SMD pad Electrical clearance rule

[Chris.M]

Hi,

I'm trying to create an electrical clearance rule to ensure SMD resistor pads are spaced 1mm apart (ie I want to ensure neighboring SMD components are not too close when aligned side by side), however when I specify the SMD-to-SMD clearance as 1mm, violations are shown because the two pads for each resistor as they are closer than 1mm for an 0402 for example.

I can't use a component clearance rule either because the resistor sits inside the pad and not on the edge, two SMD components can be placed back to back and no violation is given because the components are separated far enough, even though the pads are almost touching.

Any hints on how to create the electrical clearance rule to solve this?

[Someone]

I can't use a component clearance rule either because the resistor sits inside the pad and not on the edge, two SMD components can be placed back to back and no violation is given because the components are separated far enough, even though the pads are almost touching.

The component clearances are for the components, so why do you want 1mm gaps between their pads? The electrical clearance rules should match the capabilities of your board vendor and ensure everything will work.

Can you provide some examples of where a pad to pad clearance rule is needed?