the ODB++ data and one for the Gerber data. This allows
you to see the mismatches in the data.
❸ Note the traffic light columns. Green lights are shown for matching data.
Red lights are shown for data mismatches.
❹ You can browse and verify the miss-matches using Show Next result.
❺ Explore the different layers using the Pan and Zoom features. ❸
❻ Once you are satisfied with the compare results, click Close to close ODB++
Inside.
❼ Save your design.

302 Generating Manufacturing Outputs

 Completing the Design

Creating PDFs with Extended Print

You can output your designs and drawings in Portable Document Format (PDF),
making them easily viewed by almost any application on any computer system.
Extended Print will print the layers and types of design elements shown on each
sheet, and you can save multiple printing setup schemes for use in future designs. ❷
Extended Print
❶ From Display Control, select the scheme FAB_DWG_SH2 then select View > ❸
Fit All.
❷ Select File > Printing > Extended Print.
❹
❸ On the Extended Print Sheets Setup tab, specify the output file to go to your ❹
Lesson6\PCB\Output\PDF\CORPORATE directory.
❹ Add a new sheet for the fab drawing by selecting New Sheet. Rename the
New Sheet to FabSheet 2.
❺ Select FabSheet 2 and click the Contents tab.
❻ Enable Assign Current View to create a PDF sheet for the displayed screen
data. ❺
Note: You can also choose the Layers and Board Items that you would like printed from
❻
the Contents tab.
❼ Click OK to print a PDF containing all of the selected sheets on the Sheets
Setup Tab.
❽ When your print is completed you ❽
can click OK to exit the Extended
Print dialog box and review your
PDF.

Generating Manufacturing Outputs 303

 Generating a PCB Layout Bill of Materials (BOM)
In PADS Professional Designer, you created a custom Bill of Materials using Part Lister.
PADS Professional Layout can also create a custom Bill of Materials. The Bill of Materials
output in PADS Professional Layout allows you to generate a BOM based on the Part ❷
Number or the Reference Designators as a key sorting field, or you can choose to output
both. You can customize the outputs to include Variant information, Mechanical Cells,
and User Properties. You can also save all of your custom BOM setups as schemes.
❶
Bill of Materials
❶ Select Output > Bill of Materials. Set Bill of Material file: setting to
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson6\PCB\Output\BOM ❷
\CORPORATE.bom
❷ In the Settings section, enable Part Number and Reference Designator to create ❹
both sorted BOMs.
Note: You may change the column Titles and ordering when needed.
❸ Enable Include user properties and Include Mechanical cells. ❸
❹ In the Description section, enable Description to place this property information ❺
in the DESCRIPTION column on the BOMs. This is the property information
contained in PADS Databook.
Note: You can use CTRL+Select to choose more than one property to add to the
DESCRIPTION column. ❻
❺ Click OK and then click Yes to save the scheme changes.
❻ Close the Bill of Materials dialog box and review your generated BOM in
the \PCB\Output directory. You can use any text editor to open the file.
Note the two different sorting sections in the BOM.

304 Generating Manufacturing Outputs

 Completing the Design

Additional Manufacturing Reports and Outputs

In order to complete the fabrication, assembly, and testing of your layout, your vendor
will require other information. Pick and Place files and Bare Board testing files will
be needed to help program vendor equipment. You may also need to send files to ❷
third parties for review in a format that is neutral and can be used by many third party
applications. PADS Professional Layout can generate all of the file outputs you need to
complete your layout release.
❶
Pick and Place and Bare Board Testing
❶ Select File > Export > General Interfaces.
❷ Select the Generic AIS report and Identify parts by Part Number, and click OK to
❸
run the report. Click OK to close the results message.
❸ Using any text editor, open the vb_ais.txt file created in your project
\PCB\Output directory. This is a generic format Auto Insertion file that vendors
can use to program Pick and Place Assembly machines. Close the report after
reviewing.
❹ Repeat step 1 and select the Generic ATE report and Identify parts by Part
Number, then click OK to run the report. Click OK to close the results message.
❺ Using any text editor, open the vb_ate.txt file created in your project
\PCB\Output directory. This is a generic format Automated Testing file that ❹
vendors can use to program Bare Board Testing equipment and
create test fixture data for your layout. Close the report after reviewing. ❺
Note: You can also create a Mitron GenCad testing file if your vendor prefers the
GenCad format.

Generating Manufacturing Outputs 305

 Export CCZ and the Free visECAD Viewer
PADS Professional has the ability to export a format from the schematic and PCB layout
that you can use with the Mentor Graphics free visECAD viewer. Your customers or
❶
vendors can use this free viewer to review the schematic and layout databases if they
do not have PADS Professional software.
The free visECAD Viewer is a fully functional application for viewing designs in the ❷
neutral CCZ format. The visECAD viewer includes many features such as Print with ❶
Preview, Queries, Measuring, as well as many others.
To Download the free visECAD Viewer, use this link: ❹
http://www.mentor.com/products/pcb-system-design/fabrication-assembly-test/
visecad/visecad-evaluation
❶ Select File > Export > CCZ, and set the Export units to Thousandths.
❷ Click OK to export the data, and click YES to save the settings when asked.
❸ When the Save Scheme dialog box appears, check the option checkbox labelled
Save locally with design and select OK.
❹ Once you have visECAD installed, you can double-click on the files to open them
in the viewer.
The files will be located here:
„„ Schematic will be in the project \PCB\Logic directory – Filename.cce.
„„ PCB layout will be in the project \PCB\Output directory – Filename.cce.

306 Generating Manufacturing Outputs

 Completing the Design
❷
Export and Import DXF and IDF
While designing your PCB layout, you may need to interface with other engineers ❸
that are designing the chassis or enclosures for your board. PADS Professional Layout
allows you to provide the most common neutral formats used in the industry. Also,
PADS Professional Layout allows you to import mechanical data from your engineers
using these formats. ❶
Export DXF
❶ Select File > Export > DXF.
❷ Click Browse and name the DXF output file TopAssembly.dxf
❸ Enable the ExpPCB Elements: Assembly Outlines Top, Assembly Ref Des
Top, Board Outline, Fiducial Pads Top, Mounting Holes Layer 1, Placement
Keepouts Top.
❹ Click OK to export the file, and click Yes when asked to save the settings. Your ❹
file will exported to the project \PCB\Output directory.
Note: You can create schemes for different DXF outputs that you can use in future
designs ❺
Export IDF
❺ Select File > Export > IDF.
❻ Click Browse for the Board and Library Output files and name the files
CORPORATE.
❻
❼ Enable Use Board thickness from layer stackup and Export Component
placement outline with height.
❽ Click OK to export the files, and click Yes when asked to save the settings.
Your files will be exported to the project \PCB\Output directory.
❾ Save your layout and Exit PADS Professional Layout. ❼

Generating Manufacturing Outputs 307

 Review Questions
1 How do I output multiple drill files when my layout has blind and buried
vias?
2 What is ODB++?
3 If I use ODB++ Output, do I have to output NC Drill and Gerber?
4 Can I output Variant BOMs?

Review Answers
1 The NC Drill Output automatically handles blind and buried vias. It will output
each via span into a different drill file named per the via span. It will also create
different NC Drill Charts for each via span on separate layers.
2 ODB++ is an object oriented database format developed by the Mentor
Graphics Valor. The format contains all of the information required to
fabricate and assemble your board layout. It is an intelligent format that
provides vendors with much more valuable information that allows them
to quickly verify, test, and create Tools. ODB++ is widely recognized as the
leading format used by PCB fabrication and assembly vendors.
3 No, it is not necessary as the ODB++ files contain all of the required
fabrication information. If you want to use the Cam Compare tool in
PADS Professional, you will have to set up your NC Drill and Gerber outputs.
4 Yes, the PCB layout Bill of Materials output will allow you to generate
separate BOMs for as many variants that you have in your design. Each
BOM will be suffixed per your setup.

