Product category:
Design and Development Software
News Release from: Mentor Graphics UK | Subject: PADS2004
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial
Team on 07 May 2004
Windows-based PCB system comes up to
date
The PADS2004 suites embody the latest versions of the complete front-to-back Windows-based PCB system design flow.
The PADS2004 suites embody the latest versions of the complete front-to-back Windows-based PCB system design flow The PADS2004 suites feature a wide variety of ease of use, system integration and quality enhancements to allow users productivity and performance gains
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 21 Feb 2001 at 8.00am (UK)
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The PADS2004 suites also include an enhanced version of the powerful and easy-to-implement HyperLynx tool suite for pre- and post-layout signal integrity (SI) simulation and analysis on high-speed digital PCBs.
The HyperLynx 7.1 tool includes usability enhancements such as a new spreadsheet-based stack up editor and a new quick terminator for differential resistors.
The PADS2004 suites also feature an enhanced OrCAD schematic and symbol library translator for easy migration to the PADS environment.
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"We continuously invest in all of our PCB design solutions to allow our customers in every market segment to keep up with their ever-increasing design requirements.
The enhancements in the PADS2004 suites address specific customer requests and make it easier than ever to install and use", said Syed Gilani, General Manager, PADS Business Unit, Systems Design Division, Mentor Graphics.
"With the PADS suites, customers have access to the best customer service in the industry with online and direct options for product training and support".
The PADS2004 suites include ease-of-use and performance enhancements to every tool in the design flow.
The design definition environment features an enhanced user interface with new project management capabilities and support for "strokes" - shortcuts for commonly used commands.
A new "align" command facilitates schematic organisation and clean up, and a connectivity spreadsheet editor provides a spreadsheet method for connecting large parts quickly.
A new tutorial is also included.
Part searches are improved by allowing users to quickly search all libraries for a specific part, and a set-up wizard to ease user database setup.
The analogue simulator now supports hierarchical design and makes analysis easier with test points visible on the schematic.
The layout environment includes improved integration with schematic capture as well as numerous customer-requested enhancements.
It also offers expanded interactive routing capabilities and provides more responsive graphical feedback to the user.
The autorouter has been enhanced with core algorithm updates to enable significant performance gains in both speed and completion rates.
For the first time, the PADS suites users now have access to advanced FPGA-on-board integration capabilities with the DxBoardLink suite, a new tool that ties the FPGA design flow with PCB layout, which shortens design cycles and improves product performance when implementing FPGAs in a PCB design.
The DxBoardLink solution addresses the challenge of integrating today's large, high-pin count FPGAs by automating the integration of the FPGA and PCB design processes.
The DxBoardLink tool reads pinout data from an FPGA design and automatically generates schematic symbols.
The tool also allows PCB designers to fracture over-sized symbols into smaller, more manageable symbols that make the schematic more readable and useful.
"The PADS suites provide a complete concept-to-manufacture PCB design flow and also allows us to add advanced capabilities such as signal integrity analysis and FPGA-on-board integration when we need to", said Gary Lameris, Senior Engineer, Hobart.
"With the new the PADS2004 tool, it is even easier for new users on our team to get started because installation is so quick and the tool is simple to learn and use".
The PADS suites are available in three configurations, the PADS PE, PADS XE and PADS SE suites, with increasing functionality to support a variety of design needs from individuals to small teams.
The PADS PE suite includes design definition, layout and autorouting capabilities.
The PADS XE suite adds analogue simulation and signal integrity analysis functionality.
For users who require advanced high-speed capabilities, the PADS SE suite also includes the ability to enter advanced constraints and interactive routing of high-speed signals (eg differential pairs, min/max length and matched lengths).
The PADS2004 PCB design solutions are competitively priced starting at a US list price of $3495 for PADS PE.
Electronic product delivery is immediately available from Mentor Graphics award-winning support website, SupportNet.
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