PowerPCB - Trying to panelize a board - Can duplicate refere

Chris · May 14, 2004

Hi everyone.
I am trying to panelize a board using PowerPCB via copy and paste.
Unfortunately, I cannot use duplicate reference designators. Does anyone
know how to allow duplicate reference designators? Does this option exist?

Or if someone can suggest an easier way to put multiple PCBs into one board,
please tell me.
Chris

Leon Heller · May 14, 2004

"Chris" <Konnector@novalid.email.com> wrote in message
news:newscache$n86pxh$bkm$1@news01e.so-net.ne.jp...

Hi everyone.
I am trying to panelize a board using PowerPCB via copy and paste.
Unfortunately, I cannot use duplicate reference designators. Does anyone
know how to allow duplicate reference designators? Does this option exist?

Or if someone can suggest an easier way to put multiple PCBs into one
board,
please tell me.

Get your board supplier to do it.

Leon
--
Leon Heller, G1HSM
http://www.geocities.com/leon_heller

Tim Mitchell · May 14, 2004

In article <40a49c07$0$25323$cc9e4d1f@news-text.dial.pipex.com>, Leon
Heller <leon_heller@hotmail.com> writes

"Chris" <Konnector@novalid.email.com> wrote in message
news:newscache$n86pxh$bkm$1@news01e.so-net.ne.jp...
Hi everyone.
I am trying to panelize a board using PowerPCB via copy and paste.
Unfortunately, I cannot use duplicate reference designators. Does anyone
know how to allow duplicate reference designators? Does this option exist?

Or if someone can suggest an easier way to put multiple PCBs into one
board,
please tell me.

Get your board supplier to do it.

You would normally use a gerber utility like Camtastic to do this with

the exported gerber files. That's what a board manufacturer would use.
If the PCB package allows it you could maybe import the gerbers back
into a blank design and copy & paste those.
--
Tim Mitchell

Hershel Roberson · May 14, 2004

On 14-May-2004, "Chris" <Konnector@novalid.email.com> wrote:

Unfortunately, I cannot use duplicate reference designators.

I do this all the time for prototypes and very low quantity boards (test
equipment, etc.). Just add a silkscreen layer text image on top of the
reference designator (a manual operation, but it usually doesn't take too
long). Cut and paste your copies, then turn off the reference designator
when photoplotting.

-Hershel

Lewin A.R.W. Edwards · May 14, 2004

"Chris" <Konnector@novalid.email.com> wrote in message news:<newscache$n86pxh$bkm$1@news01e.so-net.ne.jp>...

I am trying to panelize a board using PowerPCB via copy and paste.
Unfortunately, I cannot use duplicate reference designators. Does anyone

Seconded the opinion that the PCB fab should be doing this. They know
the size of their stock, and their process limitations. Some vendors
will panelize to their standard size for free (e.g. if you're ordering
prototypes, and the offer is "$x each for board up to x*y size", they
will put multiple copies of your board inside each x*y area if
possible).

But in any case - my understanding is that this process is _normally_
done with the final Gerbers/NC drill files, i.e. it's a graphical
cut-n-paste operation one level of abstraction up from your PCB layout
package. At this level, you don't care that there are two parts
labeled "R101", you just care that the text "R101" should appear in a
certain layer at two places on the output.

Johnny · May 15, 2004

On Fri, 14 May 2004 11:14:30 +0100, "Leon Heller"
<leon_heller@hotmail.com> wrote:

"Chris" <Konnector@novalid.email.com> wrote in message
news:newscache$n86pxh$bkm$1@news01e.so-net.ne.jp...
Hi everyone.
I am trying to panelize a board using PowerPCB via copy and paste.
Unfortunately, I cannot use duplicate reference designators. Does anyone
know how to allow duplicate reference designators? Does this option exist?

Or if someone can suggest an easier way to put multiple PCBs into one
board,
please tell me.

Get your board supplier to do it.

Leon

I think it is generally better to do if yourself, so that you have the
panel details in electronic form. This information is required for:
1) Ordering solder paste stencils. This is very important because
they need to match the PCB exactly.
2) Generating pick and place co-ordinates (although not essential)

regards,
Johnny.

Brad Velander · May 15, 2004

Johnny,

1) Your fabricator will usually do the panelization and give
you back a composite Gerber for solder stencil generation at no
charge. This way they are identical. (Or even all layers for the
panel, it is just the Gerbers they generated anyway, no extra
cost to them.)
2) Since you are doing multiples of one board the assembler
only needs a single board P&P list with the panel board
orientations and offsets. Your offsets should be measured between
the same fiducial on each board. Don't measure to board edges or
holes, measure to one fiducial (copper).

