Studying the nature and impact of design (in general) is elusive at best. There is no universal language or unifying institution for designers of all disciplines. Raised levels of achievement often lead to raised expectations.

Redefining the specifications of design solutions which can lead to better guidelines for traditional design activities (graphic, industrial, architectural, etc.).

Managing the process of exploring, defining, creating artifacts continually over time.

Prototyping possible scenarios, or solutions that incrementally or significantly improve the inherited situation.

Typical stages of the design process include:

• Pre-production design
• Design brief - a statement of design goals
• Analysis - analysis of current design goals
• Research - investigating similar design solutions in the field or related topics
• Specification - specifying requirements of a design solution.
• Problem solving - conceptualizing and documenting design solutions
• Presentation - presenting design solutions
• Design during production
• Development - continuation and improvement of a designed solution
• Testing - a designed solution
• Post-production design feedback for future designs
• Implementation - introducing the designed solution into the environment
• Evaluation and conclusion - summary of process and results, including constructive criticism and suggestions for future improvements
• Redesign - any or all stages in the design process repeated (with corrections made) at any time before, during, or after production.

Overview : Types of Design

• New product development
• Packaging design
• Product design

• Game design
• Software engineering
• Software design
• Software development
• System design
• Web design

• Graphic design
• Instructional design
• Architectural design
• Automotive design
• Electronic Design
• Electrical design
• Mechanical Design
• Machine Design
• Environmental design
• Fashion design
• Furniture design
• Industrial design
• Interior design

Our Team are experts in the following:

• Innovative Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Design including Support Engineering Design Services
• Digital ,Analog , Power and Circuit Design
• The System Analysis & Modeling
• Reverse Engineering
• Circuit Design & Schematic Capture
• Programmable Logic & FPGA Design
• Prototype Development & Test
• PLC Based Controllers & Programming
• Technical Support for Safety Agency Qualification
• Test Fixture Design
• System Design
• RFID Design
• Schematic Capture
• PCB Design
• Test Strategy Design
• Mechanical Design

We work closely with our customer to provide extensive aid involving system design solutions and ideas.We cover everything from features and functionality to specified, mechanics industrial engineering, and full functionality and test of the finished product.

Electronic Design

• Cost, schedule, DFM ( Design for Manufacturability ) and DFT ( Design for Test ) are addressed at every stage of product development
• Schematic Capture
• Using OrCAD and/or ViewLogic

We provide an extensive experienced team to develop Schematics. Our highly experienced engineers we will guarantee the absolute best in mechanical design, allowing a seamless and trouble-free selection of form fit and material selection. We also design cables, packaging boxes/materials and overlays.

FPGA Engineering

We offer the best in FPGA engineering. Our highly trained and skilled team have many FPGA design wins. We can do partial projects and complete FPGA system designs including PCD's/CPLD's.

Available Tools:

• Verilog, Synopsis FPGA Express, Synplicity

Chips Used:

• Xilinx: Virtex, Virtex II, Virtex II Pro, and 9500 Families; Altera: Max 7000 and Flex 10K

Layouts include:

• Areas with consideration for ICT
• Flying probe
• Functional test procedures

Net lists and schematics are compared and verified.

RF, digital, analog, and mixed signal circuits. We guarantee assistance in meeting the unique specified requirements of any given PCB design layout.

Layout and Design Tools Available:

• Cadence Allegro, Mentor, PADS, OrCAD as in OrCAD Capture, OrCAD Layout, PCAD, Altium Designer, AutoCAD, TurboCAD, Protel

Standard Deliverables

• PCB Max Files
• Schematic Entry
• Gerber & Drill Files
• Drafting Services to generate production
• Fabrication & Assembly DXF Files
• Drawings to your specifications
• SMT Stencil Files
• SMT Component Insertion Files

PCB ( Printed Circuit Board ) Design and Manufacturing Overview

• Double Sided & Multilayer Designs
• Radial Layouts and Non-standard Geometries
• SMT, Thru Hole, Hybrid boards
• BGAs
• Digital, Analog, RF, Power, Mixed Technologies
• High Speed/High Density/Fine Pitch
• Impedance Control
• Matched Line Lengths
• Differential Pairs
• High Current
• Flex Circuits
• ANSI/IPC compliance
• OrCAD Capture
• OrCAD Layout
• Cadence Allegro
• PADS PCB
• PCAD
• Altium Designer
• AutoCAD
• TurboCAD

Usually an electronics or electrical engineer designs the circuit, and a layout specialist designs the PCB. PCB design is a specialized skill. There are numerous techniques and standards used to design a PCB that is easy to manufacture and yet small and inexpensive.

