KiCad Workshop

KiCad

KiCad (https://www.kicad.org/) is a computer-aided tool for schematic capture and designing printed circuit boards (PCBs) that runs on Macs, Linux, and Windows. It is under active development and is FOSS. It is powerful enough to compete with professional-level software like Altium and EagleCAD yet is completely free and unencumbered by increasingly expensive subscriptions or cloud lock-in.

Next scheduled workshop

First Session, 7PM-10PM Getting started with KiCad; porject manager, schematic capture and footprint assignments

Second Session 7PM-10PM PCB design including part placement, edge routing, and using layers for art.

Third Session -- (May be combined with Second Session)

Design rule checks, "Tape-out" for submission to OshPark for PCB manufacture

Fourth Session -- "Board Bringup" -- When parts are back from manufacturing, assembling and testing your board. Tips on bodging and fixing mistakes after the boards have been made.

Potential Topics

We can cover most of the basics in 3 nights. Feel free to add topics.

• • What is KiCad, 15 minute refresher on making a schematic and laying out a board.
• Expanding into new topics
  • Making custom devices and libraries
    • How to make the pin outs and footprints from a data sheet, possibly recycling someone else's similar part.
    • How to label the part correctly and control what layers show on the board view (this can be confusing!)
  • Error checking: ERC and DFM.
  • How to fab a board.
    • "Tape out:" Exporting gerber and drill files using a CAM processor
    • Checking the gerber files in a non-Eagle viewer program
    • Uploading to fab houses

About your instructors

• Jonathan Foote is a practicing EE with decades of circuit PCB design experience. http:/www.rotormind.com/
• Alex Glow is a hardware hacker whom you might have seen on [ hackster.io] http://alexglow.com/

List of PCB manufacturers

• OshPark
• Seeed Studio
• JLPCB