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38 FLEX007 MAGAZINE I JULY 2018 While these guidelines and best practices are not fully inclusive, they serve to help the designer who is new to managing flex and rigid-flex implementation. These tips will help the PCB designer better understand the unique qualities of flex and rigid-flex technology, which is useful for anyone how must manage even the simplest rigid-flex design. The PCB designer should also consider several aspects of flex technology with the fabricator, such as: impedance control, hole-to-interface dis- tance (where the flex interfaces with the rigid), construction options, laminates and bond- ing materials, surface finish, and cover layer design. These were not covered in this article but should be researched for future reference. ECAD Design Tools for Flex and Rigid-Flex Design As the more traditional "design separately, then assemble" approach moves to current generation rigid-flex design, product develop- ment teams should explore using advanced ECAD design tools for flex and rigid-flex designs. Today's robust electronic design tools, such as the Xpedition and PADS Professional flows from Mentor, can improve productivity by making it easy to set up flex and rigid-flex designs, implementing changes to stackup and outlines. By supporting true 3D design and verification, not just 3D viewing, such ECAD tools can help users deliver robust, non-ambiguous fabrication outlook. To ensure first-time production success, validation can be performed considering rigid-flex-specific constructs that impact signal/power/thermal integrity and manufacturability. This results in improved productivity and reduced develop - ment costs to ensure correct-by-construction design intent. FLEX007 Dave Wiens is Xpedition product marketing manager for the Board Systems Division of Mentor, a Siemens Business. Over the past 30 years, he has held various engineering, marketing and management positions within the EDA industry. Figure 3: With the increasing complexity of today's flex circuits advanced design tools, such as Xpedition from Mentor, designers can increase user productivity and reduce development costs to ensure correct-by-construction design intent.