Hi guys,
I want to print my PCB, but print it in its original size and multiply it on the entire page. I don’t want to print 1 PCB per page as that is very inefficient.
Is there any such option in “KiCad”, I tried, but I could not find it and I can’t edit the PDF after that in order to print 50 PCBs per page and not 1 PCB per page.
By PCB do you mean the board or the schematic? I assume you mean the board and also that you’re trying to make 50 copies of a small board using toner transfer or similar.
Normally you would do this using a PDF manipulation program like pdfnup under Linux. Similar software should be available for other platforms.
I mean PCB, toner transfer method, a small PCB which can fit 50 times on 1 piece of paper with size A4. Normally KiCad prints “1 PCB” in the middle of the page and editing that PDF is almost impossible with any tool. Even if I do use the “PDF editor” it can only select 1 layer from the PCB and that makes it impossible to copy paste or use the whole PCB.
You probably want to print only the back copper layer, and to get a good PDF tool.
I tried various PDF tools, I did print only the back layer and the edge cuts, but its still not good, the “copper fill” and other things are separate.
OS: Windows 7 Pro x64
Dual core 4 thread processor, 8GB RAM, build in graphics intel HD 3000.
In the worst case you could import the PDF into Gimp and replicate the image.
thats why pcb manufacturers rely on Gerber format. Kicads GerbView has File-Print (but I never tried myself). First output Gerber from pcbnew, then try to panelize. This is a seperate task with own problems. Read here:
http://blog.thisisnotrocketscience.nl/projects/pcb-panelizer/
I have to try “panelization”. Print to file does not work.
EDIT: “GIMP” is for image files, how to covert the “PDF” to an image?
Just import it. Gimp will take you through the steps. The PCB printout is in fact an image, not instructions to render character glyphs.
That is not true. The pdf plot option (which should really be used for a task like this) generates a valid vector graphic which is better handled in a vector graphics program like inkscape.
But a maybe better option is to generate gerber, panelize them in a panelizing tool and plot from there. (Keep data in a proper format for as long as possible in the manufacturing process)
Well there’s print and there’s plot, different buttons. Anyway he’s going to print this on toner transfer paper on a 600 DPI or whatever printer.
But you’re right maybe there are other barriers to using the PDF output, Tracks may not be solid black, etc since that output is only for humans to appreciate. I’ve only used the print function to have a paper copy to look at. So maybe it’s better to panelize, then render the plot to a raster for printing on toner transfer paper.
The problem with using raster graphics early on is that every save operation goes through the rasterization algorithm and more importantly through the compression algorithm.
The best way to create a panel is to start pcbnew second instance (your KiCAD directory \ bin \ pcbnew.exe). In pcbnew (first instance) choose your board and press [Ctrl + C]. Choose a reference point for the copy.
Select a usable grid in the second instance (for example, 0.5mm) and press [Ctrl + V] to paste the copy. Press [Ctrl + V] again to insert another copy …
Hide board ratsnest, but show filled areas in zones. When you’re done, press [B] to fill or refill all zones. Then create the gerber files.
(Version: (5.1.4)-1, release build)
If you know the final resolution then there is only one rasterise step. And some raster graphics formats are compressing but non-lossy e.g. PNG.
PCBnew can also plot svgs, which are easier to manage via inkscape. PDF import in inkscape may have rendering issues. Panelizing in inkscape will be easier with group objects & align tools.
Only recommending this becuase OP is going to use toner transfer.
Note - I haven’t tried the svg export myself yet.
BTW OP an A4 PCB? I guess you have access to a board guillotine or equivalent tool?
My guess is they want to save on paper (or whatever medium they use for the transfer) and will then cut it up as necessary (cut out one or two pcbs at a time, transfer, etch, put the remainder in storage for an eventual later patch, repeat).
If they indeed want to etch such a huge pcb in one go then i would suggest they look into what can (or will) go wrong with it. (It is quite hard to control the etching process such that it is equal over such a huge area. And toner transfer is also harder to control the larger the area.)
Your guess is correct, also it spares me the long trip to the public printer for every time I want to print something. But it does not matters, I used “pcbway.com” to order 10 pieces for 10-15 dollars, depending on the size of the PCB(100x100 max).
Thanks to everyone!
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