Makerlab/Guides/Design
Circuit Diagrams and PCB Design
On this page, we collect resources that explain the tasks of designing schematic diagrams and printed circuit boards. The most popular applications for these tasks in the maker communities are
- Eagle,
- Fritzing, and
- Kicad.
In the past, we mainly used Eagle. Since the change of the licensing model, we have started to migrate all new projects to KiCad, with a quick learning curve and overall good success. Plus, KiCad is free and open source, and the available parts libraries grow very fast.
Overview
- Steps
- Terminology
Links and Resources
- https://learn.sparkfun.com/tutorials/using-eagle-schematic - http://www.build-electronic-circuits.com/schematic-drawing/ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_l1PRYWCMgc
Available Software
- Eagle
- Fritzing
- KiCad
- KiCad, the great open source EDA package; we have recently started to migrate from Eagle to KiCad for schematics and PCB design in all new projects
- http://docs.kicad-pcb.org/4.0.6/en/getting_started_in_kicad.html
- Great video tutorials series: https://contextualelectronics.com/getting-to-blinky-4-0/
A Simple Example
Production
EAGLE Tips and Tricks
Frequently Needed Components
- Mounting holes / lib: holes: T-PAD-ROUND3.2
- Template Schematic: frames -A4-LOC
- Vcc + Ground: - Library Supply1 + Supply2
- Labeled Signal headers: use supply2 -> V->, <-V
How to create your own parts
TBD
General Tips
- Add labels to pin headers in silkscreen: Either manually or define part variant with extended description
- Add test points
- Bridges in single-sided PCBs: Switch layer in routing and route missing connection manually, see also http://www.bot-thoughts.com/2010/08/eagle-tips-jumper-wires.html
Pitfalls and Checklists
- Logic Levels (TTL, 3.3 V, ...)
- Ground Level Problems
- Trace Width Choice
- Checklists
- Deeper introduction to common PCB design issues: