Protel DXP PCB Layout

Glenn Mercier
12/16/2005
PCB Layout Software
There are many PCB Layout software packages
available. For this tutorial, I will be using
Protel DXP.
„ Protel DXP 2004
„ Orcad Layout
„ Eagle Layout Editor
„ Express PCB
„ PADS
 Introducing Protel DXP 2004
Reasons for Choosing Protel DXP
„ Abundance of learning luides
http://www.altium.com/Community/
Support/LearningGuides/
„ Large footprint library included
„ Extensive design rule checking
(DRC)
„ Integrity testing
„ Integrated software package
„ Free Trial Available
Main Screen
Create new PCB Project
 Save the PCB Project File

The project
was created
(*.PrjPCB),
but needs to
be saved, right
click and save
the project
Create New Schematic
„ Now we need to add
files to the project.
The beginning step
is to add a
Schematic
Document. This is
where the schematic
drawings we are all
familiar with will go.
Right click and save
the schematic
document as before.
Organization
„ Your screen should now look like this. Notice
the branching. The PIC schematic document
is located in the project tutorial.
Libraries
„ There are three forms of libraries
„ Schematic Library- This library contains
schematic drawings that we are familiar with
from ORCAD
„ PCB/Footprint Library- This library contains
the actual dimensions and pads for placing the
component on the board.
„ Integrated Library- Most manufacturers
libraries are integrated, containing both
Schematic and PCB libraries.
Adding Libraries
„ From the design menu, click Add/Remove
libraries.
Adding Libraries (Cont.)
Adding Libraries (Cont.)
„ Since most of us are using Microchip PIC
microcontrollers, add the Microchip library
Adding Libraries (Cont.)
„ Each manufacturer usually categorizes their
parts for easy selection. Choose the PIC18
Adding Libraries (Cont.)
„ Add the highlighted libraries to the project.
These two files are not in a folder, but in the
root ‘Library’ folder
Adding Libraries (Cont.)
„ From the Library folder, go to the PCB folder,
this folder contains PCB footprint libraries.
Adding Libraries (Cont.)
„ From the PCB folder, add
„ Chip Capacitor
„ Chip Resistor
„ Crystal Oscillator
„ Resistor- Axial
Adding Libraries (Cont.)
„ You should now have the following libraries
installed. Note the top three libraries here are
integrated libraries, and the bottom four
libraries are PCB libraries
Checkpoint
„ If you expand the
libraries folder, you
should see the
following. Now that
we have added our
libraries, we are
ready to begin the
schematic layout.
Schematic Layout
„ Double Click on your schematic document
from the left navigator menu, and you should
see a blank screen on the right
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ From the ‘Place’
menu, click Part.
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts

„ The ‘Place Part’

screen will appear.
Click the box in the
top right with the […].
This will bring up the
‘Browse Libraries’,
which is just a list of a
few default libraries
and all the libraries
we have added to the
project.
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ From the ‘Libraries’
drop down box, look
for the Microchip
Microcontroller library
we added earlier.
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ Choosing the PIC18F452 for our project we
see there are three choices in the list. Which
one do we choose? Why is there three
options for one part?
„ This is where the footprint comes in. Although
the PIC18F452 has the same electrical and
logic properties, the physical packaging
comes in three different forms.
„ PLCC- 44 Pins
„ QFN- 44 Pins
„ DIP- 40 Pins
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ Don’t worry if you don’t know what terms like
PLCC, QFN, TQFP, DIP mean at the
moment. You can look at the Protel layout
and it will show you what the footprint
differences are.
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ PIC18F452-E/L : This is a PLCC-44 package. In the
bottom left corner you can see the description of the
package including dimensions.
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ PIC18F452-E/ML : QFN package. Notice when you highlight
a part, Protel shows both the schematic layout (top right)
and the PCB layout (bottom right).
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ PIC18F452-E/P : 40 pin DIP package, DIP’s
are very good for beginners due to their large
size and easy solderability
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts

