First Pass Yield in PCB Design
Making sure a PCB design is efficient is a significant challenge. Efficiency in PCB design minimizes waste of expensive materials, and eases the process of making revisions.
ULN2003 Datasheet: Discussing Transistor Arrays and Parameter Necessities
Instead of using multiple discrete transistors to build Darlington pairs, you can use a ULN2003 or one of its variants. Here’s where you can find a ULN2003 datasheet. IoT products, environmental products, and anything else that needs analog sensor fusion will operate at a variety of signal levels. The signal type also varies from sensor […]
Free PCB Footprints and Schematic Symbols for Designers to Use
It isn’t so long ago that I was working through school and taking apart remotes and radios in my house to learn about different electronics. Now that I’m working in the industry, it’s easy to take for granted what is being given to me through industrial organization and standards. It never fails to rain on […]
Your Component Footprint Library to Find Future Footprints
Your component footprint library gets used to generate this type of stencil before manufacturing. Every new piece of electronic equipment starts as a block diagram, and turning your block diagram into a new board takes a complete set of PCB footprints. Your manufacturer will need a set of documentation to put your new board into […]
Efficiently Creating PCB Footprints: A Checklist for Your Layouts
PCB component footprints may appear simple, but they contain a huge amount of information required for assembly. Your PCB design application will need to take your footprints and create manufacturing documentation, such as assembly drawings and Gerber files. If your PCB footprints are incorrect or contain careless errors, you may find your board cannot be […]
SMD Component Datasheets: Mastering Enclosure Constraints and Connectivity
SMD components are not going away anytime soon, thanks to their low cost and low profile. SMD components come in a variety of standardized packages that make manufacturing and assembly with automated equipment much easier. The size of an SMD component can range from a large FPGA measuring inches across to a small resistor […]
LGA Package Footprints and the Difficulty in Finding Full Package Models
Most HDI (high density interconnect) designers and many high speed designers are familiar with BGA (ball grid array) components, which provide a way to connect dense, high pin-count components to a PCB. These components function as a standard flip-chip BGA, but without solder balls for surface-mounting. LGA (land grid array) packages are designed to […]
An IC Footprint Library for Your Component Data Needs
The stencil shown above is required to etch copper in your circuit board and create conductor patterns. Doing this accurately takes skill and precision equipment, but it also takes accurate footprints in your IC footprint library. Your Gerber files are created directly from your layout data, and your layout data is generated directly from […]
Not All Vendor Counts Are Created Equal
As more sources become available for ECAD data, designers are looking for ease of use, quality, and coverage of parts. Often, this leads designers to ask the question: how much data does a source truly have? It can be frustrating to search for a component on a data provider’s site only to find out they […]
Common Library Creation Errors – What NOT to Do When Designing Library Parts
PCB librarians and designers know that in order to execute a flawless design, your data has to be precise and accurate. In today’s design environment, there are a lot of external pressures on your design: size constraints, project timelines, and exacting design standards. Add complicated datasheets, non-intuitive design tools, and deadlines to the situation and […]