KiCad 8 and teardrops in PCB design.

Teardrops in PCB design are small, tadpole-shaped features that improve the reliability of printed circuit boards by enhancing the connection between pads and traces or vias and traces. These additions are particularly useful in high-reliability applications where mechanical stress and thermal expansion might cause pad or cracking. Teardrops help by distributing stress more evenly and reducing the chances of trace detachment under stress. They are often added during the PCB layout phase using design software, which can automatically generate teardrops based on predefined settings.

KiCad 8 now allows you to specify the properties of teardrops for circular and rectangular pads and add teardrops to any pad using the bulk edit feature. You can also use specific teardrops for track-to-track connections.

Please note that this blog post is a document I am actively working on now.

Whether you’re a seasoned KiCad user or just getting started, it’s important to stay up to date with the latest developments in the software. By reading this article, you’ll better understand the new tools and functionalities available and how they can enhance your design process.

I’ll cover everything from improved user interface enhancements to new functionality streamlining the design process. This article is a must-read to quickly transition to KiCad 8 from a previous version or even a different PCB tool.

#kicad #pcb #tech_explorations