This paper describes an expert systems approach, based on symbolic reasoning techniques, to the problem of predicting radiated EMI levels from printed circuit boards. The expert system, currently under development at the University of Missouri-Rolla, USA, starts by extracting board geometry information from the board layout files. This information is fed into the classification algorithm, which determines the signal properties and nature of each net, using the knowledge stored in the knowledge base. The evaluation algorithm uses the available in formation to identify and evaluate critical circuit geometries, and then estimates the effect that these geometries have on system radiation levels. The expert system also looks for violations of basic EMC design rules. The main advantage of such a system over conventional software is that the expert system does not require the user to be an expert in EMC or circuit design
