Design Rules Check (DRC) setup in PCB Design - Real Business Scenario

Scenario Mode

👤 Your Role: You are a PCB design engineer working on a new circuit board layout.

📋 Request: Your manager wants you to set up Design Rules Check (DRC) parameters to ensure the PCB layout meets manufacturing and electrical standards before production.

📊 Data: You have a dataset of PCB layout parameters including trace widths, spacing, via sizes, and layer stack information.

🎯 Deliverable: Create a report and dashboard showing the configured DRC rules, their thresholds, and a summary of any violations found in the sample PCB layout data.

Sample Data

Rule Name	Parameter	Minimum Value (mil)	Maximum Value (mil)	Current Layout Value (mil)	Violation
Trace Width	Width	6	50	5	Yes
Trace Spacing	Spacing	6	---	7	No
Via Diameter	Diameter	10	---	12	No
Annular Ring	Ring Width	5	---	4	Yes
Component Clearance	Clearance	10	---	15	No
Silkscreen Over Pad	Overlap	0	0	1	Yes
Board Edge Clearance	Clearance	15	---	20	No
Power Trace Width	Width	20	---	18	Yes

1

Step 1: Organize the DRC rules data into a table with columns: Rule Name, Parameter, Min Value, Max Value, Current Layout Value, Violation.

Use the provided sample data table as the base dataset.

Expected Result

A clear table showing each DRC rule with its limits and current layout values, highlighting violations.

2

Step 2: Create calculated measures to count total rules and total violations.

Total Rules = COUNTROWS('DRC Rules') Total Violations = COUNTROWS(FILTER('DRC Rules', 'DRC Rules'[Violation] = "Yes"))

Expected Result

Total Rules = 8 Total Violations = 4

3

Step 3: Create a measure to calculate the percentage of rules violated.

Violation Percentage = DIVIDE([Total Violations], [Total Rules], 0) * 100

Expected Result

Violation Percentage = 50%

4

Step 4: Build a dashboard visualization with: - A card showing Total Rules - A card showing Total Violations - A card showing Violation Percentage - A table listing all rules with their parameters, current values, and violation status

Configure visuals in your BI tool accordingly.

Expected Result

Dashboard clearly shows 8 total rules, 4 violations, 50% violation rate, and detailed rule status.

5

Step 5: Interpret the dashboard to identify critical DRC issues needing correction before PCB manufacturing.

Review the rules with 'Yes' in Violation column and prioritize fixes.

Expected Result

Critical issues found in Trace Width, Annular Ring, Silkscreen Over Pad, and Power Trace Width.

Final Result

-----------------------------
| DRC Setup Dashboard       |
|---------------------------|
| Total Rules:       8      |
| Total Violations:  4      |
| Violation %:     50%      |
|---------------------------|
| Rule Name       | Violation|
|-----------------|----------|
| Trace Width     | Yes      |
| Trace Spacing   | No       |
| Via Diameter    | No       |
| Annular Ring    | Yes      |
| Component Clearance | No    |
| Silkscreen Over Pad | Yes   |
| Board Edge Clearance | No   |
| Power Trace Width | Yes    |
-----------------------------

✓Half of the DRC rules are violated in the current PCB layout.

✓Trace Width and Power Trace Width are below minimum required sizes, risking electrical issues.

✓Annular Ring and Silkscreen Over Pad violations could cause manufacturing defects.

✓Immediate attention is needed to fix these violations before production.

Bonus Challenge

Extend the dashboard to include trend analysis of DRC violations over multiple PCB revisions.

Show Hint

Add a date or revision column to your data and create line charts showing violation counts over time.