Reverse Engineering PCB Card Documents

Reverse Engineering PCB Card Documents normally has a sequence to follow, first of all you need to creating our Tutorial Schematic. Up next is actually creating the PCB Card. We start by transferring the schematic information – a netlist and footprints – to a new PCB Card document.

There footprints can be located in the available system libraries, or you can create your own PCB Card Library and make your own footprints for special parts.
We start by going to Design/Update PCB Card in our schematic. A new PCB Card document is created (TUTORIAL.PCB Card), and a window pops up. Leave the defaults, except that you should unselect Generate Component Class for all Schematic Sheets in Project. Then click Preview Changes.

A Window should pop up showing all the modifications that will be made to the PCB Card Document. Click Only Show Errors. The Table should then be blank. If there are errors, its probably because Protel couldn’t find a Footprint.

Check your Schematic to make sure they’re all entered correctly.
Once there are no errors, click Execute. Then Select View/Fit Document. Your footprints should appear, with faint lines showing the connections between the components. Before we can place the components on the PCB Card document, we must understand how the PCB Card reverse engineering is actually laid out, i.e. In layers.
PCB Card exists as Simple Graphical Constructs (Lines, Circles) on multiple layers. These Layers include
Top, Bottom Layer: Where Electrical Routes occur
Top, Bottom Overlay: Graphical Symbols Showing the Part Layout
Keepout Layer: Circuit Board Outline
Multi layer – Exists on all of the Layers
There are other layers as well,, but we are most concerned with these when making boards at MIL. The T-Tech cannot do Overlay Layers, but it can do Double Sided PCB Cards, meaning we can use both Top and Bottom Layers.

The PCB Card Window shows the design in the center of the screen. Towards the left is an area similar the Browse Schematic Windows you previously saw. Here new footprint libraries can be added, individual parts and traces can be highlighted, or errors can be found. There is also a magnification window that lets you quickly move around the board, and a pull down window that sets the current layer you work in.