„ Which to
choose? That’s
up to you! But
for this tutorial,
lets use a DIP
package
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ Once you click ‘ok’ on the part, you’ll be
brought back to the ‘place part’ popup menu.
This allows you to verify the part you chose
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ Your PIC
should now be
placed in the
schematic
document. A
very important
note is that
you need to
give this an
identifier. If
you leave this
as ‘U?’ you will
get an error.
So double
click and
change the
identifier to U1
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ Double click on the PIC, you will get a Component Properties popup
box. Here you can leave notes on the part, change the footprint,
change the description, and add a rule for this part. If you click on ‘Edit’
in the bottom right, it will show you the PCB footprint for this part
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ We need power for our circuit, but unlike pspice, we must add a
physical way to add power to our device. Add ‘HEADER 2’ from the
Miscellaneous Connectors library. As seen from the PCB footprint
below, this is just two holes in the board where we can connect wires.
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ Our updated schematic looks as follows. Click
the place wire icon from the menu bar up top.
Schematic Layout- Placing Parts
„ Be EXTREMELY CAREFUL when connecting wires.
The end of the wire must be on the end of the part,
when this happens you will get a red ‘X’, Do not rush
through this step, and always verify there is a proper
connect.

WRONG!!!!!! Correct
Gray ‘X’ This will not Red ‘X’ This WILL
connect the part connect the part
Schematic Layout- Adding Nets
„ On simple projects, it makes sense to run wires making
connections, but on larger projects this often makes things very
cluttered, difficult to make changes, and often results in errors
due to wires crossing.
„ Draw a small wire extending from VSS (GND), and a small wire
from the other pin on the pin header (as shown in next slide).
Click the ‘NET’ icon in the toolbar and place this text on both
lines, labeling them both GND. This is the same exact thing as
actually running wires between them. Protel knows that these
two pins should be connected.
Schematic Layout- Adding Nets
„ You should now have the following. Notice the blue
dots on pin 12 and pin 11, the dots appear when
more there is a connect of more than 2 areas. In the
case of the blue dot on the left, this connects pin 12,
pin 31, and GND all together.
Schematic Layout- Adding Nets

„ The usefulness of nets cannot be over emphasized

here, it may seem like extra work, but DO IT!!
„ Allows for cell design of layout, This makes design
neat, orderly, easy to troubleshoot.
„ Looks professional
„ Major changes such as changing an 8 connection port
from port A to B is simple to just move the NETS,
rather than rewire 8 different wires.
„ Can create multiple schematic documents (advised),
and link nets across schematics
 Schematic Layout:
No Nets- Hardwired Schematic
Schematic Layout- Using Nets
3.3V

Log Loc

LED Indicators Button Presses

3.3V VCCX
VCC
1.8V 3.3V LEDTEST MCLR RT6 RT9 RT10
100 10k 10k
RT1 RT2 RT3 RT4 RT5 LOGLOC CDISP Reset
50 50 330 50 470

S3 S4 S2
+1.8V +3.3V +5V LED Test PROG CT1 SW-PB CT2 SW-PB CT3 HW-RESET
Cap Cap Cap
1nF 1nF 1nF

A50 VSOURCE = 3.3V

Current Monitors/ VCC 1
1 VCCX = PIC VCC

External Power Aux Power NORMAL OPERATION:

Jumpers VCC = VCCX (jumper closed)
2
1

J3 PROGRAMMING MODE:
J5V SDCS VCCX is isolated, therefore
A33 CS
5V Current Monitor MOSI the PIC is isolated from the
DIN
3.3V 1 rest of the circuit
1 GND
3.3V
AGND +3.3V
Aux Power SDCLK
CLK
1 3.3V VCCX
1 GND
2
1

MOSO
DOUT
Aux Power SDIRQ
IRQ
J33
NC
3.3V Current Monitor A18

2
1
NC
VBATT VS 1.8V 1
1
SD Breakout JPIC
Aux Power PIC
2
1

2
1

JBATT J18
BATT Current Monitor 1.8V Current Monitor
Schematic Layout- Using Nets
UPIC18LF8722
CU3
CLKO XTAL
GPIOA 72 4 XT 1 MHz = 15 pf
RD0/AD0/PSP0 RE0/AD8/RD/P2D
GPIOB 69 3 Cap XT/ HS 4 MHz = 15 pf
RD1/AD1/PSP1 RE1/AD9/WR/P2C

2
GPIOC 68 78 20pF XTAL1 HS 8 MHz = 15-33 pf
GPS RD2/AD2/PSP2 RE2/AD10/CS/P2B
GPIOD 67 77 14.7456 MHz HS 20MHz= 15-33 pf
General I/O Pins RD3/AD3/PSP3 RE3/AD11/P3C CU4
GPIOE 66 76 HS 25MHz= 15-33 pf
RD4/AD4/PSP4 RE4/AD12/P3B CLKI

