Език: English
We'll make a cellphone electronic board (PCB) with the free software KiCad. This board we'll include a cellular/GSM/LTE modem, antenna, microcontroller, display, buttons, speaker, and a rechargeable battery via USB-C. The cellphone would be mostly usable as a messaging device and won't be able to do voice calls, but it will be able to do SMS and Internet messaging using XMPP/Jabber.
This is a two-parter workshop. In the first part we'll make a schematic design for the cellphone. In the second part we'll make the layout of the board, ready for manufacturing. The goal is to show the whole process of making somewhat complex electronics product, from concept and design to ordering and manufacturing.
Participating in both parts of the workshop is not strictly required, but it would show a better picture on how things are done from start to finish.
Previous knowledge in electronics is not required in order to participate. Participants are advised to install KiCad 10 in advance, along with the official KiCad symbol and footprint libraries, which may come together with KiCad or may need to be installed separately, depending on distribution.
After finishing the workshop, participants should be able to produce their own-designed boards, from a manufacturer of their choice, if they wish to do so. Ordering 3-4 boards typically costs around €20, including shipping, but not including the electronic components (the chips, etc).
