{"$schema": "https://c3voc.de/schedule/schema.json", "generator": {"name": "pretalx", "version": "2024.1.0"}, "schedule": {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/schedule/", "version": "1.3", "base_url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org", "conference": {"acronym": "kicon-europe-2026", "title": "KiCon Europe 2026", "start": "2026-09-07", "end": "2026-09-08", "daysCount": 2, "timeslot_duration": "00:05", "time_zone_name": "Europe/Berlin", "colors": {"primary": "#3aa57c"}, "rooms": [{"name": "Main Stage", "guid": "19a71a36-6fde-54a0-92a6-52751a930b5c", "description": null, "capacity": null}], "tracks": [{"name": "Main Hall", "color": "#D27777"}], "days": [{"index": 1, "date": "2026-09-07", "day_start": "2026-09-07T04:00:00+02:00", "day_end": "2026-09-08T03:59:00+02:00", "rooms": {"Main Stage": [{"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/XHVVSA/", "id": 130, "guid": "481d1fbe-6504-578f-a0cb-ef11eafa17f2", "date": "2026-09-07T09:15:00+02:00", "start": "09:15", "logo": null, "duration": "00:35", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-130-welcome-to-kicon-europe-2026", "title": "Welcome to KiCon Europe 2026", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "Welcome message", "description": "", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "63ce662b-d7f3-5d91-a114-7b48690e8742", "id": 59, "code": "GH3XCZ", "public_name": "Seth Hillbrand", "avatar": null, "biography": null, "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/PU8PZL/", "id": 114, "guid": "dee6d718-6926-58a5-83b2-e04c2fd0e94a", "date": "2026-09-07T09:55:00+02:00", "start": "09:55", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-114-kicad-project-status", "title": "KiCad Project Status", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "All of the latest KiCad project development.", "description": "", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "fdbbbf0c-6991-595e-89d2-33dff68df566", "id": 30, "code": "EWDEWQ", "public_name": "Wayne Stambaugh", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/wayne_stambaugh_small_ppGk9ES.png", "biography": "I am the KiCad project lead developer.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/MCX8L3/", "id": 127, "guid": "432b2269-3224-5a22-88dc-d90407d19cdc", "date": "2026-09-07T10:50:00+02:00", "start": "10:50", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-127-prod-to-go-board-test-rigs-from-kicad-automated", "title": "prod-to-go - board test rigs from KiCad - automated", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "For many years we've been wanting to automate the creation of board test rigs from our KiCad designs and now we are there. Let us show you how we design boards for test and how we have automated the flow from KiCad design to a fully working test rig.", "description": "A picture says more than a thousand words. How about a video? :-)\r\n\r\nhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJKvEdpKSwc.\r\n\r\nPlease find further information about us and prod-to-go at https://www.eub.se/.", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "341103b0-1dce-5bbe-9dfb-8795f9c0e831", "id": 116, "code": "PDA33D", "public_name": "Magnus Axelsson", "avatar": null, "biography": "Magnus is an embedded systems developer with close to 25 years of experience from the embedded field. Professional KiCad user since more than 10 years. Managing EUB which we founded 4 years ago. Hobbies include electronics, software, mechanical design, working on cars and whatnot.", "answers": []}, {"guid": "d0412ca6-49c6-5d62-828c-8b3ea0b11e95", "id": 122, "code": "E78C9E", "public_name": "Simon Lindh", "avatar": null, "biography": "Elektronikutvecklingsbyr\u00e5n\r\n EUB AB", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/N8HJEB/", "id": 125, "guid": "b53ba645-2a35-5e66-996e-7a3b44614f5b", "date": "2026-09-07T11:30:00+02:00", "start": "11:30", "logo": null, "duration": "00:30", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-125-from-layout-to-prototype-3d-models-in-the-design-workflow", "title": "From Layout to Prototype: 3D Models in the Design Workflow", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "Discover how high-quality 3D component models enhance PCB layout, support seamless CAD integration, and enable realistic 3D-printed fit checks.", "description": "This workflow helps validate mechanical compatibility early\u2014reducing iteration time and improving confidence before production.", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "3ff2d697-7a04-55a7-9fb7-354f1e199e06", "id": 114, "code": "DTVTZL", "public_name": "Raphael Specht", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/quadratischesPotrait_zGBRuM6.png", "biography": "I am a Field Application Engineer at W\u00fcrth Elektronik, specializing in passive and active components. Previously, I developed measurement and test equipment for an optical technology company. Technology has always been a part of my life, and my degree in communications engineering also sparked my lasting interest in amateur radio.