First PCB: Item not annotated error

Schematic
1

Hi,

I’m getting back to hobbyist electronics after many years away from it. I’m currently trying to design my first circuit board with KiCad, but the Electrical Rule Checker is telling me that one of my chips has an Item not annotated error. I’m struggling to understand what the problem is.

I’m not exactly sure what an annotation is as I can’t find any menu option on the chip properties called “annotation” but there is a “Reference” which I think it might be referring to? I’ve got about 8 chips on the board and I’ve given them all meaningful “Reference” names rather than the default names so that I can identify them when I come to layout the circuit board.

There is nothing obviously different between the names I’ve given to the rogue chip names and any of the others. Are there reserved names?

2

ICs should have unique numerical references starting with U, e.g. U1, U2, etc. (Likewise resistors as R1, R2, etc etc). Try that style of annotation.

3

It’s the standard term for giving symbols unique identifiers in the circuit. Not invented by KiCAD, has been used in the industry forever.
And yes, it’s the Reference.

4

Di you missed Annotate in:

5

We are here to help, but lots of beginners questions have been answered many times before. The answers of Both your questions are easy to find if you just type in a search string either here on this forum, in KiCad’s help files or in the Getting started in KiCad beginners tutorial. KiCad’s manuals can be found both on the KiCad website (follow Piotrs link) or directly in KiCad itself in the menu under Help.

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Searching a little bit is both quicker for you, and easier for us :slight_smile:

6

You could look in the documentation for an explanation of unfamiliar terms. Here’s the section entitled Reference Designators and Symbol Annotation:

7

Thank you to everybody who replied - I think what I should have done is left the components with their default reference values. Every time I fixed the issue as suggested above the ERC pointed out another one for me, so it looks as if I’ve got every component on the board wrong. Thankfully I found an option to reset them all and this fixed the problem.

I appreciate that I’m coming across as a newbie (and that’s because I am) and there are many terms I don’t quite understand. I did have a read through the setting started guide a while ago, but since then my main method of learning has been to watch YouTube videos and then use Google to search for specific issues. Maybe my problem has been that without knowing the correct search term I’ve not been able to find the results I need.

Thank you all for your patience

8

To make your future questions clear remember:

  • at schematic there are symbols and wires,
  • at PCB there are footprints and tracks.

If someone mix these terms we are even not sure if he asks about schematic or PCB. Also when someone asks about elements/components and connections.

Never tried this myself. It may be good method to learn to use software that changes slowly. But KiCad changes fast and there are lots of out of date videos.
There were many questions here of type: “Tutorial says to do this end this but I spend long time trying to do it and I can’t. I find KiCad very hard to use …”
Then we have to find that he is watching KiCad V4 or V5 video while he installed V7 or V8.

9

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