A Fast Shape Filling Algorithm for Multi-layer PCB

With the increasing integration of printed circuit board, traditional methods are unable to meet the requirements for size and weight. Copper plating, a crucial step in PCB design, plays a significant role in improving the performance and effectiveness of PCB. To address the numerous features on large scale multi-layer PCB, a fast shape filling algorithm is proposed. This algorithm utilizes graphic information classification. The core idea of the algorithm is as follows: firstly, a large number of features are divided into regions based on their graphical information. Then, clustering is performed based on collision relationships. The outer contour chains are obtained based on the clustering results. Finally, the result is obtained through the relationship between the contour chains. The algorithm is implemented in a Windows 10 environment with a 2.30 GHz processor and 16 GB memory, and industrial test data is used to validate its performance. The experimental results demonstrate that compared to an open-source copper plating tool based on fitting polygons, the proposed algorithm is independent of the number of polygon edges and achieves a time improvement of approximately 60%.