Delvin Masilamani from Javelin Technologies, an authorized E3.WireWorks reseller based in Canada, recently posted about North American standards in E3.series and E3.WireWorks. We liked it so much that we thought we’d share it with you – enjoy.

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I’ve had a few questions come up about how to use the North American Standards toolbar in the past few weeks so I decided to write about this tool.

E3 has an automatic labeling feature which comes as a Toolbar plugin called NA Standards.

Enable Button

This button allows you to toggle on and off the automatic naming functionality based on the ladder format and will display a message to indicate that it is active. Pressing the button again will de-activate the functionality. The behavior is written to a settings file and will remember the state from session to session.

Update All Devices

Should the tool have been disabled for any reason or if you wish to apply the naming convention to an existing project, which does not adhere to the ladder naming convention, then it is possible to use this button to update all the existing devices based on the values set in the configuration described later in this document.

Wire Numbering

In order to create the Wire Numbers in the project, based on the settings described later in this document, the above commands can be activated. Depending upon which command is selected, the numbering is generated for the current open sheet in the project, or all sheets in the project

Configuration – Device Naming

Clicking on the Configuration icon displays the Configure Device Name dialog

The Device Naming tab contains all the settings used to configure the device naming format.

Click here for more details on setting this configuration.

Configuration – Wire Numbering

The Wire Numbering tab contains all the settings used to configure the wire numbering format.

The entries found in the list boxes allow you to select which attributes are used to define the Wire naming format; the attributes in the right-hand list box indicate the selected entries and also the sequence. Required entries are selected from the left list box and can be moved up and down to set the correct outcome.

Note: It is a good practice before using the wire numbering tool to always purge unused wires & signal to avoid irregularity.

Click here for more details on setting this configuration.

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This entry is reposted with permission from Javelin Technologies, a Toronto, Canada-based E3.WireWorks reseller. The post’s author is Delvin Masilamani, who handles training, implementation and support at Javelin. 

Who performs PCB design collision checking in your company? Is it the PCB designer, or do you simply pass it over to the mechanical engineers? Either way, you’ll find something to help you with our top three tips and tricks on collision checking.

1. Communicate

Foster good communications with mechanical engineers whether you are doing the collision checking yourself or they are doing it for you. You can help improve this process by:

• Setting up rules and standards in advance
• Keeping the communication flow open at all times.

If mechanical engineers are doing the bulk of your collision checking, then fluid communication is critical. Even if you’re using software like CADSTAR Board Modeler Lite, you still need to be good at working together and sharing information.

2. 3D Models

Detailed highlight after running a collision check on the 3D model within Board Modeler Lite

If you are working on high-density boards; this is a must. One option is the 3D Wizard in Board Modeler Lite – which I should add, was recently updated to offer more detail. With it, your placements will be more accurate, allowing you to place components closer together, creating more space on the board.

Mechanical designers can use the Parametric 3D Model Generator for PCB components within Board Modeler Lite to analyze 3D models of key components. So no more searching the web for the right model, now it’s a few clicks away.

3. Oversized Outlines

Use oversized component placement outlines during placement to avoid assembly and manufacturing violations down the road. However, if you want a perfect fit (particularly in small form-fitting enclosures and housings) you will need to use true 3D models within an integrated electromechanical solution.

An integrated electromechanical solution for electronic design reduces the back and forth iterations with mechanical design and generally optimizes floorplanning. It allows you to highlight collision violations accurately within enclosures, which means you can easily study individual collision errors.

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So whether it’s the PCB designers or the mechanical engineers who do the collision checking on your designs, there are ways to improve that process and smooth out the bumps in the road.

For more information about collision checking in CADSTAR’s integrated electromechanical solution for electronic design, check out Board Modeler Lite or contact your local CADSTAR distributor. You can also request an evaluation version of the software here.

You can also view the Board Modeler Lite YouTube movie to accompany this post.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Do you still read real papers and magazines? What I mean by REAL is a printed copy that you can physically leaf through, doodle on and toss in the recycling bin when you’re done. As you are reading this blog right now, you’re likely among the growing proportion of people who don’t really bother with paper magazines anymore. Maybe you don’t want to be burdened by physical paper that might be out of date, and instead want real-time information at your finger-tips i.e., through your laptop, tablet, or phone.

