---
title: "Detailed Feature Comparison List | Numerical Innovations"
url: https://www.numericalinnovations.com/detailed-feature-comparison
description: "Compare the full CAM feature sets across Numerical Innovations software products with side-by-side detail and specifications."
lang: en
---

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🔁 Lifetime Support user? Click here for downloads: https://www.numericalinnovations.com/lifetime-support-downloads

# Compare FAB 3000 vs PCB Preflight Free Viewer

Compare the full CAM feature sets across our software products with comprehensive side-by-side specifications.

Download Demo: https://www.numericalinnovations.com/pages/fab-3000-download-demo
Learn About FAB 3000: https://www.numericalinnovations.com/fab-3000

## Feature Comparison

See which features are available in each product

*FAB 3000 includes everything in PCB Preflight and more!

Image: PCB Preflight Box (https://www.numericalinnovations.com/assets/preflight-box-Cv8jv9JW.avif)

PCB Preflight

Download Free (https://www.numericalinnovations.com/pcb-preflight-download)

Image: FAB 3000 Box (https://www.numericalinnovations.com/assets/fab3000-box-new-BYzZImH-.png)

FAB 3000

Download Demo (https://www.numericalinnovations.com/pages/fab-3000-download-demo)

### General:

User Friendly & Intuitive Gerber Viewing environment.

Open and View Workspace files (*.wrk)

Save Workspace files (*.wrk)

Print to Printer

Print to PDF

Generate Realistic Photo Preview

NEW Supports: Rigid, Flex, and Rigid-Flex PCBs

64-bit Architecture (Windows / Linux)

PCB Sales/RFQ Tools

NEW Modify all Objects Properties & Attributes

NEW Interactive PCB Stackup Viewer

### Import:

Gerber, NC Drill, Rout, HPGL, ODB++, IPC-2581

Import CAD and CAM aperture lists

Import ODB++ and IPC-2581 Components

DXF / DWG (Best importer available)

DXF / DWG Advanced Options (Join, De-Embed, Merge, and more).

Part Centroid File

BOM File

Netlist (IPC-D-356 / IPC-D-356A)

Image (Bitmap, Tiff, PNG, Jpeg)

Matrix File (*.fm6)

Postscript / PDF

High Resolution Bitmap

Footprint Library

3D STEP File

3D STL File

GDS-II (Stream)

### Export:

Gerber (RS-274D, RS-274X, Fire9000)

HPGL

NC Drill

DXF / DWG

ODB++

IPC-2581

NC Rout/Mill

GDS-II (Stream)

High Resolution Bitmap (output over 2GB)

X/Y Part Centroid File (used for various pick & place machines)

BOM File

Postscript

Footprint Library

3D STEP (for Enclosures, Documentation, Analysis)

3D STL

GDS-II (Stream)

### Design Rule Check (DFM / DRC):

Minimum Checks: Pad Size, Trace Width, SMT Pad Width, Annular Ring, and more.

Minimum Clearances: Copper to Board Edge, Outer Layers, Inner Layers, Track-Track, Track-Pad, Pad-Pad, Drill-Copper.

Drill Checks: Minimum Size, Double Hits, Pads without drills, Plated Drill without Pads, Touching Drill Hits. Minimum Clearance: Plated drill to copper, Unplated Drill to copper, Drill hole spacing.

Silkscreen Checks: Silkscreen over Mask

Mask Checks: Find Undersize and Missing Mask Clearances.

Plane Checks: Minimum Annular ring, Minimum Clearance, Minimum Width

Advanced Signal Checks: Same Net Clearance, Hole Registration, Find Redundant Pads, Find Unconnected Lines, Features Connection, Verify Text features, Find Acid Traps, Find Nonfunctional Pads, Find Net Discrepancy, Find Antennas, Copper Sliver Check.

Advanced Drill Checks: Find Drill-Plane Shorts

Advanced Silkscreen Checks: Find Silkscreen over Copper Text, Silkscreen clearance to board edge. Minimum Clearance: Sikscreen-Copper, Silkscreen-Drill, Silkscreen-Rout, Silkscreen Line-Line, Silkscreen Line-Pad, Silkscreen Pad-Pad.

Advanced Mask Checks: Find Mask Slivers, Find Solder Bridges, Detect Partial Clearances. Minimum Clearance: Mask-Rout, Draw-Draw, Draw-Pad, Pad-Pad.

Advanced Plane Checks: Minimum Thermal Airgap, Minimum Thermal Spoke Width, Minimum Plane-Rout Clearance, Find Starved Thermals, Find Power-Ground Shorts, Find Negative Plane Thermal Conflicts, Find Drill-Plane Registration Issues.

Assembly/Part Checks: Minimum Clearance between Components, Minimum Component Height, Find Overlapping Components, Find Invalid Ref Des, Find Invalid Component Rotation, Detect Footprint Pad Registration.

