GMU:PCB Arts/Ulrike Katzschmann: Difference between revisions

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Before I explain the backside of my board, I wanted to comment on the components I used for my PCB. Almost all of the parts are SMD components, that have to be mounted only on one side on the board, facing outward. In the case of my project, it is the frontside. The battery holders on the other hand need through holes drilled into the board and copper pads on the backside of the board, so they can be soldered to it. The LEDs I used also need through holes because they are a special type of LEDs, called reverse mount LEDs. They are mounted on the board facing inward. The middle part of the LED is placed into the hole, while the pads of the LEDs still sit on the frontside of the board. With this way they shine through the PCB. I designed it like that because I wanted the side of the PCB board with the actual design to look neat and flat but I also wanted the parts of the layout resembling the siren and headlight to light up/blink.  
Before I explain the backside of my board, I wanted to comment on the components I used for my PCB. Almost all of the parts are SMD components, that have to be mounted only on one side on the board, facing outward. In the case of my project, it is the frontside. The battery holders on the other hand need through holes drilled into the board and copper pads on the backside of the board, so they can be soldered to it. The LEDs I used also need through holes because they are a special type of LEDs, called reverse mount LEDs. They are mounted on the board facing inward. The middle part of the LED is placed into the hole, while the pads of the LEDs still sit on the frontside of the board. With this way they shine through the PCB. I designed it like that because I wanted the side of the PCB board with the actual design to look neat and flat but I also wanted the parts of the layout resembling the siren and headlight to light up/blink.  
I altered the footprint for a reverse mounted LED, that already exists in the KiCad footprint library, a bit to better fit the LED I wanted to buy and solder to my PCB. To do that I used the data sheet for the component, that I got from the manufacturer’s website. I repeated the same process for the slider switches footprint but instead of changing an already existing one I made it on my own by recreating the recommended layout found in the parts data sheet.