KiCAD 8 Makefile

KiCAD 7 introduced the CLI tool which made creating a design release insanely easy. There are other great tools that met the need before like KiBot and KiKit but having the functionality in the main line release is so much nicer. I wrote a post on my KiCAD 7 makefile here which made the fast and correct ordering of boards a breeze. All the files are named correctly, it’s all up to date, I can rely on all the same files being in each release, my vias actually get connected, etc.

I saw a familiar issue to the one I had which inspired my original makefile. You only have to get boards manufactured once with no drill holes, the wrong centroid, or a down level BOM to change how you’re working. Actually I should have known before but as I want to duck that responsibility myself I’ll enable anyone else that cares. The video that reminded me of my own screw-up is here. Forgetting the drill file is a trend now.

KiCAD 8 is out (2 lines of which I wrote so use with caution) with improvements all around. notibly the CLI has added ERC and DRC which fixes the only disappointing thing from v7. They also added a command line BOM export tool which is amazing. I added those updates to the build script here. I was able to remove KiKit and my custom BOM generation script in favor of a basic set of fields passed to the CLI.

We get our boards made at Screaming Circuits, JLCPCB, and OSHPark typically. I’m interested in MacroFab but haven’t gotten there yet, maybe we’ll get some made with them when I’m in Houston for July/August and need to cower inside. The generated files work flawlessly with all of these manufactures which makes life easier.

Manufacturing and test happens at the point in a project when we’re strung out and trying to meet a fast approaching deadline. Investing in automation tools to gain any time back or make tasks take fewer brain cells is a huge win.

Hope it’s useful!

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