Age matters – how engineers obtain data and engineering support

In October 2012 UBM Tech did a study to obtain a global snapshot of engineering attitudes and information requirements. They looked at how engineers of different ages gathered data and went about getting technical support and found:

• Just starting engineers, defined as being less than 10 years in the profession, are more likely to use online resources or participate in communities and forums.
• Engineers with 10 to 30 years’ experience are more likely to use supplier or publication websites, printed publications and catalogs.
• Prime timers with more than 30 years in the industry tend to prefer meetings and seminars.

Source: EETimes.  See the full article and an accompanying video interview

Print is in the past for EETimes in the USA and EPN in Europe

Did you hear? EETimes did its last print run at the end of 2012. It’s pretty serious when EETimes, that has been around for forty years decides that it’s time to quit print. This trend is spreading around the world. In Europe Norway’s Elektronik i Norden in Norway is soon to wave “farewell” to print too. The pan European electronics publication EPN has also ceased publishing this month. For some publications the decision to go 100% digital comes down to cost, for others it’s about conforming to the changing preferences of their readers. 

How engineers use social media

Social media used regularly by attendees of the 2012 ZIW events

We did some research of our own at the annual ZIW conferences, maybe you participated.

We asked specific questions about social media awareness and usage, and found that the most popular forms of social media used regularly are industry forums and YouTube.

And of Zuken’s social media channels this blog was used most regularly (35%), followed by Facebook (21%) and then LinkedIn (13%).

You’ll still find Zuken in print in some industry magazines, but more and more you’ll see us on websites and electronic newsletters of digital publications.

Without giving up my age I will tell you that you can find me scrolling through a news website on my tablet with a cup of tea in the morning, then thumbing through an industry magazine with lunch. Both mediums still have a place.

How about you? How do your media habits match up to the research?

You know how it is when another new release of software comes along and you think, ‘Is it worth installing this now, or should I wait for the next release?’

Well, you might want to consider CADSTAR 14 now, as some of the new features may just make a big difference to your next design!

Create ‘accepted’ errors

First up is a new check when you go to Manufacturing Export to verify that there are no DRC errors in the design, so you don’t accidentally send your manufacturer a dataset that includes a couple of errors you planned to fix later.

CADSTAR alerts users of existing DRCs before creating outputs for manufacturing

In PCB design there are often accepted errors (maybe a spacing error between component placement boundaries that you know will be not be a problem in assembly); you know they are there, but they won’t cause any problems in manufacturing and later on in the product’s functionality.Recently, a number of our users have made comments along the lines of: “I just want to be able to show the production engineer that this error is OK; not on the covering email, but within the design itself.”

So now the DRC feature lets you classify any DRC error as ‘accepted’ – and you can focus on the important issues, but still retain the list of accepted errors for your quality audit.

Quick draw

‘Off Screen Drawing’ may not sound so important, but it gives you up to 10 times better redraw speed on many graphics cards and I certainly notice the difference on my PC.

Flexible pin names

Advanced control for alphanumeric pin numbers reduces time in part development

One of the major new features in CADSTAR 14 is the move to support true alphanumeric pin names, so now you can:

• Have components with non-sequential pin numbers
• Quickly create even the largest or most complex BGA with automatic Jedec pin naming, using the new Wizards
• Create Parts in the Library Editor faster than ever before.

So don’t wait –  take a look at CADSTAR 14 and investigate some of the features that I know will help you improve productivity and accuracy. It’s available now.

Discover CADSTAR

• Want an introduction to CADSTAR? Watch our movie below

• Learn more about CADSTAR 14 on the Zuken website
• Contact your local representative to find out more about what CADSTAR can do for you

Try CADSTAR

• CADSTAR Express -  enjoy all the functionality of CADSTAR free  (comes with limited pins and components)
• CADSTAR Free Trial – 30 days of unlimited functionality

Finding skilled engineers can be a challenge. But who’s responsible, how did this happen and is it reality or media hype?

