Software to panelize PCB

[mrpackethead]

This is one of those things when the answer is depends

[Siwastaja]

A lot of confusion in this recurring discussion is that we are usually talking about several possibly very different (but sometimes overlapping) concepts when using the term "panelization".

If you state to your PCB fab that you want to do complete panelization "yourself" so that you are in "total control", you'll be naturally be laughed at, because this is always an internal PCB manufacturing process, which involves things like:

1) The panel is always a fixed size, and massively large, and you don't know what size the manufacturer is using
2) The panel often combines different customers
3) The panel includes specific patterns for etch process uniformity
4) The panel includes specific Quality Control test patterns
5) The panel needs manufacturer-specific fiducials, alignment peg holes, etc.

And, when someone asks about panelizing "by themselves", people start replying assuming they want to do this.

Usually, the question is not about this part to begin with.

There are panels, and then there are panels. Totally different kind of panels: the higher level unit, which only consists of this single customers design(s) repeated over and over again, driven by typically two constraints:
1) Assembly (P&P, reflow and/or wave solder), requiring specific fiducials, peg holes, etc.
2) Electrical or functional testing at panel level, possibly including JTAG chains, even mass programming the programmable devices, or calibrating the units before separation from panel.

For 1), the customer very often does the panelization themselves, often communicating with the P&P house - not the PCB fab. Only in very simple cases this can be totally left for the board house to decide. If the PCB fab and assembly fab is the same company, this may be possible; it's still often done by the original designer. Which is why the PCB tools have panelization options.

For 2), the customer always does the panelization. You route the signals between the panels! You decide how to place the testpoints.

It is worth noting that for a pure PCB manufacturer, this kind of "panel" is like any single design. The terminology varies:
1) Some don't call them panels, and talking about panels is causing confusion, since panel is a different concept for a PCB manufacturer,
2) Some call them panels,
3) Some look at your design files, and if it looks like you have repeated same or similar enough parts multiple times, they charge you extra just because they can.