KiCad and BoardMaster Example Milling (2010-05-05)

Wien Bridge Oscillator

University of Hartford
College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture
This tutorial to KiCad walks you through steps to produce the layout for a Wien Bridge type oscillator.
This is the third of several documents that provide a complete end to end example use of KiCad. These
tutorials are written in a way to provide you with a quick start in using KiCad, assuming that KiCad
is already installed on your computer. This final part uses BoardMaster software and a milling machine
to produce the PC board.
This document is not comprehensive, as providing an excess of details would be distracting the mission
of this document. With regard to being comprehensive, the reader is referred to the help documentation
installed with BoardMaster software and KiCad. This document corresponds to KiCad version (201005-05 BZR 2356)-stable. The author information, copyright notice, and version date are at the end of
this document.

Producing Plot Files

To prepare for actually using the milling machine, it is necessary to produce plot files and a drill file.
With the PC board layout tool open, save your layout and then with the mouse select:
Files => Plot
We will only produce the plot files that we must have for use with the milling machine. In the 'Plot'
window:
In the 'Plot format' area click to select 'Gerber'
In the 'Copper layers' and Technical Layers areas have only 'Back' or Bottom selected
Click the 'Plot' button to produce the plot file (wbridge-Back.gbl)
Deselect Back and produce a plot for the Top or Front layer (wbridge-Front.gtl)
Deselect Front and produce a plot for for the PCB_Edges layer (wbridge-PCB_Edges.gbr)
Next, the drill file. In the 'Plot' window:
Click the 'Generate drill file' button to open the Drill Files Generation window
For Drill Units select Inches.
For Zeros format select Decimal format
For Drill Origin select Absolute
In the 'Drill Sheet' area select None'
In the Drill Report area select Drill report
Deselect any Options
Click OK and in the two following navigation windows click 'Save'
In the 'Plot' window click 'Quit'.
The drill report file is just a text file that you can open with a text editor such as notepad. KiCad
includes a Gerber file viewer for viewing the actual files that you produced.

CircuitCAM
The next step involves producing a project file for the milling machine. In Windows, click to open the
Lpkf Circuit CAM program.

Lpkf Circuit CAM shortcut

We start by importing the Gerber files and drill file. Click the 'Import' icon

'Import' icon
Each program that produces Gerber files tends to use it's own naming convention, so it is necessary to
explicitly tell Circuit CAM the signficance of what each file contains. In the import navigation
window, locate and select the file 'wbridge-Front.gtl' and click 'Open'. In the import window, set the
Layer value to 'TopLayer', FileType to 'GerberX', and click 'Import.'
Repeat the steps to load the remainig plot files. As you load each plot file, examine the display. The
following summarizes the files to import, you have imported the first file already. The list has the file
name, file type, and layer name.

wbridge-Front.gtl GerberX TopLayer

wbridge-Back.gbl GerberX BottomLayer
wbridge-PCB_Edges.gbr GerberX - BoardOutline
wbridge-drl NC-Drill DrillPlated

If the last file produces an error message, click 'OK' and contiune.
The next step invovles contour routing. Click the 'Contour Routing' icon

'Contour Routing' icon

In the contour routing window, click to select 'Outside' and for the 'Source:' select 'BottomLayer and
click 'Run'. The following summarizes the layers to run this tool on.

Outside BottomLayer
Inside BottomLayer
Outside TopLayer
Inside TopLayer

To identify the unused copper areas, click the 'RuboutAllLayers' icon.

'Rubout All Layers' icon

Click the left mouse button to start a rectangle then move the mouse and click again to place the
opposite corner. You may have to do this twice. Next, click the 'Insulate all layers' icon.

'Insulate All Layers' icon

In a few moments the display should look similar to the following.

CircuitCAM board display

Click the 'Export LpkfCircuitBoardPlotter' icon.

'Export' icon
In the navigation window, click 'Save' and in a moment a notification window appears. Click 'OK'.

Milling with BoardMaster

In Window, click to start the BoardMaster program

'BoardMaster' icon
Start by importing the file from the CircuitCAM program.
File => Import => LMD/LPR
In the navigation window find your file, which is probably named 'wbridge-Front.LMD' and click
'Open' to open the file. The green shape near the center of the display corresponds to your design and
is called an instance of your design.
If the copper clad board abd backing material are not already inserted into the milling machine, do so
now. Board Master does not use pop-up hints, but rather, in placing the mouse above a button or icon,
a comment appears in the lower left edge of the display window.

Click the Pause button to move the milling machine table fully out

Pause icon

Insert the backing material and copper clad board. The backing material serves an important
role in preventing the breakage of bits. The pin to the right and pin to the left position the
copper clad board during the milling process. Use wide tape about the edges to better fasten the
copper clad board.

Given that a copper clad board may yield several PC boards, position the design at blank location on
the copper clad board. Click the movement arrows to move the mill head. The number centered
among the arrows is the movement click distance in millimeters, hence 10 corresponds to 10mm, or
one 1cm.

Movement arrow buttons and distance

Move the mill head to where the lower left hand corner of the design to be located. As you move the
mill head, the corresponding blue cross-hairs in the display moves as well. Click the 'Move design
instance' button, point the mouse at your design, click the mouse to grab your design, move the design
so the lower left corner is in the center of the blue cross hairs, then click place your design.