1
GPIOF 65 75
RD5/AD5/PSP5 RE5/AD13/P1C
GPIOG 64 74 Cap Higher C increases
RD6/AD6/PSP6 RE6/AD14/P1B
GPIOH 63 73 20pF stability but increases
RD7/AD7/PSP7 RE7/AD15/CCP2/P2A
start up time
36 24 LEDTEST
RC0/T1OSO/T13CKI RF0/AN5 For Normal Operation
35 23 R11 used in HS mode
RC1/T1OSI/CCP2/P2A RF1/AN6/C2OUT 5VON - high
GPSRS 43 18 5VON to avoid overdriving the
RC2/CCP1/P1A RF2/AN7/C1OUT 5VOFF - low
GPSTM 44 17 5VOFF crystal.
GPS RC3/SCK/SCL RF3/AN8 18VON- high
GPSTXB 45 16 18VON
Functional Pins RC4/SDI/SDA RF4/AN9 33VON- high
GPSRXB 46 15 33VON
RC5/SDO RF5/AN10/CVREF
GPSRXA 37 14 DS1820 1-Wire Temp Sensor
RC6/TX1/CK1 RF6/AN11
GPSTXA 38 13 ALFAT-STD
RC7/RX1/DT1 RF7/SS
ALFAT-STD
58 5 ALFATRS ***HIGH- STD MODE
RB0/INT0 RG0/CCP3/P3A
User CDISP 57 6 ALFATRX LOW- EXTENDED MODE
RB1/INT1 RG1/TX2/CK2
Modification LOGLOC 56 7 ALFATTX
RB2/INT2 RG2/RX2/DT2 ALFAT
Pins LCDE 55 8 ALFATCTS
RB3/INT3/CCP2/P2A RG3/CCP4/P3D Port
54 10 ALFATRTS
RB4/KBI0 RG4/CCP5/P1D
53 9 MCLR
RB5/KBI1/PGM RG5/MCLR/VPP
Set as OutputsICSP CLK 52 RB6/KBI2/PGC CU5
RU1 ICSP Data 47 79 0.1uF
RB7/KBI3/PGD RH0/A16
10k 80
RH1/A17 Cap
DB4 30 1
RA0/AN0 RH2/A18
DB5 29 2
RA1/AN1 RH3/A19 RU2
LCD Data DB6 28 19 BUSBSEL ICSP
RA2/AN2/VREF- RH7/AN15/P1B 10k
DB7 27 20 BENB 1 MCLR
RA3/AN3/VREF+ RH6/AN14/P1C VPP/MCLR
LCDRS 34 21 BSTAT1 2 VCCX
RA4/T0CKI RH5/AN13/P3B +5V
33 22 BSTAT2 3 GND
RA5/AN4/LVDIN RH4/AN12/P3C GND CU8
CLKO 50 4
OSC2/CLKO/RA6 DATA RU4 Cap
39 5 ICSP CLK
RJ4/BA0 CLK RU3 0.1uF
CLKI 49 40 100
OSC1/CLKI RJ5/CE
41 ICSP Port 100
RJ6/LB
42 ICSP Data
RJ7/UB
59
RJ3/WRH CU7
60
RJ2/WRL CU6 Cap
61
RJ1/OE Cap 100pF
62
RJ0/ALE 100pF
11 12 VCCX
VSS VDD
31 32 PGD - limits slope of edges, attenuates high freq
VSS VDD
51 48 components
VSS VDD
70 71 100*100pf = 10uS time constant (much less than
VSS VDD CU1 CU2
26 25 programmer frequency)
AVSS AVDD Cap 0.1uF
0.1uF PGC- 100pF reduces Z at high frequencies, which
PIC18LF8722-I/PT reduces crosstalk
Creating Custom Parts
„ Sometimes a part will be required and no
library associated with it. For this, we need to
make both a schematic and a PCB footprint
for the part.

„ Lets assume we wish to build a part where

we will take test measurements from such as
voltage levels.
Creating Custom Parts
„ From the file
menu, create
a new
schematic
library, and a
new PCB
library. Save
these libraries
under a name
you will
remember.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Select/Highlight the
schematic library
you just created
and click ‘SCH
Library’ in the
bottom corner of
the project menu
Creating Custom Parts
„ This shows information
about the schematic
library and a list of the
parts inside the library.
Click the ADD button to
add a new part.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Click on the place rectangle for our
part. Keep in mind this is what we will
see on our schematic
Creating Custom Parts
„ Now click
the ‘Place
Pin’. If we
choose to
have test
points that
include
„ VDD
„ GND
„ MCLR
„ B.0
We will need 4
pins, add
these now
Creating Custom Parts
„ Double
clicking on
the pins
allows you to
change the
pin number
(important)
and label the
purpose of
the pin
Creating Custom Parts
„ Click on the part in the
schematic listing on the
left. It is up to you to
leave comments,
description, and
designators for the part.
Notice the pin listing in
the bottom left. In this
example:
„ Pin1 = VDD
„ Pin2 = GND
„ Pin3 = !MCLR
„ Pin4 = B.0
It is very important to
remember this order for
when we create the
footprint
Creating Custom Parts
„ Our schematic
part is now
complete, click
the Project in the
bottom left
corner to get
back to the main
project listing.
This bottom
toolbar will be
used a lot.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Notice that there is a
red page next to the
schematic library
(Schlib1.SchLib) we
just created. This
means there have
been changes to the
document and it needs
to be saved.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Now we need to create
the PCB footprint for
our part. As we did for
the schematic library,
highlight the PCB library
we created and then
click the PCB library tab
at the bottom. This
expands the library and
shows all the
components inside the
library
Creating Custom Parts
„ Protel can either work in
mm units, or in mils.
„ 1” = 1000 mils = 25.4mm
„ 1mm = 39.4 mils
„ Most datasheets are given
in millimeters, but for
practice, we will use mils.
„ Pressing ‘Q’ will toggle the
units between mm and
mils
„ Make sure mils are the unit
in the bottom left corner.
Creating Custom Parts
„ The first thing we will do
is orient the footprint at
the origin. For this;
„ Draw a line (shown
below)
„ Change the start
coordinates to X=0, Y=0
„ End coordinates X=400,
Y=0
„ Check to make sure
units are listed as mils, if
not, go to the previous
slide
Creating Custom Parts
„ The line you
created will
probably
disappear, it has
simply moved off
the visible grid. If
this happens, click
the ‘fit document’
option. This will
automatically zoom
in on the line we
created.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Double click on the
line, and change
the layer to ‘Top
Overlay’. We are
simply using this
line as a box that
will hold our pins
„ Top Layer= Copper
Trace (Red)
„ Top Overlay=
Legend (Yellow)
„ It is very important
to use the right
layer
Creating Custom Parts
„ Single click on the line to
select it, click Ctrl-C to
copy the line and then
place the line anywhere.
„ Again, open up the
dimensions and make the
starting point
X=0, Y=200
and the ending point
X=400, Y=200
„ You should have the
following on the right at
this point
Creating Custom Parts
„ Continue the same procedure as before, but
use the following points for two lines
Start: X=0, Y=200: End: X=0, Y=0
Start: X=400, Y=200: End: X=400, Y=0

„ This will complete the box. You can also just

draw a line and change the layer to top
overlay, but it is good habit to be as precise
as possible when dealing with PCB footprints.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Click the ‘Place Pad’ icon as shown
below and place a single pad.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Double click the pad, and notice the hole dimensions. Make the
hole size 35 mils. Many PCB Manufacturers have a limitation on
the ‘Annular Ring’ size, the annual ring is the diameter of the
pad – diameter of the hole divided by 2.
„ EX: If the annular ring minimum is 7.5 mils, and the hole size is
35 mils, the pad size must be a minimum of 50 x 50 mils
Creating Custom Parts
„ Notice the designator = 0, this number will
correspond with the pin numbers we chose in the
schematic part we made for this. Also there is an
option for multi-layer, this means there is a hole
through the board. For surface mount parts, this will
need to be changed to TOP LAYER (again it will be
color coded red).
Creating Custom Parts
„ Change the designators as shown below, this
corresponds to the pin numbers we chose
earlier. Notice how the holes are not aligned
in any manner.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Hold down shift
and single click
each hole, they
should all be
selected now.
Right click on
any of the holes,
and click ‘align’
for custom
alignment
options.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Another way is to pull up
the first pad, notice the X
and Y coordinates.
„ Pad 1: X=50, Y=130
„ Pad 2: X=150, Y=130
„ Pad 3: X=250, Y=130
„ Pad 4: X=350, Y=130

This method is preferred

because it makes it easier
to align strange
components (such as the
footprint for an SD Flash
Card)
Creating Custom Parts