In General most PCBs have between one and twenty conductive layers laminated (glued) together in a sandwich with insulating plastic ( epoxy ) . PCBs with more than two layers help construct complex or dense circuits.

In more complex PCBs, two or more of the layers are dedicated to providing ground and power. These ground planes and power planes distribute power well. They also prevent radio waves from antennas unintentionally formed by tracks. These planes are rectangular sheets of foil that occupy entire layers (except for small holes to avoid unwanted connection to vias and through-hole components). They distribute electrical power and heat better than narrow traces. Sometimes solid metal PCBs with thin layers of insulation are used. The power electronic substrate carries away waste heat when air cooling is impossible.

Four-layer PCBs with a ground and power plane are often used in high-quality, but cost-conscious audio, avionics and medical electronics. Most consumer products have one or two layers.

The width and spacing of conductors (or "traces") on a PCB is very important. If the traces are too close, solder can short adjacent traces, and the PCB will be difficult to construct or repair. If too far apart, the PCB may be too large and expensive. When a PCB carries high frequencies, traces may need to be exact widths and lengths to control the characteristic impedance of the trace.

Some designs cut the ground plane or the entire PCB in strategic locations to control the return paths of currents. The usual desire is to keep high voltages or frequencies away from sensitive portions of a circuit. The actual properties of the design are critical, because in some cases, cutting the ground plane makes the PCB into an antenna that radiates radio noise into nearby equipment.

Removing large areas of copper wastes etchant and increases pollution. Also, a PCB etches more consistently and tends to resist warping if all regions have the same average ratio of copper to bare board. Therefore, designers may widen connectors, leave unconnected copper in place, or cover large areas of what would otherwise be bare board with arrays of small, electrically isolated copper diamonds or squares.

Most PCBs have alignment marks (called fiducials) and tooling holes to align layers. These permit the PCB to be mounted in equipment that automatically places and solders components. Some designs also have quality control patterns to measure soldering and etching processes. In some cases, the test patterns are on break-off tabs that can be removed before the PCB is installed.

Layers may be connected together through drilled holes called vias. Either the holes are electroplated or small rivets are inserted. High-density PCBs may have blind vias, which are visible only on one surface, or buried vias, which are visible on neither, but these are expensive to build and difficult or impossible to inspect after manufacture. Good designers minimize the number of vias to reduce the cost of drilling. On older, two-layer PCBs, it was common to solder a wire through the hole.

A solder mask is a plastic layer that resists wetting by solder (the solder is said to "bead up"), and keeps islands of solder from running together. It also protects the outside conductors layers from abrasion and corrosion. Without the solder mask, the fiberglass-reinforced epoxy appears a translucent off-white. Solder masks are usually green, but they may be found in other colors.

A silkscreen legend on the top or bottom surface of the board provides readable information about component part numbers and placement. This aids in manufacturing and repair. To aid manual construction and repair, diodes, capacitors and integrated circuits are sometimes oriented in the same direction.

New technology allows for the component designators to be printed directly onto the board surface, saving time and money by doing away with silkscreens. This is sometimes done by a special inkjet printer. A similar process has experimentally produced solder masks.

Radio transmitters and radio receivers are difficult to design. PCB designers working on them must minimize parasitic effects due to layout of components, or take them into account with a general model and use simulation software such as SPICE.

PCB layout Basic guidelines:

It is often a good idea to have made a prototype circuit using point-to-point construction or wire wrap, as you will have solved certain basic issues to do with component selection: (eg: should I use a 1/4 watt resistor here, or do I need 1/2 watt? etc.)

Consider physical constraints on the assembled board's size and heat dissipation requirements; choose your heat sinks if needed.

Consider carefully the physical size of the components you are laying out; the circuit schematic doesn't tell you this. Equivalent components often have different packages.

How do the components attach to the board? Are they surface mount components? or do they require holes, screws, washers, etc?

Are there mechanical parts directly mounted to the board? eg: switches or variable resistors?

How will the board mount in its container? What stresses (shock, strain, shear) will there be upon it and upon components?

How will the board connect to its power source? What other connectors will be required (e.g: signal inputs, outputs)?

