Import SVG as PCB

Hello,
i want to reverse engineer a PCB. Therefore i scanned both sides of it and use Inkscape to redraw all vias and lanes on the board. I used seperate levels for each plane.
Now, is it possible to load this SVG into Fritzing? The next thing i want to do is to place the SMD parts on that board and then connect the pads with wires (like a ratsnet) which are connected. Then i hope that Fritzing is able to create a schematic of this.

While it is possible to load the svg in to fritzing, that (AFAIK) won’t do what you want because it won’t create a netlist (nor are there any connectors). What you would need to do is import the scanned svg pcb image (probably as silkscreen layer) then place all the parts in the appropriate place on that image to create the connectors and add vias at all via points in the scanned image (so there is a through board connection) then manually route all the connections in pcb view to create the netlist and thus create the schematic. Probably far more work than you were hoping.

Peter

Sounds ok for me. Now, i removed all components from both pcb sides, grind off the green paint and scanned both sides. With a little PixBuilder magic, i’ve got two black/white images of the lanes, pads and vias.

Now, how to i get them inside Fritzing to draw pads, vias and lanes above it? I do not found any function nor drag & drop to place an image on one of the layers (e.g. silkscreen layer for bottom or top would be fine for that). I hope i can underlay the image somehow and it should be locked to it does not react on clicks.

This is going to be the hard part. If you use the search box in fritzing for image you will find a part called silkscreen image. You drag that out and then after you go into the inspector and change the image. But that image will take most of your clicks making it hard to move parts. The only answer i have is to reverse the image and place it on the opposite side of the board. Then you can set fritzing to only allow clicking the active layer but you will still be able to see the image through the board.

You also need to check that Fritzing has all the parts that you need for the board. Passives (resistors and capacitors and the like) should be easy, ICs may not be if there aren’t currently parts for them. Getting values for the passives (and for that matter the chips) may also be exciting. I’d start there to make sure you have all the components before investing a bunch of time in this.

Peter

Thank you vanepp for the advice. I dont expect Fritzing to know ICs like CAN and NEC uC. So i think i had to draw that part. This may be a challenge. Instead of placing pads, which do not represent a component. So it would be better to place the comps instead.

A google search for the parts you need (I usually use ‘fritzing part part_no’) is useful. There are a surprising number of odd parts that people have made available on the net. For what you want to do, the schematic section of the part is important because that is what you want at the end a readable schematic You may be able to get away with creating parts from the generic IC templates which are easier than making a full part too.

Peter