LibreSatCam/README.md

# LibreSatCam
LibreSatCam is a project to make a free software, open source hardware,
libre camera optimized for photographing artificial satellites.

It is a fork of an upstream project, see below for details.

![KiCad Camera PCB in 3D.](img/kicad-camera-pcb-3d.png)

![KiCad FPGA PCB in 3D.](img/kicad-fpga-pcb-3d.png)

![KiCad USB PCB in 3D.](img/kicad-usb-pcb-3d.png)


# TODO
Perhaps, round one:

* Create bill of materials (BoM) suitable for ProtoExpress.
* Submit BoM to ProtoExpress.
* Submit upstream pre-made Altium gerber files to ProtoExpress.

Round two:

* Port board to KiCad.
* Submit new design to ProtoExpress.

# Altium to KiCad
The upstream files for this project are created in the proprietary Altium
application. The files are being converted to KiCad, which is free software.

* Import schematics with standalone `eeschema`. `*.kicad_pro` file is
  automatically created.

* Import `.PrjPcb` file with standalone `pcbnew`.

* `Tools` --> `Harvest footprints to new library...`. Create the library,
  containing all pcb footprints. XXX *Note: not in KiCad 6?*

* Close everything, open `.kicad_pcb` files with text editor.

* Replace all references of non-existing library names from Altium, to the new
  library, created earlier.

* Launch KiCad, open `.kicad_pro` file, created above by eeschema.

* Start `pcbnew`, `Tools` --> `Update Schematic from pcb...`. This will set correct footprint assignments from PCB to schematics.

* Save everything.

* `Tools` --> `Update PCB from schematics...` as sanity check.


The conversion process steps came from looking at issues, the KiCad
forum, and trial and error.

* https://forum.kicad.info/t/work-in-progress-native-altium-importer/20712

* https://gitlab.com/kicad/code/kicad/-/issues/6282

**Note: this process still doesn't work perfect, and some of the steps above are
no longer options.**

See also:

* https://forum.kicad.info/t/importing-altium-pcblib-files/39050


# Bill of Materials
See the `BoM/` directory for the bill of materials spreadsheets.

There are three PCBs to be manufactured, requiring three BoMs.
Converting the three below to BoMs suitable for ProtoExpress.

* Camera --- Initial draft.
* FPGA --- Draft, some Mouser parts.
* USB --- Initial draft.


# Upstream
See `README-upstream.md`.

Upstream main website:

* http://www.circuitvalley.com/

Upstream source code (cloned to master branch in local repo):

* https://github.com/circuitvalley/USB_C_Industrial_Camera_FPGA_USB3

Upstream blog post documentation, also a copy in this repo in `docs/`:

* https://www.circuitvalley.com/2022/06/pensource-usb-c-industrial-camera-c-mount-fpga-imx-mipi-usb-3-crosslinknx.html

Upstream video documentation:

* https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwXs9RB6uD0

Upstream license, Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).

* https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

*Copyright © Gaurav Singh.*


May contain components from upstream Altium libraries,
which retain their upstream copyright.


# Copyright
Upstream sources under their respective copyrights.

License: CC By 4.0 International, same as upstream.

*Copyright © 2022, Jeff Moe.*