Quilter

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Quilter automates PCB design, optimizing component placement, routing, and EMI performance for fast hardware iterations.

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What is Quilter?

Quilter is an automated circuit board layout tool that streamlines the PCB design process by automating tasks such as component placement, routing, stack-up generation, and more. It is designed to handle various design aspects including routing, component placement, and EMI simulations, exceeding the capabilities of traditional autorouters. Quilter can generate multiple design candidates quickly, optimize for EMI performance, and ensure designs are fabrication-ready with no DRC errors. It is compatible with popular ECAD applications like Altium and KiCAD, allowing for smooth integration into existing design workflows.

Quilter is more akin to a human designer than an autorouter, exploring hundreds of design possibilities to optimize results and validating candidates against tolerances from top fabricators. It is best suited for PCBs with specific characteristics such as fewer than 1000 pins, fewer than 100 components, low density, signal speeds under 500MHz, and current under 2A. The tool utilizes reinforcement learning to explore a unique design space, taking up to 1-2 hours to generate the first layout candidate and a total of 2-6 hours for full exploration. Quilter is designed to help hardware teams innovate faster by automating circuit board design and enabling faster hardware iteration.

Who created Quilter?

Quilter was founded by Sergiy Nesterenko, who also serves as the CEO of the company. The company, headquartered in Los Angeles, California, has a remote-first team of AI and electronics experts sharing a common vision and commitment to innovation. Quilter was launched in 2021 with a focus on automating circuit board design to accelerate hardware innovation. The platform, currently in open beta, aims to streamline the PCB design process with features like automated placement, routing, and stack-up generation.

What is Quilter used for?

Automate circuit board layout
Placement, routing & stackups
Design complex boards
Board design validation
EMI performance optimization
Generate design candidates
Compatibility with ECAD tools
Accelerate hardware innovation
Save time and money in PCB design
Improve hardware iteration speed

Who is Quilter for?

Engineers at electronics companies
Engineers
Electronics companies
Hardware teams

How to use Quilter?

To use Quilter, follow these steps:

Design Your Schematic: Utilize your preferred ECAD tool like Altium or KiCAD to design your schematic.
Import Constraints: Quilter is compatible with popular ECAD applications and rapidly generates multiple design candidates.
Evaluate Design Rules: Quilter assesses designs against various manufacturer rulesets to achieve optimal routing with no violations.
Generate Layouts: The tool explores millions of design possibilities using reinforcement learning, typically taking 1-2 hours for the initial candidate and 2-6 hours for full exploration.
Review Candidates: Quilter allows you to review layout candidates before completion and notifies you via email when the first successful candidate is found, or when the job is done.

By following these steps, you can effectively utilize Quilter for automated circuit board design and accelerate hardware innovation.

Pros

All-in-One PCB Designer: Automates component placement, routing, stack-up generation, and more.
Optimized Board Designs: Imports constraints to optimize for EMI performance and manufacturing viability.
Intuitive Design Continuation: Picks up where you leave off, placing and routing without changing manual elements.
Rapid Design Turnaround: Generates dozens of design candidates in hours, all passing DRC with 0 errors.
Native Compatibility: Works seamlessly with existing designs and ECAD tools for smooth integration.
Adaptable to existing design workflows
Fully compatible with popular ECAD applications such as Altium and KiCAD
Automates component placement, routing, stack-up generation, and more
Optimizes for EMI performance and ensures designs are ready for fabrication with 0 DRC errors
Generates multiple design candidates rapidly
Works seamlessly with existing designs and ECAD tools for smooth integration

Cons

No specific cons or missing features were identified in the information provided for Quilter.
Quilter is currently best suited for PCBs with fewer than 1000 pins, fewer than 100 components, less than 10% density, signal speeds under 500MHz, and current under 2A.
Quilter may automatically time out after 12 hours when completing a design.
Limited to PCBs with fewer than 1000 pins, 100 components, less than 10% density, signal speeds under 500MHz, and current under 2A
May have limitations compared to traditional autorouters for complex PCB designs
The system may automatically time out after 12 hours
Pricing details for General Availability are not specified
IP-sensitive materials are not supported by the design agent
Uncertainty about potential usage restrictions and changes as Quilter transitions to General Availability
No information provided on how the pricing model compares to insourced and outsourced PCB design costs
No specific cons or missing features are mentioned for using Quilter in the provided documents.

Pros

Cons

All-in-One PCB Designer: Automates component placement, routing, stack-up generation, and more.
Optimized Board Designs: Imports constraints to optimize for EMI performance and manufacturing viability.
Intuitive Design Continuation: Picks up where you leave off, placing and routing without changing manual elements.
Rapid Design Turnaround: Generates dozens of design candidates in hours, all passing DRC with 0 errors.
Native Compatibility: Works seamlessly with existing designs and ECAD tools for smooth integration.
Adaptable to existing design workflows
Fully compatible with popular ECAD applications such as Altium and KiCAD
Automates component placement, routing, stack-up generation, and more
Optimizes for EMI performance and ensures designs are ready for fabrication with 0 DRC errors
Generates multiple design candidates rapidly
Works seamlessly with existing designs and ECAD tools for smooth integration

No specific cons or missing features were identified in the information provided for Quilter.
Quilter is currently best suited for PCBs with fewer than 1000 pins, fewer than 100 components, less than 10% density, signal speeds under 500MHz, and current under 2A.
Quilter may automatically time out after 12 hours when completing a design.
Limited to PCBs with fewer than 1000 pins, 100 components, less than 10% density, signal speeds under 500MHz, and current under 2A
May have limitations compared to traditional autorouters for complex PCB designs
The system may automatically time out after 12 hours
Pricing details for General Availability are not specified
IP-sensitive materials are not supported by the design agent
Uncertainty about potential usage restrictions and changes as Quilter transitions to General Availability
No information provided on how the pricing model compares to insourced and outsourced PCB design costs
No specific cons or missing features are mentioned for using Quilter in the provided documents.

Quilter FAQs

How is Quilter different from an autorouter?: Quilter acts as an intuitive PCB designer, handling various design aspects including routing, component placement, and EMI simulations, exceeding the capabilities of traditional autorouters.

What boards can Quilter layout?: Quilter is currently best suited for PCBs with fewer than 1000 pins, fewer than 100 components, less than 10% density, signal speeds under 500MHz, and current under 2A.

How does Quilter handle design rules?: Quilter evaluates designs against 10 different manufacturer rulesets, selecting the most conservative option that still achieves 100% routing with no DRC violations.

How long does Quilter take to complete a design?: The time Quilter takes to complete a design varies, generally ranging from 1-2 hours for initial candidates and 2-6 hours for full exploration, with a maximum cap of 12 hours.

Is Quilter really different from an autorouter?: Yes, Quilter is indeed different from traditional autorouters as it handles complex PCB designs, optimizes hundreds of design possibilities, and ensures compatibility with fabricator tolerances.

How is Quilter different from an autorouter?: Quilter is more like a human designer than it is like an autorouter. Quilter manages all aspects of PCB design including routing traces, placing components, managing board stackups, and generating custom pours.