I have a design that uses 5 small interconnecting PCB parts with some non standard shapes. I need to create breakaway information for production of odd shapes AND want to create one board that has all the sub-parts to give to manufacturer.
I can’t find any simple information on how to specify this on my PCB board. I’ve seen some Videos suggesting a dedicated layer. A manufacturer told me (unclearly) that I need to create holes on the design.
DO we have a clear explanation on what is needed and how to do this in general or for a particular manufacturer?
Search ‘mouse bites’. I know v score would work on a straight section but not sure if it would be available in places with angles.
Manufacturers usually do v scores only through the whole board (not a project board, but their large original board). It’s not fitting for oddly shaped boards.
Let me understand this correctly:
you want to have one PCB, that can be separated into smaller sub-PCBs that can be broken out of the main PCB by bending/twisting. Is that right?
Search mouse bites …
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Zactly!!
There is a cost to having multiple boards and it’s cheaper to have one board with breakaway parts.
Ok. For posterity - found a great explanation here: Mouse Bites PCB - Breakaway Tabs - V Groove PCB
Thank you all for pointing me to the right direction.
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Also have a look into “panel” or “panelization”. That is the name for putting several The same or different) PCB’s together in a single bigger PCB.
Several people have worked on solutions for this, but there is no official support in KiCad itself, so it’s a bit cumbersome to do. Panelization also is a quite specialized task. If you want to automate production for example, you have to make sure that you panel is both wide enough to fit in the machines. It also has to be both strong and stiff enough so it won’t break apart halfway during production, or vibrate too much during SMT placement.
Some people even do more complicated stuff with panels, such as adding connectors and copper tracks, so multiple PCB’s can be tested (or programmed) by plugging in a single connector.
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