I have sent a complaint to PCB manufacturer regarding silkscreen but they said they are unable to see silkscreen layer in gerber file which i sent to them.
But i have sent all files of all layers including silkscreen files like (.gto & .gbo)
Can anybody whether it is a problem with company or version of Kicad software i had?
Regards,
Anirudh THABJUL
Hardware Engineer
Lansa Diffusion, Paris, France
I have loaded my silkscreen files in gerber viewer, i am able to see them but my PCB manufacturer told that they are not able to see them on the gerber files which i have sent to them.
i am using kicad version 2013.07.07
Please suggust if is there any solution to my problem
I wonder if the manufacturer required a different extension on the silkscreen layers? Have you tried uploading it to a 3rd party service like OSHpark or 4pcb.com? They will pull in the files and display them on the web to verify if it is readable. If that works, I think you can show your board maker that others can read them and ask what their issue is.
I had similar issues as some manufacturers expect different filename extensions for different layers. Sometimes they swap the copper layers also. I’ve created a batch file which converts grb extensions that KiCad creates to something similar to below example which should be more recognizible. Again, it depends on your manufacturer. I’ve attached the file here, rename it to *.bat and just run it in your gerber folder (note that it does only convert top and bottom copper layers, I didn’t need the inner layers for now as I’m not doing that complicated boards in KiCad) rename_ger.txt (681 Bytes)
How does your filename look like now?
For example, the original filenames that i had were
SHT21_sensor_board.drl
SHT21_sensor_board-Edge_Cuts.gbr
SHT21_sensor_board-Eco1_User.gbr
SHT21_sensor_board-F_SilkS.gbr
SHT21_sensor_board-B_SilkS.gbr
SHT21_sensor_board-B_Cu.gbr
SHT21_sensor_board-F_Cu.gbr
The batch file I uploaded would change the file extension to something like in my previous message. The file contents would be the same. The KiCad Gerber View program opens this just fine. At least in the Kicad version that I have. The batch file renames files based on their name given by default by Kicad (for example B_Cu means tha this layer is bottom copper hence it’s extension gets renamed to GBL). Your case might vary. Check with your manufacturer. I’ve pasted the settings that I use when plotting to gerber below. I think this is the default.
The file generated by the KiCad is just fine. If you open it as a text you should see something like
G04 #@! TF.FileFunction,Copper,L2,Bot,Signal*
%FSLAX46Y46*%
G04 Gerber Fmt 4.6, Leading zero omitted, Abs format (unit mm)*
G04 Created by KiCad (PCBNEW (2015-01-16 BZR 5376)-product) date 12.6.2015. 11:42:21*
%MOMM*%
G01*
G04 APERTURE LIST*
%ADD10C,0.100000*%
%ADD11O,1.500000X6.000000*%
%ADD12C,1.397000*%
%ADD13C,0.254000*%
G04 APERTURE END LIST*
D10*
…and so on
when you tick the “Use Protel filename extensions”, Kicad saves gerbers with .gts / .gbs / etc extensions automatically, no need for an external script there.
Thanks alot for your profound explanation. I helped me lot, i will talk with my manufacturer regarding this and i hope next time my board will contain silkscreen.
I would like to add to double check the extensions even so with the PCB manufacturer. For instance, 2 layer boards with Protel extensions will be accepted by OSHPark with no problems. However the files for the inner layers for a 4 layer board will not be recognised and will give no error. Those extensions need to be changed.
My manufacturer use BZR4004 software version on windows to adding Silkscreen and
Graphics to PCB in KiCad. Read some online kiCAD discussion based on your topic.
Nelsa, I don’t know the official rules on such matters but I am not offended if a Forum member occasionally mentions that a particular business performed exceptionally well, or exceptionally poorly, in some area related to PCB design. The key words in that sentence are “occasionally” and “exceptional”.
The original problem that caused @THABJUL_Anirudh to start this thread has already been solved . . . 6 months ago! The topic of small-batch service is unrelated to the problem. You have placed similar posts in other topics. It appears that you are trolling through old topics, looking for an excuse to advertise a particular business. Please don’t compromise the usefulness, or the integrity, of this Forum with ads like that.
I have personal experience with the vendor you promoted for a rather simple board. Their reputation is built on low prices. The service my order received was equivalent, or perhaps very slightly better, than other quick-turn PCB fabricators. The workmanship was acceptable but not exceptional. (Under low magnification I could see slight misregistrations between pad centers, drill hits, mask openings, etc. Not bad enough to compromise the board, but certainly room for improvement.)
