Software

In the past, it could take a lot of time to design a printed circuit board even before the first prototype was made. The design process, which is where much of the work is done, is complex.

Anyone who is working in the field of creating circuits wants to create the best quality designs possible. This is true whether you are making circuits as part of your job or as a hobbyist.

Whether you call it Gerber or IX274X that you use for designing your PCBs, they are often the first crucial step in your PCB manufacturing process. Demanding a lot of design ahead of production, most PCBs lean hard into their Gerber files.

In the time of Covid-19 and lockdown, you might be looking for new hobbies to keep yourself busy and productive. Perhaps, you’ve always dreamed of being a mad-scientist inventor but instead became bogged down by a 9 – 5 desk job.

In this modern era, printed circuit board design is an essential step in most electronics production processes. This is why PCB design software is also a must in almost any production process.

Few things are as frustrating as believing that you have designed a quality circuit only to find out it does not work once you have it manufactured. It could mean a lot of wasted time and energy, and it could mean that you spent money to have a prototype made.

Take a look at the manufacturing process used to create PCBs (printed circuit boards) and it is likely to cause a bit of a shock; few consumers understand the complexity of the PCB components hidden inside most of their electronic devices. Whether it is the simplest of calculators or the most advanced household appliance, a PCB (or two, or more) is at work inside.

When there is a need for design testing that involves a PCB, there is also a problem with timelines and costs. For example, a cheap PCB is really all that is needed to run a design, and yet a fast turnaround on a single, custom PCB can be hard to find.

PCB manufacturing requires a lot of design in advance of anything else. In fact, design and output of Gerber files are quite often the most common first step in the manufacturing process.