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KiCad logical scheme simulator

KiCad plugin for interactive logical scheme simulation. Supports two usage methods: directly from KiCad or standalone, using a schema file exported from KiCad in the "PCB Netlist"(.net) file format.

Focuses on performance and simplicity of the net schema part API, allowing easy implementation of custom schema part behaviors for simulation.

Here is more info about the supported schema part list and how to configure KiCad symbols mapping for the simulator.

Building

To build the project, execute the Gradle assemble task:

./gradlew clean assemble

If the build is successful, you will find the output in the 'distro' folder.

Standalone Start

Once you have prepared and exported the schema from KiCad in the "PCB Netlist" (.net) file format, you can start the project. Use the appropriate script based on your operating system from the 'distro' directory.

For Unix-like systems:

./run.sh mySchema.net

For Windows systems:

run.bat mySchema.net

These scripts initiate the simulator with the specified .net file as the first parameter.

KiCad Plugin Mode

KiCad currently supports plugins only in the PCB editor, not in the Schematic Editor (Eeschema). However, a workaround exists using BOM (Bill Of Material) scripts, which are custom Python scripts that receive the path to an XML variant of the "PCB Netlist" as the first parameter. This mechanism can be used to launch the simulator directly from the schematic editor. Add the custom BOM generation script simulate.py from the 'distro' directory. Then, when you run "BOM generation" using that script, the simulator will be started instantly with the schema currently open in the editor.
On KiCad prior version 8 BOM generations are accessed directly in the toolbar. In version 8 BOM generation has been changed and generation from a python script now located under the menu Tools->"Generate Legacy Bill of Materials...". That can be assigned to your preferred hotkey for quick access.

Usage

After launching simulator builds the simulation net and displays all “interactive” schema parts, such as LEDs, Displays or oscillators on the desk.
Parts can be arranged freely, and the layout saved near the Netlist file in a file with the .sym_layout extension at simulator close.
See also simulator parameter description for fine tune simulation process.

Check component list for a detailed description of supported schema components.

For schema debugging purposes, an oscilloscope from the oscillator component can be used.

Alternatively, schema part monitoring is available from the main interface menu.
After selecting a target schema part, its pin representation appears on the screen, showing the current signal on each pin.
Optionally, for certain schema parts, additional information about internal status is displayed.
For example, for the Z80 CPU:

Z80 CPU Image

Examples

Here are some schema Netlist examples:

  • Counters - Simple chain of counters and LEDs.
    for start use corresponding gradle task:
./gradlew counters
  • Z80 - Schema based on the Zilog Z80.
./gradlew z80
  • TRS80 - Stripped TRS80-I schema.
./gradlew trs80

License

This project is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0 (GPL-3.0). You can find the full text of the license in the LICENSE file.