This is a good article. Click here for more information.

ODB++

From KYNNpedia

ODB++ Design logo from Siemens

ODB++ is a proprietary CAD-to-CAM data exchange format<ref name="mike2002">Santarini, Mike (January 22, 2002). "ODB++ spec tapped for CAD-to-CAM data exchange". EE Times. Archived from the original on January 22, 2013. Retrieved 29 September 2011. </ref> used in the design and manufacture of electronic devices. Its purpose is to exchange printed circuit board design information between design and manufacturing and between design tools from different EDA/ECAD vendors.<ref name="overview"/> It was originally developed by Valor Computerized Systems, Ltd. (acquired in 2010 by Mentor Graphics<ref name="acquition">"Mentor Graphics Acquires Valor Computerized Systems, Ltd". Mentor.com. Mentor Graphics. 18 March 2010. Archived from the original on 3 September 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.</ref> which was later acquired by Siemens in 2016<ref>"Siemens to expand its digital industrial leadership with acquisition of Mentor Graphics". Siemens Digital Industries Software. Archived from the original on 2021-06-08. Retrieved 2021-06-08.</ref>) as the job description format for their CAM system.<ref name="overview">"ODB++ Overview". Artwork.com. Artwork Conversion Software Inc. Archived from the original on 6 December 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.</ref>

ODB stands for open database,<ref>Andy Shaughnessy (2000-10-20). "Which Data Transfer Format is Best for the Industry?". EE Times. Retrieved 28 September 2011.</ref> but its openness is disputed,<ref name=Goering2011>IPC-2581 Panel: A Spirited Discussion on PCB Data Transfer Formats Archived 2014-05-08 at the Wayback Machine, Richard Goering, Cadence Design Systems blog, October 2, 2011 on the panel session "Data Transfer in the 21st Century," PCB West conference, Santa Clara, California, September 29, 2011</ref> as discussed below. The '++' suffix, evocative of C++, was added in 1997 with the addition of component descriptions.<ref name="history">"ODB++ / GenCAM Convergence Project". PCB Standards: Forum. 2002-06-19. Archived from the original on 2012-01-27. Retrieved 3 October 2011.</ref> There are two versions of ODB++: the original (now controlled by Mentor) and an XML version called ODB++(X) that Valor developed and donated to the IPC organization in an attempt to merge GenCAM (IPC-2511) and ODB++ into Offspring (IPC-2581).<ref name="mike2002"/><ref name="ipc2-16">"IPC Subcommittee 2-16 Product Data Description (Laminar View)". ipc.org. IPC. Archived from the original on 17 August 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.</ref><ref name="mike2000">Mike Santarini (2000-10-20). "Camps eye CAD-CAM unity". EE Times. Retrieved 2 October 2011.</ref><ref name="odbxml">"Translators and preprocessors for ODB++". Artwork.com. Artwork Conversion Software Inc. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2011.</ref>

Introduction

Inside almost every electronic device is a PCB onto which the semiconductor and other components are mechanically and electrically connected by soldering. These PCBs are designed using a computer-aided design (CAD) system.<ref>"EDA: Where Electronics Begins". edac.org. Electronic Design Automation Consortium. Archived from the original on April 6, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2011.</ref> To physically realize the design, the computerized design information must be transferred to a photolithographic computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) system.<ref>"PCBexpress Printed Circuit Board Tutorial". PCBexpress.com. Archived from the original on May 25, 2013. Retrieved December 18, 2011.</ref> Since the CAD and CAM systems are generally produced by different companies, they have to agree on a CAD-to-CAM data exchange format to transfer the data. ODB++ is one such file format for performing this transfer.<ref>Mike Buetow (28 June 2011). "A Short History of Electronic Data Formats". Printed Circuit Design and Fab magazine. Archived from the original on 14 August 2011. Retrieved December 18, 2011. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)</ref> Other formats are compared and contrasted below. After the bare board is manufactured, the electronic components are placed and soldered, for example by SMT placement equipment and wave or reflow soldering.

