ANCA is the go-to source for companies seeking high-performance Computer Numerical Control (CNC) grinding machines and systems. Since 1974, ANCA has managed a long-standing reputation for reliability and precision with its international customer base.

Maintaining this reputation has always been paramount, but it was exceptionally vital when the company was developing a next-generation CNC and digital servo drive system called the 5DX. By committing themselves to a strict two-year development timeline, right on time for a critical international trade expo in Germany, ANCA faced a number of design challenges requiring unique solutions.

Without the time to create multiple concepts or prototypes, the team of dedicated electrical engineers needed electronics design software capable of providing incredibly accurate and quality designs. ANCA’s engineering team needed to find a tool that could help them deliver, and fast.

ANCA didn’t have the time to learn multiple software environments while trying to piece together schematic capture and PCB layout tools into one unified system. They needed a solution that was already unified, ready to work with immediately. Altium Designer was a logical choice.

Simplifying Complexities and Overcoming Design Challenges

At the heart of ANCA’s next-generation digital servo drive system lies a complex interior of electronics consisting of over 20 complex, high-density PCBs. Developing a powerful CNC product required the participation of a range of engineering disciplines, from electronic to mechanical and software engineering. 

Altium Designer’s unified design environment was a major advantage; engineers at ANCA were able to take their electronic design from concept to completion all in one unified design interface. This greatly enhanced the productivity of the entire design team as the project evolved from schematic blueprints to the physical PCB layout. 

One unified interface meant less training time and maintained the highly productive environment that ANCA needed to meet their impending deadline. ANCA also harnessed design management and documentation tools within Altium Designer. Hierarchical project structures kept design data organized throughout the entire design process. Customizable output tools made the exporting of Gerber files to manufacturers a quick and easy process.

ANCA required the highest degree of control during their PCB design process. Design rules were easy to customize in Altium Designer, providing engineers with the ability to create a fully customized rule environment that reduced the possibility of errors during the design process and maintained the integrity of design data. When it came time to check the performance of electronic circuits, ANCA benefited greatly from the mixed-signal simulation possibilities in Altium Designer, using XSpice and PSpice simulation models.

ANCA also leveraged the use of technical support for Altium Designer during their design process, citing the support team as “second to none” in terms of quality and expertise. 

With a completed electronics design in hand, ANCA was able to easily verify the mechanical aspects of the design using the company’s proprietary Unigraphics NX mechanical modeling and design software.

PCB Design Done Right and Right On Time

Combining a team of highly-skilled engineers and Altium Designer allowed ANCA to finish the development of their digital servo drive system right on time for their trade show appearance in Germany. With Altium Designer, the ANCA team was able to keep the design process on track, using a set of high-productivity tools under a unified design environment that was both easy-to-use and powerful enough to accommodate a complex PCB design process.