PCB (software)

PCB is a free and open-source software suite for electronic design automation (EDA) - for printed circuit boards (PCB) layout. It uses GTK+ for its GUI widgets.

PCB
Developer(s)Thomas Nau
Initial release1990 [1]
Stable release
4.2.0[2] / February 2, 2019 (2019-02-02)[3]
Repository
Operating systemUnix-like (BSDs, Linux, Solaris, OS X (experimental) and Microsoft Windows
TypeElectronic design automation (EDA)
LicenseGPLv2
Websitepcb.geda-project.org

History

PCB was first written by Thomas Nau for an Atari ST in 1990 and ported to UNIX and X11 in 1994. Initially PCB was not intended to be a professional layout system but as a tool for individuals to do small-scale development of hardware.[1][4] The second release 1.2 introduced user menus. This made PCB easier to use and increased its popularity.[1] Harry Eaton took over PCB development beginning with Release 1.5, although he contributed some code from Release 1.4.3.

PCB includes a topological autorouter named Toporouter, developed by Anthony Blake in a Google-funded open source project mentored by DJ Delorie in 2008.[5] It is mostly based on an implementation of the algorithms described in Tal Dayan's 1997 PhD thesis, "Rubberband based topological router".[5][6] This router has meanwhile been adapted for use with the open-source KiCad project as well.

Features
  • Scalable fonts
  • Layer groups to keep signals together
  • Add on device drivers
  • Gerber RS-274X and NC Drill output support
  • Centroid (X-Y) data output
  • PostScript and Encapsulated PostScript output
  • Rats-nest generation from simple net lists
  • Automatic clearance around pins that pierce a polygon
  • Flags for pins and vias
  • Groups of action commands can be undone by a single undo
  • Simple design rule checker (DRC) - checks for minimum spacing and overlap rules
  • Drawing directly on the silk layer
  • Viewable solder-mask layers and editing
  • Netlist window
  • Netlist entry by drawing rats
  • Auto router
  • Snap to pins and pads
  • Element files and libraries that can contain whole sub-layouts, metric grids
  • Up to 16 copper layer designs by default
  • Trace optimizer
  • Rats nest
  • Connectivity verification
  • Can interoperate with free schematic capture tools such as gEDA and XCircuit
  • GNU autoconf/automake based build system
  • PCB is Free Software

See also

References
  1. "PCB document manual". 100826 pcb.gpleda.org
  2. "PCB". Recent News section. Retrieved 17 May 2019.
  3. "pcb-4.2.0 released". Retrieved 17 May 2019.
  4. "Linux Fund partners to boost usability of gEDA open source electronic engineering software package". 100826 linuxfund.org
  5. Blake, Anthony (2009-07-07) [2008]. "Topological Autorouter - Introduction". Archived from the original on 2011-02-27.
  6. Dayan, Tal (June 1997). "Rubberband based topological router" (PDF) (PhD thesis). Santa Cruz, CA. USA: University of California. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2017-09-25. Retrieved 2017-09-25.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.