Use construction paper and a pencil and sketch the board in its actual size; or use component layout software that includes information about the component outlines.

Decide appropriate widths for each of the signal traces; this depends on the current each trace is expected to carry.

Decide whether you will have a single-layer board, 2-layer, or multi-layer based on the circuit complexity and fabrication costs.

Begin by placing component outlines, then by placing signal traces; leave a little room around each for tolerances.

For a single layer board, spend more effort to avoid having traces cross each other; play with component placement or run traces underneath components; sometimes a jumper wire is needed.

In 2-layer and multilayer boards simply run the traces on different layers, and use plated-through holes to jump from one layer to another.

Try to predict and avoid assembly errors: where there are multiple components of the same kind, or where pins have a polarity (eg: electrolytic capacitors), try to place them in parallel and orient the positive pin in the same direction.

If your PWB design software has a DRC (design rule check), use it.

PCB layout guidelines for RF circuits on a 2-layer or multilayer board:

• Identify the critical parts of the circuit and lay them out first
• Have one of the layers act as a continuous ground plane (usually the 'bottom' side).
• If signal traces are constant width and height above the ground plane, and are properly terminated, then their characteristic impedance is more well-behaved and may be calculated.
• Avoid sharp corners.
• Keep signal traces and component leads as short as possible.
• Inputs and outputs should be far apart, so that RF energy will not leak back from output to input. stages should line up, rather than snake around.
• Decouple the RF parts of the circuit from the DC parts of the circuit.
• Shield AF and IF components from RF components.

Cost Cutting Design Tips

• Limit the number of layers as much as possible to reduce overall costs
• Utilize hole sizes larger than .012 (smaller drill sizes increase drill time)
• Try to provide Annular ring pads that are .010 larger than hole size
• Standard panel size is 18 x 24 with the manufacturing usable area of 16.00 x 22.00
• Specify hole size tolerances of at least +/- .003. Tighter tolerances just increase problems and lower yields

CONTROLLED IMPEDANCE MODELING & SIMULATION

With the ever-increasing speeds of modern circuitry, the demand for high quality controlled impedance printed circuit boards continues to grow. Today's PCBs are not just simple electrical interconnection devices; they are complex, highly specified components in their own right. As the demand for controlled impedance PCBs has risen, there has been a subsequent increase in requirement to verify these board designs prior to manufacture.

• Differential Impedance PCB Structure
• Single Ended Impedance Modeling
• Microstrip and Stripline Constructions
• All new field solvers called Boundary Element Method (BEM)
• Model soldermask thickness between and adjacent to tracks
• High speed PCBs require accurate controlled impedance traces to operate reliably.

Impedance Simulator handles most common types of characteristic impedance requirements. Users define formulas based on their processes. Both the Impedance Control and Stackup modules are tied to the design. After users modify an impedance tolerance, the system automatically modifies the associated line width and stackup.

As PCB signal switching speeds increase today's PCB designer needs to understand and control the impedance of PCB traces. With the short signal transition times and high clock rates of modern digital circuitry, PCB traces need to be considered not as simple connections but as transmission lines.

What is controlled impedance?

Probably the most common example of a controlled impedance component is the downlead (or feeder) connecting a receiving aerial to a wireless or television set. Aerial feeder leads usually take the form of "flat twin" cable (commonly supplied with VHF broadcast receivers) or low-loss coaxial cable. In both cases the physical dimensions and material of the cable control the impedance of the feeder.

You can think of PCB traces as short cables, precisely constructed, connecting the devices mounted on the board, where the PCB trace, like the coax inner conductor, carries the signal and is insulated from its return path (in this case a ground plane) by the board laminate. This is shown in cross section in the microstrip configuration, -(left). The dimensions for trace width W1 and W2, thickness T1 and laminate height H1 and H2 and the dielectric constants Er1 and Er2 must be strictly controlled. Solder resist on the surface reduces the impedance slightly so the more predictable stripline configuration (shown left) is often used.

So why do we need to control impedance?

The receiving aerial possesses a natural, or characteristic, impedance. Electrical theory shows that for the aerial to transfer maximum power to the set (and to ensure the integrity of the electrical signal), the impedance both of the feeder and the receiver should match that of the aerial. In other words, the signal should ideally be presented with a constant impedance as it travels from its source to its destination. Where a mismatch occurs, only part of the signal will be transmitted and the rest will be reflected toward the source (which degrades the signal). Cable designers, therefore, take great care to ensure the accuracy and consistency of the cable dimensions and material characteristics. At high signal switching speeds the electrical properties of the cable (such as the capacitance and inductance) must be taken into account, and cables can no longer be considered as simple wires. Cables designed for high signal speeds, where these factors are taken into consideration, are referred to as transmission lines.

