ECAD Tips & Tricks
Shannon
Henry

How to Determine Your PCB Design Statistics

The Summary Drawing Report in OrCAD X compiles key PCB layout metrics to support design accuracy checks.

When completing a PCB design, it is important to obtain a summary of the design to determine your PCB design statistics and verify accuracy. PCB design statistics can include:

  • Layers and design thickness
  • Number of padstacks
  • Minimum drill size
  • Number of holes in the design (plated and unplated)
  • Drilling requirements for holes and vias
  • Completed and missing connections
  • Number of placed and unplaced components
  • Trace summary

This information helps to verify that the design is completed and communicates critical design information to stakeholders and manufacturers. OrCAD X creates a summary report containing PCB design statistics for efficient review of critical design information. This how-to provides step-by-step instructions on how to determine PCB design statistics by creating a summary drawing report in OrCAD X.

Determining Your PCB Design Statistics

1. Open the desired design in OrCAD X PCB Designer.

Figure 1. Generating a Summary Drawing report in OrCAD X.

2. Select Export | Quick Reports | Summary Drawing Report from the menu.

Figure 2. Determine your PCB Design Statistics with OrCAD X.

3. View the Drawing Statistics. Information reported here includes:

  • Total layers
  • Design thickness
  • Total package symbols and mechanical symbols
  • Design rule check information

4. View the Drilling Statistics. Information reported here includes:

  • Minimum drill size
  • Number of drills, standard and non-standard
  • Number of holes, plated and non-plated
  • Number of vias

5. View the Connection Statistics. Information reported here includes:

  • Number of connects
  • Completed connections
  • Missing connections
  • Dangling connections
  • Trace length

6. View the Layout Statistics. Information reported here includes:

  • Components
  • Component class breakdown
  • Route keep-in
  • Pins
  • Layout Area
  • Pin Density

7. View the Trace Layer Statistics. Information reported here includes:

  • Board layers
  • Number of clines per layer
  • Number of shapes per layer
  • Number of component pins per layer

8. View the Trace Widths By Layer. Information reported here includes:

  • Board layers
  • Trace width per layer

9. Verify the completeness and accuracy of the design.

Additionally, this information can be used for reporting, design reviews, manufacturing, software quoting and more. Save or print the Summary Design Report as required, then close the window.

Wrap Up and Next Steps

Quickly obtain a summary of the design to determine your PCB design statistics and efficiently review critical design information with the Summary Drawing Report in OrCAD X.End of article content

Shannon Henry is electrical engineer at the Rochester Institute of Technology and technical marketing engineer with EMA (ema-eda.com).