What's Good About APD’s Super Smooth Routing? See for yourself in the SPB16.3 Release!

When using the point-to-point routing in the packaging products (APD and SIP), customers spend a significant amount of their efforts to clean up the traces after routing. The “Custom Smooth” function provides this capability, but a separate step is needed.  In the SPB16.3 release, the new option - “Super Smooth” - in the smooth options of several GUI forms for the Add Connect and Slide will facilitate this process. 

What is Super Smooth? It's a super smoothing function to remove unnecessary vertices for the entire cline.

There are three different ways to access the Super Smooth option:

1. In the Design Parameter Editor
2. Options forms
3. Popup menus

In these areas, you can setup the Super Smooth option for Add Connect and Slide.

The Super Smooth will affect the modified trace the same way as the full smooth mode, but it will aggressively smooth out the entire clines for the shoved traces.

If you'd like to see some examples, read on below ...


UI changes

Upon entering Route in the Design Parameter Editor, there is a new “Super” choice in Smooth option for the Add Connect and Slide as shown (Route tab):

Here's the option in the Slide tab:

Upon entering Add Connect, the RMB popup menu will have a new choice in Smooth option as shown:

Upon entering Slide, the RMB popup menu will have a new choice in Smooth option as shown:

In the Options form of Add Connect, a new choice in Smooth option as shown:

In the Options form of Slide, a new choice in Smooth option as shown:

Examples of Add Connect operation in both full and super smooth mode

As shown below, the Clines are routed by using the Add Connect function in full smooth mode.   

Starting with unsmoothed cline on left. Here, the trace on the right was routed first then the trace on the left was routed and shoved against that. The router did not smooth out the entire trace in which the second trace had left an extra vertex near the center of the pin.

Add Connect in full smooth mode. Left trace added and shoved into middle trace. Note: Middle trace is not completely smoothed. The third trace was routed and shoved against to two traces on the right, but the full smooth mode is not powerful enough to remove the extra vertices from both traces.

Add Connect in super smooth mode. Left trace added and shoved into middle trace. Note: Middle trace is now completely smoothed. The third trace was rerouted by using super smooth mode and the extra vertices were removed from both traces.

Examples of Slide operation in both full and super smooth mode

Below shows both traces have extra vertices that can be removed. The Slide command is used to smooth both traces.

Both traces need to be smoothed

After Slide by using full smooth mode. Slide left trace into right trace. Note: Extra vertex still exists within the round via pad.

After Slide by using super smooth mode. Slide left trace into right trace. Note: Extra vertex within the round via pad now removed.

 As always, I welcome your input on how you're using these new SPB16.3 capabilities.

Jerry "GenPart" Grzenia