User Guide

Defining aCopperPlanewithPOLYGON
EAGLE can fill regions of a board with copper. Simply draw the borders
of the area with the POLYGON command. You give the polygon a sig
-
nal name, using NAME followed by a click on the border of the poly
-
gon. Then all the elements that carry this signal are connected to the
polygon. Both pads and, optionally, vias (as specified in the Design Ru
-
les) are joined to the copper plane through thermal symbols. Elements
notcarryingthissignalarekeptataspecifieddistance.
RATSNEST calculates and displays the surface area. RIPUP, followed
by a click on the polygon border, makes the content invisible again. The
content of the polygon is not saved in the board file. When you first
load the file, you will only see the outline of the polygon. It is only cal
-
culatedanddisplayedagainbyRATSNEST.
Various options can be changed via the parameter toolbar, either as the
polygonisbeingdrawnor,withCHANGE,atalaterstage.
POLYGONcommand:Parametertoolbar
Width:
Line thickness with which the polygon is drawn. Select the largest possi
-
ble width. That avoids unnecessary quantities of data when the board is
sent for manufacture. If the wire width is lower than the resolution of
theoutputdriverintheCAMProcessor,awarningisissued.
Afinerlinewidthpermitsthepolygontohaveamorecomplexshape.
Pour:
Specifiesthefillingtype.Thewholearea(Solid)oragrid(Hatch).
Rank:
Overlapping polygons must not create any short-circuits. Rank can
therefore be used to determine which polygons are to be subtracted
from others. A polygon with rank = 1 has the highest priority in the
Layout Editor (no other polygon drawn in the layout is ever subtracted
from it), while one with rank = 6 has the lowest priority. As soon as
there is an overlap with a higher rank, the appropriate area is cut out
from the polygon with rank = 6. Polygons with the same rank are com
-
paredbytheDRC.
Polygons that are created in the Package Editor
can be assigned the rank
0 or 7. Rank = 0 has highest priority and will not be touched by other
polygons. Polygons with rank = 7 will be pushed away from all other
polygonsdrawninthelayout.
Spacing:
If the option Hatch is chosen for Pour, this value determines the spacing
ofthegridlines.
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FromSchematictoFinishedBoard