Interactive Routing - Glossing
Contents
Main article: PCB Routing
When we hear the term "gloss" our minds are typically conjuring an image of a beautifully painted object – perhaps the glistening veneer of that luxury automobile you've always dreamed of. In essence, the term reflects a professional finish. With Altium Designer's Interactive PCB Routing engine, you are provided with several 'glossing' modes, collectively gathered under the umbrella term "Routing Gloss Effort". Here, the concept of glossing relates to the level of cleaning (buffing or shining for that luxury vehicle!) applied to traces as you route (or drag). Glossing essentially forms part of your interactive routing arsenal of features – features that enable you to obtain a highly professional-looking routed board!
Available Glossing Modes
There are three glossing modes that together define the range of glossing effort that can be applied by the Interactive Router:
- Strong – in this mode a high level of glossing is applied, with the Interactive Router looking for shortest paths, smoothing out tracks, etc. This mode of glossing is typically useful in the early stages of the layout process, when the aim is to get a fair bit of the board routed quickly.
- Weak – in this mode a low level of glossing is applied, with the Interactive Router considering only those tracks directly connected to, or in the area of, the tracks that you are currently routing (or tracks/vias being dragged). This mode of glossing is typically useful for fine-tuning track layout, or when dealing with critical traces.
- Off – in this mode, glossing is essentially disabled. Note, however, that cleanup is still run after routing/dragging occurs to eliminate overlapping track segments for example. This mode is typically useful at the end stage of board layout, where the ultimate-level of fine-tuning is required (for example when manually dragging tracks, cleaning pad entries, etc).
A proposed routing path. On the left, glossing has been set to Off, while on the
right, glossing has been set to Weak. Glossing results in a more professional,
highly-polished route!
Each of the three glossing modes described above has a valuable role to play within the overall layout process. It is advisable to move between all three modes as you progress from initial routing, through to those last minute touches. Essentially, each mode varies with the level of precision you need at any given stage in the routing process.
Accessing Glossing Options
The current glossing mode – the level of gloss effort applied by the Interactive Router – can be specified prior to, or during, a routing or dragging action.
Prior to Routing or Dragging...
Set the required level of glossing on the PCB Editor - Interactive Routing page of the Preferences dialog (DXP»Preferences).
Choose the level of glossing applied when routing/dragging tracks.
While Routing...
Change the glossing mode through the Interactive Routing For Net dialog, accessed by pressing the Tab key while in Interactive Routing mode.
Set the glossing mode while routing - the mode will be applied on all subsequent routes unless changed otherwise.
Use the Shift+Ctrl+G keyboard shortcut to quickly cycle through the glossing modes while interactively routing a net. The current glossing mode is reflected in both Altium Designer's status bar and the PCB Editor's heads-up display.
While Dragging...
Change the glossing mode through the Drag dialog, accessed by pressing the Tab key while dragging one or more placed tracks.
Set the glossing mode while dragging tracks - the mode will be applied for
all subsequent drag actions unless changed otherwise.