--
Sincerely,
Brad Velander

"Johnny" <john_wr@NOSPAM.hotmail.com.> wrote in message
news:9dsaa0tiea4uo4aai4q0322peh76rfb1ml@4ax.com...

On Fri, 14 May 2004 11:14:30 +0100, "Leon Heller"

I think it is generally better to do if yourself, so that you
have the
panel details in electronic form. This information is required
for:
1) Ordering solder paste stencils. This is very important
because
they need to match the PCB exactly.
2) Generating pick and place co-ordinates (although not
essential)

regards,
Johnny.

Andrew Sterian · May 15, 2004

"Chris" <Konnector@novalid.email.com> wrote in message news:<newscache$n86pxh$bkm$1@news01e.so-net.ne.jp>...

I am trying to panelize a board using PowerPCB via copy and paste.
Unfortunately, I cannot use duplicate reference designators. Does anyone
know how to allow duplicate reference designators? Does this option exist?

Or if someone can suggest an easier way to put multiple PCBs into one board,
please tell me.

I've written a program called GerbMerge that puts multiple
PCB's onto one board. It currently only supports Eagle, Orcad,
and PCB. If you send me your Gerber and Excellon files, I can
try to upgrade its parser support to also allow PowerPCB files
to be panelized.

You can check out GerbMerge at:

http://claymore.engineer.gvsu.edu/~steriana/Python

--
Andrew Sterian | <steriana@claymore.engineer.gvsu.edu>
Assistant Professor | <http://claymore.engineer.gvsu.edu/~steriana>
Padnos School of Engineering | (616) 331-6756
Grand Valley State University |

Roger Gt · May 15, 2004

X-No-Archive: yes

"Andrew Sterian" wrote
: "Chris" wrote
: > I am trying to panelize a board using PowerPCB via copy and
paste.
: > Unfortunately, I cannot use duplicate reference designators.
Does anyone
: > know how to allow duplicate reference designators? Does this
option exist?
: >
: > Or if someone can suggest an easier way to put multiple PCBs
into one board,
: > please tell me.
:
: I've written a program called GerbMerge that puts multiple
: PCB's onto one board. It currently only supports Eagle, Orcad,
: and PCB. If you send me your Gerber and Excellon files, I can
: try to upgrade its parser support to also allow PowerPCB files
: to be panelized.
: You can check out GerbMerge at:
: http://claymore.engineer.gvsu.edu/~steriana/Python

I use "CAMtastic 2000" for panelizing.
Read about it at:
http://www.altium.com/corp/media/pdfs/mr_cam_201200.pdf

rickman · May 18, 2004

"Lewin A.R.W. Edwards" wrote:

"Chris" <Konnector@novalid.email.com> wrote in message news:<newscache$n86pxh$bkm$1@news01e.so-net.ne.jp>...

I am trying to panelize a board using PowerPCB via copy and paste.
Unfortunately, I cannot use duplicate reference designators. Does anyone

Seconded the opinion that the PCB fab should be doing this. They know
the size of their stock, and their process limitations. Some vendors
will panelize to their standard size for free (e.g. if you're ordering
prototypes, and the offer is "$x each for board up to x*y size", they
will put multiple copies of your board inside each x*y area if
possible).

Oddly enough, the low price PCB vendors mostly have heartburn with user
panelization. I tried to get a 0.5" x 0.6" board done at a reasonable
price once. Even though the minimum pricing for a board was $12 based
on a 20 sq in size, they would not let me panelize this. I had to
search around for a house that would give both a good price and allow
panelization. I ended up paying around $.30 each IIRC, but it took a
lot of looking.

--

Rick "rickman" Collins

rick.collins@XYarius.com
Ignore the reply address. To email me use the above address with the XY
removed.

Arius - A Signal Processing Solutions Company
Specializing in DSP and FPGA design URL http://www.arius.com
4 King Ave 301-682-7772 Voice
Frederick, MD 21701-3110 301-682-7666 FAX

j_boin · Jul 15, 2004

Hello,

You can try SILKedit software. This PowerPCB utility program copy
silkscreen layer into a 2D layer. When you copy paste a job, PowerPCB copy
all items but 2d line ref-des are copied like free texts.

PowerPCB - Trying to panelize a board - Can duplicate refere

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