Controlled impedance on PCBs

Similarly, as the speed of signal switching on a PCB increases, the electrical properties of the traces carrying signals between devices become increasingly more important. The impedance of a PCB trace is controlled by its configuration dimensions (trace width and thickness and height of the board material) dielectric constant of the board material.

As with a cable, when the signal encounters a change of impedance arising from a change in material or geometry, part of the signal will be reflected and part transmitted. These reflections are likely to cause aberrations on the signal (e.g. low gain, noise and random errors), which may degrade circuit performance. In practice board designers will specify impedance values and tolerances for board traces and rely on the PCB manufacturer to conform to the specification.

Testing the PCB

Most controlled impedance PCBs undergo 100% testing. However, it is not uncommon for the actual PCB traces to be inaccessible for testing. In addition, traces may be too short for accurate measurement and may well include branches and vias which would also make exact impedance measurements difficult. Adding extra pads and vias for test purposes would affect performance and occupy board space. PCB testing is therefore normally performed not on the PCB itself, but on one or two test coupons integrated into the PCB panel. The coupon is of the same layer and trace construction as the main PCB and includes traces with precisely the same impedance as those on the PCB, so testing the coupon affords a high degree of confidence that the board impedances will be correct.

Measuring controlled impedance

Impedance measurements are usually made with a time domain reflectometer (TDR). The TDR applies a fast voltage step to the coupon via a controlled impedance cable and probe. Any reflections in the pulse waveform are displayed on the TDR and indicate a change in impedance value (this is known as a discontinuity). The TDR is able to indicate the location and scale of discontinuity. Using appropriate software the TDR can be made to plot a graph of the impedance over the length of the test trace on the coupon. The resulting graphical representation of the trace characteristic impedance allows previously complex measurements to be performed in a production environment.

Good Quality Assurance Checks for PCB Manufacture

Net list compare prior to MFG

• Matching net list to Gerber data

Front End DRC (design rule check)

• Searching for customer design mistakes

Controlled Impedance Testing

• TDR test of panel coupons

100% Net List Test On All Product

• Clam shell or flying probe

Employee Training program

• Performance evaluation every 6 months

In-house Chemical Laboratory

Mechanical Design

Modern analysis and design processes in mechanical engineering are aided by various computational tools including finite element analysis (FEA), computational fluid dynamics (CFD), computer-aided design (CAD)/computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) and Failure Modes & Effect Analysis (FMEA). These modern processes facilitate engineers to model (create a 3D model or object in a computer), analyze the quality of design etc, before a prototype is created. By this the invention and experimenting with new designs becomes very easy and can be done without any money invested in tooling and prototypes. Simple models can be free and instantaneous, but complicated models, like those describing the mechanics of living tissue, can require years to develop, and the actual computation can be very processor intensive, requiring powerful computers and a lot of cycle time.

MCAD packages can be classified into three types: 2D drafting systems (e.g. AutoCAD, VectorWorks,MicroStation); mid-range 3D solid feature modelers (e.g. Inventor, TopSolid, SolidWorks, SolidEdge, Alibre Design, VariCAD); and high-end[7] 3D hybrid systems (e.g., CATIA, NX, Pro/ENGINEER).

However these classifications cannot be applied too strictly as many 2D systems have 3D modules, the mid-range systems are increasing their surface functionality, and the high-end systems have developed their user interface in the direction of interactive Windows systems.

The capabilities of modern CAD systems include:

• Wireframe geometry creation
• 3D parametric feature based modelling, Solid modelling
• Freeform surface modelling
• Automated design of assemblies, which are collections of parts and/or other assemblies
• create Engineering drawings from the solid models
• Reuse of design components
• Ease of modification of design of model and the production of multiple versions
• Automatic generation of standard components of the design
• Validation/verification of designs against specifications and design rules
• Simulation of designs without building a physical prototype
• Output of engineering documentation, such as manufacturing drawings, and Bills of Materials to reflect the BOM required to build the product
• Import/Export routines to exchange data with other software packages
• Output of design data directly to manufacturing facilities
• Output directly to a Rapid Prototyping or Rapid Manufacture Machine for industrial prototypes
• maintain libraries of parts and assemblies
• calculate mass properties of parts and assemblies
• aid visualization with shading, rotating, hidden line removal, etc...
• Bi-directional parametric association (modification of any feature is reflected in all information relying on that feature; drawings, mass properties, assemblies, etc... and counter wise)
• kinematics, interference and clearance checking of assemblies
• sheet metal
• hose/cable routing
• electrical component packaging
• inclusion of programming code in a model to control and relate desired attributes of the model
• Programmable design studies and optimization
• Sophisticated visual analysis routines, for draft, curvature, curvature continuity.

