Schematic Capture Workshop

(Using KiCAD)

Please sign in:

Hosted By:

NEU Wireless

NU IEEE

kicad.org/download

l.w1kbn.org/schematic-slides

Workshop Goals:

• Learn to design a 555-timer based circuit schematic using KiCAD.

555 timer block schematic

What’s a Schematic?

• A visual diagram with symbols and lines that shows how electronic components are electrically connected.
• Helps engineers plan and understand systems. Communication for engineers, data entry for PCB software.
• Think of it as a map for electronics.

KiCAD Project Setup

1. Open KiCAD
2. Click “Create A New Blank Project”
3. Name/Save your project
4. Click on the .kicad_sch file
5. You should see this:

Schematic Symbols (ANSI + IEC)

Place a Resistor

1. Press ‘a’ to bring up the symbol library
2. Type “R_US” to search for Resistor and click “OK”
1. In this workshop, we'll utilize ANSI symbols, not IEC.
3. Press ‘r’ to rotate the resistor
4. Place the component by clicking on schematic

‘r’

Schematic Connections (Wires)

• Represent a connection between components.
• A green dot represents a connection between two wires
• Wires that cross without that dot are not connected.

Place a Wire

1. Press ‘w’ to start a wire. If you messed up, hit "escape" to reset your wire start point.
2. Move the mouse to draw
3. Press ‘k’ to end a wire

Image: Resistor with a wire →

Power Ports

• Power ports represent a common connection
• Think of it like a wire connecting all of the same ports
• Typically used for nodes that always have the same voltage, like +5V or GND

Place a Power Port

1. Press ‘p’ to bring up the power symbol library
2. Type “+5V” and click “OK”
3. Place the component at the end of the wire

Component Values

• Component values are essential parameters defining each component. Without them, your schematic is useless.

Useful Hotkeys

• ‘m’ to pick up a component, click to drop it
• ‘g’ to drag a component (wires stay connected)
• “del”/“delete” to delete a component
• ‘x/y’ to flip a component while it is being moved
• ‘q’ for the “No Connect Flag” (blue X symbol on schematic)

All hotkeys have a corresponding button on the top/right of your screen

​

Most tools in KiCad either have default hotkeys assigned, or can have custom hotkeys assigned. To view all hotkeys, go to Help → List Hotkeys…​. Hotkeys can be changed in Preferences → Preferences…​ → Hotkeys

Put it all together

Press 'q' on your keyboard to access the blue X, which signifies the "No Connect Flag."

Check your work

Questions?

{elarbi.m, heaney.ma, aviedov.v}@northeastern.edu

References/Attributions

• https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2e/555_esquema.png
• Own work based on: NE555 astable.png, CC BY-SA 3.0 <http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/>, via Wikimedia Commons
• https://www.kicad.org/img/kicad_logo_paths.svg
• KiCad Developers Team, GPLv3 <http://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-3.0.html>, via Wikimedia Commons
• KiCAD Screenshots by Muhammad Elarbi, 2023, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.