picknblend

Copyright (c) 2022-2024 Antmicro

This tool is an open-source utility dedicated to populating 3D models of Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) with 3D electrical components in Blender (.blend) format. The tool uses .csv Pick and Place input position files that are used for placing components in proper positions. This makes the PCB with components visualization independent from the software used for designing it. Currently picknblend supports Blender 4.1+.

Installation

Requirements

picknblend depends on the following packages:

• python3.11, pipx

Additionally to preview and modify the generated .blend file Blender 4.1 needs to be installed.

Installation (Debian)

1. Install the dependencies:

   sudo apt-get update
   sudo apt install python3.11 python3.11-venv pipx

2. Configure PATH:

   export PATH=$HOME/.local/bin:$PATH

3. Clone and install picknblend:

   python3.11 -m pipx install 'git+https://github.com/antmicro/picknblend.git'

Usage

Please check the picknblend documentation for more guidelines.

To show available functionalities of picknblend, run:

picknblend --help

For more information regarding Blender supported by the picknblend visit the Blender 4.1 documentation.

License

The picknblend utility is licensed under the Apache-2.0 license.