[Arm-netbook] eoma68 router pcb

[luke.leighton]

On Sun, Nov 17, 2013 at 1:14 AM, joem <joem at martindale-electric.co.uk> wrote:
> right - bit of a marathon session last night and most of the routing
> is done.  nothing like as complex as the flying squirrel - no embedded
> controller, plenty of space (double-sided), it's pretty much a breeze.
>
> questions:
>
> 1) joe as this is GPLv3+ open hardware does your offer to PCB-print
> and populate it still stand, even though i've had to use PADS? (i
> don't have the expertise yet to not not use KiCAD because it lacks
> comprehensive design rules).
>
> 2) is there anyone who would like to have a go at ordering a rev1
> board just for the sheer heck of it?
>
> 3) if not, and there is something missing, what would encourage you to
> splash out on a completely experimental PCB in the way of functions or
> interfaces? (yes i have to look up POE, see if i can fit it on
> somewhere).
>
> --
> If its open, then upload somewhere and post link with all the datasheets,

 all that has been available since the beginning of the project.  i've
mentioned them in almost every single post.

> cad files

 these have also been available since the beginning of the project.

> and some PDFs of the board and circuits

 these have also been available since the beginning of the project.

>- if it looks
> doable, I'll take a shot at it in parallel with any others.

 everything has always, always, always been here, mentioned in almost
100% of all posts i've made on this router project:
  http://hands.com/~lkcl/eoma/router/

> Most likely a kicad version will get drawn

 there is already a kicad version. it has always been here:
 http://git.hands.com/?p=eoma.git;a=tree;f=pcb/router

> and laid out

 ... and that's the bit that i don't have the expertise to do (PCB
layout without decent and comprehensive design rules) hence why i use
PADS.  KiCAD doesn't even have differential-pair layout so you have to
do this odd "thing" of creating a part which has two pins at the exact
width you want, then dragging that around and deleting it once you're
done.  of course, if you get the impedance wrong you have to start
again, but given that KiCAD doesn't have impedance calculation *at
all* let alone impedance design rules you can't even check you got it
right in KiCAD... hence why i'm using PADs.

> as well
> to try and get it all into kicad format so that everyone can use it.

 if i can find out how to use PADS's COM interface i might at some
point have a go at automatic conversion.  KiCAD's _pcbnew.so is fairly
straightforward to use (albeit highly undocumented and missing some
key functionality).  at least that would save vast amounts of peoples'
time, and if i made it a two-way converter it would be possible to use
PADS autorouter then import back.  which would be cool.

l.