I have been doing a lot of designs for my client using the KICAD EDA. This time around I have done the schematic and the layout and on finalizing everything and sharing with my client, he insists on a simulation video to show the functionality of the schematic and the final board. I dont know how to go about it coz i have never done so. Can anyone of you lead me through and does KICAD has such simulation functionality?
A good place to start is the KiCad web site, they have a brief run through of the simulator. https://www.kicad.org/discover/spice/ There are numerous books and articles on spice as well, a web search will turn them up. For simple circuits with a handful of active and passive circuits the simulator is probably quite adequate, provided you can find models for the parts that are suitable for the kind of simulation required, there is a difference between an DC, AC, and transient response analysis that require correspondingly more complex models. Even with a small number of components simulation times can get rather long, minutes are not uncommon. If however, the board is complex, has an analogue/digital mix, operates at high frequencies(digital logic while operating at low frequencies, may have very fast rise and fall times), has a large number of active parts, both discrete and integrated, then be prepared to tear your hair out, it is probably unrealistic to even attempt it. By breaking the circuit down into functional units it may be possible, assuming you can find models for the parts, if not then good luck!. Errors on boards come about from conceptual problems, miss connection, wrongful interpretation of data sheets, and poor PCB layout, and in theory Spice simulation will find many of these problems, given time. However, If your board is complex, in this case what your client is requiring is unreasonable unless they understand that they could end up paying more their simulation results than for all the work you have done on the PCB to date. The results they see on paper will not resemble the real world results since models will never be complete enough, and the PCB layout will influence results as well. Your skill as a designer of PCBs come into effect here! If you have been in the game long enough, and your client has been happy with your previous work, try and discourage them from going down this path(a quote for the time involved may help), they actually probably don't know what they are asking for. If you were in a team, with an expert at simulation available, that may be a different story. Just my cents worth, good luck, cheers, Richard
Thanks Giovanni for your suggestion but what will happen provided that i have never used Blender and i dont have any knowledge about it? Can you suggest the easiest way I can learn it?
Yes of course, There are many tutorials online, even very simple ones. I recommend which guide on Youtube and then a lot of practice. In any case, in general, if you want excellent results in the field of graphics (both in 2D and 3D) you always have to make some sacrifices. There are no simple and high quality solutions. They are two inversely proportional values Greetings Giovanni
