First time KiCad user here. I have done a couple boards in Eagle before. I’m using KiCad 9.0.5.
I’m creating a flexible touch sensor ( Designing a custom flex sensor - The Bela Knowledge Base ) and am having issues with unconnected pads to my connector. I’ve drawn my routes and added vias to my pads but for some reason KiCad says it’s the pads are not connected.
Is there something obvious I’m missing? The traces are on top layer. Pads are on bottom layer. I’ve tried adding a trace from via to pad on bottom layer, but KiCad still says the pad is not connected.
How is this PCB made? It looks like the capacitive touch pads are not real footprints with a real pad, but that you created zones with rounded corners. To make DRC in KiCad happy, you need to have real footprints with pads in them.
This makes it a bit fuzzy, Are you having problems with the flat flex connector on the left side, or with the capacitive pads on the right side, or with both? There is not enough detail in the screenshot of the flat flex connector to make a comment. Zipping up and uploading the project helps here.
That’s not a universally true statement. The router, for example, needs connectivity to pads if undertaking length tuning. But you’re right it should work for wider connectivity in a DRC sense.
It is indeed a bit of a grey area. When I drag the left footprint from my previous screenshot, the tracks get stretched and stay attached, but not for the right footprint. I do prefer to always extend tracks to the footprint anchor point. I also turn off: PCB Editor / Tools / Cleanup Tracks and Via’s / Delete tracks fully inside pads because this option often removes the track segments that connect a track to the anchor point of the pad.
