Working with the SMD Entry Design Rule on a PCB in Altium Designer

Rule classification: Unary

Summary Copy Link Copied

This rule specifies the direction(s) a track can enter, or exit, an SMD pad.

Constraints Copy Link Copied

Default constraints for the SMD Entry rule.

• Any Angle – if enabled, the track can enter/exit the pad at any angle, and at any point along its edge.
• Corner – if enabled, the track can enter/exit through a pad corner.
• Side – if enabled, the track can enter/exit at 90 degrees on either side of the pad. The longer edge of the pad is considered the side, note that the side option is only applied if the Side length > 2x End length. For example, if the pad is 2mm x 1mm then the side option is ignored (all sides are treated as ends). If the pad is 2.1mm x 1mm then the side option is applied.

How Duplicate Rule Contentions are Resolved Copy Link Copied

All rules are resolved by the priority setting. The system goes through the rules from highest to lowest priority and picks the first one whose scope expression matches the object(s) being checked.

Rule Application Copy Link Copied

Online DRC, Batch DRC, and Interactive Routing.

Tips Copy Link Copied

• The rule applies to surface mount pads only, that is, a pad defined on a single copper layer.
• The end of the pad is determined from the pad dimensions, the ends are the shorter edges.
• Pads can always be entered from either end (the shorter edge)
• The rule is applied on both routing out of the pad (exit) and into the pad (entry).