308 Generating Manufacturing Outputs

 Data Archiving and
Library Management
In this section:
„„ Data Archiving and Transfer
„„ Personal Library Component Creation

309
Lesson 25: Data Archiving and Transfer
The PADS Archiver provides a quick and easy method for automatically creating ❶
archives for backup or transfer of your PADS Professional Projects. The PADS
Archiver utility collects and stores schematics, PCB layout and library information,
and other data associated with a specific design or project in PADS Professional.
It provides a self-contained design that is ready to be checked into DMS or other
data management tools. You can also use this self-contained file to transfer ❶
the database to another user or location to continue work on the design. You
can choose to add additional files that are not related to the PADS Professional
database, but that you would like to keep with the other project files.

Archiving
PADS Archiver
❶ Start PADS Pro Designer.
❷ Click File>Open>Project then browse to and open
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson6\Lesson6.prj.
❸ From the Tools menu, select Archiver… to open the wizard.
Take a moment to look at the options available in the Wizard.
❹ For the Target Directory, click the Browse button and navigate to
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson6.
This is the location where your archive file will be saved.
❺ Enable Compress using zip format, then select Next. ❹

310 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Archiving (continued)
The PADS Archiver will archive your complete project database, and will condense ❻
the files that are no longer needed. The Additional Files portion of the dialog box
allows you to select files or entire folders that are not automatically added to the ❼
project archive.
❻ Click Add Files, and browse to the
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Lesson6 directory.
❼ Select the PDF datasheet file FCT16244.pdf.
This file will be added to the archive output.
❽ Click Finish. ❽
The archive is created and results are shown.
❾ Click Close.
Your archive file Lesson620191104093552.zip is created. Note that the
file is suffixed automatically with a date and time code.
❿ Close your project and PADS Professional Designer.

Data Archiving and Transfer 311

Archive Management
PADS Pro Design Archive is a design archiving and reviewing tool that you can use „„ Generate additional reports about various aspects of a design, such as
to organize and manage your PCB design development allowing individual users line length, netlist and placement
or small workgroups to easily create, manage, view, and review their project „„ Collaborate with other team members in formal design reviews (or
designs archived in a vaulted database. They can: even as an everyday practice) by marking up designs with redline
„„ View schematics and layouts comments discussing design issues
„„ Archive and restore successive versions of a design, with searchable archive
names and descriptions This lesson will give you the basics of what Design Archive can do for you. If
„„ Compare two versions of a design and view graphical and data reports of you would like more in-depth information, please use the link to the User’s
the differences Guide in the upper right corner of the Design Archive Start Page.

Starting Design Archive and Creating a New Vault ❶

PADS Pro Design Archive is a standalone application now
available on PADS Professional 64-bit installations. ❷
❶ Launch Design Archive using the Windows Start Menu.
Select All Apps > PADS Pro Tools <release> > PADS Pro
Design Archive <release>.
❶
Before you can start archiving your design data you need to
create a vault where archives are stored. To create a new vault
you need to specify an empty folder – it could be a folder on your
local computer or a shared network folder. The content of this
folder is controlled by Design Archive and should not be modified ❸
manually.
❷ On the Design Archive Start Page click the New vault icon. ❹
The Create New Vault dialog displays. Specify the name of
the vault by typing My New Vault in the Name: text area.
❸ Click the Browse button and traverse to the location
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>, then click Make
New Folder, and enter My_First_Vault and click OK.
❹ Click OK to create the vault.
NOTE: The vault folder location must be created in advance.
❺ Once the vault is created, the notification box displays.
Click Yes to continue working with the newly created vault. ❺

312 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Organizing Your Vault

Before you can save archived design data to the vault, you need to create a
Project Container for each design project you archive. You associate the Project
Container with the Working Folder - a folder where the design data is stored
on your machine. A vault typically contains archives for multiple projects,
so for the ease of the navigation and search, it is recommended to create a ❶
hierarchical structure inside the vault using Vault Folders.
❶ To create the first folder, select the My New Vault item in the Vault
View, right-click and select Create Folder… to display the Create Folder
dialog. Enter Work In Progress as the folder name, and then click OK.
Your new folder displays in the Vault View.
NOTE: You can also create a sub-folder using the Create Folder command if you
select the folder item in the Vault View.
❷ Select the Work In Progress folder in the Vault View, right-click and
select Create Empty Project from the menu. The Create Empty Project
dialog displays.
Enter Project-A in the Name text field to specify the name of the project.
Type My first archived project in the Description text box. Click OK to
create the Project Container. ❷
NOTE: The Description box supports multi-line text.
❸ Once the project container is created it appears in the Vault View inside
the Work In Progress folder.

Data Archiving and Transfer 313

 Creating Archives
In the next two sections you’ll create a couple of archives of the
same project.
❶ Click the ‘+’ sign next to the Work In Progress folder in
the Vault View, then click the ‘+’ sign next to the Project-A ❸
project container. Notice the item named Working Folder
(not set).

❷ In order to create the first archive for your project you

need to associate your project container with the folder
where your design project is located. Select the Project-A
project container in the Vault View, right-click and select
Set Working Folder from the menu. This opens the
Browse For Folder dialog.
❸ Inside the Browse for Folder dialog navigate to the
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal folder
and click OK to associate the project container with the
working folder. Notice that the path to the working folder
is indicated in the Vault View and the Working Folder View
shows its content in the bottom left corner of the screen.

314 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Creating Archives (continued) ❹

❹ Now it’s time to create the first archive for Project-A.

Click the Add Archive to Vault icon in the upper right
corner of the Working Folder View. This opens the Add
Archive to Vault dialog.

❺ Inside the dialog click the Select Schematic Project File

browse button (next to the Schematic Project File box).
This opens the Working Folder Bowser dialog.

Data Archiving and Transfer 315

 Creating Archives (continued)

❻ In the Working Folder Browser, select LessonFinal.prj

and click OK.

❼ Click Yes to automatically select layout file(s) associated

with the project.
NOTE: Additional files and folders may be added to the archive
if needed.

316 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Creating Archives (continued)

❽ Specify the name and the description of the created

archive – type Initial Release in the Name text entry
box, type Initial Release in the Description box. Click
OK to start the archiving process.

Data Archiving and Transfer 317

 Creating Archives (continued)

❾ It takes some time depending on the database size to create

the archive. When archiving finishes you will see a notification
prompt. Click OK. Notice that the Archive 1 item is now shown ❿
in the Vault View. ❾

❿ To make the archive name visible in the Vault View, select

❸
Tools > Options from the menubar. This opens the Options
dialog. Click the Archive Navigator Options button at the
lower left corner of the Options dialog. This opens the Archive
Navigator Options dialog. ⓫
⓫ Enable the [Creation Date/Time] Archive Id – Name option in
the Archive display format section of the dialog. Click OK to
apply changes, and then click OK to close the Options dialog.
Now the archive name is visible in the Vault View.

318 Data Archiving and Transfer

Retrieving Project Data from Archives
❶ Inside the Vault View, select the Working Folder item under
the Project-A project container, right-click and select Set ❶
Working Folder. This opens the Browse For Folders dialog.
Navigate to C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>
and select Make New Folder. Enter LessonFinal_ECO
and click OK. Notice the working folder path changes in
the Vault View.

❷ Now select Archive 1 – Initial Release in the Vault View,

right-click and select Restore from the menu. Click Yes
to confirm restoring project data to the current working
folder.
After project data extracts from the archive and
downloads to the working folder, you will receive a
confirmation prompt. Click OK to continue.

❸ You can launch design editing tools directly from

the Design Archive. In the Working Folder View,
double-click the PCB folder then double-click the
CORPORATE.pcb file. This launches the PADS Professional
Layout environment and loads the PCB file.

Data Archiving and Transfer 319

 Retrieving Project Data from Archives (continued)
❹ Zoom to the FPGA U16 area on the board. ❹

❺ For this ECO we will move U25 closer to U16 and remove the High
Speed traces running beneath U25. Select U25 and move it up
closer to U16. ❺

❻ Edit the traces on layers 2 and 5 to clear the area below U25 where
possible as shown.

❼ Save the design and Close PADS Professional Layout.