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/MMCLQE/", "id": 108, "guid": "e6755a8f-d87a-5972-ab76-33986fc1b6ef", "date": "2026-09-07T13:00:00+02:00", "start": "13:00", "logo": null, "duration": "00:30", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-108-ngspice-recent-and-upcoming-developments-for-kicad-s-simulation-engine", "title": "ngspice - recent and upcoming developments for KiCad's simulation engine", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "In the talk I will present the recent ngspice developments, up to the new release ngspice-47. \r\n\r\nThe environment for open source ngspice has changed considerably. Funding for its development has become available. The art of coding has changed dramatically in the recent months (AI as a tool to support the coder, AI for vibe coding). Some ideas on how this might influence the future of ngspice will be discussed.", "description": "", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "3d734bf5-6809-56a4-8a03-546aca3f7e44", "id": 74, "code": "CCKHUX", "public_name": "Holger Vogt", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/c8b04e00de2f2b8b5fcdfe61e845a7a1_WZMlZ3j.jpg", "biography": "Senior professor at University Duisburg-Essen and retired as deputy director Fraunhofer IMS.\r\nCMOS and MEMS process technology development since 1974.\r\nLead ngspice maintainer", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/CVGKRE/", "id": 110, "guid": "78e60a76-45b1-52c5-b382-9b20c31ed7b7", "date": "2026-09-07T13:35:00+02:00", "start": "13:35", "logo": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/kicon-europe-2026/submissions/CVGKRE/kicad-prism-talk-banner_AAZhIss.svg", "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-110-kicad-prism-git-native-self-hosted-collaboration-and-library-governance-for-kicad-teams", "title": "KiCAD-Prism: Git-Native, Self-Hosted Collaboration and Library Governance for KiCad Teams", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "[KiCAD-Prism](https://github.com/krishna-swaroop/KiCAD-Prism) is an open-source, self-hosted collaboration platform designed to bridge the gap for teams moving off Altium 365, OrCAD, or other closed source ECAD stacks who want KiCad\u2019s freedom without losing quality of life features and library discipline. Initially developed to support satellite electronics development workflows at [Pixxel](https://pixxel.space), Prism keeps KiCad as the desktop editor and Git as the single source of truth.\r\n\r\nIn this talk, we demonstrate how teams can import KiCad projects from any Git host (GitHub, GitLab, or self-hosted) to review and collaborate on schematics, PCBs, 3D renders, and BOMs directly in the browser. We will walk through comparing commits with visual diffs, cross-probing between views, and governing component libraries with submit-verify-release workflows using the Remote Symbol Provider.\r\n\r\nThis talk is tailored for hardware engineers, team leads, and organization leaders evaluating open alternatives to commercial ECAD services. Attendees will see live demos of project review, library governance, and workflow automation, leaving with a clear understanding of KiCAD-Prism\u2019s capabilities, differences from commercial tools, and how to deploy it on their own infrastructure.", "description": "This talk follows Pixxel's move from Altium/OrCAD to KiCad for satellite avionics hardware, the workflow gaps that showed up after the editor switch, and how KiCAD-Prism was developed and adopted to bring back review, library governance, and release discipline on an open-source, Git-native stack.\r\n\r\n**KiCAD-Prism** is an open-source, self-hosted platform that keeps KiCad as the editor and Git as the source of truth. On top of your existing Git based project repositories, Prism provides:\r\n- Browser review of schematics, PCBs, 3D views, and BOMs with cross-probe and comment tracking\r\n- Commit history and visual diffs\r\n- Library Manager with submit, verify, and release workflows\r\n- Remote Symbol Provider for placing approved parts in desktop KiCad\r\n- KiCad jobset based workflows and an Assets portal for fabrication outputs and renders\r\n- Self-hosted deployment with OIDC SSO and role-based access\r\n\r\n### Talk outline (~40 min)\r\n- Introduction and context (~5 min)\r\n- Workflow gaps and why Prism exists (~5 min)\r\n- Live Guided Demo: (~20 min)\r\n    - Project import & Git integration\r\n    - Interactive schematic/PCB review & visual diffs\r\n    - Library Manager: Submit, verify, and release workflows\r\n    - Placing approved remote symbols directly in desktop KiCad\r\n- Future roadmap and Q&A (~10 min)\r\n\r\n### Prerequisites \r\nBasic familiarity with KiCad and Git. Experience using commercial ECAD collaboration platforms (e.g., Altium 365) is helpful context, but not required.