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Intro to modern hardware prototyping

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Re: Intro to modern hardware prototyping

#51

Post by cruser »

akiselev wrote: post #31
wgj wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The team at CERN has made big improvements to KiCad, including the push and shove router: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCG4daPvuVI Another good reason to think about KiCad is if you care about open formats (vs. Altium for example.) CERN's own statement [1]: "We think that KiCad can do to PCB design what the gcc compiler did to software: ensure there are no artificial barriers to sharing so that design and developm…

Ironically, CERN has one of the best open source part libraries for Altium.

That's really cool of them.

Where can I find this library? Googling led me to the two sites below, but there's no download location in them.

[1] http://ts-dep-dem.web.cern.ch/ts-dep-dem/services/library/

[2] http://information-technology.web.cern.ch/services/software/...

Re: Intro to modern hardware prototyping

#52

Post by metaphor »

mng2 wrote: post #50
akiselev wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm very much against software piracy but if you're starting out in electrical engineering, you are doing an absolute disservice by not using a pirated version of Altium. Not only is it basically the industry standard (Cadence, Orcad, etc are mostly propped up by legacy clients, especially in aerospace and defence) but its interface and features are leaps and bounds beyond anything else. Pretty much all ECAD software…

On the other hand, if you get accustomed to using better software, and end up working at a place that uses, say, Orcad 16.2, it will be much more painful of an experience.

I work at such a place (16.6, to be sure), and agree that it is indeed quite painful.

Fortunately, after almost 2 long years of pushing, a colleague and I finally convinced our branch of its technical merits and justified the business case to switch.

Re: Intro to modern hardware prototyping

#54

Post by zachrose »

krapht wrote: post #4

Eh, Eagle in this day in age? If you're going cheap, I'd stick with KiCAD. It's unintuitive, like GIMP vs Photoshop, but gets the job done with no restrictions on functionality. I've also heard decent things about CircuitMaker, but never used it. If you have any academic links at all though, or don't mind piracy, I'd grab a student edition of Altium Designer. Solidworks too if you can get it for mechanical modeling.…

This may not be pleasant in practice, but is there anything that offers a text-based language for describing schematics and/or PCBs? (Similar to the way OpenSCAD has a DSL/Scheme for 3D modelling?)

From what I understand, VHDL etc. are for FPGAs and ICs, I'm just talking about boards with components.

Re: Intro to modern hardware prototyping

#55

Post by metaphor »

Xunxi wrote: post #38
krapht wrote: post #4

Eh, Eagle in this day in age? If you're going cheap, I'd stick with KiCAD. It's unintuitive, like GIMP vs Photoshop, but gets the job done with no restrictions on functionality. I've also heard decent things about CircuitMaker, but never used it. If you have any academic links at all though, or don't mind piracy, I'd grab a student edition of Altium Designer. Solidworks too if you can get it for mechanical modeling.…

What are some of the reputable "small board-houses"? Any recommendations?

For small personal projects, iTeadStudio[1] is my go-to PCB fab house. If their design constraints fit your needs, I'd def recommend giving them a shot. I've personally spun 10-ish projects with them and have yet to be disappointed...just try not to push an order around Chinese New Year if you're in a rush.

[1] https://www.itead.cc/open-pcb/pcb-prototyping.html

Re: Intro to modern hardware prototyping

#56

Post by marssaxman »

krapht wrote: post #9
nearengine wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Curious if you've heard about the sale of CadSoft to AutoDesk, I was about to write Eagle off myself but I'm hoping they give it a little love. http://www.premierfarnell.com/content/sale-cadsoft-0

Yeah, I heard about it. I think Eagle is a sinking ship. The low-end PCB design software market is going to be swallowed up by KiCAD, which has been getting much better ever since CERN decided to sponsor it. Can't beat free and unencumbered. Thank the European taxpayer and move on, IMO. The market is going to be KiCAD at the bottom, Altium Designer / Pads / Orcad in the middle, then Zuken / Allegro / Expedition at th…

I'm so glad you mentioned that! KiCAD was infuriating last time I tried it. I considered getting involved and trying to contribute, but ended up moving out of PCB design and back into system software instead. It's good to know that the project is getting some real investment and that the whole open-source promise is working out once again. I'll take another look.

Re: Intro to modern hardware prototyping

#57

Post by skslater »

skaevola wrote: post #43
Xunxi wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What are some of the reputable "small board-houses"? Any recommendations?

OSH Park is very cheap and good for bare boards: https://oshpark.com/ If you want somebody to populate the boards for you, I love Macrofab: https://macrofab.com/

OSH Park are also beginner friendly. Allowing you to import your design directly from Eagle rather than having to generate individual layer files and also not requiring you to specify copper thickness, board finish, etc.

Re: Intro to modern hardware prototyping

#58

Post by cruser »

akiselev wrote: post #31
wgj wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The team at CERN has made big improvements to KiCad, including the push and shove router: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCG4daPvuVI Another good reason to think about KiCad is if you care about open formats (vs. Altium for example.) CERN's own statement [1]: "We think that KiCad can do to PCB design what the gcc compiler did to software: ensure there are no artificial barriers to sharing so that design and developm…

Ironically, CERN has one of the best open source part libraries for Altium.

I found a 460MB CERN_ALTIUM_LIB_july_2014.7z file on torrent sites. Is this what you're talking about?

Re: Intro to modern hardware prototyping

#59

Post by HeyLaughingBoy »

skaevola wrote: post #43
Xunxi wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What are some of the reputable "small board-houses"? Any recommendations?

OSH Park is very cheap and good for bare boards: https://oshpark.com/ If you want somebody to populate the boards for you, I love Macrofab: https://macrofab.com/

I'm going to throw in a plug for OSH Stencils. Cheap, high quality PCB stencils. I'm never going back to a syringe full of paste! Had a QFN-64 that I hated doing because of that.

Re: Intro to modern hardware prototyping

#60

Post by HeyLaughingBoy »

zachrose wrote: post #54
krapht wrote: post #4

Eh, Eagle in this day in age? If you're going cheap, I'd stick with KiCAD. It's unintuitive, like GIMP vs Photoshop, but gets the job done with no restrictions on functionality. I've also heard decent things about CircuitMaker, but never used it. If you have any academic links at all though, or don't mind piracy, I'd grab a student edition of Altium Designer. Solidworks too if you can get it for mechanical modeling.…

This may not be pleasant in practice, but is there anything that offers a text-based language for describing schematics and/or PCBs? (Similar to the way OpenSCAD has a DSL/Scheme for 3D modelling?) From what I understand, VHDL etc. are for FPGAs and ICs, I'm just talking about boards with components.

Absolutely nothing is stopping anyone from writing Gerber files by hand. It's just a flat text file with a well documented format.

Likewise, Eagle (and I am sure, KiCad) files are text based.

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