File structure

ODB++ can handle all the specifications surrounding a PCB – i.e. not only the basic dimensions and the layout of conducting layers and drill data, but optionally also material stack up, netlist with test points, component bill of materials, component placement and fabrication data. The data for all these different aspects is stored in a collection of separate files within a specified hierarchy of file folders.<ref> "ODB++ File Hierarchy Tree". artwork.com. Archived from the original on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 2 October 2011. </ref> For simplified archiving and transmission the collection is usually packed in a single archive-file that preserves the file structure, for example using tar or gzip or both.<ref name=overview/>

In ODB++(X) the data is contained in a single XML file.<ref name=odbxml/>

History

Valor was founded in 1992<ref>"Valor Computerized Systems Incorporated". businessweek.com. Archived from the original on January 19, 2013. Retrieved 4 October 2011.</ref> and it released ODB in 1995. It added the ++ suffix when component names were added in 1997. The XML version was developed beginning 2000,<ref name="history"/> and ended in 2008 with the donation to IPC.<ref name="coates"/> Valor was acquired by Mentor in 2010.<ref name="acquition"/>

The ODB++ data format was expanded in 2020<ref>Editors, D. E. (2020-05-19). "Siemens Expands ODB Data Exchange Format". Digital Engineering. Archived from the original on 2021-06-08. Retrieved 2021-06-08. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)</ref> and was designed to facilitate communication between designer and manufacturer by use of a digital twin. The format was renamed the ODB++ Family and was split into three connected format uses.

  • ODB++Design: Created using typical EDA software, used for design for manufacturing, fabrication, test and assembly analysis (DFx), as well as being the single carrier of design data to electronics assembly and fabrication.
  • ODB++Process: A transitional format for conversion of design data into files for use at any production machine or workstation.
  • ODB++Manufacturing: A format for manufacturing floor events, with communication capabilities between machines and Smart Industry 4.0 software solutions.<ref>"Siemens Expands ODB Data Exchange Format and Adds Electronics Manufacturing Information Flow To Digital Twin". ARC Advisory Group. Archived from the original on 2021-06-08. Retrieved 2021-06-08.</ref>

Adoption

In the late 1990s it became clear to industry participants that a second-generation data transfer format would be more efficient than prevalent Gerber format, which was a first generation format at that time.<ref name="mike2000"/> However, it was very difficult to reach a consensus over which of two candidates should be selected:

  1. ODB++: proven but proprietary
  2. IPC-2511 GenCAM: not widely used but open

In 2002, a compromise format, ODB++(X), was recommended by National Electronics Manufacturing Initiative (NEMI; an industry body, subsequently renamed International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative, iNEMI) after a two-year mediation effort between the GenCAM and ODB++ camps. Companies that supported the recommendation at the time included Cadence, Hewlett-Packard, Lucent, Easylogix, Mentor (which acquired Valor some eight years later), Nokia and Xerox.<ref name="mike2002"/> But in fact adoption to date has been minimal.<ref name="coates"/> As a result, and as detailed below, the industry is still divided. Late 2014 Gerber X2 was introduced which added attributes ("intelligence") to the Gerber format in a compatible way, converting Gerber to a second generation format.<ref name="X2 FAQ">"Gerber version 2 FAQ" (PDF). ucamco. Ucamco. Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 May 2016. Retrieved 3 December 2016.</ref>

Advocacy

Lists of EDA tools that support import and/or export of ODB++ have been compiled by Artwork Conversion Software,<ref>"PCB tools supporting ODB++". Artwork.com. Artwork Conversion Software Inc. Archived from the original on 29 May 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2011.</ref> Mentor itself,<ref>"ODB++ Data Exchange". Mentor.com. Mentor Graphics. Archived from the original on 6 October 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2011.</ref><ref>"ODB++ Solutions Alliance: Partners". Archived from the original on April 30, 2014. Retrieved February 28, 2012.</ref> and on the Comparison of EDA packages table. Some companies that have adopted the ODB++ format are advocates for its use. Streamline Circuits reports that ODB++ provides much greater efficiency than the competing Gerber format, stating that "an 8-layer printed circuit board can take up to 5 hours to plan and tool using Gerber and only 1 hour when using ODB++." According to Streamline, manufacturers are adopting it to overcome the limitations of the simpler Gerber format.<ref name="streamline">"ODB++" (PDF). Mentor.com. Streamline Circuits. August 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2011. Why Stay Stuck in the Past With Low Intelligence Gerber Files?</ref> DownStream Technologies calls ODB++ "the defacto standard for intelligent data exchange in EDA"<ref>"ODB++ Interface". Downstreamtech.com. DownStream Technologies. Archived from the original on 22 October 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2011.</ref> In 2002, Dana Korf of Sanmina/SCI called ODB++ "the prevalent non-Gerber format."<ref name="mike2002"/> Kent Balius of Viasystems, states of ODB++ "...really we don’t need anything else."<ref>"ODB++ Users' Testimonials". frontline-pcb.com. Archived from the original on February 17, 2013. Retrieved February 27, 2013.</ref>

