1, 2, 3 programs out of 5: EAGLE, Altium and Proteus There are a number of free and paid PCB design programs available. Let's take a look at the top 5 programs.
1.Eagle EAGLE - developed by CadSoft Computer GmbH, a German company founded by Rudolf Hofer and Klaus-Peter Schmidiger in 1988. It is available in 3 versions: - EAGLE free: limited trial version for DIY enthusiasts. - EAGLE standard: 99 schematic sheets, 4 signal layers and a 160 cm² printed circuit area. - EAGLE Premium: unlimited PCB area for professionals with 999 schematic sheets and 16 signal layers.
2. Altium Developed in 1985 by Protel Systems in Australia. Changed its name to Altium Designer in 2021. On the Altium website you can download a full trial version and test it free of charge for 15 days. Virtual workshops are available.
Features and functions: - Design environment with schematics, routing, documentation and modeling - Easy migration of information with powerful conversion tools. - 3D design of flexible and rigid components. - PCB design. - Schematic design. - Output production files.
3. Proteus Developed by Labcenter Electronics Ltd, a company founded in 1988 by John Jameson in the UK. Proteus is widely used in over 50 countries.
Features and capabilities: Consists of two main software packages: Proteus ISIS: electrical circuit construction and modeling. Proteus ARES: PCB routing solution with automatic component placement.
Features and capabilities: - Modeling - Measurements and analysis. - Error correction. - Diagnostics. - Proteus PCB design software. - PCB design with 16 copper layers. - 14 million components in the library.