EEVblog Electronics Community Forum
Electronics => PCB/EDA/CAD => KiCad => Topic started by: Aeternam on September 25, 2016, 06:10:13 pm
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Hey guys,
Is there an easy way to print a catalog with all the default footprints in the Kicad libraries?
I'm asking because I'm having difficulties finding the correct footprints for my components. The idea is to compare the physical component to its printed footprint (scaled 1:1 of course), thereby confirming that it'll fit on the board.
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That's an interesting idea.
Having (most of) the footprints printed to scale can be a quick way to confirm its matchingness to components for which one might miss the datasheet, or more generaly for educative purpose.
Apart from doing it manually, I don't see KiCAD having such a feature, as it is sometime hard to have some more basic and common functionalities working.
So, if anyone feels like making a PDF or something...
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Yes, this is good idea. this link may help you. https://github.com/KiCad/kicad-library
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Another idea that will benefit you in the long run is to make all the footprints yourself. Yes. I mean all.
Though, I've got to say... A printed book sounds nice!
I've made this before: https://github.com/AlexanderBrevig/InventorsPad (https://github.com/AlexanderBrevig/InventorsPad) which programmatically made a PDF for Lulu (http://www.lulu.com/shop/alexander-brevig/inventors-pad/paperback/product-22351691.html) and it should be easy enough to parse the library and make graphics from them.
EDIT: it would be the various .pretty/*.kicad_mod files you'd want though. For instance this: https://github.com/KiCad/Pin_Headers.pretty/blob/master/Pin_Header_Angled_1x03.kicad_mod (https://github.com/KiCad/Pin_Headers.pretty/blob/master/Pin_Header_Angled_1x03.kicad_mod)
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Thanks, sounds good. I like the idea of alexanderbrevig.
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In the long term it's probaly the best to create your own librarys. Including Footprints and Symbols.
For hobby use i tend to use the librarys i found here:
http://smisioto.no-ip.org/elettronica/kicad/kicad-en.htm (http://smisioto.no-ip.org/elettronica/kicad/kicad-en.htm)
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Is there an easy way to print a catalog with all the default footprints in the Kicad libraries?
This script seems to parse footprints:
https://github.com/KiCad/kicad-library-utils/blob/master/pcb/kicad_mod.py (https://github.com/KiCad/kicad-library-utils/blob/master/pcb/kicad_mod.py)
Next you'd need a graphics library that produces the output you want.
Perhaps cairo? http://www.tortall.net/mu/wiki/CairoTutorial (http://www.tortall.net/mu/wiki/CairoTutorial)
if you'd want to make it pretty there needs to be some smart nesting/ordering of footprints as well as pagination..
there are enough footprints in the standard libraries to make it not so much fun to do that by hand..
https://github.com/KiCad/kicad-library/wiki/Footprint-Libraries (https://github.com/KiCad/kicad-library/wiki/Footprint-Libraries)
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I would make use of a small lisp implementation and implement the calls for graphics. The real question; would anyone buy it?