Criticism

Concerns

ODB++ is a proprietary format controlled by Valor later Mentor and now Siemens, and so, like all proprietary standards, it comes with the risk of vendor lock-in. CAD companies had some concerns about this when ODB++ was controlled by Valor, a CAM company, but these concerns were magnified when a rival CAD company, Mentor, acquired Valor.<ref name="coates"/> Although Mentor claims that it

"...openly supports inclusion of ODB++ and updates for other EDA tool vendors,"<ref>"ODB++ Intelligent data exchange between design and manufacturing" (PDF). Mentor.com. Mentor Graphics. August 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2 April 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2011.</ref>

it used to restrict access to the specification<ref name="opendoor">"Online application form for OpenDoor Program to obtain access to specifications". Mentor Graphics. Archived from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 30 September 2011.</ref> and required a non-disclosure agreement.<ref name="overview" /> The application form used to include a requirement to:

"...Demonstrate a customer need for this integration through references from mutual customers. Provide a recommendation from a Mentor Graphics product division or demonstrate the incremental value of this integration to both Mentor Graphics and the partner company."

Some direct competitors inferred this meant restricted access. This was a source of frustration not only for competitors<ref name="coates" /> but also for the Mentor user community.<ref>Yu Yanfeng (January 15, 2011). "Why Mentor(Valor) doesn't publish ODB++ spec in public?". communities.mentor.com. Archived from the original on 2011-08-08. Retrieved 2011-11-04.</ref>

In 2012, Julian Coates, director of business development at Mentor's Valor division claimed that, so far, all ODB++ partners, including competitors to Mentor, who have applied for assistance to build and maintain ODB++ interfaces via the ODB++ Solutions Alliance have been accepted without reservation or cost.<ref>Julian Coates, director of business development at Mentor's Valor division (March 4, 2012). "Comment on O is for...?". Archived from the original on March 8, 2012. Retrieved March 20, 2012. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)</ref> In addition, the format specification of v7, an older version, is now openly available without the need for NDA.<ref>"ODB++ SPECIFICATION Version 7.0" (PDF). Mentor Graphics. December 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-05-11. Retrieved 2021-05-11.</ref> Membership of the ODB++ Solutions Alliance is free of charge and open to anybody who registers. A no-charge ODB++ Viewer and other software utilities are available to registrants.<ref>"Resources | ODB++ Solutions Alliance". Archived from the original on 2014-04-30. Retrieved 2012-04-27.</ref>

Lack of need

Ucamco, the developers of the Gerber format, argue that the prevalent Gerber-based flow (with some additions) is as complete and efficient as ODB++.<ref name="tavernier">Karel Tavernier, Ucamco (2011). "Improving CAD to CAM Data Transfer: A Practical Approach" (PDF). Journal of the HKPCA, Issue No.40. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 2 October 2011.</ref><ref name="tavernier2">Karel Tavernier (January 2013). "Kick-Starting a Revolution" (PDF). PCB Design Magazine. Archived (PDF) from the original on 7 November 2021. Retrieved 19 February 2013.</ref> These additions were introduced in Gerber X2, which added attributes to classical Extended Gerber.<ref name="X2 FAQ" /> Standard attributes allow to define the layer structure, pad functions and CAD netlist. <ref name="GerberSpec">"The Gerber File Format Specification". Ucamco. November 2016. Archived from the original on 13 March 2016. Retrieved 11 November 2016.</ref>

Alternatives

Critics of the proprietary nature of ODB++ point to several more open formats as models for a future consensus format:

References

<references group="" responsive="1"></references>

External links

Template:Graphics file formats

Retrieved from "https://kynnco.com:443/kynnpedia/index.php?title=ODB%2B%2B&oldid=1659"