1
Checks as you work
Errors show up the moment you make them, not as a surprise when you finally remember the ERC button hidden in a menu.
// shorts · clearance · airwires · one-pin nets
BRD NO. PB-004 · Features
Everything on the board. Before it's a board.
Schematic, layout and parts, plus the analysis that tells you what's wrong while it's still free to fix.
Find it before the fab does.
A board that comes back wrong costs weeks. PCBPA is full of analysis and visualizations built to catch the problem while it's still a few pixels.
2
DC power simulation
Voltage drop across every load and the spots where current crowds, so you widen the right trace.
// mV drop · A/mm² · trace heating3
Thermal simulation
Watch the board heat up over time, including parts that only run in bursts, and boards with active cooling.
// duty cycles · still air · fans4
EMI estimates
Every signal net ranked against the FCC Class B limit, so you know which loop to tighten before the test lab does.
// FCC Class B · margin per net5
Tell it a little, learn a lot
Mark what a net carries: power, or a common digital signal from a list. You don't have to, but even a little information lets the analysis tools start working.
// USB · I²C · SPI · UART · power rails6
SPICE & MCP
Export to SPICE for deeper analysis. And yes, you can plug PCBPA into an MCP if you like.
// SPICE export · MCP
Detail 1 · DC power
See where the current goes.
Pick a net and its loads. PCBPA maps voltage drop across the copper, flags where current density gets high, and estimates how warm the thinnest traces run.
- Drop at every load, in mV
- Current hotspots away from the pads
- IPC-2221 trace temperature estimates
Detail 2 · Thermal
Heat, over time.
Set the ambient, the cooling and how often each part is busy. PCBPA steps the board through time and shows the hottest parts, layer by layer.
- Intermittent loads: on for 0.1 s every minute
- Still air or forced cooling
- Scrub through time, find the peak
Detail 3 · EMI
A rough FCC check before the lab.
Loop area, edge rates and current for every signal net, swept against the FCC Class B limit. The nets with the least margin come first.
Draw it clearly.
Detail 4 · Schematic
A schematic you can actually read.
An improved schematic editor where every connection is obvious: you can see what's joined, what's touching by accident, and which pins are left hanging.
- Clear junctions and net labels
- Define digital signals and power rails as you go
- Common interfaces in one pick: USB, I²C, SPI, UART…
Detail 5 · Layout
See what's going on at a glance.
The board view is designed to be read, not deciphered, with tools for better component placement and cleaner board outlines built in.
- Pours update live, or hide them with a button (they're still checked)
- Auto-label places component names and values for you
- View the board from the bottom
- Place SVG or PNG artwork on the board
7
3D views
Spin the assembled board around and check it fits before you order.
8
Stack-up views
Pull the layers apart and follow a net from pad to via to pad, through every layer.
9
Easy panelized exports
Step-and-repeat your board into a panel when you export, ready for the fab.
Detail 6 · Stack-up
Follow a net through the board.
Click any copper or via and PCBPA lights up the whole net in 3D: every trace, every layer change, and how much copper it really is.
Parts without the pain.
Detail 7 · Parts
Start from a standard package.
A parts library and a much easier parts editor. Pick a standard package (SOIC, QFN, SOT-23, 0603 and more), set the pin count, and the footprint is drawn for you.
- Imports existing KiCad and Eagle libraries
- Footprint and symbol edited side by side
- Save to your own library