Integrating an Electronics Component Database Into a Thermal Design Tool

When developing a thermal model of a highly populated electronics board, a significant amount of time and effort is needed to track the thermal characteristics of all the dissipating components. In business sectors where multiple boards are thermally designed and analyzed each year, developing a components database and integrating it into the analysis tool will save time and ensure that consistent values are used in every design. With an “in tool” component database, multiple advantages are achieved. Once a component is entered into the database, the component information can be accessed in subsequent designs that employ the component. All engineers doing thermal design have access to the database. Once the thermal characteristics of a component are agreed upon, consistency across all boards is maintained. Additionally, values for each component in the database can be automatically brought into the analysis tool. By making a computer program develop the model of the component, human error is removed. The database tracks all major thermal aspects of a component. This includes the maximum junction temperature, Theta JC (case to junction resistance), leg/pin configuration (size, length, number, conductivity), and board to case gap thickness. Optional values can include top side cooling resistance, performance temperature limits, manufacturer, datasheet web address, and even an entry to identify the configuring engineer.