Import Gerber .gdo file

casperd

I am trying to import a gerber gdo file (one for each layer), the drill/vias are incorporated in the gerber file as flashes, the flash structure is imported, but ends up in the same layer as the remainding structures. is there a switch somewhere to move the flash objects to a different layer.
Example:

X16344Y31487D03*
This line will create a via in a gerber viewer (using ViewMate)

/Casper

Matthias

Hi Casper,

Gerber data is organized as one file per layer - if you want to have parts separated they have to be present in different files. Usually you have artwork files plus drill files. Artwork files are imported as layout layers (typically connectivity) and drill files as via layers. That makes sense since artwork layers for copper correspond to the conductive material and drill holes (for vias) will finally create the connections between the different layers of the layer stack.

If you have flashes I assume that those are forming the landing pads of the vias, not the vias themselves. So basically they form copper like the wires and it makes sense to treat them the same way, material wise. Flashes are often used for wires or connecting geometries too, so the presence of a flash in general does not indicate there is a connection between to conducting layers. Hence there is no flag separating flashes from routes. If you want to import vias separately, use drill files.

Please note that KLayout is a chip layout software and the concepts in that area differ from the concepts found in PCB layout. The main target is to model connectivity and the material stack. So there is some translation involved and the main intention was to provide a way to combine chip and PCB layout data. That may create some confusion - there are some substantial differences in the concepts between PCB and chip layout world. Please see the documentation for details about the translation and interpretation.

Matthias