kicad-developers team mailing list archive

[Vesa Solonen <vesa.solonen@xxxxxxxx>]

24/02/14 22:03, Charles Goyard kirjoitti:

> Eagle has a part, than is a container with a single symbol, and multiple
> packages, with individual pin mapping for each symbol->package
> association.
> 
> You have to duplicate the SOT23-5 package across all your parts, and can
> not change it globally, like the Kicad enables.

Thanks for the info. There is a great opportunity for KiCad doing it
right or at least well ;)

> (On the other hand, what's missing in Kicad is the indivual pin mapping
> and makes for TO-220-123, TO-220-BCE, TO-220-BEC, TO-220-GDS, TO-220-GSD
> and so on, but that's not the topic).

I'd say this is the worst of the bad choices. Packages are standardised
as are pin numbers so there is no question of mangling the footprints.

Most of the time stuff breaks badly this way as one has to remember
details twice if both symbol mapping and footprint mapping can change.
One can not use alias functionality if pin to pad matrix changes, but
otherwise it works.

Rendering pin numbers and names should eventually made dynamic and hard
coded symbols will disappear. Symbols have just the functionality ->
names and when they are instantiated as a specific part pin numbers get
mapped to the names. This is also needed for pin/gate swapping from
layout to schematic... The same name -> pad mapping happens on the pcb
side to show pin/pad function.

-Vesa