On Fri, 05 Oct 2007 18:21:24 GMT, Joerg
wrote:

Rich Grise wrote:

On Thu, 04 Oct 2007 00:00:26 +0000, Joerg wrote:

Eeyore wrote:

Joerg wrote:


I'll second John's and Rich's comments. Besides rounding you might want
to consider flaring the traces into the pin header vias. I think
layouters call that "drop". That way there could be less stress fractures.

Teardrop. It's astonishing how many good practices of old have been lost as a
result of CAD layout.

There was once a Marconi (Instruments) IIRC guide to pcb layout from the early
days of tape-up. It covered all these subtleties. I've seen excerpts but never
the actual publication.

I HAVE seen foil fractures where a thin trace enters a pad resulting from rough
handling, rework or whatever. Tear drops reduce such stresses hugely. It's basic
engineering.

PADS IIRC is the only package I've seen that has a teardrop function built in as
standard.

Eagle can do that as well AFAIK. But I never do layouts myself.

A lot of layout is common-sense and it gets violated a lot. Why on earth
everyone thinks right angle looks more cool that round traces I will
never understand. And then the stuff breaks.


Right angles are much more "modern" - like chrome-and-glass furniture as
opposed to art deco. ;-)

They're also easier to tape up. ;-)


I've always belonged to the group of round-tapers ;-)

I was taught to never bend tape, because longterm it would be under
tension and ooze around on the mylar and change clearances. Ditto to
not make 90 degree bends. So it was

Make 90 deg junction

Overlay diagnonal tape into the corner

Xacto trim, trim, trim, trim.

I sure don't miss manual taping, or slide rules, or typewriters and
carbon paper, or wire-wrap, or thru-hole boards. There's not much I do
miss from the olden days. We are incredibly more productive now.

John