Rapid prototyping

A rapid prototyping machine using Selective laser sintering.

Rapid prototyping is the automatic construction of physical objects using solid freeform fabrication. The first techniques for rapid prototyping became available in the late 1980s and were used to produce models and prototype parts. Today, they are used for a much wider range of applications and are even used to manufacture production quality parts in relatively small numbers. Some sculptors use the technology to produce complex shapes for fine arts exhibitions.

Introduction

Rapid prototyping takes virtual designs from computer aided design (CAD) or animation modeling software, transforms them into thin horizontal cross sections, still virtual, and then creates each cross section in physical space, one after the next until the model is finished. It is a WYSIWYG process where the virtual model and the physical model correspond almost identically.

With additive fabrication, the machine reads in data from a CAD drawing and lays down successive layers of liquid, powder, or sheet material, and in this way builds up the model from a series of cross sections. These layers, which correspond to the virtual cross section from the CAD model, are joined together or fused automatically to create the final shape. The primary advantage to additive fabrication is its ability to create almost any shape or geometric feature.

The standard data interface between CAD software and the machines is the STL file format. An STL file approximates the shape of a part or assembly using triangular facets. Tiny facets produce a higher quality surface.

The word "rapid" is relative: construction of a model with contemporary methods can take from several hours to several days, depending on the method used and the size and complexity of the model. Additive systems for rapid prototyping can typically produce models in a few hours, although it can vary widely depending on the type of machine being used and the size and number of models being produced simultaneously.

Some solid freeform fabrication techniques use two materials in the course of constructing parts. The first material is the part material and the second is the support material (to support overhanging features during construction). The support material is later removed by heat or dissolved away with a solvent or water.

Traditional injection molding can be less expensive for manufacturing plastic products in high quantities, but additive fabrication can be faster and less expensive when producing relatively small quantities of parts.

Technologies

A large number of competing technologies are available in the marketplace. As all are additive technologies, their main differences are found in the way layers are built to create parts. Some are melting or softening material to produce the layers (SLS, FDM) where others are laying liquid materials thermosets that are cured with different technologies (SLA, MJM, PolyJet). In the case of lamination systems, thin layers are cut to shape and joined together.

• Prototyping Technologies Base Materials
• Selective laser sintering (SLS) Thermoplastics, metals powders
• Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) Thermoplastics, Eutectic metals.
• Stereolithography (SLA) photopolymer
• Multi Jet Modeling (MJM) photopolymer
• Laminated Object Manufacturing (LOM) Paper
• Electron Beam Melting (EBM) Titanium alloys
• 3D Printing (3DP) Various materials
• Objet PolyJet Modeling photopolymer

We are Proficient in the use of SolidWorks, Autocad, Pro/ENGINEER. ( ProE ) and Microsoft office applications. This will include Matlab, Mathematica, Cosmos, Visual Nastran PDM based drawing revision control and integration with Agile PLM system.

We have a thorough understanding and background of the concepts of DFMA and Lean Manufacturing principles.We apply and are knowledgeable in worldwide compliance standards and Agency certifications in ANSI, ASTM, EIA, DIN, ISO, FIPS, MIL, PMA, FDA, FCC , TUV ,CE , CA and UL.

Our Team understand materials and processes, including sheet metal forming, stamping, casting, machining, plastic injection molding, and most finishing processes.

Our back ground excels in the management of the "Engineering Change Control" process and we are able to understand the needs of the clients and to convert them into working solutions within defined timetables and budgets.

 

We Support the following industries and more

• Military and Aerospace systems
• Medical Device
• Lifesciences & Biotech
• Industrial Controls
• RFID Systems
• Data Collection Systems
• Test & Instrumentation
• Communications
• Telecom
• Semiconductor
• Capital Equipment