Installing and using the Digikey KiCad Library
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 25 ก.พ. 2018
- Digikey's announcement: www.digikey.com/en/news/press...
Link to the library: github.com/digikey/digikey-ki...
Seeed's OPL: seeeddoc.github.io/Open_parts...
Octopart's CPL: octopart.com/common-parts-lib...
KiCad forum: forum.kicad.info
Buy KiCad apparel (all proceeds donated to KiCad project): contextualelectronics.com/pro... - วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
Looking stylish, Chris! Thanks for the great video, and for your super fun episodes of the Amp Hour!
Love your KiCAD videos. The most helpful instructional videos on the best electronics design tool out there. I'm coming from Eagle over 10 years ago and I'm so glad to be back and now using KiCAD. Once I saw Hack RF was built using KiCAD, my decision was very easy.
Is there a written explanation of installing the library? A written instruction can be stepped through on a persons own pace instead of stopping, going back going forwards back again etc.
Thanks , the perfect tutorial and explanation. I used eagle but switched to kikad.
I downloaded the zip file and added the libraries, and they are very useful. Whenever I try to use GitHub, things get all bollixed up, and sometimes I have a really hard time getting back to square zero. I thought it was only me, but watching you fumble around made me feel much better! ;-)
How did you get kicad to pick up the zip file from digikey? I downloaded straight from digikey.
danke !!! you+your video have been very helpful+informative+entertaining,nochmal danke !!!
this is a GAME CHANGER !!!
Hello, thank you so much for your tutorials. They helped me a great deal and indeed I had my first PCB made with great succes. I therefore thought I could make an even simpler PCB which only has some connector pins and 2 zones. It is driving me up the wall. Things are getting worse going forward. I cannot select the front Cu zone anymore and in the 3Dview it will not show the zones. DRC shows that my connector-pins are not connected to the zones but they are on the same layer and they are the same net ! I really don't no what to do anymore.. Could you please advise ?
Nice. Cant wait till they add more parts in there.
Thanks for the info.
Can you generate a BOM from Kicad with the MPNs and thus generate an order? I'm guessing you can and that's partly the motivation here for digikey but am curious if my guess is correct.
Yes, you can. Here is a link to the Digi-Key TechForum where they explain how to do it.
forum.digikey.com/t/kicad-kibom-and-digi-key-streamlines-ordering/857?u=aaronrollens
Thanks Aaron.
Have had a chance to look at it now and it's a great setup - much appreciated.
Under preferences I couldn't find any component library? You have a different or old version.
Watched the video, still have no idea how to get my KiCad library working.
I have KiCad 5.1.4 and when I clicked on Preferences there is NOTHING about libraries whatsoever! This is really frustrating and in no way user friendly!
I just installed Kicad 5 Stable, how do I add the Digikey library? Thanks!
Depends, Did you get your space shuttle pilots license? Because that is the easy part... Kicad is an amazing program but their library manager "overseer guy" needs a bullet in the head and dumped off a bridge with cement boots. How can such a wonderful piece of software be so stupid to setup..?..
@@gavincurtis That feels surprisingly accurate after getting it to work. Took me long enough.
Why do wires sometimes not snap to the component leads in Schematics?
Hey Chris, are you familiar with the update PCB from schematic under the tools tab, it saves you from having to push the net list.
Yes it is in the nightly builds since before December I think.
You still need to assign footprints but you don't need to export the net from the schematic program then import in the layout program.
Saw below it's in the nightlies. I'm not that bold, nor am I recommending anyone else switch to anything but stable branch. Was actually planning on making a video about that.
whenyou go to add parts i notice your parts library laods so fast, when i got to add parts in schematic view it takes for ever to load and i have 32gb of ram and a fast cpu.. what gives?
Installed on a fast SSD as well?
Hi, I am trying to add JST Connectors to Kicad 7....
