IPC Releases Free Land Pattern Calculator

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BANNOCKBURN, Ill. To help PCB designers work with greater accuracy and efficiency, IPC Association Connecting Electronics Industries partnered with PCB Matrix Corp. to include a free Land Pattern Calculator with IPC-7351A, "Generic Requirements for Surface Mount Design and Land Pattern Standard."

The IPC-7351A standard, which provides land pattern design for all types of passive and active components, now includes an interactive LP Calculator that allows designers to calculate new land pattern dimensions. Past copies of the standard included a Land Pattern Viewer that displayed only existing, IPC-approved surface mount land patterns.

"There's a huge proliferation of new components in the industry, and the LP Calculator makes it easier for designers to be proactive in building the land patterns they need," says John Perry, IPC technical project manager. Because the mathematical algorithms from IPC-7531A are built into the LP Calculator, designers can build a land pattern for a corresponding surface mount part quickly and accurately. The tool also allows for modification of dimensional attributes of IPC-approved land patterns.

Other features of the calculator include the ability to change the view to any of four measurement units; view thousands of components and IPC-recommended land patterns; define preferences for component families; establish settings for tolerances, pad shape, silkscreen and assembly outlines and other spatial relationships; and follow built-in Web links to manufacturers' data sheets.

The tool also comes with a 90-day free trial of the IPC-7351 Land Pattern Wizard, which enables users to save their land patterns within new land pattern library files, and instantly export land patterns to their preferred CAD format, such as Allegro, Board Station, Expedition, PADS, Pantheon, and PCAD.

For more information see landpatterns.ipc.org or www.ipc.org/onlinestore or contact John Perry at (847) 597-2818 or johnperry@ipc.org.