Signal integrity with PCBNew layouts

Hi,

Is there any tool / software which can be associated with KiCad PCBNew for doing signal integrity analyses pls?

Thanks and Regards,
Arvind Gupta

Hey Arvind,

Nothing is associated with KiCad that I’m aware of. I’m excited to see the addition of a stackup editor/planner on the V6 roadmap, though. I’m looking forward to using that. If you need pre-layout constraints, QUCS should work pretty well, with the biggest missing feature being support for IBIS models. If anyone reading this has a quick easy way to get IBIS models into QUCS, I’d be very interested. I’m surprised that I haven’t found it considering IBIS is an open standard that has been around for a long time.

As for post-layout analysis, you may want to look at this recent thread: Export PCB board to OpenEMS?. I didn’t see the most recent updates with the KiCad exporter until just now, so now I’m excited to try it out. Otherwise, MMTL is a good 2.5d field solver if you want to get some estimates on cross-coupling in specific problem areas.

Hope that helps. I’m very interested in improving access to SI/PI analysis for open source designs. Considering the increases in PCB complexity, it won’t be long until nearly all designs require some sort of SI/PI knowledge.

2 Likes

any updates on this matter from KICAD, i am intrested on SI, PI, EMI simulation associated with Kicad

It always comes down to some dev having the interest to write it for kicad, it seems to do it properly would involve a FEM 3D solver, based on the cost of other 3D solvers, I am going to say its probably an order of magnitude harder than the push and shove routing contributed by cern.

Part of me wonders, seeing as Freecad (a freind of kicad) has a 3d FEM solver for mechanical properties, If it could be built upon to accomplish an electromagnetic one.

There also seems to be a bit of recent interest in the qucs program, I’d be interested in helping develop solutions there as well (if I had any time at all to help out). It seems like the best place for additional SI/PI analysis tools.

some months ago there was a guy on the mailing list talking about signal-integrity simulation with KiCad:

https://lists.launchpad.net/kicad-developers/msg32072.html

He may have actually posted here as I recall. I thought about that when the subject came up. Never heard any follow up though.

KiCad info: exporting-pcb-tracks-to-mechanical-cad-for-fem

https://kicad-info.s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/optimized/2X/e/e9a0a5286884bd17c975db43b6ab896da624f05c_1_509x500.gif

2 Likes

Any updates on this matter from KICAD, i am intrested on SI, PI, EMI simulation associated with KiCAD??

Will KiCAD give the required file formats so that we can check them in third party simulation tools like Hyperlynx. ??

Regards,
Madhuwesly,

Some efforts are being made for EMI simulation, see pcbmodelgen for openEMS as an example.

The tool is far from mature, but it is a promising start.

1 Like

Providing a link


Linux only.
I will have a look at this