> On Oct 25, 2018, at 9:02 AM, Jon Elson via cctalk <cctalk@classiccmp.org>
> wrote:
>
> On 10/25/2018 12:44 AM, Chuck Guzis via cctalk wrote:
>> On 10/24/18 8:06 PM, Jon Elson via cctalk wrote:
>>
>>> Hmmm, you COULD actually use a schematic tool to do this! Maybe create
>>> the components to look like DIPs. I know I could do this in Protel 99
>>> without a great deal of trouble. Then, just draw in all the wires.
>>> I suspect a few other good schematic entry tools could also do this.
>> I know that I've asked about this on one of the EDA boards and got
>> nowhere. It seems that it would be possible to construct a schematic
>> from a netlist, but I've never seen such a tool.
>>
>> I wonder if such a beast exists.
>>
>>
> Well, not totally automatic, but many EDA systems have "back annotation",
> where changes to the PCB are taken back to the schematic. This is generally
> used to allow easy reassignment of the identical sections in multi-gate
> packages, but at least some of them can do MUCH more. I know Protel 99
> essentially turns the whole board into a spreadsheet, where everything is
> available for reassignment. I suspect that if you laid out all the chips and
> then provided the interconnect info, it would create a VERY messy schematic,
> which you could then reorganize by hand. You could also make a PCB design,
> draw in the wiring, and it would then be able to make a netlist and take that
> back to the schematic.
>
I’m wondering if a “bed of nails” could be built that would allow for automated
scanning of the traces to at least get the netlist. I do know that PCB fab
houses use either a “bed of nails” or a flying probe to validate the
construction of the boards. Now that I think about it, a flying probe may be
easier for us hobbyists to construct. The trick will be getting sufficient x/y
resolution and not having the two probes interfere when the two probes are
close to each other.
TTFN - Guy
