Best software for creating Embedded Processor Schematic's & PCB's? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Fran3
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 09:53:46 pm
content: I'm about to start a a project designing an Embedded Processor system.I'm wondering which software is best for creating the schematic and PCB?I've used KiCad & NgSpice and also LTSpice but I think these are mostly for analog circuits.I'm not going to simulate the circuit embedded processor circuit (unless there is software to do that) but my goal is for schematic capture and PCB layout.Thanks for any help.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 10:09:04 pm
content: What kind of processor?For a generic microcontroller without high speed external memory, Kicad will be just fine.If you are venturing into a SoC with DDR3 (or faster) memory you'll need something better like Orcad which can also do crosstalk and impedance simulations. These simulations are very useful to get an idea of whether the trace impedance is constant and to help finding areas where traces are too close to eachother.

author: Fran3
author_rank: Newbie
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 10:22:07 pm
content: We haven't chose a processor yet. I'll do a separate post about to get the groups suggestions. Thanks.

author: AVI-crak
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 10:23:10 pm
content: Available from good Altium Designer.The highest quality PCB design software is not sold on the free market, even for its own. But I can give you a rough idea of how it works, and you won't like it.It all started with Specctra, an auto-router for printed circuit boards. You can still find a frozen version on the net.Specctra developments are used in large companies, each has its own unique version, its own unique algorithms. \Unlike Altium Designer and others like it, you don't need to separate the PCB by hand. Moreover, there is no manual tracing mode at all. Instead, for each circuit, for each polygon, for all contacts without exception, specification files are created. This is a lot of text, and all this must be written by hand. In addition, it is very tedious to start from scratch. You must have a minimum baggage of templates, otherwise it will be infinitely difficult to make the first board.As a result, the software automatically arranges components, moves and rotates for the best result. Automatically draws tracks based on specification files - these are thousands of dependencies and conditions, with a strict hierarchy and restrictions. Draws slowly for a machine, but very fast compared to a human.You probably noticed some events - a new processor came out, and a completely outside company made a motherboard for it in two days. This is exactly what it is.

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 10:53:32 pm
content: Quote from: Fran3 on July 11, 2023, 09:53:46 pmNgspice and LTSpice are simulators and have nothing to do with schematics and PCB artwork creation.KiCAD on the other hand is a full-featured schematic capture and PCB creation tool for both analog and digital design.And it's free, open source. You don't risk format lock-in or 30-day free period, then get your wallet out etc.Your choice.

author: julian1
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 10:58:04 pm
content: DSN files created in Kicad are quite are amenable to machine/manual editing.Has anyone tried to open a Kicad generated one in Orcad?

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 11:09:54 pm
content: Quote from: julian1 on July 11, 2023, 10:58:04 pmI guess you mean the XML files that Orcad can export / readThese are easy to edit indeed and allow to do mass replacements using a script or text processing tools (as they are available in Linux). I have not tried to open a schematic exported to XML by Kicad into Orcad though.

author: julian1
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 11:15:54 pm
content: The .dsn ones I am working with are s-expressions (better than beastly xml ). Syntax is based on the DSN file format (native format of Orcad I think) according to kicad docs,https://dev-docs.kicad.org/en/file-formats/sexpr-intro/index.htmlThey are quite flexible and can capture and represent design rules, not just geometry. So it's possible to inject design rules by editing/machine translation.So I was wondering, how Orcad fairs dealing with them if generated from Kicad.

author: nctnico
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 11:19:11 pm
content: Quote from: julian1 on July 11, 2023, 11:15:54 pmOrcad DSN files are binary blobs, not text files. Looks like Kicad is based on a different format that is also using the DSN extension.

author: julian1
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 11:20:27 pm
content: Quote from: nctnico on July 11, 2023, 11:19:11 pmAhh, the altium approach

author: PCB.Wiz
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: July 11, 2023, 11:56:46 pm
content: Quote from: Fran3 on July 11, 2023, 09:53:46 pmIf you have already used KiCad, what was the problem with that ?Why not just get the latest version and continue using it ?