Created: June 18, 2021

Introduction to PCB Prototyping with EasyEDA - Part I: Project Creation

Anton Kozlov.

Anton Kozlov

System Developer

Hardware
Introduction to PCB Prototyping with EasyEDA - Part I: Project Creation

This article is the first one in our series about how to design PCB in EasyEDA. Having read the entire series, you will get familiar with:

Why would you design your own electronic device with EasyEDA?

In our time the market of electronic devices offers common solutions for issues of any kind. However, there is also a demand for projects where development on the hardware level is needed.

Many companies in the world specialize in the design and manufacturing of electronic devices based on customer specifications. However, in big projects misunderstanding often leads to extended deadlines and increased costs. To avoid this, you can develop your own electronic device design and detailed manufacturing documentation. Then you'll need some automation to manufacture a series of such devices, but it is also doable.

How to create a new device?

The process of creation of a new electronic device always consists of several steps listed below:

Some of these items can be simplified or leveled out by using CAD or EDA systems.

EDA — electronic design automation

CAD — computer aided design

Previously I have worked with various EDA systems solving problems of any kind. In this series of articles, we will cover the EasyEDA system that is relatively easy to start with and feature-reach. EasyEDA has another important advantage — it is integrated with one of the leading services in terms of quality, price, and production speed — JLCPCB.

Why the JLCPCB?

  1. Lower production costs compared to other manufacturers.
  2. The fastest (relative to cost) delivery among manufacturers.
  3. An extensive set of manufacturing options.
  4. Easy integration with simple and multifunctional design service.

The comparison was made at pcbshopper.com.


EasyEDA + JLCPCB bundle enables you to work on various tasks listed as follows:


Let's start hands-on work with EasyEDA!

To create your project, you need to register in EasyEDA (you can login with your google account). !!! IMPORTANT If you use two-factor authentication, you must first login to the web version. Then go to change password and set your password. Otherwise you will not be able to login to the software. !!! After that download the version for your operating system.

Not enough space on the disc? Not hunting to clutter the system with third-party software? No problem! The service has the ability to use web version. Need to warn you in advance that at a considerable quantity of components on the scheme the web version gets appreciably slow.

Once the software is installed and started, you will see the main screen with a workspace and a project control panel.

How to create a new project in the EasyEda?

Create a project by clicking New Project, and the Project Wizard will ask you to enter a project name and a short description. In the project creation window, there is also a link to the project team management menu, we will get back to it later.

After the project is created, you will see the work space for creating the schematic diagram of your device.

In the left part of the window you will see the following tabs:


After creating a project, it's time to create your own development team and set up accesses.

How to create a new team in the EasyEDA?

To access the workspace management menu, hover over the profile name on the right side of the workspace and then select Personal Workspace.

After you enter the personal workspace, the project management window will open.

In the left part of the window there is a menu for switching tabs:


To create your own team, go to the Teams tab. Click on the Create New Team button to create your own team. After that fill in the fields for each team member specifying their name, web address and description One can also join my development team simply by leaving their nickname in comments.

Working on a project with a team streamlines communication and facilitates project version control for your entire developing team.

How to manage access in the EasyEDA?

To manage access levels for the project, go to the Projects tab, hover the mouse over the newly created project, and press Manage.

This tab contains the following items:


To control accesses in the project, go to the Members tab. To add a new user, click on + in the Project Members section.

There are three ways to add a user: search by nickname, send the inbound link manually or send the inbound link to email.

To check the first option, you can add the user oxideDall (it's me) to your project.

After you have added a new user, you will be able to manage their assesses by configuring access levels. To do this, click on a user and select the required access level in the user menu: Observer, Manager, Developer.

Congratulations! Now you have experience creating and managing projects in EasyEDA. You're done with the first article in the series: Introduction to prototyping with EasyEDA. In the next article we'll get familiar with the creation of device circuitry, use the device component selector, and learn to work with the main design tools.