❽ In Design Archive, click the Refresh Working Folder icon

located in the upper right corner of the Working Folder View. ❾
Notice the timestamp was changed for the several items.
❾ Now you can create another archive using the same procedure as
described in the previous section. Select the Add Archive to Vault
❾
icon.

In the Add Archive to Vault dialog, select LessonFinal.prj (repeat

steps 6-7 from the previous section). Keep the Additional files
and folders list empty. Enter Adjusted Placement as the archive
name and enter Updates to U25 in the Description field. Click OK
to start the archiving process. After the archiving completes click
OK in the notification dialog. Notice that Archive 2 – Adjusted
Placement archive is now visible in the Vault View as Archive Design
automatically enumerates created archives.

320 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Viewing Archived Designs

❶
Design Archive provides powerful capabilities for viewing and exploring
archived designs.

❶ Click the Find in Vault icon located in the upper right corner of
the Vault View. This opens the Find in Vault dialog. Inside the dialog,
select the Archives option for Items, enter place in the Name text field,
then click the Find button. Design Archive finds all archives that have
place in their names.
❷ Double-click Archive 2 in the search results to locate and select this
archive in the Vault View. ❷

❸ Click the [+] sign next to Archive 2 to expand the archive branch, then
expand Schematic and Layout branches.
In addition to actual project data, Design Archive stores snapshots
of schematic and layout design data. Snapshots are created from the
actual project data during archive creation. Snapshots have a limited
data scope compared to the actual project data and they provide a solid
basis for design review and exploration.
❹ Select the CORPORATE item under the Schematic branch,
right-click and select View > Design. This opens the
snapshot of the schematic data in Schematic Viewing Area.

Data Archiving and Transfer 321

 Viewing Archived Designs (continued)
❺ Select CORPORATE (control_buffers)
from the schematic sheet pulldown on
the menubar and zoom to the upper left
corner of the schematic.

❻ Explore Navigation: use middle mouse

scroll wheel to zoom in and out, press
and hold the middle mouse button to
pan. When you place the cursor over a
component, the Design Archive shows its
❺
Reference Designator as a tooltip. When
you place the cursor over a net or bus,
❻
the name of the net/bus is displayed.

You can make component name (refdes)

or net name display permanent.
Right-click inside the Schematic Viewing
Area and enable Labels > Show Comp
Names and/or Labels > Show Net
Names.

322 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Viewing Archived Designs (continued)

❼
❼ To restore the view of the entire sheet, use the left-most
Zoom 1:1 toolbar button.

❽ Now select CORPORATE under the Layout branch, right-click

and select View > Design from the menu that appears. This
opens the snapshot of the layout data in Layout Viewing
Area. Navigation inside Layout Viewing Area is similar to the
Schematic Viewing Area – use the mouse wheel to zoom,
press and hold middle mouse button to pan.
❾

❾ If you open schematic and layout from the same archive,

you can cross-probe between two views. To enable cross-
probing between views, click the Schematic Link icon on the
toolbar in the Layout View. This icon has two states: enabled
❾
and disabled . Clicking the icon toggles the state.
If you are prompted for a possible PCB - Schematic mismatch
between the layout and schematic click Yes to proceed.

❿ Zoom in to display the group of LED components in the

lower left corner by pressing and holding the left mouse
button and drawing a rectangle around components.
Release the button to zoom in.

Data Archiving and Transfer 323

 Viewing Archived Designs (continued)
⓫ Position the cursor over the L1 part in schematic
view and click to select it. This immediately
modifies the layout view to locate and select L1
in the layout view.

❶
⓫

⓫
❺

324 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Viewing Archived Designs (continued)

⓬ Switch to the Layout View, position
the cursor over the outline of
component U8 (locate near the top
left of the board) and click to select
it. Since there are multiple schematic
parts with the U8 refdes, the Design
Archive opens the Multiple Matching ⓬
Items dialog that lists all schematic
parts with U8 refdes. Select a part in
the dialog and the schematic view
changes to locate and highlight that
selected part. Click Done when you ⓭
are finished using the dialog.
⓭ Click the Reports icon on
the Layout Viewing Area toolbar.
This opens a menu with four report
choices. Explore the contents of the
reports. Clicking a report opens the ⓬
Report View, where you can print the
report or save it to the vault for further
review. You can also copy report data
using Ctrl-A shortcut and then paste
the report into a spreadsheet file for
further exploration.

Data Archiving and Transfer 325

 Comparing Archives
Design Archive allows you to compare design data from different
archives in a various ways.
❶ By clicking the [+] sign expand the Work In Progress item
in the Vault View, then expand the Project-A item. Expand
Archive 1 and Archive 2 items and expand the Schematic
and Layout branches for each archive. Design Archive
enables you to do Netlist, Data, Graphical and Constraints ❶
comparisons between schematic and layout data from
the same or different archives. We will do a Graphical
Compare on the ECO we just created.

GRAPHICAL COMPARE
Design Archive allows you to find graphical layer-by-layer ❸
differences between two versions of layout designs, to generate
a comparison report and to save the report to the vault.

❷ Select CORPORATE layout form Archive 2 and CORPORATE

layout from Archive 1 using Ctrl+Click. Right-click, then
select Compare > Graphical from the menu. The Layer
Compare dialog displays.

326 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Comparing Archives (continued)

GRAPHICAL COMPARE
❸ Make adjustments to
comparison parameters at the
bottom of the Layer Compare
dialog: set Compare Grid
Size to 4; set Pixel Compare ❸
Tolerance to 3. Make sure that
the Compare Type is set to
Selected Layer(s). Enable the
Generate Report option. ❹
❹ Position the Layer Compare
and Design Archive windows
side-by-side (as shown). Now,
select layers to compare:
enable SIGNAL_1, PadLayer_
SIGNAL_1, SIGNAL_2,
SIGNAL_5 and the BOARD_
OUTLINE. Notice, as you
enable layers your selection is
displayed in the Design Archive
window.

Data Archiving and Transfer 327

 Comparing Archives (continued)
GRAPHICAL COMPARE
❺ For this simple board, the comparison preview already shows
the differences between two archives. To get to a greater level
of details, click the COMPARE button to initiate an actual
comparison. For the graphics compare purposes, the Design
Archive divides the board area into rectangular compare areas ❺
(in this case it’s 4 x 4 = 16 areas) and is looking for bitmap
differences inside each compare area. The comparison is
performed twice, once with Design 1 image laid over Design 2
image, and again with Design 2 image laid over Design 1 image.
Two comparisons are necessary because the top layer “covers”
the bottom layer, so some differences might be seen in one
comparison and not in the other.
❻
❻ After the comparison completes two things happen: The Layer
Differences list on the right-hand side of the Layer Compare
dialog is populated and the Report View window is created.
For a brief differences review you can click on an item inside the
Layer Differences list to zoom in the PCB View to a particular
area with differences.
❼ For more systematic exploration of differences you can use the
hierarchical Graphics Compare report. Switch to the Report
View window and maximize it. It shows the top level of the
Graphical Compare report, where you can see design versions
and the summary of comparison results for two comparison
methods explained in step ❺.

328 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Comparing Archives (continued)

GRAPHICAL COMPARE ❽
❽ Click inside the box below the Design 1 above 2 title. This
opens the second level of the Graphical Compare report
that shows how the board area is divided into Compare
Areas. Letters A, B … denote rows and digits 1, 2, 3… denote
columns.
Scroll down or click inside a compare area with differences
to get to the list of areas where differences were detected.

Click the thumbnail at the intersection of the Difference Nr 1

(Location B4) row and the Combined column to get the full-
scale image of the compare area B4.

❾ Click the Backwards icon at the upper left

corner of the Report View to go back to the Compare Area
list. Use the same button again to return to the top of the
Graphical Compare report. Click the Save Report to Vault
icon at the upper left corner of the Report View to
save this report to the vault. The report is written to the
Reports branch of Archive 1. Close the Report View, and then
close the Layer Compare dialog.

