Engineering managers tasked with outourcing PCB layout face a daunting challenge: comparing the total cost of multiple layout quotes.  Truth…

Determining a price for PCB layout services is conceptually simple:  Estimated number of hours times an hourly rate.  The trick…

Part of a designer's professional developments should be to learn as much as possible about the activities that go before…

Integration is the process of adding intelligence to the PCB database by means of a netlist or schematic. This can…

The placement of bypass capacitors is one of the most critical phases of the design process. Failure to place them…

Knowing how to place a bypass capacitor is a crucial step in PCB design. In most cases, we recommend that…

Deciding to outsource a PCB design can be a daunting task. Between choosing a design firm to handle the design,…

A fabrication drawing specifies how the PCB is to be manufactured. There are four major sections to a fabrication drawing—Board Illustration,…

Originally developed by Valor, ODB++ is an electronic database for printed circuit board manufacturing. Created in 1995, it was designed…

For more than twenty years, Optimum Design Associates (Optimum) has offered their customers PCB design and layout services, and also…

A few days into a recent project for one of our customers, the lead engineer called me to tell me…

Jump rope is a popular childhood activity involving two people swinging the ends of a long rope, with a third…