PCB-Investigator

Software for analyzing, editing, comparing, visualizing and preparing PCB printed circuit boards.

PCB-Investigator is an advanced tool for viewing and editing PCB files. The program has a convenient, stylish interface, and pop-up contextual hints help to understand the variety of menu buttons. The software supports "hot" keys, in addition to all the main buttons there is quick access, performed by drawing with the mouse one of the defined gestures. A list of all gestures is indicated in the program manual.

PCB-Investigator software can export, import and edit files of formats: ODB ++, GenCAD, Gerber 274x, DXF, and also supports files of formats: Excellon, IPC-2581, DWG, Sieb & Meyer, CGM, DWT, HPGL, SPL, PM. It is possible to combine the specification from the ERP system and the data of the printed circuit board. In addition, PCB-Investigator can save results in the following formats: IPC 356 A, BOM, BMP, PNG and JPG. There are wide print settings.

The program supports a huge set of tools for moving, positioning and orientation on printed circuit boards. In addition, there are functions: calculating the area and quick snapshot, switching between 2D and 3D display of the project, measuring the distance between the components of the board, editing layers.

The API supports the .Net C #, VB.Net and C ++ programming languages, and the application itself is optimized to work with multi-core processors. Along with the main program, many plug-ins are distributed (about 30 pieces), significantly expanding the functionality of the software. Some of them represent various tests and analyzes of boards and their components (Bare Board, Hazard, Tombstone, Stencil, etc.), others are designed to generate various reports and project documentation (Design Report, Net List, Graphic Board Compare) ... Other plugins worth noting:

• Compare Plug-In - keeps track of the changes made.
• Color Group - Assigns specific colors to specific components.
• High Resolution Images for Automated Optical Inspection - Creates very high resolution bitmap graphics for printed circuit boards.
• Net Length - Calculates the lengths of all conductors on the PCB and displays the results in a table.

The PCB-Investigator software was developed in the depths of the German company EasyLogix. Its central office is located in Regensburg (Germany, Bavaria), the head of the organization is Gunter Schindler. The company works in the field of CAD development for the production and design of printed circuit boards. Its main products include PCB Investigator, Native Board Import, DataMatrix Generator, GerberLogix , GerberLib, EasySnooze.

PCB-Investigator software is licensed, the price is about 700 euros. There are four different versions of the program (Basic, Fabrication, Developer and Ultimate), differing in the number of available tools and pre-installed plugins. The developers offer an evaluation version of the program that supports all the features of the software and all available plugins. The demo version runs for thirty days. The site has a user manual describing the main menu buttons.

Initially, PCB-Investigator was only available in English and German. Today, along with the software, a wide range of language packs are distributed, including Russian.

The application is installed in automatic mode, however, before the first launch, you must register the product (the same applies to the demo version). To obtain a registration code, you must fill out the form presented. It should be noted that the code is suitable only for one computer - the one from which the registration was performed. Only one PC can be registered to one email address.

PCB-Investigator software was developed for Microsoft Windows XP (only with service pack 3), 2003, Vista, 7 and 8 (32- or 64-bit). In addition, the program requires the Microsoft.NET Framework 4.0 package.

Distribution of the program: paid from 700 euros. There is a 30-day trial version.