Study on a MEMS CAD system based on SolidWorks

To enable designers to construct geometric models of MEMS devices in a straightforward environment and get mask and process flow automatically, a 3D MEMS CAD system for surface micromachined devices is proposed based on traditional design software-SolidWorks. With Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) of SolidWorks, component modules and databases of the system are developed with Visual Basic, such as geometric model design module, mask and process flow generation module, process simulation module, 3D feature database and material database. Their development method is discussed in this paper. A practical example shows that surface micromachined devices can be designed efficiently in the system without tedious fabrication process.