Footprints snapping to each other KiCAD 9.0.3

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1

Using PCB editor I find that sometimes a footprint will snap to a nearby footprint such that the footprint I am moving is directly on top of the nearby footprint. What I want to do it place the one I am moving near the one it snaps over, not on top of it or even touching it.

So far I have only had this with SMD components, specifically Resistor_SMD:R_0805_2012Metric for example. I tried moving some connectors, which are through hole, close to each other and even over each other but could not get the same effect.

Having read the manual I can stop this happening by holding down the shift key, but ideally there should be a way to disable this in preferences or somewhere like that. I did try preferences > editing options > Magnetic points > then selecting ā€˜neverā€™ for all 3 options, but this made no difference.

I note that searching this forum for a solution, while I could not find anyone else asking the same question as me, I did find that people are posing similar but different questions regarding the behaviour of snapping in KiCAD 9.xx, for example here:

So, questions:

  • Is this intended behaviour in KiCAD 9.xx?*
  • Is there a way to turn it off?
  • Is there a situation where this is useful (I canā€™t think of a use for this)?

Thank you

2

Have you tried zooming in before you complete the move, it may help.

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Do you think the problem could be solved by unconsciously choosing a variety of actions rather than just one?

  1. Set a small grid
  2. Use an action to move position
  3. Use the Align Action
  4. Enter a value in the properties
  5. Use various plugins
  6. Create a new incident (a new move action (equivalent to holding down the Shift key))

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You can improve your work efficiency by carefully considering and defining the grids you use frequently in advance in the settings.

4

The zoom level influences how bad the problem is but zooming in does not solve it. The more I zoom in the less bad it is, and there is a point where I can place one component next to another without it snapping over the adjacent component, but the effect is still there if I get too close. Even if zooming in completely fixed the problem I donā€™t see that as a solution because I think I should be able to set the zoom level to whatever suits me for what Iā€™m doing, not to a level that makes a work-around for some problem with KiCAD.

5

Do you mean to ask me if the problem is caused by my inadvertently combining several actions that result in the problem? I donā€™t know the answer to that question but when I tried to replicate the problem with through hole components I tried to do everything the same as when I get the problem with SMD components. EDIT See below, the effect is present with through hole components.

Sorry but I donā€™t really understand what you are trying to tell me with the rest of your reply. The more I look at grids in preferences the more I realise I donā€™t properly understand how to use them. However, in this case the components are not snapping to a grid, they are snapping to another component.

6

OK, so I tried this again and the effect is present with through hole components. It seems that the component being moved snaps to the centre of a component it is close to. It is less obvious with through hole components because they are bigger making the centre further from the edge and hiding the effect.

7

Wasnā€™t really suggested as a solution but just as a help . . .

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8

You probably already noticed this, but currently (KiCad V9.0.4 and V9.0.5) KiCad is plagued by some nasty bugs surrounding snapping behavior. Iā€™ll assume you are using KiCad V9.0.3 (please add the dot to turn your text into a valid KiCad version number) In V9.0.3 and earlier(at least as far back as KiCad V5) I described KiCadā€™s snapping behavior in the gitlab issue below.

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Hello Paul,
Thanks for pointing out my typo in the version number, I have corrected it as requested.

I think the first version of KiCAD I used was V5. something. The behaviour you describe fits with what I am used to, but as itā€™s always been like that Iā€™ve just accepted it as how KiCAD works. I did notice while searching for a solution to this problem that the way snapping works results in quite a few questions on here.

So, is what I am experiencing intended but annoying behaviour?
Is it a bug?
Am I doing something to cause it, something easily fixed by changing something?

10

Definitely a bug, (or a flock of bugs) Which I already mentioned in my previous post:

The ā€œold bugā€ was pretty mild, and I guess it was ā€œfixedā€ in some faulty way which resulted in much more severe bugs in V9.0.4 and V9.0.5. Currently there is a KiCad V9.0.6-rc1 This release candidate is released much earlier then the regular bug fix update rate (which is 9 to 12 updates per year) and it is made to address the grid bugs that kept popping up in V9.0.4 and V9.0.5.
KiCad release notes

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11

Iā€™ve marked your reply as ā€˜solvedā€™. Obvously not fixed, but until KiCAD do a bug fix that fixes it I donā€™t think thereā€™s anything else to say here.

Thank you for your time.