(2).png)
In today's fast-paced electronics industry, ensuring product reliability while maintaining efficiency is more critical than ever. With increasing demands for higher performance and safety, design engineers are considering innovative strategies like the shift left approach. This proactive methodology integrates reliability assessments early in the design process, allowing for the identification and resolution of potential issues before they escalate. Leading this charge is BQR’s Synthelyzer™ ECAD Plugin, a revolutionary tool that automates electrical stress analysis, MTBF prediction, and component derating in PCB design.
Understanding the Shift Left Approach
What Does "Shift Left" Mean?
The shift left approach advocates for moving quality assurance and reliability checks earlier in the design cycle. Traditionally, these assessments occur late in the development process, leading to costly redesigns and time delays. By implementing these practices earlier, teams can mitigate risks and enhance overall product quality.
Key Advantages of Shifting Left
Proactive Problem-Solving: Early identification of design flaws allows engineers to address issues before they become major roadblocks, leading to smoother project execution.
Cost Efficiency: Detecting problems early reduces the financial burden of late-stage redesigns and manufacturing delays.
Enhanced Collaboration: This approach fosters teamwork across design, reliability, and manufacturing disciplines, aligning everyone on product goals.
Higher Quality Products: Integrating reliability assessments into the design process ensures products are better positioned to meet industry standards and customer expectations.
Synthelyzer™ ECAD Plugin: Revolutionizing PCB Design
What is Synthelyzer™?
Synthelyzer™ ECAD Plugin is an advanced tool that seamlessly integrates with popular electronic design automation software such as Altium, OrCAD, and Siemens EDA. It empowers engineers to automate critical processes like electrical stress analysis and MTBF prediction, ensuring designs are robust and reliable.
Core Features of Synthelyzer™
Automated Electrical Stress Analysis: Performs detailed analysis of electrical stress derating for components using cutting-edge AI technology for efficiency and accuracy.
Advanced MTBF Prediction: Utilizes standards like Telcordia 3 and Mil-217-F2 to predict MTBF based on real electrical and thermal stress data, improving maintenance forecasting.
Seamless ECAD Integration: Integrates with leading ECAD tools to streamline workflows and eliminate manual data entry errors.
Automated Circuit Stress Calculators: Accelerates design processes by providing quick assessments of potential overstress issues.
Thermal Simulation Data Utilization: Enhances derating accuracy by incorporating thermal resistance data and stress metrics from 3D simulations.
EOS Violation Identification: Employs Pareto analysis to detect Electrical OverStress (EOS) violations, offering detailed reports and actionable recommendations.
Automated FMEA Analysis: Assigns failure modes and assesses PCB-level impacts through automated Failure Modes and Effects Analysis (FMEA).
AI-Driven Components Library: Features an AI-enhanced library for automatic parameter filling, streamlining the component selection process.
Comprehensive RAMS Integration: Automatically integrates reliability data across all RAMS analyses, ensuring a holistic evaluation of electronic systems.
Real-Time Traceability: Maintains traceability by linking analyses directly to the latest schematic version, facilitating verification and validation.
Benefits of Using Synthelyzer™
Time Savings: Automates manual component derating, significantly accelerating design cycles.
Error Reduction: Minimizes the risk of human error, enhancing overall product reliability.
Improved MTBF Outcomes: Generates MTBF reports based on real stress data for better predictions and maintenance strategies.
Enhanced Product Robustness: Identifies overstressed components and provides actionable recommendations, leading to more reliable products.
Centralized Design Data: Serves as a reliable repository for design data, ensuring clarity and consistency across analyses.
Comprehensive Analysis: Specializes in PCB-level analysis, allowing for thorough evaluations of individual components.
The Importance of Reliability Engineering in PCB Design
Why Focus on Reliability Engineering?
Reliability engineering is crucial in ensuring that electronic products perform their intended functions over time without failure. It involves assessing various thermal, mechanical, and electrical stress factors that components may encounter during their operational life.
Implementing Reliability Engineering in Design
Component Selection: Proper component selection is vital for reliability, with Synthelyzer™ aiding engineers by automating derating analysis.
Design for Manufacturability (DFM): Early integration of DFM principles through Synthelyzer™ creates designs that are not only reliable but also easy to manufacture.
Continuous Feedback Loop: Utilizing Synthelyzer™ ensures that reliability insights inform future designs, contributing to ongoing quality improvements.
Conclusion
The shift left approach in PCB design marks a significant evolution in integrating reliability into electronic systems. By adopting this proactive strategy, engineers can enhance product quality, streamline development processes, and ultimately deliver superior designs. BQR’s Synthelyzer™ ECAD Plugin stands out as a transformative tool that automates critical reliability assessments, making it an indispensable asset for modern electronics design.
Incorporating Synthelyzer™ into your design workflow accelerates the development process and enhances your products' reliability. As the demand for higher quality and quicker turnaround times continues to rise in the electronics industry, leveraging innovative solutions like Synthelyzer™ will be essential for maintaining a competitive edge. For more information on how Synthelyzer™ can elevate your PCB design processes, visit BQR’s website and request a demo today. Embrace the future of reliable electronic design—shift left with Synthelyzer™.