\r\n\r\n#### Links\r\nProject links Repository: https://github.com/krishna-swaroop/KiCAD-Prism\r\nLicense: Apache Software License 2.0\r\nAcknowledgements: [ecad-viewer](https://github.com/Huaqiu-Electronics/ecad-viewer), [KiCanvas](https://github.com/theacodes/kicanvas), [kicad-monkey](https://github.com/wavenumber-eng/kicad_monkey), [Interactive HTML BOM](https://github.com/openscopeproject/InteractiveHtmlBom)", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "30633eb6-b111-5a02-9993-5574dff05be5", "id": 99, "code": "PDLXC7", "public_name": "Matteo Parenti", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/1704653887550_9E2QhPg.jpeg", "biography": "I'm an independent embedded developer and designer working on mechatronics and industrial applications, from first prototype through to production and project management. KiCad has been my main ECAD tool for years, to the point that I've built an entirely KiCad-based workflow, and I help other teams move away from proprietary software. When I'm not busy breaking things, you'll find me soldering something small and 3D printing something useless.", "answers": []}, {"guid": "c125e74c-e433-5394-9a87-c3a2a0722fe0", "id": 100, "code": "ZBBDRH", "public_name": "Krishna Swaroop Dhulipalla", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/1585080674974_1cSI8rn.jpg", "biography": "I work as the Lead Electronics Engineer at [Pixxel Space Pvt. Ltd.](https://pixxel.space), an Earth Observation Company based out of Bangalore, India.\r\nI primarily design reliable, high-performance electronics for use in satellites as my day job and tinker around with consumer electronics as a hobby!", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/X3AAFA/", "id": 107, "guid": "af762b8f-3f3f-500b-830d-d2bcc37ed873", "date": "2026-09-07T14:20:00+02:00", "start": "14:20", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-107-kikakuka-kicad-workspace-panelizer-build-variants-differ", "title": "Kikakuka: KiCad Workspace / Panelizer / Build Variants / Differ", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "KiCad provides excellent tools for designing individual circuit boards, but real-world product development extends beyond a single project or PCB file. Engineers also need to manage related projects, revisions, assembly variants, manufacturing panels and mechanical integration.\r\n\r\nThis talk presents Kikakuka, an open-source application that adds these workflow dimensions around KiCad. It demonstrates visual schematic and PCB comparison, Git-aware revision browsing, build variants, interactive multi-board panelization, Gerber reconstruction and FreeCAD integration. The talk also discusses the implementation challenges encountered while building external tools around KiCad file formats and APIs.", "description": "This talk will cover:\r\n\r\n* The use cases that motivated Kikakuka and go beyond KiCad\u2019s built-in capabilities\r\n* Managing multiple projects with the Workspace Manager\r\n* Visually comparing schematic and PCB revisions with the Differ\r\n* Creating panels and build variants\r\n* Importing and processing Gerber files\r\n* Automating workflows through the CLI\r\n* Integrating KiCad with FreeCAD\r\n\r\n  * Multi-PCB assemblies\r\n  * FPC bending\r\n* Current limitations and what still requires changes in KiCad itself\r\n\r\nSource code: [github.com/buganini/Kikakuka](https://github.com/buganini/Kikakuka)", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "c9abfc4d-9297-5091-bf19-3a18b1f0dd18", "id": 97, "code": "UVLH9N", "public_name": "Kuan-Chung Chiu (Buganini)", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/fb5de9c2b723432b4f1153aeedc5e1f7_Pvp90EH.jpg", "biography": "Anyware developer, from hardware to cloud.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/PPMGBN/", "id": 115, "guid": "f311e138-c9eb-56a1-9b54-0d9d383a0bb8", "date": "2026-09-07T15:15:00+02:00", "start": "15:15", "logo": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/kicon-europe-2026/submissions/PPMGBN/coverimage_eAsStjM.jpg", "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-115-no-wires-attached-a-kicad-designed-rigid-flex-harness-operating-in-space", "title": "No Wires Attached: A KiCad-Designed Rigid-Flex Harness Operating in Space", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "Conventional spacecraft cable harnesses are costly, labor-intensive and difficult to integrate, particularly when numerous sensors and actuators must be distributed across a mechanically complex structure.\r\n\r\nFor a deployable spacecraft system, we replaced much of the conventional harness with a custom rigid-flex PCB designed in KiCad. The spider-like assembly wraps around the mechanical structure and branches out to multiple functional locations, allowing sensors, switches, heaters and interfaces to be integrated without separate point-to-point wiring.\r\n\r\nThe system was launched into low Earth orbit in March 2026 and has been operating reliably since April, including rigid-flex sections installed on the exterior of the spacecraft structure.\r\n\r\nThis talk presents the KiCad design workflow, the close integration with mechanical CAD, the manufacturing and integration challenges, and the lessons learned from taking an unconventional rigid-flex design from its first fabrication run to successful operation in orbit.", "description": "Cable harnesses are a major cost, integration and reliability driver in spacecraft development. Conventional solutions require numerous individual wires, connectors, crimp contacts, strain-relief provisions and manual assembly steps. Depending on the application, connectors and cable terminations may additionally require securing or encapsulation. Every cable, connector and auxiliary material must also be assessed with regard to its suitability for the space environment, including material compatibility and outgassing requirements.