We live in a wonderful time for educational resources. It’s possible to learn new skills and, in some cases, be certified all from the comfort of your own home. Due to the unique nature of work, having access to these types of courses is a real gift. We recently had the opportunity to contribute to one of these resources TeachmePCB.com
TeachmePCB is an online web course sponsored by RoyalCircuits.com. The course is software agnostic, which means that regardless of the tool you prefer, you’ll be able to learn. The course starts basic, covering the fundamentals of schematic creation, PCB layout, library management, and more. It then goes into manufacturing details that need to be considered to optimize your design for fabrication yield and costs. The course is built around a design challenge and an electronic badge full of sensors with buttons and an LCD screen. Some of the modules cover the design and operation of the circuitry, and that insight is invaluable.
The course platform includes forums and chats where you can talk to other users that are also taking the course for help and feedback. There are multiple peer reviews throughout the course that help iron out any issues or errors but also help simulate what a designer might run into when working with a team. The course is led by “Facilitators,” which can be contacted for reviews and to answer questions. These facilitators are experienced engineers with years of experience that are happy to assist and guide the students taking the course.
Like most courses, you will get out of it what you put in. With that said, this is an in-depth resource full of practical information for PCB designers. Even experienced Pros will pick up a few tips and insights as they go through it. The material is well organized and split up into books, with reading and work assignments are given out every week. The information is presented in a conversational style with an emphasis on the practical application instead of just theory and math.
We really enjoyed contributing a sample layout of the project board for the EAGLE/Fusion Electronics users. Along with that Layout, we made five videos to go over some of the thought processes that go into the Layout of the board. They are not intended to be a tutorial for using the software but more of an inside look into some of the considerations involved when making your own PCBs.
To sign up visit teachmepcb.com
| Episode 1: Introduction |
| Episode 2: Analyzing the Schematic to inform Layout |
| Episode 3: Making the Board outline and initial placement |
| Episode 4: Finishing Placement and Routing |
| Episode 5: Finishing Touches and Manufacturing Data |