You could argue that part of the problem resides in the fact that engineers aren’t given the respect (or reflective pay) that doctors or bankers get. Without engineers, todays technological improvements would not have been made.

Engineer shortage or skills shortage?

Here’s the paradox – high unemployment in the world’s skilled labor market, but companies are complaining about not having the right candidates. There seems to be no shortage of engineers out there eager to learn and get involved; but finding people with the right niche skillset and experience who can hit the ground running is tough, particularly if you are at the forefront of new technology.

There is certainly not a skill shortage across the board in engineering, who doesn’t know a friend out there in engineering who’s looking for a job? But there are definitely sectors that have been struggling.

Who’s responsible for developing engineers?

Governments have been trying. Here in the UK we have a wide array of government-backed organizations whose key objectives include helping develop the right skills. But with budget cuts in recent years there’s less money to go around for these kinds of initiatives. Perhaps governments could consider novel ways of trying to raise the status of engineering roles; providing more focus on addressing the skills deficit in organizations and institutions through incentives that are not just about getting people into a job for the short term but keeping them there and building their skills.

At the same time companies and technology creators also need to do their part. There are some great companies in market sectors like automotive, aerospace and industrial that can show us what real grassroots development is all about. The likes of JCB, Jaguar Land Rover, Rolls Royce, Renishaw and IBM run many programs that support the development of new engineers from taking on people straight out of school as apprentices and training them in partnership with local education establishments, to supporting degree courses, with real involvement in curriculum development and help with work placements.

Helping young developing engineers and college/university programs keep up with the latest technology is something all companies should be thinking about. It’s an area we take seriously at Zuken.

Investing in engineers for the “right” skills

You may have heard about our involvement in various Formula Student teams across Europe and America, helping automotive engineers specializing in electrical system design with training on E3.series, our electrical design solution. You’d better watch out for these guys and gals, they really are a talented bunch!

Along with some of our resellers, we have also been working with various academic institutions. For example Algozen Corp., one of our CADSTAR resellers, has been working with Durham College in Ontario Canada – an institution that has been using CADSTAR for 20 years.

We are always looking for new academic institutions to work with, so please contact me if you want to know more.

It’s important not to forget that we need to “speculate to accumulate.” Investing in the future will ensure everyone’s continued success. In addition, changing the value of engineers within society would go a long way to making a career in engineering an attractive option that has the financial remuneration and status that it deserves.

You can read more on related topics here:

• Formula Student Team Reach Pole Position in Spain with E3.series
• Zuken Sponsors Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology Development: The Forze IV

Errors in collaboration are something that I’m focusing on quite a bit at the moment. Today I’m looking at the creation of topologies and error-prone collaboration between circuit designers and PCB designers when sharing constraints during the design process.

In most cases the circuit designer envisions a topology and communicates it by:

• Using freely placed text on the schematic
• Using handwritten notes and emails
• Overseeing the hand routing of clock signals and other critical nets
• Verifying constraints in spreadsheets not integrated into the PCB design

Now I know it’s not the lack of ambition or interest to improve the process, but more a lack of functionality with most EDA tools. Microsoft Excel® is not an EDA verification tool so why use it for that?  Managing constraints within the circuit database is preferred. CADSTAR users have this functionality.

Constraints and Creating Topologies

Let’s consider one aspect of constraints: establishing a proper pin connection order and branch paths. This is known by many circuit designers as a topology; whether it is a basic daisy chain topology, or a complicated H-tree topology using remote branch points that must be balanced by length or delay between junction points…and don’t forget to consider the manufacturer’s required maximum stub length. However you look at it, the problem remains the same: the circuit designer must explain it and the PCB designer must create it, both with minimal communication.

Maybe you’re sick and tired of working this way? You’ll be glad to hear that we’ve got it sorted. This is where I do a little dance, take off my hat and say “Introducing…The New Constraint Browser and Topology Editor.”

A PCB designers dream, to have Virtual branch Points and a predefined Topology from a circuit designer.

What we’ve done for high-speed topologies is introduce a new module for CADSTAR that allows you to create these graphically using pin symbols, components and transmission lines.

