Does anyone use Autodesk AutoCAD for commercial Schematic or PCB design? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: beng
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: June 14, 2015, 10:59:51 pm
content: G'day All,I am interested to know if anyone uses AutoCAD for designing their schematics or PCB in a commercial environment?The reason I ask is that a subject I am studying called "PCB Design" as part of an Advanced Diploma is entirely focused around AutoCAD and I am wondering if it is actually used in commercial electronic design/repair environments.I am aware that it could be used to design component packaging, enclosures etc but it does not seem well suited for schematic or PCB design work.Apart from Altrium, Diptrace, KiCAD and Eagle and OrCAD, are there any other products that people do use in a commercial setting?Rgds Ben

author: SL4P
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 14, 2015, 11:10:49 pm
content: Whatever tool 'floats your boat', but the endgame is being able to export files for manufacture.The PCB specific tools are streamlined to that end, while AutoCAD is primarily a dimensional design tool (architecture, mechanical etc).APCBdesign course is heading the wrong way if they'restartingwith AutoCAD!

author: HighVoltage
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 14, 2015, 11:17:41 pm
content: In the 1980s, when pretty much only AutoCAD was around as a CAD software, I used it to make PCB design layouts and even Schematics entry.But since professional tools like ORCAD came out, I think nobody would use it anymore for that purpose.

author: Smokey
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 15, 2015, 03:08:47 am
content: I can imagine using Autocad for schematics. While being a pain in the ass, it would probably work. If it was me, I'd set it up as this massive sheet with all the symbols like opamps, npn, pnp, r, c, l, etc lined up off to the side and you could cut and paste them where needed. That would not be much fun though. Layout would be a pain with the different thickness lines/traces.

author: T3sl4co1l
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 15, 2015, 03:18:54 am
content: Some board houses may actually be able to import a DXF/DWG.I wouldn't recommend it.AutoCAD is made for geometric layout, plotting and trimming lines, curves, fills, etc. It has no features to facilitate schematic entry (one-click library entry, annotation, netlist generation, let alone hierarchical design), nor PCB (you're on your own, everything custom; no trace shapes, no pad/footprint shapes, no design rules, no connectivity, no ratsnest, no ...).Tim

author: miguelvp
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 15, 2015, 03:39:45 am
content: Yeah, it seems like Autodesk has moved more into the Industrial and high power EE designs than electronic boards.http://www.autodesk.com/products/autocad-electrical/overviewLike HighVoltage said, back in the 80's they were the only game in town, I have no idea how they have evolved or de-evolved from there. I never used it but I remember there was a course taught on Autocad for EE and on the lab they were all drawing circuits and what have you.Maybe there is more money on industrial or maybe they just couldn't keep up with more complex boards.

author: coppice
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 15, 2015, 03:58:01 am
content: AutoCAD was launched in 1982. OrCAD in 1985. Not a big gap, really. Other things must have driven AutoCAD use for schematics.Every now and then I find something interesting that people are going graphically with AutoCAD, where their drawings are automatically converted into something that becomes part of a target machine. Specialised state machine design is the commonest of these, but there are plenty of others.

author: kingofkya
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 15, 2015, 04:10:04 am
content: I would bet there trying to get you to understand measurements and manual drafting, auto cad gets in the way less when you want to manuall draft something.First thing you want to do is turn the comand line one you can run circles around other people with it.

author: IanJ
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 15, 2015, 06:23:49 am
content: Hi,I guess it's possible to use AutoCAD for PCB design with some degree PCB design intelligence built in by way of an add-on package (I don't know of any), or even LISP/ARX........but it would be very basic, almost completely manual in terms of routing..........but I bet that's what they are intending, and always nice to learn the very basics I guess.Ian.

author: Singapura
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: June 15, 2015, 10:26:32 am
content: Back in the MS-DOS days, AutoCAD was the de facto for mechanical and dimensioning drawings. I still remember the wire-frame space shuttle demo that was displayed on every computer monitor that attracted passer-by into the PC shops.I've used the DOS version of OrCAD for my schematic entry needs, and TOP-SPICE for schematic and simulation of circuits. Other than that, in my PCB test programming work, I create text netlists and simulate them on a Sun SPARC II 490 system running the CADAT simulator together with the CATS-10000 hardware modeler.If you're into documenting schematic diagrams or PCB layout diagrams, I would think Microsoft Visio is easier to learn and use than AutoCAD, and pricing-wise is definitely much cheaper.

author: beng
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: June 17, 2015, 10:28:04 pm
content: G'day All,Thankyou for your responses.My apologies I did not respond sooner, but I keep neglecting to put the "email notify" on!I think then general consensus would be that AutoCAD is not used in a PCB design environment.However it is a good point that it gives a good grounding in 2(or 3) dimensional design, but being such a complex product, one semester is not enough to make anyone proficient inmho.For example at one point we were re-creating a high voltage powerline schematic.... hardly relevant to Electronics students I would have thought.....I would think that using something like DipTrace with it's component designer would provide the same dimensioning experience without the "Autodesk" overhead.On top of that I have found out that the equivalent Bachelors degree from the same institution uses Altium, so it makes even less sense, to me, to be teaching us Autocad. (Just as an aside, I found out if you call Altium they do have student pricing that is VERY reasonable).So I think I will get a meeting with our course co-ordinator.Thanks again for everyones help.Rgds Ben

author: krish2487
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 23, 2015, 05:28:04 am
content: Not directly schematics and pcb layout per say, but autocad has diversified into various streams and has solutions.Autocad electrical can be used to create electrical wiring harness diagrams and the likes.These can be imported into autodesk inventor so that a product mechanical designer can work with how a wiring harness can be inteegrated into the physical design.We use this functionality in our business for product design and rather like it. Allows us to mock up the entire product virtually before evenmaking a sample. Reduces turnaround time and time spent in correcting errors.I do believe that there a couple of videos on youtube showcasing this videos.PS: Sorry if the post seems irrelevant. Could not resist sharing some experiences.

author: Alex Eisenhut
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 24, 2015, 02:04:43 pm
content: Quote from: beng on June 17, 2015, 10:28:04 pmNo, it's used in RF. They dimension their enclosures and whatnot and output the "RF features" as DXF blocks.RF features such as bias networks and filters and splitters.It's ADS that outputs the DXF.

author: McBryce
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 24, 2015, 02:45:53 pm
content: A few weeks ago I would have said no, not since the 90's, but just last week I was sent a PCB layout for a Radar system that had been done in AutoCAD?? No idea why they still use that.Back in the 90's I had a library of footprints, pads etc for AutoCAD (tracks were done using 2D polylines) and we did layouts using that. The reason was that the company had several AutoCAD licenses and weren't prepared to buy another license just for layout software. The electronics part of the company was only about 1% of what the company did. The annoying bit was that there was no link/annotation between schematics and layouts, which was just asking for trouble.McBryce.