Nice merc! I say KiCAD too because I can read and spell - not sure where others get KeyCAD from KiCAD
The 'i' letter should be pronounced as in kilometers (eeee), not as in "I am" (aaaai). Plus. that's how it works in Spanish, which is the language that makes the rules for all the others, by the way.
Hey Chris,
I hope you see this. First, I just watched the recent FOSDEM KiCAD upload. I had no idea you are so involved with the project. Thanks.
Second, I also just watched an upload by a guy named Heikki Pulkkinen here on YT. He has occasionally posted a visual demonstration of what I assume is a custom user mod for KiCAD. He shows options for routing tracks with rounded corners and the ability to add teardrops to trace/pad connections. I've been doing similar mods, but have been doing it all manually in GIMP before etching my own stuff. How the heck do I find and add plugins like the ones Heikki shows. I've wanted to try and figure this out for awhile, but at this point I'm rather scared I'll wind up breaking something in the process. I'm sure you get a bunch of requests and probably have a long list of content you want to or plan to make. Sorry if such a request is unwelcome. As a regular KiCAD user, I would greatly appreciate a simple walk through of 3rd party plugins like this. I went through your uploads up until around 4 years ago, and didn't see anything on this subject yet.
Regardless, thanks for your contributions to the KiCAD community.
-Jake
Here is the referenced upload by Heikki:
th-cam.com/video/z1hrzl1MMV4/w-d-xo.html
Forgive my ignorance, but what did you use to clone the library? I don't recognize that command window (MINGW32) and where do I find the git clone tool? Thanks!
You dont need git, you can download a zip from the github page
Thanks! I took that option instead, but I'm still curious about the MINGW command window. I found MINGW on Sourceforge and downloaded it, but I can't for the life of me figure out how to run the shell.
Jesse Evans Its the git bash shell you can download it from the git website
I'm not exactly sure why my menu items and dialogs are all different but it might be because I have a recent version of KiCad but I thought it's worth mentioning that although you can just download entire libraries as zip files from github, it's worth installing git and cloning instead (which initially, clones a copy of the directory structure on your local machine, more or less as though you unzipped it). The reason is, it's easier to keep up with changes - the whole point of git as a version control system - henceforth, you periodically only need to open a command prompt at the root of that directory and type "git pull" to pull just the changes, additions or deletions instead of re-downloading and unzipping the entire collection. Mingw32 stands for "Minimal GNU for Windows" (there's also a mingw64). It's is a package that's used for compiling UNIX type code to run on Windows systems. It's like Cygwin but code compiled with Cygwin requires the presence of the cygwin dll to run whereas mingw code runs standalone. The supplied shell (with "MINGW" on the title bar) allows you to use UNIX commands (eg. ls, cat, grep) on the host (Windows) system.
Damn, I thought KiCad 5 was being released very soon!
I believe KiCad really needs cloud components library where community can easily contribute parts and improve existing ones. In such case KiCad developers can incorporate well-built parts into the main distribution.
PhilsLab github?
GitHub is cool, it could work for me because I'm software engineer, but it is not for everyone. You don't have to learn VCS to make your own component. It has to be builtin feature. Even more, the KiCad team hosts the main repo in launchpad.
All KiCad library are over Github. The point is that the official KiCAD libs follow a convention and so, all addition is subject to librarian check and approval to ensure a certain quality. So you wouldn't have "just" a cloud thing wich may run wild with any kind of symbols/footprint.
By the way, you may see that those DigiKey footprints aren't compliant with KiCad convention (just to say :p )
Smart move on digikey's part. Once you've got everything tied together you'll be too lazy to go order somewhere else.
But personally I like the flexibility of keeping symbols and footprints separate.
Can't help but mention that you kinda cheesed out of adding the library folders, as doing so didn't work, and in the video you were forced to add them individually in the top pane of the library editor.
It seems like the library is no longer maintained 😢
I agree with others that I would rather follow a tutorial video that has been researched first, not finding out how as you go along, IOW get it right first!
