Rocketry Shared Kicad Library

• Rocketry_Easyeda: symbols and footprints imported using easyeda2kicad
• Rocketry_Manual: symbols and footprints imported manually

Installing the Library

1. Clone the repo
2. KiCad -> Preferences -> Configure Paths
   1. Add Name: ROCKETRY_LIBRARY, Path: <Path of the cloned repo>
3. KiCad -> Preferences -> Manage Symbol Libraries
   1. Add Nickname: Rocketry_Easyeda, Library Path: ${ROCKETRY_LIBRARY}/Rocketry_Easyeda.kicad_sym (copy and paste this exactly)
   2. Add Nickname: Rocketry_Manual, Library Path: ${ROCKETRY_LIBRARY}/Rocketry_Manual.kicad_sym (copy and paste this exactly)
4. KiCad -> Preferences -> Manage Footprint Libraries
   1. Add Nickname: Rocketry_Easyeda, Library Path: ${ROCKETRY_LIBRARY}/Rocketry_Easyeda.pretty (copy and paste this exactly)
   2. Add Nickname: Rocketry_Manual, Library Path: ${ROCKETRY_LIBRARY}/Rocketry_Manual.pretty (copy and paste this exactly)

Using easyeda2kicad

easyeda2kicad imports symbols and footprints from JLCPCB. (Note: before using easyeda2kicad, first check if KiCad already has the component in its built-in libraries!)

1. Install by running pip install easyeda2kicad in the shell
2. Find the component you want to use on https://jlcpcb.com/parts/
3. Run in the shell:

   git pull
   easyeda2kicad --output <Path of the cloned repo>/Rocketry_Easyeda --symbol --footprint --lcsc_id=<Component ID, starts with C>

4. When importing JLC "basic" resistors and capacitors, rename the symbol in Kicad to the following format: "Part_number (size value)", eg "C14N3 (0603 120uF)". This keeps our component library easy to search!
5. Commit and push

Manually Import Symbols and Footprints

If easyeda2kicad does not have the component you need, you can download symbols and footprints manaully.

Websites to find symbols and footprints:

• https://www.snapeda.com/
• https://www.ultralibrarian.com/

Import Footprints

Sometimes you only need to import a footprint, as the symbol is already in the built-in libraries (e.g. connectors)

To do that, just copy the downloaded *.kicad_mod file into <Path of the cloned repo>/Rocketry_Manual.pretty

Import Symbols

We need to merge the downloaded *.kicad_sym file with the existing Rocketry_Manual.kicad_sym file.

1. Install a tool by running pip install merge-kicad-sym in the shell
2. Run in the shell merge-kicad-sym --overwrite-footprint-lib-name Rocketry_Manual <Path of the cloned repo>/Rocketry_Manual.kicad_sym <path of downloaded .kicad_sym>

Manually Create Symbols and Footprints

Just follow the usual steps to create symbols and footprints in the "Rocketry_Manual" libraries.

Notes on Git

Remember to commit, push and pull!