SMT Stencil Checks: Minimum SMT Stencil Pad: Width, Annular Rings, Aspect Ratios, Area Ratios, Volume. Minimum Clearances: SMT Pad to board edge, SMT Pad to SMT Pad, and more.

Browse and pinpoint each DFM/DRC violations.

Generate DFM Report (as PDF, CSV, Text, and Microsoft Excel).

Manage Multiple DFM Checks simultaneously.

### Editing / Modification:

Unlimited Undo / Redo

Edit (Move, Copy, Rotate, Delete, Flip, Scale, Explode, Array, Stretch, Split, Attributes, Vertex, Trim, Boolean, and more).

Edit Layers (Alignment, Merge, Delete, Add, and more).

Add (Flash, Trace, Polygon, Wide Path, Rectangle, Arc, Circle, Text)

Add (Text & Multi-Line Text)

Add (Dimensions)

Composite Layer Editing (Build, Flatten, & Separate)

Convert Draw to Flash (Interactive)

Convert Selected Objects to Custom Aperture

Convert Selected Objects to New Job

Edit/Modify existing Custom Apertures

Film Wizard (Optimize & combines layers for film output)

DeEmbed (Detect Islands & Holes)

Chamfer

Fillet

Boolean Operations (OR, AND, XOR, Subtract)

Edit In Place (Individually edit Inserts in place)

Find Components

Convert Draw to Flash (Selective & Automatic)

NEW Smart Find. Advanced features to locate any objects. (https://support.numericalinnovations.com/support/discussions/topics/14000019206)

NEW Smart Selection Filter (https://support.numericalinnovations.com/support/discussions/topics/14000019452)

### Fabrication Tools:

Copper Area Calculation

Silkscreen Optimizer

Copper Pour

Etch Compensation

Pin Hole Elimination

Remove Pads (Isolated/Stacked)

Redundant Line Removal

Teardrop Creation

Grow / Shrink (Enlarge or Reduce Objects)

Remove Covered Data

Generate Paste Layer

Create Drill Layer (PTH)

Convert Gerber Layer to Drill

PCB Panelization (Fiducials, Tooling Holes, Venting, Labels, Coupons, and more).

NEW Swap/Flip PCB Layers (used in Panelization)

Panel Wizard (Create both Fixed Size and Optimized panels)

### Netlist:

Netlist Extraction (handles Blind/Buried Vias & Split Planes)

Netlist Report (as PDF, CSV, Text, and Microsoft Excel).

Query Nets

Measure Net to Net

View External Nets

Apply External Nets Names

Netlist Comparison

Edit Nets

Netlist Table

Find Net Shorts

### Advanced SMT Stencil Tools:

Homebase Pad Conversion

C-Pad Conversion

Split Pads

Scale Pads

Pad Pitch Adjustment

Heel and Toe Edits

Add Epoxy Bars

Bow tie Pads

### NC Editor:

Full-Featured NC Drill & Rout Editor

Add Drill: Hole, Slot (G85), Circle (G84), Text Horizontal (M97), Text Vertical (M97).

Add Rout: Path, Slot, Circle Clockwise (G32), Circle Counter-Clockwise (G33).

Add Rout Tab(s)

Change Rout Path Direction

Convert NC Layer to Gerber

Convert Gerber to NC Layer

### Assembly/Components:

Add Components

Insert Components

Footprint Detection Wizard

Silkscreen Detection Wizard

Assembly Analysis

Centroid Table Modification

BOM Table Modification

Generate and export Part Centroid File

Generate and export BOM (Bill of Materials) File

Footprint Browser (View & Organize all footprints)

### Utilities:

Physical Comparison between Layers

Graphical Comparison between Layers

Layer Scale X/Y (Scale layers using separate X and Y values)

Physical Comparison between Jobs

Graphical Comparison between Jobs

Polygon Conversion (Convert overlapping objects to a single polygon)

Join Wizard (Close & fill open boundaries)

### Custom Applications:

Create, Load, and Run Lua Scripts & Binary Applications

Debug Apps

Built-In App Editor (Edit & run while inside FAB 3000)

Buy, Sell, and Write Custom Lua Apps for FAB 3000

Create, and run Numerical MATRIX files.: https://www.numericalinnovations.com/pages/fab-3000-matrix-file-description

### 3D Environment:

Create Physical 3D Layer Stackup with Z-Base and Thickness.

Flatten 3D Solids to 2D Geometries (polygons & flashes)

Generate 3D representations of Components with Heights (allow Mechanical CAD to verify PCB with board & component heights).

Remove Vias from Metal Areas.

Create separate 3D assemblies for Drill and Dielectrics.

### Ready to upgrade to FAB 3000?

Experience the full power of professional PCB CAM software with advanced editing, DFM checks, panelization, and manufacturing output creation.

Download Free Demo: https://www.numericalinnovations.com/pages/fab-3000-download-demo
Get My Recommendation: https://www.numericalinnovations.com/request-quote

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