Data Archiving and Transfer 329

 Design Review
Another way to use the Design Archive is to perform design reviews.
❶ Open the CORPORATE layout from the Archive 2 archive. ❶

❷ To access the redlining commands, press the Redlining icon

on the toolbar. This opens the Redline toolbar and the Markup
Viewing Area (on the top right side of the screen). ❸

❸ Select the Add Topic icon on the Markup Area toolbar and
create a new topic U25 ECO. Select the topic and click the Add ❸
Issue icon to create a new issue called/named Move U25
closer to U16 and clear HS traces from L2 and L5.
❹ Zoom in to the extents of component U25, select the created issue
in the Markup Area, then select the Add Redline Sticky Note icon
on the Redline toolbar. Press and hold the left mouse
button and start drawing a rectangle inside the component U25
outline. Release the button. This opens the Enter Redline Text
dialog. Type a sticky note as shown, then press OK. This creates the
sticky note image in the layout view and adds the sticky note item
to the markup tree inside the Markup Area.
❹

330 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Design Review (continued)

❺ Click the Save to Vault icon on the Markup

Area toolbar. Select OK when prompted that the
data will be saved in the vault. This step creates a
collaboration report and saves it to the Vault. This
report can be retrieved by selecting the CORPORATE ❺
layout under Archive 2 inside the Vault View, right-
click and select View > Collaboration Data from the
menu.
❻ Exit Design Archive.

Data Archiving and Transfer 331

 Review Questions
1 Can I compare different archives in Design Archive?
2 Can I include notes or comments for archive?
3 If I make another archive will the Design Archive auto-assign a new revision to a new archive?
4 How can I search inside the Vault?
5 Can I move my vault to another location?

Review Answers
1 Yes you compare different archives and see difference reports in HTML format.
2 Yes, redlines, notes and comments can be included for each archive and can be used for design reviews.
3 Yes, a new revision will be assigned to each new archive and additional descriptive notes identifying
each archive can be added to the revision.
4 You can search for Project containers, folders and archives in a vault using several criteria: user name,
name of a project, folder or archive, text in the archive description. you can search entire Vault or
individual folders for items you are looking for. You don’t need to remember exact names by instead
using keywords that are present in the names.
5 Yes, you can copy and move your vault directory to another location on your machine or to another
machine. You can compress your vault and send it by e-mail (if it’s not too big).

332 Data Archiving and Transfer

 Data Archiving and Library Management

❶
Lesson 26: Creating Components in your Personal Library
The key to successful PCB design is ensuring that the physical design data
matches the logical intent of the design. Managing this relationship ensures
the design is correct by construction. The PADS Pro Library Tools provides a
common interface to the various elements that make up the library objects like
symbols, cells and padstacks, and parts. Here is where you create and maintain the
relationships between these objects.
Objects in your Personal Library may be partitioned into related groups. Changes
made to one object affecting another object are propagated automatically. For
example, if you modify a padstack object, all cells that use the padstack update
automatically in the Personal Library. Built-in data checking ensures the relationships
between objects are valid and that objects cannot be deleted if used by other objects.
This tight integration ensures data reliability throughout the library development and
design processes.
This lesson will give you the basics of what PADS Pro Library Tools can do for you.
If you would like more in-depth information, please refer to the PADS Library Tools
Process Guide provided with your software documentation and available through ❷
SupportNet.
Opening PADS Pro Library Tools
You can open PADS Pro Library Tools from within PADS Professional Designer, PADS
Professional Layout or the Start Menu.
NOTE: The Start menu for PADS Professional 64-Bit installations now includes PADS Pro
Design Archive (outlined in RED in the first image). To understand how Design Archive fits
in your flow, explore Chapter 25.
❶ Start PADS Pro Designer to open the application Start Page. ❹
❷ Click Open on the Start Page and browse to and select ❸
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal\LessonFinal.prj.
❸ Select Tools > PADS Pro Library Tools.
❹ PADS Library Tools opens, and is connected to the current project library.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 333

 The PADS Library Tools Workspace
The PADS Library Tools interface is used for library management and editing.
It contains utilities that are specific to PADS Library Tools and access to editing
tools for library component creation.

Library Navigator Tree ❶

Use the Library Navigator to explore the different partitions for each of the
library entities: Parts, Cells, Symbols, Padstacks, and Models.
❶ Expand and Review the library sections.

The PADS Library Tools Toolbar

Partition Visual Reusable Material/ FPGA
File Setup Units Search Library IBIS Part Padstack Blocks Process Part
New Viewer Parameters Display Paths Services Editor Editor Editor Editor Editor Wizard

Open Refresh Property Partition Unreserve Property Parts Cell Symbol Layout Simulation Help
Verification Editor Partitions Definition Manager Editor Editor Templates Model Contents
Editor Editor Properties

334 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Creating a Symbol with the Symbol Editor

The symbol editor allows you to create new symbols very quickly. You can
use a spreadsheet to copy and paste pin information into the symbol or you ❷
can enter the data manually.

Open the Symbol Editor and Set the Grid ❶

❸
❶ Select Tools > Symbol Editor.
❷ Select File > New to create a new symbol. The workspace displays
with similar workspace, toolbars and Property window from PADS
Professional Designer environment to enable ease of use. You will
be using many of the skills you have learned using PADS Professional ❹
Designer to set your environment for Symbol Editing.
❸ Select Setup > Settings to specify the Symbol Editor Settings for Grid,
Pin Length and Pin Positioning environment.
❹ In the Settings dialog, click the Schematic Editor entry on the left side
to bring that page to the top.
Set Schematic Units to inches. In the Grid section, enable the checkbox
option for Grid Snap and select the Grid Type to Lined from the
dropdown list. Set Grid Spacing to 0.050. Show markings every 10 grid
points. Click Apply.
❺ Select the Symbol Editor entry to bring that page to the front and set
the following:
Pins:
Default length: 4 grid points,
❺
Default Spacing: 4 grid points
Properties:
Enable the checkbox option for Automatic pin side recognition
Pin property position: Above Pin
Symbol property position: Below Symbol
Name visibility: Show placeholder
Symbol file format:
Enable the checkbox option for Use high precision
Click OK. Your settings are applied and the dialog closes.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 335

 Adding Pins to a Symbol ❶
❶ In the symbol editor click the Box icon on the Add toolbar to draw a box
symbol outline. To add pins click Add-Pin. ❶
❷ Place the pin on the upper left corner of the symbol body as shown
below. Then type the Pin Name CLK and press Enter. Use the ESC key to
exit pin placement mode after placed.
❸ Now define this pin to be pin 1. Click the Properties toolbar icon if
the Properties window is not visible. Select the pin and then view the
Property and Value columns of the Properties window. ❷
Note: If you have difficulty selecting the pin, make sure that the my ESE Filter
on the toolbar is selected.
❹ Click in the Value column for the property Pin Number.
Enter a value of 1 in the Value field and enable the checkbox option for
visibility. The pin number is placed on the pin in the workspace. ❸ ❹
❺ Using the previous steps, add 2 Power pins to the Top of the symbol as
shown. This time use the Pins window to assign Pin Names of VDD_1
and VDD_2 and assign the pin numbers 19 and 20. Next, select
POWER from the Pin Type dropdown list in the Pins window to assign
this Pin Type to these two pins.
Note: Pin Names cannot be duplicated on symbols, so use suffixes for multiple
❺
pin names.

❺
❻

❻ Add a Ground pin to the Bottom of the symbol with a Pin Name of GND
and a Pin Number of 10 as shown.
336 Creating Components in your Personal Library
 Data Archiving and Library Management
❶
Add an Array of Pins
❶ Add an array of input and output pins by clicking Add Pin Array. ❷
❷ Use the following settings for the input pin array:
„„ Enable the option button for Range ❷
„„ Value: Dec 7 to 0
„„ Delta = 1
„„ Prefix = IN
„„ Pin location = Left
„„ Pin type = IN
„„ Pin spacing = 4
❸ Click Place to create the array of pins.
❹ Place on the left side approximately 4 grids down from the CLK pin.