\r\n\r\nFor a deployable spacecraft structure, we therefore investigated whether a distributed sensor harness could be implemented as a rigid-flex PCB instead. The resulting design consists of a central interconnected structure with multiple flexible branches extending toward individual sensing locations. Sensors such as I\u00b2C and 1-Wire temperature sensors are mounted directly at the ends of these branches. The complete assembly wraps around the mechanical structure and provides broad sensor coverage without requiring a conventional point-to-point cable harness.\r\n\r\nA rigid-flex implementation can simplify material selection and qualification because the relevant substrate materials, coverlay or solder-mask systems, surface finishes and assembly processes are defined as part of a controlled PCB stack-up. This does not make the PCB automatically space-qualified, but it reduces the number of heterogeneous cable, connector and encapsulation materials that must be selected and assessed individually.\r\n\r\nThe approach becomes particularly attractive when moving beyond a single prototype toward small- or large-series production. A conventional harness must be assembled repeatedly by hand, including cutting wires to length, stripping, crimping, routing, securing and adding strain relief. These labor-intensive operations must be performed and inspected for every individual unit. Once a rigid-flex design has been validated, however, the same PCB can be manufactured repeatedly from an unchanged design dataset. Producing one hundred units therefore does not require manually reproducing the complete harness one hundred times. This can substantially improve scalability, repeatability and quality consistency while reducing recurring assembly and inspection effort.\r\n\r\nA key part of the development process was the close integration of the PCB geometry with the mechanical CAD model. The three-dimensional folded geometry and overall envelope of the flex harness were developed in CATIA. A sheet-metal design workbench, normally used to model bent metal parts with defined bend radii, proved particularly useful for creating the curved, flat geometry of the harness. The resulting three-dimensional shape could then be unfolded into a planar contour and imported into KiCad as the basis for the PCB outline. This workflow made it possible to integrate the flex assembly directly into the mechanical design instead of treating the harness as a separate component added at a later stage. Despite the tight tolerances of the assembled structure, all harness components fitted correctly after the first fabrication run.\r\n\r\nThe presentation will cover the interaction between CATIA and KiCad, the definition of rigid and flexible regions, routing through curved and mechanically constrained areas, component placement at remote sensor locations, manufacturing constraints, mechanical integration and the design decisions driven by the intended space environment.\r\n\r\nThe system was launched into a 530 km Sun-synchronous orbit in March 2026 and has been delivering data since April. Parts of the rigid-flex assembly are installed on the exterior of the spacecraft structure and are directly exposed to the space environment, including temperatures ranging from \u221235 \u00b0C to +80 \u00b0C and atomic oxygen. The complete sensor network has so far operated without failures.\r\n\r\nThe project originated from DLR technology-transfer activities and contributed to the formation of ADPERA, a spin-off developing deployable structures for creating large systems in space, such as instrument masts, photovoltaic generators and antennas. It provides a practical example of how KiCad can be used not only to design electronics, but also to replace a mechanically complex spacecraft subsystem with an integrated, flight-proven PCB solution.", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "84029cbf-846d-5b96-9cfc-df0c46befe5e", "id": 103, "code": "XM899V", "public_name": "Marco Straubel", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/2026-09_Marco_3_dt5knFj.jpg", "biography": "Marco studied Mechatronics, giving him a broad interdisciplinary engineering background spanning mechanics, electronics, and software. He began his career at the German Aerospace Center (DLR), where he specialized in deployable spacecraft structures, mechanisms, and lightweight design. His work in this field culminated in a doctoral thesis on a large rollable synthetic-aperture radar antenna for Earth observation and included research stays at NASA and ESA.\r\n\r\nOver the course of his career, his focus increasingly shifted toward embedded electronics, firmware, and the integration of complex mechatronic systems. He developed electronics and software for several parabolic-flight campaigns and later for a spacecraft experiment. He has extensive experience integrating mechanical structures, sensors, actuators, avionics, and third-party hardware and software into reliable spaceflight systems.