# Designing and Assembling My First PCB An electronics adventure starting with Arduino - **Source:** [Hacker News: Front Page](https://brifing.si/source/b07aa772-b1a0-4a76-aa18-719c6f9e2dde) - **Published:** 2026-07-12 - **Topic:** [Software & Engineering](https://brifing.si/c/engineering) - **Original article:** - **On Brifing:** https://brifing.si/s/7dffdd4b-fd5a-43ca-891a-80cb74df37eb ## Starting with Arduino A couple of months ago, I purchased an Arduino Nano ESP32 development board. Although I had worked on firmware at an IoT company before, I had little experience with hardware. With the help of Arduino IDE and LLMs, I quickly managed to blink the built-in LEDs. ## Moving to Command Line Next, I learned how to build and flash firmware directly from the CLI. This process gave me confidence that I could return to my usual coding tools. The devboard itself didn't have many features, so I ordered peripherals like an LCD and a BME280 temperature/humidity sensor. ## Moving Beyond Prototyping While using existing modules is great for prototyping, I wanted to quickly move beyond this phase into a 'production' workflow. The idea of recreating the Arduino board with all components hardwired was tempting but ambitious. Instead, I decided to design the BME280 sensor module. ## Schematic and PCB Design There are several tools available for schematic and PCB design. I needed something free and compatible with Mac OS. I chose KiCad over EasyEDA. Using the BME280 datasheet, I transferred the I2C connection diagram to KiCad. ## Footprint Selection To transfer a schematic to a PCB, you need to select a footprint for each component. While the BME280 sensor has only one footprint, resistors and capacitors have multiple options. Choosing between SMD and THT components affects the board size and assembly ease. ## PCB Layout The PCB layout process isn't too complicated, but you need to be careful when routing connections. I placed everything on the front layer and filled empty spaces with ground, connecting the front and back layers with vias. This is a common practice in PCB design. ## Component Sourcing and PCB Ordering Sourcing components and ordering the PCB are the final steps in the design process. It's crucial to find the right components and choose a suitable PCB manufacturing company. ## Assembly and Testing Once the PCB arrives, you need to assemble the components and test the board. This step is critical to verify the design's accuracy and ensure the board functions correctly. ## Lessons Learned This project taught me many new things about PCB design and assembly. I particularly understood the importance of careful component selection and PCB layout. ## Future Projects This experience gave me confidence to design more complex PCBs in the future. I'm eager to continue with electronics projects and learn more. ## Sources covering this story - https://vilkeliskis.com/b/2026/0711.html — --- _Summary written by Brifing from the original reporting. Copyright in the original article belongs to its publisher; read the full piece at the link above._