Note: Use Setup > Settings and then use the Advanced page to toggle the port
type graphical indicators (Pintype Arrows) On (Full and Half) and Off (None). ❸
❺ Add another array for the output pins using the following settings:
„„ Value: Dec 7 to 0
„„ Delta = 1
„„ Prefix = OUT ❻
„„ Pin location = Right
„„ Pin type = OUT
„„ Pin spacing = 4
❻ Click Place the array on the right side of the symbol so that the output pins
align with the input pins as shown.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 337

 Adding Pin Numbers
❶ Shift-select the IN pins (other than CLK) from the Pins window. ❶
Note: The pins highlight in all windows (including the working area).
❷
❷ Click Add Properties mode icon to update the pins.
❸ Set the values as shown. Make sure Type = Pin Property, Name = Pin Number,
Range is enabled, Prefix is Empty, Value = 2, Delta = 1, Suffix is Empty and
Position and Visibility are set to Above Pin and Value.
❹ Click Apply. This automatically adds and increments the Pin Numbers.
Position them as shown.
❺ Repeat steps 1 through 4 for the OUT pins. Use Value = 18 as the starting value
and Delta = -1 to decrement the Pin Numbers down to 11. Click Apply.
Position them as shown. Click Close.

❸
❹

338 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Adjusting the Symbol Outline

Note: You need to shrink to symbol shape and the outline to create a complete symbol.
❶ To shrink the outline, first select the Filter dropdown and select Graphics. ❶
❷ ❸
❷ Select the symbol shape and notice pick points appear on the shape.
❸ Select the Middle pick point and drag the bottom segment of the symbol closer
❺
to the lowest pins. Place it four grid points below the lowest pins.
❹ Select the Filter dropdown and select All.
❺ Do not forget to move the GND Pin after adjusting the symbol outline.
Select and drag the pin to the new location shown.

Moving the Symbol Origin ❻

❻ To complete the graphical modifications you need to move the origin to the
appropriate location.
❼ Select the Origin marker and drag the marker to the lowest left pin on the new
symbol. ❽
❽ Your symbol should appear as shown.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 339

 Saving the Symbol
❶ Select File > Save As… and choose the Sample library partition.
❷ Name the symbol, Symbol_YourName1.1 and click Save. ❶ ❸
❸ In the Properties window, notice that the Name property value has been updated
to match the name you used. The Output window shows that the Libraries are
automatically updated with your new symbol.

❻
❼

❹ The symbol is now complete and ready for use.

Verifying the Symbol Availability

❺ Select File > Exit to exit the Symbol editor.
❻ In PADS Professional Designer click Project Integration light and click the
amber light to update the library for your design.
❼ In PADS Professional Designer click the PADS Databook icon display this ❽ ❾
utility on your workspace.
❽ In PADS Databook, select the CL View tab and the Symbol View tab.
❾ Select the [+] symbol to expand the Sample partition and scroll down to find
❿
your new symbol.
❿ Notice the Symbol_YourName1.1 symbol has been saved and is ready for use.

340 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Exporting Pins
❶ In PADS Library Tools, click the Symbol Editor toolbar icon. In the
Symbol Editor select File > Open > Library Symbol and browse to your ❶
Symbol_YourName1.1 symbol.
❷ Select File > Export Pins to generate a comma separated file (CSV) of
this symbol. Save this file to your PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\ ❺
LessonFinal directory and name the file Symbol_YourName_Pins.csv ❹
and click Save.
❸ The symbol data is now exported and ready for use.
❷
❹ Select File > Close to close this symbol database but keep the Symbol
Editor active.

❻
Automatically Generating Symbols from Pins
❺ Select File > New > Symbol to start a new symbol Use
Setup > Settings to set your environment for this symbol.
❻ Select File > Generate symbol from pins. The Select Pin List
file browse dialog displays.
❼ Browse to PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal
and select the Symbol_YourName_Pins.csv file.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 341

 Automatically Generating Symbols from Pins (continued)
❽ In the Symbol Editor the Symbol_YourName_Pins symbol loads in the ❽
workspace. Using your new skills learned in this lesson, adjust the
length (not the width) so that it is 4 grids from the CLK pin at the top ❾
and 4 grids from the IN0 pin at the bottom. Adjust the placement of the
Power (VDD_1 and VDD_2) and Ground (GND) pins as shown. Finally
move the origin of the symbol to Pin 9 as shown.
❾ Select File > Save As to save this symbol in the Sample Partition. Name
this symbol Symbol_YourName.2 and click Save. This creates a second
rendering of your Symbol_YourName symbol. This is helpful when you
need an alternate or IEC rendering of a symbol.
You will see that your created symbols are created with
0, 90, 180, 270 orientations in standard and mirrored format.
Use the tabs at the bottom of the workspace window to
inspect your symbol in these orientations.

❿ The new alternate symbol is in your Sample partition

and ready for use in your schematic.
Select File > Exit to close the Symbol Editor.
In PADS Professional Designer, select Symbol_YourName
in the Sample Partition.
Use the dropdown in the Place Symbol window to inspect
the two symbols you have available for placement.
❿

342 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Creating a Symbol from a Spreadsheet ❶

Entering all of the pins manually on large pin count devices can be tedious and error
prone.By entering all your pins into a spreadsheet, you can quickly and easily import
them into the Symbol Editor for placement on a symbol.

Start a New Symbol and Load the Pin Data

❶ Open the Symbol Editor from Library Tools and select File > New > Symbol.
NOTE: Use Setup > Settings to set your environment settings for this session
then use the Display > Objects page to set background to gray with white grid
to match the screenshots that will be shown in this exercise. Change your grid ❷
type to dotted. All other settings are the same that you set at the beginning of
this lesson.

❷ Right-click in the Pins window and click Import Pins.

❸ Browse to C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal and select
SerialIO.csv to import all of the pins from this file.
❹ All unplaced pins are marked with No in the Placed column. You can add pins to
the symbol by selecting them from this list.
❺ Select Symbol > Box or use the Box toolbar icon to place a basic symbol outline.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 343

 Adding Pins to the Symbol
❶
❶ You can select pins from the pins list and drag them into the Symbol window to
place them on the symbol body. As you place each pin the No is removed from
the Placed column. Click the Name column header to sort in ascending order.
❷ Scroll to the bottom and select the ~RST_N pin name in the pins list. The cursor
will now turn to a hand indicating that the pin can be dragged to the symbol.
❸ Drag the pin into the Symbol view. Notice the pin attaches itself to the hand
cursor so that it can be placed in the Symbols working pane.

NOTE: Use Setup > Settings > Advanced to toggle Pin Arrow to Full if you wish to have
your pin show Input Port as displayed here.
❹ Release the mouse button when the pin is in the desired location on the symbol
body.
❺ Notice the invert bubble on the pin and a strike over the name. The bubble is an
indication that in the CSV file, the pin was set as inverted. The Pin Label began
with ~ which results in the strike over.
❻ Using the same process shown in Steps 2 through 4, place the TC, FIVE_WORDS, ❺
SER_ACK_N and OUT_EN_N pins on the symbol output side.

344 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Adding Multiple Pins to the Symbol

❶ You can also add multiple pins simultaneously from the Pins list. Click ❹ ❶
the Pin Type column header in the Pins window to sort the pins by type
(IN or OUT).
❷ Left-click the first DATA7 pin, then hold the Shift key and select the DATA0
pin. All pins highlight and your cursor turns to the hand indicating that you
can drag the pins to the workspace.
❸ Drag the highlighted pins (blue area) to a desired destination on the right ❷
side of the symbol body.