Move instance

The process of milling involves selecting a milling phase, loading a list of coordinates from that layer
into the selection list, and then working the board. The milling phase just refers to a major step in
milling the board. The selection list is a list of
You select a milling phase, add items from the corresponding layer to the selection list, then click Start
to perform that phase.
In the phase selection menu, select Marking, click 'All+', and then click Start. After a few moments the
Tool Exchange window appears, telling you to insert the universal cutter 0.2mm marking bit. Use the
tool tweezers to insert the bit into the mill head, shown below. To insert the bit, press down the release
bar (to the right) and use the tool tweezers. I find it helpful press my thumb and index finger
oppositely against the release bar and lower part of the mill head. Do not close the window yet.

Mill head
It is important that the mill head be fully inserted into the mill head. When inserting the bit, have the
tweezers in the mill head keyway, in the front of the mill head. You can move the tweezers down the
shaft or use a finger to gently press upward to make sure that the bit is fully inserted.
The width of the cut made with the marking bit depends on the cutting depth. To cut with a reasonable
resolution, the cutting depth must be set exactly. In the tool exchange window, click 'Stop after tool
Exchange' and OK.
Use the arrow buttons to move the mill head to an area near your design that you do not plan to use.

Click the 'motor' button to start the motor

Motor button, showing that the motor is currently off

Click the 'Mill head' button to lower the mill head

Mill head button

Move the drill head about a centimeter

Click the 'Drill head' button to raise and stop the motor
Move the board out a few center meters outward and use the direct measuring microscope the
exame the cut width. A width from 0.01 to 0.02 inches is reasonable.
If the cut is too wide then adjust the depth by turning the thumbwheel to the right slightly and
try again.

To repeat, it is important that when you insert any bit, that it is fully inserted. This is particularly
important for drill bits and router bits, which can otherwise break. Also, it should not be necessary to
make major adjustments to the cutting depth. Before making any major changes, double check
to make sure that the bit is fully inserted.
Once you are satisfied with the cutting depth, click the Start button. When the Tool Exchange window
appears, select "Continue after exchange" and click OK. The mill head will move to the area where
you placed the design instance and mark where the drill holes will be. Once marking is complete, a
pop-up window will indicate the end of the phase, click OK.
Given that the marking phase just completed and that the mill head is already adjusted for the marking
bit, mill the bottom of the board. The marking bit is used in the first part of the milling operation.

Perform the 'Read bottom phase by selecting that phase, clicking 'All+', and click Start.
Perform the MillingBottom' by selecting that phase, clicking 'All+', and click Start.

Once the marking part is complete, you will be asked to insert the end mill bit. Be careful to not fall
into the habit of clicking the All+ button between tool exchanges, as clicking the All+ restarts the
selection list and may destroy the copper traces.
As with the marking bit, it is important that the end mill bit be fully inserted into the mill head and that
the cutting depth adjusted. The BoardMaster software is programmed so that once the head is lowered
it may take a moment for the end cutter to plunge through the copper. Likewise, in performing a test
cut, once the head is lowered, wait a moment before moving the mill head.
Once the back is fully milled, perform the PlatedHole phase. There will be one drill bit for each hole
size used in your design. Check that each bit is fully inserted into the mill head.
Once drilling is complete, click the Pause button to fully extend the drill surface, flip the PC board so
that each pin goes through the same hole, but in reverse direction. Perform the ReadTop phase. At this
moment the display should appear to be flipped and repositioned in the display
Before milling the top side of the board, it is necessary to adjust for possible misalignment.

Set the tool selection to the smallest bit size used in your design, click the down arrow to see the
tool choices.
Tool selection

Use the arrow key to position the cross hairs over a corresponding drill hole in the display.
Examine the board to see how far the bit actually is from the hole.
Change the movement distance to a small value such as 0.1 and count the number of times you

click an arrow button to move the drill head

With your hand lower the drill head. Once positioned, the drill will easily insert into the
corresponding hole.
With the mouse select, Edit => Placment and add the offset to change the origin so that in the
display the crosshairs again are directly above the corresponding hole.

Select the MillingTop phase, click All+ and click Start. Insert and adjust the marking tool as you
did before, and then have the marking bit perform milling as before. Insert the end mill bit as you did
before. The CuttingOutside phase will cut the PC board edges. After the milling was complete I took
the board to the machine shop to grind the edges just slightly.
The EasyContact system uses rivets to essentially provide plated through holes. The layout tutorial part
provides further details. The photo below shows a rivet being inserted into a hole and also using a
center-punch with a modified tip used to flare the rivet ends. In this tutorial the design used four rivets
at specifically selected holes that were drilled with a slightly larger hole size.

Inserting a rivet

Flaring a rivet

The next step involves using a product called Liquid Tin to chemically plate the copper traces on the
PC board. Be sure to follow the directions provided to properly plate your PC board. Such plating is
helpful in preventing the copper traces from oxidizing and also helps with soldering.

Finally, once the PC board is dried, insert and solder the components to the PC board. The following
photo shows the completed PC board. This completes the construction of the PC board.

Author Information
Dr. Jonathan Hill (jmhill at hartford dot edu) is an associate professor in Electrical and Computer
Engineering at the University of Hartford College of Engineering, Technology, and Architecture. His
interests involve embedded microprocessor based systems. This document was written in haste so
please help with constructive criticism and/or send a thank-you for the effort.
Copyright Notice
Copyright (C) 2011, by Jonathan Hill
Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free
Documentation License, Version 1.3 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation;
with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover Texts. Modified versions of this
document will include the current version date and all the prior version dates on which the document is
based, immediately following the copyright notice. A copy of the license is available from the GNU
project website at the following URL. http://www.gnu.org/licenses/fdl.html
Publication Date: Mon Apr 18, 2011 by Jonathan Hill
Previous Version: Mon Apr 18, 2011 by Jonathan Hill