Quickstart

A concise guide covering the essential steps to quickly prepare and upload your schematic for automatic PCB layout generation with Quilter.

In a rush? Don't like reading docs? We get it.

Here's the minimum information you need to know to submit a layout job to Quilter.

Things you must do

1. Start with a complete schematic. Quilter only handles layout, so we can't do this for you. You must provide a complete schematic in a supported CAD file format (currently Altium, KiCAD, Cadence Allegro, and Siemens Xpedition). For more details, see Design your schematic.

2. Generate your input board file. Once your schematic is complete, create a linked board file that includes the essential information Quilter needs to generate your layout, specifically:

   1. A valid board outline

   2. Component footprints

   3. A netlist

   ** If you are using Allegro or Xpedition then you'll need to download and run an exporter script to generate the IPC-2581 format. These are available on the Upload files page when you create a new Quilter job.

3. Pre-place location-sensitive components. Quilter will automatically place and route any components that are outside the board outline, and treats pre-placed components and pre-routed copper as "locked." If your board is fully placed and routed, there's nothing for Quilter to do. For more details, see Prepare your input board file

4. Upload your design files to Quilter. Visit https://app.quilter.ai to create an account and follow the in-app instructions for uploading your design files. For more details, refer to Upload your design files.

Things You Should Avoid

• Do not submit a fully placed and routed board. We understand you may want to test Quilter on a previously completed design, but uploading a finished layout leaves nothing for Quilter to do.

• We cannot generate a schematic for you. Quilter only creates layouts from complete schematics. If you need assistance generating your schematic, consider using a tool like Flux.ai, CELUS, or Circuit Mind.

Guides for Getting the Best Results

Placement Guide