❹ Experiment with adding other pins and modifying the symbol graphics.
Notice that as you place pins the No changes to Yes in the Placed column
so that it’s easy to sort and/or visually scan for unplaced pins.
❺ When you are done, exit Symbol Editor without saving.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 345

 Creating Land Pattern Information
This lesson will walk you through creating a PCB Land Pattern. In PADS Professional
Layout, land patterns are called Cells. Cells can be Package cells, Mechanical cells,
or Drawing cells. You will use wizards to create both the padstack information and
the physical representation for the PCB layout.
The Padstack Editor ❹
The Padstack Editor allows you to create many different types of padstacks: Through
Pins, SMD Pins, Fiducials, Mounting holes, Vias, and others. Once defined and
named, you can assign different pads to padstack layers, specify pad filters, define
pads to use within stacks, define holes and define any custom pads or drill symbols.
Tip: The standard method to create a new pad is to click the New icon and rename
the pad to your own naming convention. In this lesson, the method shown in the
following steps accelerates pad creation by naming the pad automatically per the
size information entered.
❶ Start PADS Professional Layout to display the Start Page.
❷ Click Open on the Start Page and browse to and select
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal\PCB\LessonFinal.pcb.
❸ Select Setup > Libaries > PADS Library Manager from menubar.
❹ In PADS Library Tools, select Tools > Padstack Editor. Review the tabs and ❺ ❻
information in each section.
❺ Click the Pads tab and set the Filter pad list to Rectangle.
❻ In the Properties section, set the Units to th (mils).
❽
❼ In Pad parameters, enter 25 for the height and 75 for the width of the pad.
Note the graphic in the Preview window adjusts to display your modifications. ❼
❽ Click New to create your newly defined pad.
The new pad is automatically named Rectangle 75x25.
❻ Repeat steps 1 through 5 and create a Rectangle pad with a height of 29 and
a width of 79. You will use this pad as the Oversize pad for Solder Mask
layers.

346 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

The Padstack Editor

❶ Click the Padstacks tab and set the Filter padstack list to Pin – SMD.
❷ In the Properties section, set the Pad filter to Rectangle.
❶ ❷
❸ Click New Padstack and name it Pad Rectangle 75x25.
❹ From the Available pads list, select Rectangle 75x25.
❺ Click in the box next to Top mount, then click the Assign Pad arrow to ❹
❺
move the pad into the assignment list.
❻
❻ Assign the Rectangle 75x25 pad to the Bottom mount and Top and
Bottom Solderpaste layers.
❼ Repeat steps 4 and 5 to assign the Oversize Rectangle 79x29 pad to the ❼
Top and Bottom Solder Mask layers of the padstack.
Note: When creating padstacks, you can have different pads for a Top Mounted
land pattern or Bottom Mounted land pattern.
❽ Select File > Save to save your new pads and padstack, then Exit the
Padstack Editor.
❾ You can view and edit the new padstacks by double-clicking them in the
Library Navigator Tree. ❸

Creating Components in your Personal Library 347

 ❷
Creating a New Cell
Creating components with PADS Professional is quick and easy. You can create them ❸
with wizards or manually depending on the complexity of the land pattern.
❶
The Cell Editor
❶ In PADS Library Tools, select Tools > Cell Editor.
❷ Set the Partition to Sample.
❸ On the Package tab click New Cell.
❹ Enter the Cell name SO20L and enter the information as listed:
„„ Total number of pins: 20
❹
„„ Layers while editing cell: 2
„„ Package group: IC – SOIC
„„ Mount type: Surface
❺ Click Cell Properties and set Units to th (mils).
❻ Enter a Height value of 15, then click Close.
❼ Click Next and the Place Pin wizard will open along with the Cell Editor
window. ❻
Note: The Menus, Toolbars and Commands are very similar to the PCB Editor. ❺

348 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Creating a Cell with the Place Pins Wizard

The Place Pins wizard allows you to place pins by Parameters or use ❶
pre-defined Patterns for standard industry land pattern types. You can also ❹
add, modify, and renumber pins for your cell.
❷
❶ Select the Pattern Place tab and choose the Pattern type SOIC.
❷ Enable Include Assembly outline and Include Silkscreen outline. ❸
❸ Enter the values shown:
„„ Body Width: 500
„„ Body Height: 260
„„ Pin Pitch: 50
„„ Pin Row Spacing: 380
❹ In the Pins section, select Pin 1 then press and hold the Shift key. ❻
❼
❺ Scroll down and select Pin 20, and while still pressing the Shift key, ❺
select Pad Rectangle 75x25 from the Padstack Name dropdown list.
❻ While still pressing the Shift key, choose 90 from the Rotation dropdown
list.
❼ Click Place to create the cell pattern.
❽ Save the cell, but do not exit Cell Editor.
❼

Creating Components in your Personal Library 349

 ❶

Modifying Cells in the Cell Editor Window ❷

Once you have created your pattern with the wizard, you can make any
modifications necessary to your cell to fulfill your PCB layout requirements.
All of the capabilities available to you in the PCB Editor are also available in
the Cell Editor.
❶ Select the Ref Des placeholder for the Silkscreen layer and move it to a location
that is not beneath the component when placed in a layout.
Make a few modifications on your own…
❷ You can add pre-defined Fanouts or Routing.
❸ Add a Ground Slug plane and stitch some vias in it.
❹ Add a predefined Rule Area to your cell. A named Rule Area in your cell is
automatically added to your Constraint Manager Schemes if the cell is used in
your design.
❺ If you made any modifications, Save your cell and Exit the Cell Editor.
❸

350 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management
❷
Creating a New Part in the Part Editor
Now that you have created a Schematic Symbol and a Land Pattern Cell,
link them together logically with a new Part Number. The Part Editor links
the logical and physical pieces of the component together. It also creates
Pin and Gate Swapping information for the component.
❶ In the PADS Library Tools Navigator Tree, expand Symbols > Sample
❶
and select Symbol_YourName1 to preview the symbol and use it
for reference while completing the next steps.
❷ In the PADS Library Tools, select Tools > Part Editor and select the IC
partition. These are all of the Parts in your current library.
❸ Click New to create a new part.
❹ Assign the value Part_YourName for Number, Name, and Label.
❺ In the Component Properties section, set the Type to IC.
❻ Enter a Description for the part.
❸
❼ Set the Reference des prefix to U.
❽ Click Pin Mapping.

❻
❺

❼ ❽

Creating Components in your Personal Library 351

 Importing the Symbol and Cell into Pin Mapping ❷
❹
Importing your symbol and cell can help automate the pin mapping process in the
Part Editor. You can also import additional alternate symbols and cells if needed. ❺
For this exercise you will import your symbol and cell, then manually define the Pin
Mapping because your symbol has swappable gates.
❶ In the Assign Symbol section, click Import. ❻
❷ In the Import dialog box on the Symbols tab,
select the Sample partition and select Symbol_YourName1.
❸ Uncheck Create new gate information.
❸
❹ Click the Cells tab and select the Sample partition.
❺ Select the Package group IC-SOIC and the Number of pins: 20.
❻ Select the cell SO20L.
❼ Click OK.
❽ Review the Logical and Physical tabs to see that the pin information has
been loaded into Pin Mapping.
❼

352 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Assigning Gates
❶ In Pin Mapping, click the Logical tab then click New and create
8 swappable slots with 2 pins per swappable slot. Click OK.
❷ On the Logical pins list, select IN0 and OUT0 using the CTRL+Select method. ❶ ❻
❸ Click the top box of the Slot #1 column.
❹ Click Paste Down to assign the pins to Slot #1 as shown.
❺ Repeat steps 2 through 4 to assign the remaining
Input/Output pins into
Slots 2 through 8 as shown.
❻ Repeat step 1 and create a new gate with 1 slot and 4 pins.
❼ Assign the remaining pins to the new gate as shown.
Note: Any Slots within the same gate are swappable. ❸
❷

Creating Components in your Personal Library 353

 ❶
Assigning Gates (continued)
You will now map the physical pins to the gates.
❶ In Pin Mapping, click the Physical tab. ❸
❷ From the Physical pins list, select pin numbers 9 and 11. ❷
❸ Select the top box in the Pin # column for Slot #1.
❹ Click Paste Down to assign the pin numbers to Slot #1 as shown.
❺ Repeat steps 2 through 4 to assign the remaining pin numbers
to the correct Slots as shown. Use the Symbol/Cell Preview as
a reference guide.
❻ Select the remaining 4 pin numbers and assign them to the second gate as ❺
shown.
❼ Click OK.
Note: When you click OK, the Part Editor does a verification of your entire part to make
sure the symbol pins match the physical cell pins. If you cannot save the part you will
need to correct the errors first.
❽ Select File > Save, and Exit the Part Editor.