With five predefined templates to choose from, any topology can be created including H-tree and user-defined topologies that incorporate virtual branch points. Topologies also support the control over stub length so no more painstaking entry of pin orders and branches using text-based attributes.Imagine if you had a solution like this during your repeated design review discussions on how your high-speed nets needed to be routed. Wouldn’t this have been easier? Using a graphical topology editor during the circuit design phase will trim hours off of the PCB Design process, simply by improving communications electronically.

Check out this video to find out more

Click here to view the embedded video.

Today I write with a sad heart about the passing of EDA giant, Alan Finch, a long-time colleague at Racal-Redac and then Zuken, a man who was highly thought of by so many. He was a routing guru who had legendary status, renowned for pioneering a concept that changed the way the EDA industry sees autorouting. He published a paper (with K.J. Mackenzie, G.J. Balsdon, and G. Symonds) entitled “The case for gridless automatic routers” and developed the algorithm that was at the heart of the first gridless router, launched in 1986.

Many people have shared their memories, here are just a few:

“Alan was a man who embraced challenge; engineers would send design data to him and challenge him to solve it. He thrived on finding a solution to routing designs that were deemed by many as too difficult to route.

“My biggest memory of Alan was attending PCB West benchmarks organized by Pete Waddell and his team, where the contenders were given a challenge to route a PCB design being graded as they performed the task and also on the quality and completeness of the finished design. One joke Pete would always make was, ‘If Alan and me put our heads together, we would make an arse of it’, both looking very similar in appearance with their bald heads,” explained Nik Kontic, a former colleague.

Cass Castello, another former colleague in the Bristol office, spoke of Alan’s array of strengths. “To the techies he was an expert techie, to the AEs an expert AE, to management a wise head, and to everyone he was great company and a warm, considerate person. He was a gentle man and a gentleman, sensitive to the signs of what his colleagues were feeling and keen to understand and to support those around him. He had no time for self-aggrandisement, seeming always to see himself as simply another member of a capable team.”

Alan is a great loss to the world not only because of his contribution to the advancement of technology, but also because of his generous, unassuming nature.

Ken Mackenzie, who worked with Alan on the gridless router back in the 80s, said, “As someone who was privileged to work directly with him, I will always remember Alan as a great friend and mentor. He was a very kind, self-effacing man with a huge enthusiasm and genius for his work on automatic routing tools.”

Anthony Cutler, Alan’s former manager added these words, “Alan exuded a quiet calm authority. He chose to avoid situations where he would be seen to be superior to others – he used to say there was no need to fuss, as he saw nothing exceptional in what he’d achieved. So Alan was often seen working quietly with the fuss going on around him.

“At the same time, he was very approachable, and would be pleased to help the experienced and the novice alike to better understand the intricacies of the router, or to help you understand how best to use it. He had almost infinite patience.

“It’s humbling to record that this quiet, industrious and unassuming individual was responsible for a major breakthrough in EDA, and like many, I hope the epithet ‘the father of gridless autorouting’ stays with him for all time.

“Alan’s kindness and humanity were clear to all and it was a joy to be one of his friends to the last.”

I had the pleasure of working alongside Alan for 15 years from before he retired and most of what I know about Zuken’s routing tools, he taught me. I remember in 1994 soon after Zuken bought Racal-Redac, I travelled to Japan with Alan to demonstrate our routing tools; we visited offices in Tokyo and Osaka. Alan wasn’t looking forward to the trip at all as he didn’t care for travelling, but when we arrived we were given first class treatment. Alan was treated with great respect by the Japanese technical press and revered as a routing guru. I also remember his picture was taken for a national Japanese newspaper, all of which he was really pleased about, he had a smile on his face all the way back to England. He was a great colleague and it was a pleasure to work with him and learn from him.

I will remember him as the father of gridless autorouting for his contributions to this company and the industry at large. But for those who knew him, Alan will be remembered fondly for so much more.

Feel free to share your recollections in the comments below.

It is hard to believe that another year has passed us by. It has been a busy one for all of us on the Zuken Support Team, and we are continually grateful for each of you, our valued customers, whom we are privileged to serve throughout the year.

