Building the Pocket CO2 Project
Intro Most of my previous posts have been focused on software topics. I'm going to stray a little into hardware for this article. At the end of 2022 I made a promise to myself to learn how to use KiCad so that I could design my own printed circuit boards. I have some experience with electronics and I thought that I could design some relatively simple PCBs for my own use. I found this 100 minute YouTube tutorial and it provided enough practical info to get me started. This blog post is not about learning KiCad; instead I'm going to walk through all of the steps and equipment necessary to build my Pocket CO2 sensor project. The KiCad files and firmware can be found here . (SMD) Surface Mount Soldering is Easy? After seeing videos of professional makers such as Seon "Unexpected Maker" Rozenblum use pick-n-place machines to build complex PCB boards with impossibly small components, I wrongly assumed that SMD soldering required expensive equipment and lots of expertise.