A trend in the electronic design is open source hardware and its supporting the usage of open source schematic and PCB layout. Using open source hardware and related resources means that engineers can easily use the existing design, so as to improve efficiency and shorten product time to market. As engineers more in-depth understanding of the traditional PCB and the difference between open source PCB design, the trend will most likely to obtain further growth.
Open source PCB design has some moe advantaegs compared than traditional PCB design, including power supply and digital parts and high-speed data repeat availability, this makes more favours on open source PCB design for engineer. In the design process of the past, engineers have been faced with the power layout problem, and in the open source design, circuit board become more high-speed and configured the RF structure, causing power distribution become more complicated, the engineer must more closely attention the circuit line width, line spacing and hole. In the open source PCB design environment, as long as it is proved that effective layout can be copied to use, without having to start from scratch to redesign.
Growth trend
In more high speed PCB layout (layout) or similar performance design, many engineers are used to refer to application note or to manufacturers for help GENERALLY, even using PDF version PCB proportional measurement wiring on the paper. Therefore, facing involve the application of various complex layout design, engineers prefer open source PCB. Easy to use open source design, the engineer don't need to become "experts" who layout PCB design process can be completed through all module design, especially when meet a particular problem, engineers will obviously feel there is no pressures at all. for example: the traditional PCB design of power supply module, if use existing open source design, the layout will be more simple. Power supply, high speed interface and line, or even complex impedance matching circuit layout PCB design layout can be reused by simple open source quickly or copy again.
Challenges and advantages
The integration of open source design faces several challenges, such as more noise problem. When the circuit board using large current switch, the noise will be scattered to other lines. But open source design of the largest and most primary challenge may be the learning curve changes. A simple example, although the engineers could open source layout easily to copy, and paste, but they also may lose the chance of studying complete design basic knowledge, including set spacing, necessary line width, impedance matching, etc.
Using open source design can provide a starting point for engineers to study design. If the engineer will open source layout as a reference point, so they can learn more knowledge in PCB design. Starting from the reference point, engineers can reverse thinking in order to better understand why some layout will adopt a specific layout, this is for engineers to create a kind of traditional PCB design model which can't provide a new method of learning from the existing design.
Back to the before mentioned power supply design, if the engineers in the design process using the open source distribution, then according to the specific components of power supply design adopts, line spacing, and number of copper wire from the analysis results of reverse design process, which provides engineers a golden opportunity to practice learning design basic knowledge, include thermal management, impedance matching, power distribution, etc.