Polygon Pour Conversion

The Polygon Pour Conversion dialog.

Summary

This dialog provides controls for converting Hatched Polygons to Solid Polygons. Users can choose whether all polygons, or only selected polygons, on the PCB are converted.

Access

With at least one Hatched Polygon Pour present on the active PCB, select Tools » Legacy Tools » Convert Hatched Polygons To Solid from the toolbar to access this dialog.

Options/Controls

General

There are two options in the drop-down list:

• Convert All Hatched Polygons - All Hatched Polygons on the active PCB will be converted to solids.
• Convert Selected Hatched Polygons - Only Hatched Polygons that were selected before opening the dialog will be converted to solids.

After selecting the desired conversion action, decided whether to enable or disable the following option:

• Expand Outline By Half of Original Hatching Width - Hatched polygon pours extend beyond the defined pour boundary by half of the hatching width. Enable this option to expand the pour boundary by this distance and maintain maximum compatibility between the Hatched and Solid pours. This option is enabled by default.

Converted Polygon Attributes

There are two options in drop-down list: Update Converted Polygon Attributes, Don't Update Converted Polygon Attributes. Choose an option as desired.

• Don't Update Converted Polygon Attributes - Convert Hatched Polygons to Solid Polygons while keeping the original polygon's attributes.
• Updated Converted Polygon Attributes - Convert Hatched Polygons to solid polygons and update attributes. The following attributes can be customized:
  • Remove Islands Less Than - Enable this option to remove Polygon Islands that are smaller than the specified minimum area. Polygon Islands are standalone polygon areas that are often created when a new polygon is created on a PCB. Enter a value in mil sq that defines the minimum area of an island. The default value is 2500mil sq.
  • Arc Approximation -  The Arc Approximation value dictates how accurately the polygon is drawn around a pad. A polygon drawn around a pad or via is drawn by line segments. The segments are drawn between a system defined outer circle and inner circle and the radial distance between these two circles is the Arc Resolution. The lower the value the smoother the arc is and the higher the value whereas coarser arcs have longer line segments. The default value is 0.5mil.
  • Remove Necks When Copper Width Less Than - Enable this option to remove necks that have copper widths of less than the specified minimum value. Define the minimum width threshold value for the regions of a polygon. Narrow regions that violate this under width value will be removed by the system. The default value is 5mils.

To specify the units when typing a number, add the mil or mm suffix to the value. Units can also be switched using the Ctrl+Q shortcut keys. Default units (metric or imperial) are determined by the Measurement Unit setting in the Board Options dialog (Design » Board Options), and are used if no units are specified.

Click OK to accept changes and convert the desired polygons. Click Cancel to exit the dialog without saving or effecting changes.