354 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Adding Component Records for PADS Databook

Once you have completed your component, add a record to PADS Databook so you
can query and place it in PADS Professional Designer.
❶ In the PADS Library Tools Navigator Tree, expand Parts, then right-click IC and
click Edit Parametric Data. ❶
❷ Click the Table: IC tab, then click Last Record.
❸ Enter the record information as shown:
„„ Part Number: Part_YourName
„„ Part Name: Part_YourName ❹
„„ Part Label: Part_YourName
„„ Cell Name: SO20L ❷
„„ Description: My First Part
„„ Symbol: Symbol_YourName
The other columns can be left blank
❹ Exit the table to Save your additions.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 355

 Adding Component Records for PADS Databook (continued)
❶ In PADS Professional Layout, select Setup > PADS Designer
Your schematic opens in PADS Professional Designer.
❷ In PADS Professional Designer, select Tools > Update Libraries.

❸ In PADS Professional Designer, open PADS Databook and select the IC Library.
❹ Scroll to the bottom of the components listing and select Part_YourName. ❷
❺ Your Symbol is in the Preview Window.
❻ Your Parametric Data is listed.
❼ Using the Preview Window dropdown list, choose your cell to preview.

❸
❺

❹ ❻

356 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

The Layout Template Editor

In a previous lesson you were able to integrate your schematic using a PCB Layout
Template. The layout templates are maintained in PADS Library Tools with the
Layout Template Editor. Templates can contain as much information as you need
for your designs. Data can include formats, notes, detail views, etc.
❶ In the PADS Library Tools, select Tools > Layout Template Editor.
❷ A list of the Templates in your library appears. Select ❶ ❷
VX Template_2Layer_Formatted. ❸

❸ Click Copy and rename the copy to

VX Template_2Layer_YourName.

❹ Click Edit Template to open the template in the PADS Professional

Layout editor window.
❺ In PADS Professional Layout, choose the
Loc:Min Contents display scheme from
the dropdown list on the Standard toolbar.
❻ Modify the Title Block to contain
YourName as DRAWN.
NOTE: You may need to enable Allow CellText Edits
from the Place tab [General Options] in Editor Control.

❻ ❻

❼ Save the template and Close the Templates list.

YourName will always be filled in when you
integrate to this template.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 357

 Enterprise Data eXchange (EDX)
EDX is a standard format for the exchange of library, component and design
data between the design authoring systems and ANY consumer of the data. The
EDX format is a neutral format that is independent of the internal tool database
structures and ensures stability as the PCB design applications and flow continue
to evolve.
In addition, Mentor Graphics encrypts the data within the EDX extraction to provide
security for the data objects to limit unauthorized access and edit of their files; this ❶
inherently protects the native tool data from outside edit.
To learn more about EDX, see the EDX Solutions Alliance website at
www.edx-sa.com or click the graphic to the right to watch a quick video.

Exporting Library Objects from your Library using EDX

PADS Professional uses EDX to transfer library objects between your personal
libraries from within PADS Library Tools. The library objects can be exported from ❷
a library individually, by Partition, or through a bulk selection. Some objects like
Drawing or Mechanical cells, or Symbols not referenced by Parts, can also be
exported as Orphans from within the bulk selection. When you export Parts from
your library using EDX, all of the part, cell, symbol, and padstack information is also
included.
❶ From the Library Navigator Tree, expand Library.lmc > Parts > IC.
❸
❷ Right-click the first IC listed, 500_5R5V_IC, and click Export EDX….
❸ Click Save to generate the EDX file.
❹ Close the EDX generation successful message window.

358 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Exporting Multiple Library Objects using EDX

❶ From PADS Library Tools select File > Export EDX. This opens the bulk
selection dialog box.
❷ Browse to the C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library directory and
enter PartialLibrary for the Output file name.
❸ Enable Preview items.
❹ Disable the Library check box, and then select Resistor in the Parts section ❶
and Drawings in the Orphans > Cells section.
❺ In the first column, select On from the dropdown filter to show only the
items to export.
Note: All of the columns can be filtered and sorted as needed for review.
❻ You can deselect any items by disabling the check box in the first column.
❼ Click OK and Close the EDX generation successful message window. ❷

❺
❻

❸ ❼

Creating Components in your Personal Library 359

 Creating a New Personal Library
You can import EDX data into any PADS Professional Personal Library, or you can
create a completely new Personal Library and build a library based on information
exported from other libraries.
❶ From the PADS Professional Designer Start Page, select the New Central
Library icon.
❶
❷ Browse to the C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release> directory and create a
New Folder named MyNewLibrary.
❸ Double-click MyNewLibrary so that you are within that directory, and provide
a file name for the library MyNewLibrary, then click Save to create the new ❷
personal library.
❹ To review the new library, from PADS Library Tools close your current
library.
Importing Library Objects using EDX
❺ From the Start menu, select PADS Pro Library Tools
❹
and then open MyNewLibrary.lmc to make the
library active.
❸
In PADS Library Tools select File > Import EDX.
Note: The Bulk mode option allows you to import the
entire contents of the file in a single step.
❻ Browse to and select the EDX export file
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\
PartialLibrary.edx.
❼ Note the EDX file content will be imported into the
open personal library.
❽ Click OK and Library Services will open to allow
❻
selection of individual library objects to import.
❺
❼

360 Creating Components in your Personal Library

 Data Archiving and Library Management

Importing Library Objects using EDX (continued)

❾ From the Parts tab, select and import the first 5 Resistors from the Resistor
partition to the Current partition Resistor.
❿ Click Include Selected and then click Apply to import the parts to your
personal library.
⓫ Click the Cells tab then select and import the Drawings cell Fab_Notes to the ❾
Current partition Drawings using the method shown in step 3.
⓬ Click Close to exit Library Services.
⓭ Note the new part, cell, symbol, and padstack information in Library
Navigator Tree of your new personal library. ❿
⓮ Exit PADS Library Tools and exit PADS Professional Designer.

Creating Components in your Personal Library 361

 Review Questions
1 Is there a right or wrong way to create a symbol?
2 What is the purpose of the symbol origin?
3 Do I need to assign a PKG_TYPE in my Symbol?
4 What are the advantages of creating a symbol from a spreadsheet?
5 Can’t I just download a symbol from the component manufacturer?
6 Where do I get the data to input into the Pin Pattern Place wizard?

Review Answers
1 There is no right or wrong way to create a symbol as long as the symbol accurately represents the signals and connectivity of the device. There are formal
design specifications for symbols (such as ANSI/IEEE Standard 91- 1984 Graphic Symbols for Logic Functions), but each company tends to formulate their own
internal standards that meet their design requirements.
2 The symbol origin represents a predictable reference point for anchoring and placing a symbol into the design environment. It is usually placed at the end of
the lowest pin on the lower left of the symbol.
3 There is no need to assign a PKG_TYPE in PADS Professional. When you create your part in the Part Editor you will import the Cell that links to the Symbol.
The symbol in PADS Professional Designer represents the electrical connectivity of the component. In order to pass the design to PADS Professional Layout
for physical design, each component symbol needs to have a corresponding physical package assignment so that the layout tool can properly represent the
physical parts on the printed circuit board.
4 As the complexity of components increases, it is not uncommon to have symbols with hundreds of pins. Entering the data for each of these pins into the
Symbol Editor can be a very time-consuming and error-prone task. Using a spreadsheet, you can copy and paste signal data from PDF data sheets into a
spreadsheet and then import it directly into the Symbol Editor. This saves time and improves accuracy.
5 Unfortunately, except for the PDF of the datasheet, very few manufacturers offer any symbols that can be directly imported into an EDA application. Due to
the multitude of different components and systems, this would be very difficult for the manufacturers to support. Most designers prefer to create (and check)
their own symbols prior to use.
6 You can create a cell in the wizard by entering the physical dimensions of the recommended land pattern from the manufacturer’s component data sheet. You
can also use the IPC Land Pattern Calculator to determine the appropriate decal dimensions and then enter that data directly into the wizard.

