Failing SFE DRC

Archive BatchPCB
1

I’m getting an error from the SFE DRC on files that pass the Freedfm chcker. How deo I find out what aperture 18 is? Current files are here:

http://home.comcast.net/~amcfall/zip.zip

The error is on the top copper. I get:

Checked Aperture 10 (0.059x0.05): Passed
Checked Aperture 11 (0.045x0.05): Passed
Checked Aperture 12 (0.085x0.01): Passed
Checked Aperture 13 (0.085x0.01): Passed
Checked Aperture 14 (0.043x0.08): Passed
Checked Aperture 15 (0.138x0.08): Passed
Checked Aperture 16 (0.051x0.05): Passed
Checked Aperture 17 (0.01): Passed
Checked Aperture 18 (0.00): Failed
        Error - Aperture too thin
Checked Aperture 19 (0.02): Passed
Checked Aperture 20 (0.04): Passed
Checked Aperture 21 (0.05): Passed
Checked Aperture 22 (0.03): Passed
Checked Aperture 23 (0.03): Passed

Everything passes the layer checker though. Sorry, I’m a nooob (but getting less so).

Avery

2

If you open up your gerber file in notepad, you will see something like this:

G75*
G70*
%OFA0B0*%
%FSLAX24Y24*%
%IPPOS*%
%LPD*%
%AMOC8*
5,1,8,0,0,1.08239X$1,22.5*
%
%ADD10OC8,0.0600*%
%ADD11C,0.0100*%
%ADD12C,0.0300*%
%ADD13C,0.0160*%
%ADD14C,0.0150*%
D10*
X001514Y001534D03*
X002514Y001534D03*
X003514Y001534D03*
X004514Y001534D03*

The lines that say %ADD1(whatever) are the ones that specify aperatures. The number following the comma specifies the trace width in inches. Since Sparkfun has a lower limit of 8mils, if any of the numbers following the apperature definition smaller than 0.008, that means a trace has been defined which is smaller than the minimum that Spark fun can have manufactured reliably.

Open up your gerbers in viewmate to see what your board looks like. Then close everything and manually edit your gerbers and change any of the aperatures numbers less than 0.008 to 0.008. Then reopen your files in Viewmate to see what has changed and to make sure everything still fits.

Hope that helps!

-Bill

3

o_O

There be a bug we says, lol.

%ADD10R,0.059X0.051*%

%ADD11R,0.045X0.055*%

%ADD12R,0.085X0.016*%

%ADD13R,0.085X0.016*%

%ADD14R,0.043X0.085*%

%ADD15R,0.138X0.085*%

%ADD16R,0.051X0.059*%

%ADD17C,0.010*%

%ADD18C,0.008*%

%ADD19C,0.020*%

%ADD20C,0.040*%

%ADD21C,0.050*%

%ADD22C,0.030*%

%ADD23C,0.036*%

for some reason its missing the last number from the apperture data. Just an offset problem (opps) I will fix this as soon as I find some time (possibly this afternoon).

Other than that, i can say this file does pass.

4

Thank you! :smiley: I will send this one off to Ben.

Avery

5

ok fixed, i had an offset to removing formatting as $j rather than $j + 1. 30 Minutes for 4 characters (inc. Spaces). lol

6

Awesome, she passes now. I’m so excited, my first passing set of gerber files!