1a) No it is not necessary to add the bevel. It might help a bit for the assembler to properly orientate the component, but few designs will have it.
1b) If you work in Altium there are two possibilities to create the bevel:
- Use a solid region.
- In the latest version there is the possibility for custom pads. Like the footprint below, that also has a bevel in one of the pads.
2) Do not confuse the solder mask with the paste mask. The land pattern mask is for the solder mask. Perhaps they add it to make clear not to use Solder Mask Defined (SMD) pads. As it is all 50um, you can simply use a (standard) rule and keep the solder mask expansion per pad set to automatic.
3) The 3D model is just for you. I do prefer having one from the manufacturer as it can help verify the footprint. However, I have also found many issues with supplier 3D models.
I think that I made about 25% of the 3D models on my board. That includes the model of the part above.
The pick and place machine uses a pick-and-place file.
Body (component) height may help, but it may also be used for the AOI.
Leave a comment: