This ability to place components is very important for creating effective board layouts. I’d rate it as even more important than the ability to efficiently route traces. As you develop and master this ability you will come to appreciate that “effective” isn’t defined in the same way for all boards. Sometimes it’s related to spatial efficiency - getting all the components into the smallest possible acreage. Sometimes it’s related to exploiting a specified outline - perhaps a very irregular outline - usually constrained by a chosen enclosure, or the placement of other components in a system. “Effectiveness” could be measured by how well your board interfaces (mechanically) with connectors, controls, front panels, etc. Sometimes “effectiveness” is measured by thermal performance - how much heat is produced at what locations - and sometimes effectiveness is rated by EMI measurements.
At any rate, you’ll get better at placing components as you do it more, and as you work under different constraints imposed by different designs. Be patient; Rome wasn’t built in a day.
Thanks, Dale. I have some patients, but as an old man my time is running out. This is the 1st board I have attempted. In the past I have made many wire wrap boards. These also require some layout experience, but not as much as the PCB. I’m not a electronics guy, I was a steam power plant guy during my working days. Most of my electronics has been self taught. I built my 8080 CP/M 2.2 computer in the late 1970’s, using wire wrap. So this is a step up for me, I’m getting a little closer to the 21st century. Thanks for the help. I’m sure there will be more questions. Mike
As another member of the Medicare set, I know that feeling! That’s why I haven’t done more than a cursory introduction to 3-D modeling.
You can be proud of being self-taught. One of the most respected analog designers of our lifetime, Jim Williams ( and HERE ), was an autodidact. If I recall correctly, he started but never completed a degree quite unrelated to electronics - literature, or sociology, or something like that.
What would motivate a steam power-plant guy to build a CP/M computer? I have the highest admiration for ANYBODY who could complete that project!
Keep asking questions! Somebody will respond. You seem to be very teachable. And you put some effort into finding an answer before you post a question here - “Initiative” like that is highly regarded around here.
Dale, thanks for the reply. Well… back in the 1960’s when I toke up the challenge of learning how to burn coal, most of the control circuits used at the power plant were relay logic. Once you know the process, logic is logic, whether it is relays, vacuum tubes, transistors or what ever. Then in the early 1970’s I got involved with some new power pant computerized control, using a DEC PDP8E. I was impressed with that the DEC could do. So in between battling air heater fires and electric motor failures, I enjoyed reading about computerized control. Later the micro-processor became popular. The plant purchased a Motorola D2 kit, using a 6800. We built a test jig for coal feeders. This helped trouble shoot the many feeders that the plant had. I got the bug and wanted to have my own computer. Purchasing a machine was too expensive. So I started building my own 8080. I spent maybe 10 years working the machine up from 1k memory and machine language programs to a CP/M 2.2, with 2 8" disk drive, 64k memory machine. Then my family started to grow and then I had to invest my time there. The 8080 was put away. I retired about 20 years ago and as my physical strength started to wane, I remembered the 8080 and dragged it out, cleaned it up and got it to work again. I’m still interested in control theory. I picked up a FlexoWriter and connected it up to the 8080. The FlexoWrtier needed some special I/O, which I made using wire wrap, the only method of circuit boards know how to make. I used Orcad to make schematics for my boards, but the very old software would not work with my newer Windows computer. A younger friend suggested looking into KiCad. I started using KiCad about 2 years ago and it seems to be working. My goal is to make this new I/O board a PCB. So, if it works great and if not, it is fun making the attempt and keeps me busy. I’m sure I’ll have more questions. Thanks Mike.
Hi Mike, also useful if you are placing the ICs, enable the ratsnest. This will give you an idea of where the higher density traces are and the ideal placement of ICs to ensure easiest routing afterwards. Also useful, to me at least, are the shortcut keys to select a part of a track (U) and entire track (I). An excellent resource on YouTube is Chris Gammell’s Contextual Electronics videos here: https://www.youtube.com/user/contextualelectronic/featured.
I’m learning to use KiCad. I have never used ‘U’ and ‘I’. Selecting is an introduction to make something else.
What is (what are) that else what you do after selecting part of track or track?
Piotr, if you click on part of a track an press “U” it will select the single track up to a node or where the track splits. This is useful to select all the segments including the small <1mm pieces that sometimes form part of a track. If you want to delete the entire net then “I” works well. I will try to add pictures to show the difference.
The aim of the above selections is to make it easy to delete an entire trace if you want to try different routing which the original poster tried to do
I understand that you are using U to selectively delete part of track.
I don’t have yet a lot of complicated tracks (mainly one to one connection). I supposed that Backspace deletes one segment and Del deletes whole track. I have just checked at one my track connecting in serie a many foortprints. Del deleted one such connection only. When I used U kay the same was selected as Del (without previous selection) deletes.
Later added:
As Del don’t deletes whole track (as I supposed) that means I can be usefull.
Many ways to get to the same result. One thing I like about KiCAD. The shortcuts “I” and “U” are also useful to select a trace to move it to a different layer for example
… or to change net assignment, if needed. Sometimes If I do some mess (like moving parts of the design around when settling things down) some of my tracks are assigned to wrong nets (if they overlap with some other pads after move). Using “Select” tool I can reassign them to my proper nets which allows me to reuse them instead of delete&re-route.
I am used to copy some part of PCB to new design by positioning footprints in new project exactly as they were in previous and then select all tracks in that part of old pcb and copy/paste to new PCB (tracks get the net from pads they are placed on).
I didn’t found yet how to do it in Kicad.
I have just checked - when using “I” I select one track I can’t select the next one.
Right-click menu has at that next track the “Select-Connected Tracks” menu item, but it not works.
Open PCBnew in a standalone mode (run pcbnew instead of Kicad). Open old design, remove everything un-needed in new project. Then Save as…
Now open new project in PCBnew. Select File > Append board and open the saved old part.
I do “recycle” parts of old designs this way.
I’ve never tried.
If standalone mode gives you some more possibilities then “normal” mode shouldn’t the standard KiCad installation add more icons to pulpit.
The append operation available in standalone is considered unsave (with good reason as it does not handle libraries at all -> results in your project being potentially disconnected from libraries.)
V6 will most likely bring proper copy paste handling between kicad instances (iff the available resources allow for it)
Single segment selected
The shortcuts “I” and “U” are also useful to select a trace to move it to a different layer for example