„ Now we need to
label the pads,
click the ‘Place
String’ icon
Creating Custom Parts
„ Make the following
changes to the text:
„ Layer = Top Overlay
„ Height = 40 mil
„ Width = 7 mil
„ Rotation (change if
desired)
„ NOTE: Mirrored text
is for placing text on
the back of the PCB
Creating Custom Parts
„ Our spacing
and text
choices do not
allow us to
place the text
horizontal, so
we must
resize the box
and rotate the
text.
Creating Custom Parts
„ Now we must link the
schematic part with the
PCB part we just made.
Click the ‘project’ tab in
the bottom left corner
and open the schematic
library again. Double
click the component you
made to bring up the
component properties
page.
Creating Custom Parts
„ From the
component
properties page,
click the ‘add’ in the
bottom right corner.
We are adding the
footprint to this
schematic, so select
footprint and click
ok.
Creating Custom Parts
„ From the PCB
Model popup box,
click ‘browse’
Creating Custom Parts
„ Select your custom footprint/pcb library from
the list
Creating Custom Parts
„ Select the footprint desired from the library. Since this
is the first footprint we have created there is only one
in the list. Click ok when done
Creating Custom Parts
„ This should bring you
back to the model
page, where you can
verify the footprint
choice you made
Creating Custom Parts
„ In the schematic
editor, we can now
verify that there is a
PCB footprint
associated with this
schematic, and verify
that the pins on the
schematic match the
pins on the footprint
we created.
Schematic Editing
„ Click the ‘project’ tab in the bottom left corner and
go back to the schematic layout. Add the new part
to the schematic. Note that the footprint is present
and the pins match the schematic drawing.
Schematic Editing
„ Make the following changes to the schematic
PCB Layout Editor
„ Our schematic drawing is now complete, now
we want to transfer this to a PCB. Be sure to
be careful to associate all parts with the
proper footprints, and verified each footprint
before even beginning to think about PCB
layout.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Click the ‘files’
tab in the bottom
left corner, and
minimize some of
the arrows until
you can see the
PCB Board
Wizard. Click on
the wizard.
PCB Layout Editor
„ After an introduction
to the wizard screen,
and choosing your
default units, you will
get to the following
screen. Choose
‘custom’ for now.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Choose the dimensions of the board,
remembering that 1000 mils = 1”. Choose
rectangular shape, as other shapes are very
costly. Leave the other options as default.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Choose signal layers = 2, Power planes = 0
Most projects can be done with these settings.
PCB Layout Editor

„ Vias are holes

that electrically
connect different
physical layers
together. Select
Thruhole Vias
only. Blind and
Buried vias are
for multi layer
boards and
usually very
expensive.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Choose the
following options.
Number of tracks
between adjacent
pads is simply a
rule for the auto
router. To keep
costs low, make
sure to put
components on
only one side of the
board.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Board Manufacturers
will always clearly
state the minimum
track size, via size,
and clearance. Most
board houses can
easily fabricate the
settings to the right.
Note the annular ring
size of 7.5 mils
PCB Layout Editor
„ You should now see the following: the new PCB is listed
under “Free documents”, click and drag this into your
project file, and save with an appropriate name.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Right click in the PCB Layout editor, and
go to board options as shown below.
PCB Layout Editor

„ Change the
following
options:
„ Uncheck
Display sheet
„ Visible Grid
Markers =
Dots
PCB Layout Editor
„ Your PCB document should now be under your project directory.
Notice the pink trace around the outside of the board, this is the
keep away layer. Only items inside this pink box will be fabricated.
PCB Layout Editor
„ From the schematic editor, go to ‘Design’ and then click ‘update PCB Document
in xxx.PcbDoc’. This will import your schematic into the PCB Editor
PCB Layout Editor
„ The Engineering Change Order box will open. This shows a list
of added components and nets that are being imported into the
PCB Document. Click Validate.
PCB Layout Editor
„ After validating, if no errors are found, click execute,
you will see green arrows if everything was
successfully imported into the PCB document. If you
forgot to include a footprint, or if different components
have the same identifier, you will get an error.
PCB Layout Editor
„ After executing, close the box and you will
see all your footprints neatly aligned outside
of your PCB board.
PCB Layout Editor
„ You can click and drag
your components onto the
board, delete the ‘sheet’ it
was resting on, and your
layout should look similar
to this. The thin gray lines
are called a ‘rats nest’. It
shows which holes are to
be connected to each
other but there is no actual
connect there yet. The
PCB editor knows this
from your schematic
drawing.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Notice the tabs
in the bottom,
right now the top
layer is selected.
This means that
the top layer is
the active layer,
and any changes
will occur on the
top layer.
PCB Layout Editor
„ It is common practice to run traces on each layer
of the board orthogonally. If you choose to route
the top layer horizontally, then route the bottom
layer vertically. This may seem like more work
than it’s worth, but on complicated circuits it
makes routing a lot easier. This method also
limits distributed capacitance across layers.
„ Avoid angles that are 90 degrees or less
„ Keeps traces are large as possible for physical
robustness, and decreased parasitic resistance.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Click the icon to
interactively route
components as shown in
the diagram. Once you
click on a net in the circuit,
it will highlight that net to
show where the connects
need to go. The VDD
connection was made
here, and there are four
pins that need this
connection.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Run the VDD
trace from P2
horizontally and
then place a VIA
on the end of the
line.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Click the ‘bottom
layer’ tab in the
bottom, and then
draw a trace
vertically towards
the connect pin.
This trace will be
in blue to indicate
it is located on the
bottom of the
board.
PCB Layout Editor
„ One connection
has now been
made. Since P1
are both through
hole connections,
we can let this
trace connect on
the bottom of the
board.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Route the rest of
the traces. Note
that the top layer
traces are
horizontal and the
bottom layer
traces are
vertical.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Click the Rules option under the Design
menu.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Here you can spend time changing rules to manufacturers
specifications. If you are unsure what a rule means, usually
there is a diagram which gives an idea of the meaning.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Now the
physical layout
is complete, and
it is time to run a
design rule
check on the
layout. This
checks all the
rules you made.
Start the DRC
PCB Layout Editor
„ Uncheck the ‘Create Report File’, and leave
the rest of the options default.
PCB Layout Editor
„ When the DRC
is done, a
message box
will pop open
and report any
violations.
When it is
blank, like in
the picture,
there are no
DRC errors.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Ground and Power are
critical to the circuit. For too
many reasons to mention
here, you can add polygon
pours, which are slabs of
copper, to create a large
ground area. This helps
ensure that the ground
layer has the same
potential across the circuit.
Click on the polygon pour
icon at the top of the
screen.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Make the following changes to the polygon pour. We want to connect
this pour to the GND node, on the top layer of the board, and also
remove dead copper. Select ‘OK’ and then click the four corner points
you want for the pour.
PCB Layout Editor
„ The polygon should look similar to
the picture on the right. Notice in
the bottom picture, you can see that
the polygon is connected to the
GND node, but never contacts the
VDD node.
PCB Layout Editor

„ Perform the same

procedure on the
bottom of the
board, but this time
connect it to VDD.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Polygon Pours should be added at the end of
design. On large projects, these can be very
memory intensive to display. Shelving polygon
pours keeps them present, but just doesn’t display
them on the screen.
PCB Layout Editor
„ From the ‘view’
menu, click ‘Board in
3D’ to see
approximately what
your finished board
will look like
PCB Layout Editor
„ From the
3D Viewer,
nodes can
also be
highlighted,
in this
example,
VDD nodes
are shown
in red.
PCB Layout Editor
„ Displayed is a
3D view of the
bottom of the
board, also with
VDD node
highlighted.
Creating Gerber Files
„ Once the PCB layout is complete, the board
manufacturer needs to know all the details of
the board. Since there are many different
PCB layout editors, a standard called ‘Gerber
Files’ was created which is the format all PCB
editors export to. The Gerber files are also
usually very small and portable in size. From
the Gerber files, and drill files, the
manufacturer has enough knowledge to
create your PCB board.
Gerber Files
„ From the file menu in
the PCB editor, click
fabrication outputs
and then Gerber
files.
Gerber Files
„ The ‘Gerber
Setup’ will then
open. The dialog
box does a good
job explaining the
options.
Gerber Files
„ Under the Layers
tab, any box that is
checked will be
created in a Gerber
file. Check with the
manufacturer, even if
a layer is unused in
your diagram, some
manufacturers will
still require the blank
Gerber file for it.
Gerber Files
„ Check the
following
boxes under
Drill Drawing
Plots.
Gerber Files
„ Make sure
Embedded
apertures are
selected from
the list.
Gerber Files
„ If the Gerber files
are successfully
created,
CAMtastic will
open showing the
files. Click the
Camtastic tab in
the bottom left
and you can view
layers
independently.
Gerber Files
„ Now we need to export
the Gerber files, follow
the list shown below.
Gerber Files
„ Make sure to leave
RS-274-X set like
in the diagram to
the right, then click
‘ok’
Gerber Files
„ You should get
the last
confirmation on
the Gerber export.
Export to a blank
directory so you
don’t forget to
include any when
you send them for
fabrication
 Finished Product

„ When all
this is
done, you
will end up
with a
finished
product.