How Do You Know if Your Mechanical Design Is Optimal for Your Electrical System

Today, much of the mechanical design has been completed before electrical design has barely started, practically eliminating any possibility of effective mechanical-electrical co-design. We propose an integrated MCAD-ECAD flow, harnessing generative AI to make mechanical electrical co-design a reality—to achieve optimal design and reduce turnaround time, design churn, and cost. We'll show how integration between Autodesk Fusion software and OrCAD X combined with Cadence's generative-AI printed circuit board (PCB) design solution, can transform mechanical-electrical co-design. The flow helps users achieve two seemingly contradictory goals: shift-left for mechanical and electrical engineers and shift-right for layout designers. In hours, mechanical/electrical engineers can get information like fully placed boards and thermal profiles early in design cycle, while PCB designers can start their work when the design is stable. This flow can help users reduce design cost and turnaround time, and create much more optimal designs.