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| Altium Designer | |
|---|---|
| Name | Altium Designer |
| Developer | Altium Limited |
| Released | 2001 |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows |
| Genre | Electronic design automation |
| License | Proprietary |
Altium Designer is a proprietary electronic design automation (EDA) software package developed by Altium Limited for printed circuit board (PCB) design and electronic system-level engineering. It integrates schematic capture, PCB layout, embedded software development, simulation, and library management in a single environment, aiming to streamline workflows used by hardware engineers, firmware developers, and product designers. The tool competes in markets served by several established EDA vendors and is used across industries from consumer electronics to aerospace.
Altium Designer serves engineers working on PCB projects, providing tools comparable to offerings from Cadence Design Systems, Mentor Graphics, Synopsys, Siemens AG, and Keysight Technologies. It interfaces with corporate entities such as Intel, Texas Instruments, Qualcomm, and NVIDIA through format exchange and component libraries. Academic institutions like Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Stanford University, ETH Zurich, University of Cambridge, and Tsinghua University employ it in curricula alongside platforms from Xilinx, ARM Holdings, Raspberry Pi, and Arduino. Altium's commercial focus aligns with electronics manufacturers including Foxconn, Flextronics, Samsung Electronics, Sony, and Panasonic.
Altium Designer traces lineage to earlier EDA products developed by companies such as PCB 123 and contributions from teams with roots in firms like Protel International and Accolade. Corporate milestones involved mergers and acquisitions with entities linked to Microsoft, IBM, and Deloitte via consulting and partnership arrangements. Over time the product roadmap reflected advancements in computing pioneered by Intel Corporation microarchitectures and GPU acceleration from NVIDIA Corporation. Release cycles corresponded with industry events like Electronica (trade fair), Embedded World, and collaborations with standards bodies including IPC and JEDEC. Leadership at Altium Limited has engaged with investors and markets represented by Australian Securities Exchange, NASDAQ, and trade partners such as Avnet and Arrow Electronics.
Altium Designer offers schematic capture, PCB layout, 3D visualization, signal integrity analysis, and mixed-signal simulation comparable to modules in suites from Cadence, Mentor Graphics, and Ansys. It integrates with version control systems like Git, Subversion, and enterprise platforms used by Microsoft Corporation and Atlassian. Component management supports data from suppliers such as Mouser Electronics, Digi-Key, RS Components, and Newark. For embedded development, it works with toolchains and ecosystems including ARM Keil MDK, GCC, Microchip Technology, STMicroelectronics, and NXP Semiconductors. Visualization and mechanical co-design reference models come from vendors like Dassault Systèmes, PTC, and Autodesk. Collaboration features mirror trends set by Microsoft Teams, Slack Technologies, and Google Workspace.
Altium Designer is distributed under proprietary licensing with tiers comparable to offerings from Cadence and Mentor Graphics and sold through channel partners such as Avnet and Arrow Electronics. Licensing models have involved subscriptions and perpetual licenses, with enterprise options integrating with systems from SAP, Oracle Corporation, and IBM. Educational licenses are utilized by universities including Imperial College London, University of California, Berkeley, and National University of Singapore. Competitive positioning relates to pricing strategies employed by firms like Zuken and Allegro suppliers.
The software supports import/export of industry-standard formats used by players such as Gerber formats endorsed in IPC specifications, ODB++ championed by Valor, and neutral file standards adopted by Siemens EDA. It exchanges data with mechanical CAD formats from STEP, IGES, and integrations common to SolidWorks, Autodesk Inventor, and PTC Creo. Interoperability extends to FPGA vendor flows from Xilinx and Intel (FPGA), and to MCAD/ECAD collaboration practiced by firms like Boeing, Airbus, and Lockheed Martin.
Altium Designer is applied across sectors including consumer electronics (manufacturers such as Apple Inc. and Samsung), automotive electronics (suppliers like Bosch and Continental AG), aerospace and defense contractors including Northrop Grumman and Raytheon Technologies, medical device companies like Medtronic and Philips, and telecommunications firms such as Ericsson and Huawei Technologies. Research labs at institutions like NASA and CERN have used comparable EDA tools in prototyping. Product examples range from embedded systems in Tesla, Inc. vehicles to instrumentation for Siemens Healthineers.
Critics compare Altium Designer against platforms from Cadence, Mentor Graphics, Synopsys, and Ansys on grounds of scalability for very-large-scale PCBs, high-frequency simulation fidelity, and enterprise integration complexity. Users have raised concerns similar to those voiced against proprietary models deployed by Microsoft and Oracle Corporation, including licensing cost, upgrade paths, and dependency on vendor support. Competitive pressures from open-source initiatives and ecosystems associated with KiCad, Eagle (software), and FreeCAD also frame community debates about accessibility and educational use.
Category:Electronic design automation software