Key Selling Points: Electronics Packaging Designer or EPD is the core engine for all EPD Design Suites. This design system of LISP and ARX routines was developed in-house at CAD Design Software and was developed and used in our in-house design bureau. Over the next 20+ years of experience and interaction with our customers, we have received experience in all types of packaging and layout designs that have driven the industry.

1. Advanced System Architecture:

  • CAD Design Software uses 3D as a fundamental driving force behind all of its products. Most 3D-based engineering systems (Solidworks, Ansys, etc.) use either the ACIS or the ParaSolid 3D modeling engines. Use of either 3D modeling engine ensures that data can faithfully be reproduced and shared between Electrical CAD applications and Mechanical CAD applications. CAD Design Software leverages the ACIS engine to produce industry standard 3D models, and is currently the only Electrical CAD system that uses a 3D modeling engine.

  • Its 3D architecture gives CAD Design Software the most advanced capability for 2D and 3D content in the EDA industry. This means that CDS provides the best of Mechanical CAD, and Electrical CAD in a single software package.

  • CAD Design Software provides users with virtually unlimited resolution and the highest degree of positional and rotational accuracy. The resolution of the system is estimated to have a range from 1038 units to 10-38 of one unit (one unit can be assigned as 1 inch, 1 mm, 1 mil, or 1 micron). For practical purposes, display and measurement resolution is “limited” to 10-8 of one unit.

  • CAD Design Software uses a hierarchical object construction for all block and design rule structures. This allows efficient use of the database, as well as flexible methods to assign design rules globally, by layer, by net, by from-to, etc.

2. Schematic Capture:

  • CAD Design Software provides methodologies for schematic driven layout or schematic free layouts. This means you can make the layout follow the rules and interconnects specified by a schematic and/or a netlist, or you can make a layout without a netlist/schematic. Of course, for documentation, a schematic can be extracted from the design at any time.

  • Auto Schematic Capture features a hierarchical system construction for repetitive cells and nested schematics.

  • Auto Schematic Capture features full support for input of high-speed rules and routing requirements. These rules are automatically carried to the layout through the netlist, and can also be ported through completely to autorouters like Cadence APD Specctra.

3. Technologies:

  • CAD Design Software supports all technologies, including the most advanced and recent technologies. All technologies are supported in a unified environment, so it is not necessary to switch applications for different design types.

    • Lead Frame - Fully automates all types of Lead Frame designs, including TQFP, TSOP, SOIC, MQFP, and PLCC. Automatic fanout types include Vpattern, Curved and Vpattern/Curved.

    • Ceramic MCM – CAD Design Software supports all types of /MCM technologies, including Low/High Temperature Co-fired Ceramic (LTCC/HTCC), Thin/Thick Film, and Build-Up (BU) PCB.

    • Flip Chip / Die Bump Technology - Automates the process of creating redistribution routing and bump artwork to convert a standard die to a flipchip die. The redistribution layer can be created easily and quickly directly on the IC through the use of our automated bump creation and interactive autorouting utilities.

    • RF/Microwave – CAD Design Software supports all high-speed design technologies and their demanding geometric requirements.

    • Flex – CAD Design Software supports all flex (polyimide) based technologies, including flex, rigid-flex, and High Density Interconnect (HDI) flex.

    • IC Packaging – CAD Design Software supports all IC packaging technologies, including all BGA types, FlipChip, ChipScale, Lead Frame, Stacked Die/Stacked Package, as well as cutting-edge packaging technologies.

4. Components:

  • CAD Design Software supports multiple, parametric based component programs and custom part utilities to make any imaginable component. All components can be shared within the different technologies.

    • PCB components – CAD Design Software includes full libraries for through hole and surface mount technologies.

    • RF elements – RF elements are created with 0-width boundaries. The special dual-nature construction of elements allows Layout versus Schematic Checks (LVS), without confusing the system into thinking there is a short circuit through the element. However, the system does not ignore the circuitry for important DRC clearance checks.

    • Die libraries – CAD Design Software features intelligent die creation programs. Die geometries can be created from X,Y ASCII data, DWG/DXF/GDSII graphics data, or user defined parameters.

    • CAD Design Software’s parametrically controlled bondfinger layout system is the most powerful available. It features 17 automatic pattern templates, while maintaining full manual control of every finger.

    • For RF/microwave designs, the system features a schematic-centric auto-placement feature that lays out the components according to the layout of the schematic.

    • CAD Design Software features a special library of printed devices for thin/thick film resistors (rectangular, top hat, and L-shaped) with an automatic size calculation.

    • CAD Design Software features the ability to place any component or element on any layer, as embedded devices or in cavities of any depth and from either side of the substrate.

5. Routing:

  • CAD Design Software provides a gridless, object based routing system that “hugs” objects with the exact clearance. The routing system features any-angle, online-DRC system with manual, interactive, and fully automatic routing options, as well as links to autorouters like Cadence APD Specctra.

  • For hispeed routing, the system supports differential pairs, length matching, and parasitic extraction readouts (Resistance, Inductance, Capacitance, Impedance) concurrently while routing.

  • The routing system features drilled via (for laminate) and build-up via (for ceramic) technologies, with support for through hole, blind, buried, and stairstepped via constructions.

  • CAD Design Software features the ability to route traces by using polygon boundaries. This type of routing also facilitates the use of true arc and true RF mitered corners.

6. Ground Planes:

  • CAD Design Software features powerful region modelers for creation of positive solid and crosshatched planes, negative planes, co-planar ground shields, and boundary hatch planes.

  • CAD Design Software addresses electrical requirements in ground planes by providing support for automatic via peppering programs and special utilities for RF shields and fences.

  • CAD Design Software optimizes the design for manufacturing output with features such as automatic copper balancing and the use of custom-defined metal patterns.

7. Electrical/SI:

  • High-level links reduce the time needed to transfer data to and from the design. CAD Design Software provides the following links, using each software’s native formats.

    • IDF – Intelligent link to IDF format for intelligent data transfer to Mechanical CAD (MCAD) software.

    • Direct outputs to CAD/CAM/CAE software programs, using STEP, IGES, ACIS(*.sat), and DWG/DXF.

8. Documentation:

  • CAD Design Software’s built-in documentation capability is unsurpassed. The system features full capability for dimensioning and tolerance for the most advanced documentation needs.

  • CAD Design Software supports fully automatic creation of assembly and fabrication drawings complete with drill tables and charts, as well as various reports.

9. Artwork:

  • CAD Design Software provides numerous automatic features for creation of miscellaneous artworks, such as soldermask, solderpaste, epoxy masks, silkscreen, and other custom artworks.

  • CAD Design Software features the best manufacturing outputs in the industry. The program outputs standard 274D and 274X Gerber files and NC drill/NC Route files.

  • The gerber creation system also supports highly advanced features, such as panelization, true-type font conversion, and automatic scaling factors in X/Y directions, globally or by layer.

10. Design Reuse:

  • CAD Design Software boasts a powerful design reuse system to re-intelligize existing designs from non-intelligent data formats, such as Gerber, GDS, or from legacy formats from other EDA systems.

  • All data can be quickly and intelligently rebuilt to (1) reverse engineer designs, (2)extract netlists, and (3) run netlist and DRC checks.