Altium and Microchip collaborate on new board-level design content

CARLSBAD, USA: Altium announced a substantial expansion of Microchip Technology Inc.'s board-level components now available through AltiumLive, Altium's online content delivery system.

Developed by the Altium Content Development Center in collaboration with Microchip, this new set of high-quality board-level components include Microchip's Linear, Mixed-Signal and Interface analog components. These add to the large range of Microchip devices, including the full catalog of 8, 16 and 32-bit PIC microcontrollers, that are already available through AltiumLive.

The AltiumLive online content system delivers design-ready board-level component models and corresponding supply chain information, such as real-time price and availability, directly to designers using Altium's electronics design software, Altium Designer 10.

Customers using Altium Designer simply log into their account via the AltiumLive portal to access the full range of online component libraries and design content. Components hosted in AltiumLive vaults include the schematic symbol, PCB footprint and a detailed 3D model for 3D mechanical integration during the PCB design process, while the corresponding component price and availability data is drawn directly from the web services of vendors such as Digi-Key, Arrow, Mouser, Allied, and Farnell.

Component choice is therefore available at design-time and within the design environment, allowing the most cost-effective part to be selected quickly with full confidence in its suitability and availability. Part quality and pricing is assured through Altium's direct access to manufacturer and vendor data, which greatly reduces the risk of using a discontinued component, or one that is no longer the optimal design choice.

"Close collaboration between Altium and parts manufacturers like Microchip ensure this next generation of design IP is more than just another CAD library. This translates to content our customers can trust and content that makes the process of designing with Altium Designer faster and easier than ever before," said Rowland Washington, content development manager, Altium. "We are pleased to be working with Microchip to create this latest set of updates, with more to come in the near future."

The mutually beneficial collaboration, and the resulting updates to the design content hosted by AltiumLive, represent Altium's commitment to the continuous delivery of quality online content based on cooperative partnerships formed with electronics component distributors and manufacturers. The arrangement offers the additional benefit of delivering the latest device technology, reference material and support, with its associated competitive advantage, to designers in the least possible time.

"Working with Altium to ensure that Microchip's components are available via Altium's content delivery system delivers direct benefits to both companies and its customers," said Bryan J. Liddiard, marketing VP of Microchip's Analog and Interface Products Division. "The ability to propagate high-quality component data and information into a design environment used by our customers helps them bring better designs to market in less time."