USB Charger: Layout

Introduction

With your completed schematic and component footprints from the last two labs, you can now really start the design of the physical board!

The tech club executives want that board done within 3 weeks, so you better get to it. For these next 3 weeks, you will be working on the layout of your USB charger PCB.

Lab instructions

Complete your layout! Make sure to follow the process as described in lecture.

A good video guide from Digikey on layout in KiCAD is here.

You want to be working with a 2 layer, parts on Front board. Mechanical doesn't want any parts on the backside of your board.

Design rules: Set your minimums based on Bay Area circuit's standard manufacturing capabilities You should also set up some standard/pre-defined track and via sizes; use something reasonable.

Remember: your minimums in KiCad do not have to be set to the EXACT minimums as stated by the manufacturer. All you need to do is make sure they do not break the minimums.

Couple Notes:

  1. Stay in imperial units: mils = 1/1000 in!
  2. When entering in values for net classes and standard tracks and via sizes for your design rules, make sure to add the unit "mils", otherwise KiCad may interpret the number in inches!
  3. Put the USB connector on one of the short sides of the board, and the car connector on the opposite side.
dimensions are in inches

チェックポイント : Preliminary Layout Checkoff

To get checked off for this, having the following items completed:

  1. Set up the board outline in KiCad layout editor
  2. Basic design rules setup: global minimums, default track and via, layers
  3. Imported then placed and oriented components in such a way to facilitate future routing.

Aka: you should be ready for your first routing pass (or already tried one!)
Submit a printout (ideally pdf) of your layout in this stage to the appropriate assignment on BCourses.

Complete Layout Checkoff

To get checked off for this, having the following items completed:

  1. Completed routed board
  2. No DRC errors (with properly set design rules)
  3. Output folder containing gerbers and drill files
  4. Finalized BOM, including part designators, descriptions, and part links
  5. DFM report from Bay Area Circuits that affirms standard capability manufacturability
    • Submit a .zip of your output files to their InstantDFM service.
    • Include both the .pdf and URL link to the completed report in your BCourses submission

BCourses submission guide:

  1. Create a zip of your entire project folder. This then should also include your project footprint library as well as your manufacturing outputs.
  2. Upload your finalized BOM separately or in your project zip.
  3. Upload the InstantDFM report pdf and link to the completed InstantDFM report separately or in your project zip.

Bonus points for whoever remembered from last lab and followed this spec:

Layout Lab 3 new requirement: The mounting holes on the side of the power input connector (opposite of the USB connector) should now be your power input pins! This will allow the screws attached there to be connected to the input power. Your contacts don't need to be perfectly circular or match the picture exactly, but they should allow a screw to contact it.

New Update (3/9): Make the connector on the RIGHT the positive connection (+12V) and the LEFT connection GND.
contact

Glossary