362 Creating Components in Your Personal Library

 Conclusion

Conclusion
This Evaluation Guide has introduced you to some of the power and flexibility available in PADS Professional, but
that is just a beginning. This evaluation has only scratched the surface and presented you with an abbreviated
view into the full spectrum of the design capabilities of the products. If you want to learn more about the many
features and functions of these applications, there is a wealth of knowledge to experience and discover in the
extensive resources that are available.

Additional resources Include:

• Tutorials
• Concepts Guides
• Extensive Help files
• User Manuals
• The InfoHub
• On-line video presentations

Click the icons below for additional resources:

Conclusion 363
 End of section. This page intentionally left blank.

364 Conclusion
 Appendix

In this section:
„„ Appendix 1: ODBC Setup
„„ Appendix 2: Configuring PADS Databook
„„ Appendix 3: Configuring Variant Manager
„„ Appendix 4: Configuring HyperLynx

A-1
 Appendix 1 - ODBC Setup
The acronym ODBC stands for Open Database Connectivity which is an industry Note: The setup steps shown here are for Microsoft Windows 10 OS, for use with
database standard. Most databases developed or upgraded since the 1980s Mentor PADS Professional 64bit install. You may also be required to download the
support this standard. It is the technology that PADS Databook uses to connect Microsoft Access ODBC driver from Microsoft’s website (https://www.microsoft.
com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=13255) If you are using a different OS, please
to databases. The PADS Databook also supports a web server connection using
refer to the instructions specific to your OS for ODBC setup.
ODBC. In this example, you will set up an ODBC connection for a Microsoft
Access Database format.
Establishing ODBC Connectivity (64bit Install) - Windows 10
❶ Select the Start Menu and then select Control Panel.
❷ Select Administrative Tools. ❷

❸ Double click ODBC Data Sources (64-bit).

❹ Under the System DSN tab click Add.
❺ Select the Microsoft Access Driver (*.mdb, *.accdb) item from the list. ❸
❻ Click Finish.

❼ ⓫
❽
❹
❹
❾

❼ Type Sample in the field called Data Source Name.

❺
❽ Type Database for PADS Professional Eval in the Description text box.
❾ Click Select.
❿ Browse to the access database called Sample.mdb which will be
located in the C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\
DataBookData directory.
⓫ Select the Sample.MDB file and then click OK to accept the selection. ❻
Click OK in the parent dialog boxes. Your setup is complete.
A-2 APPENDIX 1: ODBC Setup
 Appendix

Appendix 1 - ODBC Setup (continued)

Note: The setup steps shown here are for Microsoft Windows 10 OS, with use with
Establishing ODBC Connectivity 32-bit install - Windows 10 Mentor PADS Professional 32bit and 64bit installs respectively. You may also be
required to download the Microsoft Access ODBC driver from Microsoft’s website
(64bit) (https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=13255) If you are
❶ From Windows Explorer, browse to the directory using a different OS, please refer to the instructions specific to your OS for ODBC
C:\Windows\SysWOW64. setup.

❷ Double-click odbcad32.exe.
❸ Under the System DSN tab click Add.
❹ Select the Microsoft Access Driver (*.mdb) item from the list.
❺ Click Finish.
❻ Type Sample in the field called Data Source Name.
❹
❼ Type Database for PADS Professional Eval in the Description text box.
❽ Click Select.
❾ Browse to the access database called Sample.mdb which will be
located in the C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\
DataBookData directory.
❿ Select the Sample.MDB file and then click OK to accept the selection.
❺
Click OK in the parent dialog boxes. Your setup is complete.

❻ ❿
❼

APPENDIX 1: ODBC Setup A-3

 Appendix 2 - Configure PADS Databook
The PADS Databook allows easy searching and selecting of components. It ties
into your company’s purchasing database so that Engineering can make more
intelligent part selections based on lead time, cost, stock availability, and so on. ❹
The PADS Databook Configuration file (.dbc) controlls PADS Databook on which
properties to show in the search window, which to load and annotate onto
your schematic when placing symbols, and which to verify when you use PADS
Databook Verification.
NOTE: To use PADS Databook, you must create an ODBC data source that points to the da-
tabase, then PADS Databook must be attached to this data source. If Configuration: None
is displayed in the lower section of the PADS Databook application window, this indicates
that no database is attached.
See Appendix1: ODBC Setup for details on performing the ODBC setup if steps in this
exercise do not work.

❼
Configuring PADS Databook
❶ Select File > Open > Project and select
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\FirstLast\FirstLast.prj.
❷ In the Navigator Pane, double-click Board1 to enable Sheet1.
❸ Click PADS Databook to open the PADS Databook search window.
❹ Right-click anywhere within the PADS Databook and select
Configure > Open.
❺ Click Browse... and navigate to the
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\Library\DatabookData
directory.
❻ Select the Sample.DBC file and click Open to activate the
PADS Databook configuration settings.
❼ Right-click anywhere within the PADS Databook pane and select
Configure > Edit Configuration….
❽ Take a moment to look over the settings in the Configure dialog
box for the Sample.dbc. Click Cancel to exit without changes and
❽
click No if asked to save the configuration.

A-4 APPENDIX 2: Configure PADS Databook

 Appendix

Appendix 3 - Configuring Variant Manager

This appendix shows some of the errors you might see if Variant Manager is not
configured properly.
Configuration ❶
❶ Before creating a variant, you will need to
set the Variant Match condition in your PADS
Databook Sample.dbc file. In Variant Manager click the
Settings icon, then select the Library Query Setup tab
and click the Define Libraries button. The Configure
dialog box opens.
Note: This VM Match column is only visible from within
Variant Manager. If you try to edit the configuration from
PADS Databook you will not see this column.
❶
Be sure you have the VM Match column in each library
set as: PKG_TYPE is =.
❷ If you fail to configure the VM Match condition
correctly, you will see multiple package types available
for replacement as shown.

APPENDIX 3: Configuring Variant Manager A-5

 Configuration (continued)

❸ Add Part Number to the Query results. If you fail to do this, you
may see an error message when choosing a replacement part.
❹ Property values are case sensitive. Check your database
configuration for property cases. For example, a configuration
might show the value PART NUMBER rather than Part Number.
If you have a case sensitivity problem then you may see an error
message when replacing a part. ❸

A-6 APPENDIX 3: Configuring Variant Manager

 Appendix

Appendix 4 - Setting HyperLynx Model Search Paths

This appendix shows the method to set HyperLynx Model Search Paths for this
flow guide properly.
Setting Your Model Search Path
❶ Start HyperLynx from the file manager - browse to:
C:\MentorGraphics\PADSPro<release>\SDD_HOME\
hyperlynx64 - double-click the bsw.exe file.
Note: Even though there is no access to product licenses at this
time, you can still open HyperLynx and add the missing path to the ❸
IBIS models location for the lesson.
❷ From the Menu bar select, Models > Edit Model Library
Paths.
❸ Click the Edit… (button) as shown.

APPENDIX 4: Setting HyperLynx Model Search Paths A-7

 Setting Your Model Search Path (continued)

❹ In the Select Directories of IC Model Files dialog, click the Add

button. ❹
❺ In the Add Model Folder dialog, traverse to
C:\PADS_Professional_Eval_<release>\LessonFinal location and
the click the Select Folder button.

A-8 APPENDIX 4: Setting HyperLynx Model Search Paths

 Appendix

Setting Your Model Search Path (continued)

❻ The result of adding the directory displays in the Select Directories

for IC-Model Files dialog, click Up to move this to the first position
and then click OK on all dialogs.
❼ Close the HyperLynx session using File > Exit.

APPENDIX 4: Setting HyperLynx Model Search Paths A-9

 Mentor Graphics Corporation
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Telephone: 503.685.7000
Toll-Free Telephone: 800.592.2210
Website: www.mentor.com