We hope you continue to feel satisfied that your support needs are being met to your greatest expectations. We are steadfast in our commitment to offering second-to-none support. If there is anything at all that we can do to further assist you, or to improve our service to you, please contact us.

Following is our Zuken holiday schedule, just so you are aware of when you can reach us:

What a great conference season it has been – as we networked, learned and innovated our way through October and November.

With a pleased yet relieved sigh, I have mixed feelings about our 2012 annual conferences being over. On one hand, for the people who organize these events like me, we think “thank goodness, I can concentrate on the next big project”, but in the short term it leaves a strange void which is a little sad.

As with every year we’ve learned some lessons, which mean that when we come back in the spring of 2014 with our next conferences, they will be better than ever.

Awesome Venues

ZIW UK at JCB’s global headquarters in Staffordshire

We hosted our events at some amazing venues this year, from Disneyland in Paris and Newport Beach in California to the JCB Headquarters in the UK.

Top Highlights from around Europe and North America

Here are just some of the high points from a few of our events…

North America – the weather, dinner on John Wayne’s former yacht the Wild Goose, the Jeopardy-style ‘Tips, Tricks and Innovations’ session by Sandy Jones and Jeff Perry, many interesting customer sessions and lots of great networking time.

A captivated audience at ZIW Ulm

Germany – the inspiring keynote address from Professor Kauf from Aalen University on standardization, and the excellent presentations from users such as Endress+Hauser, Rohde & Schwarz, Siemens AG and Maschinenfabrik Bernard Krone.

UK – everything about JCB was amazing, from the keynote address on UK design and manufacturing, to the inspiring tour tracing JCB’s journey to success; plus some excellent presentations from partners such as Würth Elektronik.

France – presentations from users such as Continental and SNCF, which followed the thought-provoking keynote presentation on ‘Electronics in industry – an engine for innovation’ by Mr. Dauger from DECISION.

Why not check out pictures from these events on the Zuken facebook page?

Looking to Spring 2014

As you may have heard, there will be no European or North American ZIW conferences in 2013 as we shift these events to springtime in 2014. But we will still be in touch online and in person; why not come and meet Zuken at an industry event near you?

Here on the Zuken blog is a great place to stay in contact, stay up to date and share your ideas. We are always looking for guest bloggers – send the blog team an email with your ideas or just comment on this post below if you have something to share.

See you soon.

Today, Christopher Groft, an electrical engineer from AAI Corporation, talks about why he attends Zuken’s annual conference each year.

Given unstable economic times, I was privileged to be able to attend my 5^th consecutive Zuken Conference in October 2012. I wanted to take a moment to convey some of observations from the conference.

Originally named Zuken Design Automation Conference (Z-DAC), this year’s conference was re-branded Zuken Innovation World (ZIW). The new name embodies Zuken’s focus on innovation leveraged by Zuken’s product offering. ZIW attendees see innovation in the making in the form of presentations by both industry participants and Zuken experts.

I spent seven years working in electronic component distribution sector as a Field Application Engineer. During those years I had exposure to numerous suppliers’ offerings of hardware and ECAD tools. I am always overwhelmed by the level of effort Zuken puts forth to satisfy its existing customers and win new customers; ZIW is a perfect example. Unlike a vendor rep drive-by or a local users group meeting, ZIW is an orchestrated effort to join users and experts!Over the years my expectations of what I’d gain at the conference have evolved. At my first conference, I expected training as part of the event. However, I have come to anticipate face time with users and Zuken experts. As an E³.series administrator, librarian, and user, time with other users allows me to see how others use the tool providing a glimpse outside of my company’s “box”.

Regarding time with experts…

There is no amount of phone calls or service tickets that can equal the ability to grab a couple minutes, sit down, and discuss issues and ideas with the very engineers that develop, design, and test the products you are using. In a word, PRICELESS.

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Chris Groft is an Electrical Engineer with AAI Test & Training, an operating unit of Textron Systems, a Textron company. At AAI, Chris serves as a member of the ECAD Tool Management Team.

Thanks to Chris for sharing his thoughts. Now is a good time for us to remind you that the next series of annual European and North American conferences will come in the spring of 2014.