First Routing

Follow these steps to complete your first automatic routing.

1. Prepare Design File

Complete the schematic design and component layout in KiCad, JLCEDA, or other EDA tools. Ensure all networks are correctly connected.

Important Notes:

  • Must add board outline: PcbAutoRouter cannot work without a board outline.
  • Component placement: All components must be placed inside the board outline. Components outside the outline will not be routed.

2. Set Routing Rules

Important Note: Rule settings directly affect routing completion rate. If rules are set improperly (such as trace width too thick, clearance too large, or via size too large), the routing completion rate will be very low.

KiCad Rule Settings

Before exporting DSN, ensure the following settings are correct in KiCad:

  1. All components assigned footprints: Check that every component in the design has the correct Footprint assigned.
  2. Minimum trace width: Click menu Board Setup → Design Rules → Net Classes → Trace Width (need to re-export DSN after modification).
  3. Minimum clearance: Click menu Board Setup → Design Rules → Net Classes → Copper-to-Copper Clearance (need to re-export DSN after modification).
  4. Via size: Click menu Board Setup → Design Rules → Net Classes → Via Diameter (need to re-export DSN after modification).

JLCEDA Rule Settings

Before exporting DSN, ensure the following settings are correct in JLCEDA:

  1. Minimum trace width: Click menu Design → Design Rules → Trace → Default.
  2. Minimum clearance: Click menu Design → Design Rules → Safety Clearance.
  3. Via size: Click menu Design → Design Rules → Via Size → Default.

3. Export DSN File

KiCad Export Steps

  1. Open KiCad PCB editor.
  2. Click menu: File → Export → Specctra DSN...
  3. Select save location and filename.
  4. Click "Save" and wait for export to complete.

JLCEDA Export Steps

  1. Open JLCEDA PCB design tool.
  2. Click menu: File → Export → AutoRoute (DSN)...
  3. Select save location and filename.
  4. Click "Save" or "Export" and wait for export to complete.

After successful export, you will get a .dsn file containing all the design information needed for routing.

4. Open File

Start PCB Auto Router and click "Open File", then select your DSN design file.

5. Start Routing

Click the "Start Routing" button or press F5 to perform local routing calculation.

Press F6 to stop routing at any time.

6. Save Results

After routing is complete, save the SES result file and import it back into your EDA tool to view.

If some nets are not routed successfully, refer to "Daily Tips" for corrections.

FAQ

Low routing completion rate?

Solutions:

  1. Check rule settings: Observe whether via size and trace width are too thick, or if clearance is too large. Generally, trace width can be set smaller. PcbAutoRouter will automatically perform trace widening in the final step.

  2. Optimize board layout: Design is usually not completed in one pass. Observe areas with low routing completion rate and adjust the layout accordingly. Generally, a well-designed layout will have only two or three floating nets that cannot be connected.

  3. Use interactive routing to fix issues: If you find more unreasonable routing areas, you can correct them directly in PcbAutoRouter. It has very powerful interactive routing capabilities that are much more convenient and faster than operating in EDA. Refer to "Daily Tips" for correction methods.