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Questions relating to designing PCBs
By t1d
#181243
I am trying to prepare a circuit for printing at a manufacturer; ShenZhen2U, for the first time. But, a stray island is appearing on the bottom layer of the board.

Here has been the procedure:
I downloaded and installed theShenZhen2U EAGLE Design Rules.
I loaded them into the DRC.
Before I run the DRC, the stray island does not show up.
After I run the DRC, the stray island appears.

The following functions do not remove the island:
Trash Can
Rip-Up
Redraw
Ratsnest
Orphans = Off

I have done my "homework" and have not come across the answer. So, I would appreciate your help with removing the stray island. I would also like to know if I may ignore the stop mask errors. Any other general suggestions would also be welcomed.

Thank you for your help.
Last edited by t1d on Wed Apr 15, 2015 5:37 pm, edited 2 times in total.
By t1d
#181252
Okay, I think that I now have attachment rights, so here are the board file and custom part libraries...
Stray Line.jpg
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Last edited by t1d on Thu Apr 16, 2015 11:23 am, edited 1 time in total.
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By Ross Robotics
#181254
Well, you know it's on the bottom layer, you can turn off all other layers and see if you can get to it. The DRC should not have put anything into the board. If all else fails, go into your Eagle documents folder and rename a board and sch file with the right extensions. Find the files that have an earlier time before the DRC check.
By t1d
#181257
I realized what you suggest and started working on that idea... I believe the item is stuck in the isolation that is on the PIC chip pads... I just haven't dug deep enough to get to it... You have made me realize that I need to turn off the pads... Maybe that will give me access... If you zoom in, you will see that the orphan is in wire form...

Thank you for your help!
By t1d
#181258
Okay, I completely removed everything that was on the schematic and, then, I updated the ratsnest on the board. The island is still there... When I try to highlight it to manipulate it, Eagle tells me that the group is empty... I also tried covering the island with brestrict... That did not help, either... Additionally, I have used a different DRC profile and I still have the same problem...
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By Ross Robotics
#181263
You can attach the brd file to a reply and I will see what I can do. You will have to rename the file with a .jpg extension so the forum will allow it. Then I will change it back. You can also attach the sch file so I can run a DRC check. It's up to you.
By t1d
#181270
Hi, Codlink,

I was able to post the Eagle files, after being approved/registered by the forum. The board files, including a couple of custom part libraries, are attached to my second post, above. They are inside the zip folder. (I have found that sites that don't like certain files will often allow them, if they are zipped.) I have edited the file and added the schematic file, there.

I downloaded Eagle 7.2...The same problem continues. I renamed the board file in question, to break it from the schematic, ran the make-the-board function and rebuilt the board. That cleared the island in the prior location. But, now, when I run the DRC, new ghosts are appearing... When I highlight them to remove them, Eagle says, as before, that there is nothing inside the group to remove...

I really appreciate you working on this with me! Thanks!
By t1d
#181271
Here is the new ghost, circle in red...
Big Stray Line.jpg
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By Ross Robotics
#181276
Yea, I see that one.. I will look at it in a bit.

What's the .pro file?
By t1d
#181277
I have removed the ground plane and redrawn it a couple of times. The offending line moves with the top line of the ground plane. This result replicates. So, here is that board file, too.
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By Ross Robotics
#181278
OK, I will look at that next. Couple of things. You're are using a supply symbol for GND. All of your 5V supply is floating nets. And a 'bullet point' is used to denote 2 or more nets having a connection. Having a hundred bullet points just makes the schematic harder to read.

Still haven't stated what the .pro file is for.. NVM, it's the autorouter. That's your first problem.
Last edited by Ross Robotics on Thu Apr 16, 2015 5:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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By Ross Robotics
#181279
Don't know where that stray line came from. Has to be a bug in the autorouter. I am using Eagle 6.5 as I didn't see any reason to update..

Anyway, I made a board the same as yours but manually routed it. Needless to say, it doesn't have any errors.. Added 'v2' to the name as to not interfere with your original.

May I asked why you are using this fab house? Seems like they don't offer the quality as most others.. Haven't visited their site so don't know the details.. But I think 0.032 clearance and width is just awful..
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By t1d
#181280
codlink wrote:Don't know where that stray line came from. Has to be a bug in the autorouter. I am using Eagle 6.5 as I didn't see any reason to update..
I opened your board and ran the DRC; no ghosts... Good job! My file must just be corrupted, somehow.
Anyway, I made a board the same as yours but manually routed it. Needless to say, it doesn't have any errors.. Added 'v2' to the name as to not interfere with your original.
Thank you so much for going to all that trouble!
May I asked why you are using this fab house? Seems like they don't offer the quality as most others.. Haven't visited their site so don't know the details.. But I think 0.032 clearance and width is just awful..
My selection of width and clearances was not based on the manufacturer dictates... I used wide traces and big margins to help first-time-DIYers to do the iron-on transfer method and learn to solder... I am learning what is necessary to do a production run (careful checking, Gerber files, etc.) with this project. I am using this board house, because it is so cheap. I will, likely, just share the boards.

Thanks, Codlink!
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By Ross Robotics
#181281
No problem with helping, that's what we are here for. We are just volunteers who love Sparkfun and what they stand for.

Yea, it did cross my mind that your were going the etched board route. As I understand that too thin of traces will ruin the work. If you want, once you have finalized your board, send me the files and I can look over them. Never a bad idea to have another pair of eyes to look things over. I'm pretty good at PCB design and I still make stupid mistakes that cause me to throw away the first batch from the fab house.