New Cadence PCB Librarian Expert Product Leverages Industry Standard XML for Library Creation; Internet-Based Component Data Supplied By SpinCircuit And Si2

Business Wire, April 24, 2000

Business Editors/High-Tech Writers

SAN JOSE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 24, 2000

Cadence Design Systems, Inc. (NYSE:CDN), the world's leading supplier of electronic design products and services, today announced the new PCB Librarian Expert product, the first library management tool to support consistent source data from which to derive electronic design automation (EDA) library parts. The value to the user of this type of standard is the availability of component information from a variety of suppliers and the ability to deploy it in their design process with the support of tools such as PCB Librarian Expert.

The new PCB Librarian Expert software enables library creation and management by utilizing source-level data standards based on the Extensible Markup Language (XML). The library management tool supports library data generation for use by printed circuit board (PCB) designers and engineers with the latest versions of Cadence(R) Concept(R) HDL schematic and/or Orcad Capture(R) CIS schematic with Cadence Allegro(R) layout software as the backend layout tool. The announcement is part of the overall iCadence strategy for leveraging the Internet to improve the productivity of Cadence customers.

"SpinCircuit is working with Cadence and other EDA vendors to redefine how component information is shared via the Internet," said Ken Auga, vice president of business development at SpinCircuit, Inc. "We view an XML library symbol standard as one of the essential technologies for seamlessly integrating our symbol information into EDA tools. Integration with the PCB Librarian Expert tool enables live, direct feeds from supplier sites to engineers. This means we can deliver fresh information on components and manufacturing processes directly into their design environments, which will add tremendous efficiency to the design process."

The PCB Librarian Expert software also supports the datasheet XML standard for pin and package definitions from the Electronic Component Information eXchange (ECIX) project's ECIX QuickData Specifications, that are dedicated to designing standards for the creation, exchange, and use of electronic component information. Andrew Graham, president and CEO of Silicon Integration Initiative, Inc. (Si2), a consortium of the industry's most respected EDA vendors, electronic systems, and semiconductor companies commented, "Cadence's library management tool is a critical link in the component information supply chain and serves as further confirmation that QuickData is an industry standard for XML-based component data access."

"It is the responsibility of an industry leader like Cadence to help drive standards that facilitate productivity and collaboration," said Mike Bosworth, senior vice president of Cadence Design Systems, Inc., and head of the PCB Systems Division. "The support of the XML standards emerging from SpinCircuit and Si2 are examples of how Cadence can help shape the future of electronic design. We are pleased to offer the first tool that enables customers to use these standards to speed up the creation and management of library parts."

"The new PCB Librarian Expert tool applies Part Templates defined from corporate library standards to format schematic symbol graphics and pin and package information derived directly from XML-formatted internet graphical and datasheet sources," stated Kim Singer, product marketing manager for Cadence PCB Systems Division. "Marrying the Part Templates to the XML source data speeds up the entire library creation and management process for our customers. The PCB Librarian Expert solution also incorporates built in data management capabilities which enable the user to control access to the library data for modification, and then populate reference libraries from a data vault. This enables a dispersed library development group to act in collaboration to drive the library development needs of multiple engineering communities."

The PCB Librarian Expert product can also be coupled to the Part Request process previously announced as part of the Cadence Internet Engineer design environment http://4.18.241.156/company/pr/archive99/09_13_99.html. This complete solution enables engineers and library developers to interact across the Internet to meet critical new part requests and speed product development.

Features and Benefits

This product provides integration with the data in an XML-formatted component database through the internet and provides:

--  XML import -- allows the user to search websites such as
    SpinCircuit's Activeparts for datasheets from manufacturers and
    import that information quickly into their engineering libraries.

--  Part templates -- ensures that the parts are created in accordance
    with a corporate library specification to ensure that teams
    working in different locations can reuse each other's efforts.

--  Data management -- allows the management of library data
    controlling access to data, preventing unmanaged or unauthorized
    changes, and allowing for revisions to be effectively managed.

--  Cadence Concept HDL and Orcad Capture CIS schematic library
    creation -- allows Concept/Capture software users to create and
    manage library data for the whole design environment.