ATLANTA - September 2000 - Intercept Technology introduces new products developed and supported by Intercept's Engineering Consulting. The products, including DesignX, DrawingX, QCX, and ReleaseX, provide a comprehensive application set that allows global corporations to effectively optimize product development processes. Intercept's multi-faceted consulting products unite powerful innovations in global design technology to provide a flexible strategy for cycle time and cost reduction.

DesignX
DesignX enables designers to perform comprehensive design-to-design and design-to-library comparisons of product data. Designers compare product differences between separate copies of a design database, leveraging Pantheon's powerful import capabilities to factor well over 25 different CAD vendor tools into the design comparison. Through the DesignX library interface, teams compare design-library data to a centralized library and view differences accordingly, thus verifying design and library integrity prior to releasing products for manufacturing. DesignX presents product discrepancies graphically by superimposing design changes, thus allowing designers to "see at a glance" modifications to placement, routing, and library data.

DrawingX
DrawingX allows users to automatically generate complex assembly, fabrication and library part drawings according to a defined standard. DrawingX provides an editing environment that may be used to floorplan drawing templates and provides a comprehensive palette of common features, such as board stackup diagram, automated dimensioning controls, and design notes, that are automatically generated by the system during drawing creation. DrawingX supports parametric information in assembly and fabrication notes based upon data present in the design. Designers may create entire drawing packages simply by choosing a desired drawing profile from a dialog list. DrawingX will automatically generate all drawings to specification, and can output the drawing package in PDF format.

QCX
QCX provides a method for encapsulating complex verification processes to ensure DRCs, ERCs and MRCs are performed completely and according to manufacturing requirements. QCX incorporates a comprehensive set of default rule classifications for component clearances, fiducials, geometries, soldermask, testability requirements, and more that may be easily tailored to reflect the unique tolerances of each process line. The setup dialogs allow you to define rules interactively, or use topology scans of error-free boards to extract component clearance rules, net rules, and other pertinent information.

QCX enables CAD users to quickly set up technology rules for designs simply by selecting a process profile that they would like to use with the design. QCX can set up process-specific rules for nets, pins, vias, component clearances, as well as verify that the board and its components meet the standards set for the selected process.

When placement & routing is complete, QCX enables users to auto-perform a 4-stage process for design verification: standard design rule, custom design rule, electrical rule, and manufacturing rule checks. Complex design setup, particularly for performing ERCs and MRCs, is quickly and efficiently handled by the system. Users may save organized reports of errors and warnings on a per-class basis (such as design-to-library geometry violations or soldermask violations). QCX allows users to view design and library errors encountered and save persistent error information to the design tree for later recall and graphical view.

ReleaseX
ReleaseX allows users to automatically create all manufacturing files required for each vendor to which product data is supplied. ReleaseX enables businesses to setup vendor profiles that include contact information, pack and ship instructions, and a complete palette of design files that may be produced from Pantheon. The shipping instructions support email, network copy, or FTP instructions for auto-release of design files to the target vendor or PDM system.

ReleaseX may be used to create and/or verify design files prior to release. In verify mode, the files present in the design are checked to ensure that all files required of a chosen vendor are present. In create mode, ReleaseX will generate all necessary files automatically. If shipping instructions are included in the profile, design files can be electronically transferred when release package generation is complete. ReleaseX takes important steps to ensure that design files used in product QA are those which are released for product build.

All Engineering Consulting products, including DesignX, DrawingX, QCX, and ReleaseX are available today. All products will be supported on HP-UX, Linux, Solaris, and PC (WIN 98/2000/NT) platforms.

Intercept Technology Background
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Intercept Technology Inc. has shipped software products worldwide since 1990. Introduced at the 1996 Design Automation Conference in Las Vegas, the Pantheon product family is a highly advanced PCB/Hybrid/MCM and Multi-Wire software application for today's complex design requirements. Whether for simple boards or extremely dense, fine-pitch, multi-layer designs with high component counts and mixed signal technology, Pantheon has the interactive control that gives you the results you want, fast.

Pantheon is a fully integrated, single-window software application with intuitive WYSIWYG graphics for PCB layout, including geometry library capabilities, intuitive component placement, and flexible interactive routing. Automatic routing is accomplished with Zuken-Redac's Route Editor or Cadence's SPECCTRA. Pantheon provides high technology design capabilities, including blind and buried pins and vias, complex area fill, split power planes, embedded and curved traces, design re-use features, and complete manufacturing output (GenCAM IPC-2510, Gerber 274X, IPC-D-350, IPC-D-356, and GenCAD). Pantheon provides Zero Design Defects (ZDD) through double verification of the PCB/Hybrid/MCM design and artwork manufacturing files. RF design is supported directly by the product, which interfaces to HP EEsof tools for RF simulation. Intercept products are offered on HP-UX, Linux, Solaris, and PC (WIN 98/2000/NT) platforms. Intercept can be reached by visiting www.intercept.com or by emailing sales@intercept.com.

Contact:
Craig Yano, Product Marketing Manager
Intercept Technology Inc.
1819 Peachtree Road
Atlanta, GA 30309
Email: sales@intercept.com
Phone: 404-352-0111; Fax: 404-352-3744