He probably has spend hours with the software. The library management system in this otherwise amazing software SUCKS! Cripples it completely.
Finally! you enable the comment section.
The problem with Kicad... stability and user interaction. You crashed the program a number of times, couldn't find things, accidentally duplicated and deleted entire parts lists, added footprints that work in unexpected ways, and so on. As an 'expert' you could navigate through the multiple issues, but a normal user would have been utterly vexed and frustrated by the multiple problems and ways of doing things. FInding a premade part can be a real PIA, so people end up remaking footprints over and over. I really like the fact that Digikey has provided a master library, now we need an interface to use it that is actually user friendly instead of a bunch of sections and subsections with unknown contents.
OK! There are lots of options out there if KiCad isn't your cuppa tea.
I don't know if that still relevant, but KiCAD 5 is bringing a lot of improvement (Library management, among others).
And honestly, I think that there is already an impressive number of KiCAD symbols and (particularly) footprint.
@@suzizecat It's still a POS. The software layout itself is excellent, but the library management tool is incompetent garbage rendering the entire software package useless. Unless you can code in python and follow their cryptic instructions on how to patch it all together, it will not work. I gave up on KICAD after designing one board for production (by drawing half the footprints manually using the post edit tool to get it completed) and am back to my 22 year old workstation running NT that has a licensed derelict ORCAD seat.
@@gavincurtis Well, I designed several boards without designing lots of footprint (almost none) and I never had to patch anything, let alone use python to debug KiCAD...
I use a copy of KiCAD libraries, from GitHub, and never crash KiCAD by removing and re-adding the whole set of libraries at once... (with version >= 5) But, hey, the most important point is that you got a tool which fills your needs (here some ORCAD stuff) ;)
@@suzizecat Got it to work as of yesterday. :) Had to call an embedded programmer friend of mine. After about 3 hours on the phone, got it resolved. I was not alone with my problem, as many people had the same problem as myself and nobody was providing the correct answer.
I wanted to install the Digikey and expanded github libraries. That part I understood enough to install and set the pathways... the persistent issue was the inability of PCBnew to find footprints. This despite the symbol to footprint association tool having 100% success. Another issue was a cryptic development tool error message which appeared whenever I would try to save a footprint.
After 3 hours and both of us about to give up, found out that it is absolutely required to create a dedicated footprint library in your schematic directory and redirect PCB tool paths to that. Otherwise PCB tries to save back to the github server, which it cannot do for obvious reasons. I watched all the videos...yes they did mention this local folder....but never was it indicated how CRITICAL it is and what those cryptic "access denied" messages mean.
Seems lazy on KiCADs part for this elementary annoyance to not make sense. All they had to do is have a simple message window pop up (instead of cryptic nonsense) when saving your very first footprint: "You are trying to save to a KiCAD github server which requires special permission. Would you like to save your footprint to a dedicated folder in your current project directory instead?" followed by the window with the proper file location but can also allow you to put it anywhere you choose.
See what I just did there? In 5 minutes I probably solved a good majority of their customer complaints overt the past years if they would *think* to implement it.
It is "kiai!CAD!" Like Bruce Lee just kicked your ass.
;')
hi...…..now V5 is out and is ok (still the library stuff is a bloody nightmare)….can you make this vid again and go slower for us newcomers please or suggest that Digikey make a vid guide also...….thanks...…….I got a great deal of help on my installation from your forum and all is well, except I've pulled a load of hair out ……………...now I'm kina scared to add library's in case I mess up and have to get into double figure uninstall/install sessions like before......thanks again
This seam all redundant because KiCad5 is different.
orientation fail at 13:09
Where you found you had already added the files and then deleted the wrong ones, it would have been better to stop recording, straighten things out, and re-record and edit.
That's a ugly voltage regulator symbol
Hi Chris, I am disappointed in this video. Not up to your usual standards of clarity and simplicity. Maybe you should have gone thru it a 2nd time, cleanly, and dumped this one.
Pronounced "Key Cad"