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38 The PCB Design Magazine • September 2014 turing flow, thus enabling effective net-related engineering collaboration based on the ODB++ data, even with the most complex PCBs. Assembly and Test Improvements ODB++ v8 supports definition of structural test probes. The test probe diameter attribute provides information on the size of test probes. This enables the definition and DFT validation of physical test-access early in the design stage, thus avoiding the need to redefine at the as- sembly stage. It provides the means for explicit transmission of test intentions from design to manufacturing. An unlimited number of BOM description attributes is now supported, which means there is no loss of component description data across the flow. This reduces the need for multiple BOM access points in the flow just to recover data lost during the BOM-parsing process. The introduction of package attributes en- ables DFM analysis and manufacturing process preparation functions to be based on package type, which allows more efficient processing of the product model. Bridging the Design-Manufacturing Gap ODB++ has been implemented in the soft- ware of all leading CAD/CAM-solution ven- dors. The latest version of ODB++ enables the comprehensive flow of critical structured data files between PCB layout design and PCB manu- facturing disciplines. For example, with Valor NPI using ODB++ version 8, DFM analysis can be run concurrently at milestones during the PCB layout design. This process is compatible with PCB design tools such as Mentor Graphics' Xpedition and PADS, Cadence Allegro, Zuken CR5000 and CR8000, and Altium. ODB++ v8 Enables Lean NPI Flow In a Lean NPI flow, the final manufactur- ing outputs are derived directly from the mas- ter ODB++ data that was used all along the way Figure 2: When a complete lean product-new product introduction (nPI) is done, the ODB++ product model is much more than just an alternative to Gerber. It delivers a complete definition of what has to be manufactured, including all of the information traditionally carried in paper or PDF documents, integrated into the structured data ready for immediate and automatic use by the next software tools in the flow. feature WHAT'S NEW IN ODB++? continues