PCB's made in the nightly versions can also not be opened in the stable KiCad version
QuotePCB's made in the nightly versions can also not be opened in the stable KiCad version
Why is that?
Why not use EasyEDA https://easyeda.com/editor
Yes, this is exactly what I'm asking: What is the best tool to use to trace over this? I have no desire to draw up the schematic as it's irrelevant to manufacture.Unless you have zero interest in ever designing a PCB now or in the future, then you absolutely should draw the schematic first. Schematic->PCB layout->Gerber->Manufacturing is THE process for making PCBs, so a) it's the process the software is designed around, and b) doing the schematic means you CAN'T wire the PCB wrong. I cannot underscore enough how important (b) is! So if you have even the slightest interest in electronics, learn the process, you'll be doing yourself a favor.
Why not use EasyEDA https://easyeda.com/editor
It's not bad advice, but consider what you need. Personally, I like to archive old projects and be able to open them again, import them to newer software versions and create a new revision if needed. Now with a cloud service, can you be sure that you can do this in the future?
With KiCAD, in ten years the software could change so much so that a new version can't open/import a really old project, but you should be able to fire up a virtual machine, install an old version and at least be able to open the project.
QuotePCB's made in the nightly versions can also not be opened in the stable KiCad version
Why is that?
Importing projects made by newer versions of software into older software versions is much harder to do than the other way around and is many times impossible. In order to make it possible, you would have to patch the old version so that it is able to import new features etc.
Why not use EasyEDA https://easyeda.com/editor
It's not bad advice, but consider what you need. Personally, I like to archive old projects and be able to open them again, import them to newer software versions and create a new revision if needed. Now with a cloud service, can you be sure that you can do this in the future?
With KiCAD, in ten years the software could change so much so that a new version can't open/import a really old project, but you should be able to fire up a virtual machine, install an old version and at least be able to open the project.
For a job like this, where you already have a layout, starting with a schematic would be a waste of time unless you intend to make substantial changes.
Finally! The voice of reason!
You won't even need to make the schematic, you can just layout the board.
For a job like this, where you already have a layout, starting with a schematic would be a waste of time unless you intend to make substantial changes.
Finally! The voice of reason!
Yes, I am trying to create a 1:1 replica of the original membrane PCB, there is no need to interpret the wiring.
Yes, this is exactly what I'm asking: What is the best tool to use to trace over this? I have no desire to draw up the schematic as it's irrelevant to manufacture.Unless you have zero interest in ever designing a PCB now or in the future, then you absolutely should draw the schematic first. Schematic->PCB layout->Gerber->Manufacturing is THE process for making PCBs, so a) it's the process the software is designed around, and b) doing the schematic means you CAN'T wire the PCB wrong. I cannot underscore enough how important (b) is! So if you have even the slightest interest in electronics, learn the process, you'll be doing yourself a favor.Not necessarily. There is no right or wrong way in engineering, only more or less appropriate for a particular situation.
Doing the schematic first can impose unnecessary constraints as choices are nailed down too early in the process. In many cases there is a lot of scope to swap pins & devices ( MCU I/Os etc.) and the optimal arrangement can be far from obvious until you start looking at the physical layout.
I never start from a schematic, instead I create nets as I go along during placement, and to a lesser extent, routing - put some or all of the parts down, create nets for all the things that are fixed, then see what the best options are.
There is still a netlist, it's just created during the layout process. (I use PCAD2006, which allows nets to be created during layout - I don't know how common this is in other PCB software).
For a job like this, where you already have a layout, starting with a schematic would be a waste of time unless you intend to make substantial changes.
As mentioned above it's not worth the effort to convert from a scan, and much quicker to re-draw it from scratch in a PCB package.
For a job like this, where you already have a layout, starting with a schematic would be a waste of time unless you intend to make substantial changes.
Finally! The voice of reason!
Yes, I am trying to create a 1:1 replica of the original membrane PCB, there is no need to interpret the wiring.
You may think that but the whole goal of a schematic is to be able to check whether everything is connected in a sensible way. The keypad will typically consist of a matrix but the PCB layout can severely obscure that. It would be a hard lesson when it turns out the wiring is wrong after spending a lot of money on having a PCB made.
You will still have the layout file to check against if necessary. There is absolute no need for a schematic here. Plus you can make an error in recreating the schematic anyway. It is just a waste of time.
Plus you can make an error in recreating the schematic anyway.
Are there actual traces in those interdigitated fingers? It looks like some of them are completely milled away.
And your un-milled groundplane will also be connected when the conductive switches are depressed -- will that affect the switch decoding?
Hmm.. seems like 0.8mm endmill might be the better option, then. I have a 0.5mm, but I've been too afraid to use it - it looks like it'll snap if I look at it the wrong way!