Agilent Technologies announced that its new Genesys 2008.07 computer-aided-engineering (CAE) software release offered significant improvements to the reliability of artwork masks for electromagnetic (EM) verification and RF board manufacturing. The new version now exports RF PCB masks and artwork files to a greater number of fabricators, rapid prototyping machines, and a variety of CAD/CAM software tools to aid in physical product design. The new release also includes a graphical artwork previewer and pre-production editor to help with design inspection for layer-to-layer alignment and checking for short or open circuits. The new artwork tools also allow users to import drawings for EM verification using the firm's Momentum GX planar-three-dimensional (3D) EM simulator.

According to Mounir Adada, Product Marketing Manager with Agilent's EEsof Electronic Design Automation (EDA) division, "We find that many Genesys customers connect to general-purpose board flows, where RF layouts are rolled up into a more mainstream CAD/CAM tool for overall product design. Now, after layout using an external corporate process, it's practical for the RF artwork to return to Genesys for a final EM verification in Momentum GX. This closed loop helps ensure that designs work the first time."

Agilent Technologies (www.agilent.com)