\r\n\r\nIn 2026, Marco co-founded ADPERA, a DLR spin-off developing deployable structures and integrated systems for creating large structures in space, where he serves as Chief Technology Officer.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/ARDDAY/", "id": 113, "guid": "446e3224-1726-553f-9439-79bc923dd602", "date": "2026-09-07T16:00:00+02:00", "start": "16:00", "logo": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/kicon-europe-2026/submissions/ARDDAY/flex_zBxfLgX.png", "duration": "00:30", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-113-predicting-and-optimizing-flex-pcb-shapes-for-space-electronics", "title": "Predicting and Optimizing Flex PCB Shapes for Space Electronics", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "KiCad is used to design an incredible variety of electronics. At APC, a CNRS research laboratory in Paris, we use it to develop readout electronics for cosmology and astrophysics instruments that operate under vacuum, in the radiation environment of space, and sometimes at cryogenic temperatures.\r\n\r\nFor ESA's ATHENA space mission, currently under development, we are designing compact rigid-flex PCBs that must fit within a highly constrained mechanical assembly while satisfying the reliability requirements imposed by ECSS space standards. In particular, the final shape of the flexible sections must be accurately predicted before manufacturing to ensure proper integration, while avoiding overly conservative designs that increase mass and occupied volume.\r\n\r\nTo address this challenge, we developed, together with internship student Martin Pr\u00eale, a physics-based tool to predict the 2D deformation of rigid-flex PCBs from their geometry and boundary conditions. The predictions were validated experimentally on fabricated PCBs, showing excellent agreement with measured shapes.\r\n\r\nIn this talk, I will present how a practical PCB design challenge encountered in the development of space electronics led us to combine KiCad-based design workflows with physics-based mechanical modeling. The resulting approach enables more compact and predictable rigid-flex PCB designs.", "description": "", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "e407df54-61fe-5a57-9760-b1e3d24f566e", "id": 102, "code": "DYTQ8Y", "public_name": "Manuel Gonzalez", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/SPIE2-869_Q0Hs3ts.jpg", "biography": "I am an Argentinian experimental physicist working as a research engineer at the AstroParticule and Cosmology (APC) laboratory in Paris, France. For over a decade, my work has focused on the development, characterization, and readout of cryogenic detectors for astrophysics and cosmology instruments. For the past five years, I have been deeply involved in the Warm Front-End Electronics (WFEE) for the ATHENA X-IFU space instrument, leading the testing and validation of custom ASICs developed for the mission. I use KiCad to design high-reliability, space-grade rigid-flex PCBs.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/EJRZTH/", "id": 132, "guid": "95400ce3-0aa4-5cb1-9ce3-b1521238b954", "date": "2026-09-07T16:35:00+02:00", "start": "16:35", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-132-automate-the-boring-half", "title": "Automate the Boring Half", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "AI PCB tools keep trying to automate the fun part.", "description": "This talk targets the boring half instead: annotating designs with intent, enforcing a library style guide, and generating handoff docs - all in plain KiCad and markdown files.", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "c8c45fa2-aa7a-5610-a8d0-936be4af7dfe", "id": 119, "code": "UKBS7R", "public_name": "Tom Elliot", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/03_dwTB38m.jpg", "biography": "I'm an electronics design engineer by background. I've worked in Australia (where I grew up), San Francisco and Germany (where I live now).\r\n\r\nI've always been frustrated with EDA tooling (\ud83d\ude48 Altium), and I'm excited for the direction KiCad is taking against the proprietary solutions.\r\n\r\nNow I'm very curious what EE work will look like in 5 years time, as AI tooling (agents \u2728\ud83c\udf08) become more and more a part of life.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}]}}, {"index": 2, "date": "2026-09-08", "day_start": "2026-09-08T04:00:00+02:00", "day_end": "2026-09-09T03:59:00+02:00", "rooms": {"Main Stage": [{"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/GRNYRH/", "id": 117, "guid": "5cced134-8f0b-56c9-b4ad-7fc55497eab1", "date": "2026-09-08T09:15:00+02:00", "start": "09:15", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-117-open-hardware-usb-ip-bridge", "title": "Open hardware USB/IP bridge", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "The DRAM shortage broke the typical setup for connecting devices to a CI HW lab. Dropping a Linux SoC next to every device under test used to be cheap and easy. However, there's another way: instead of connecting a computer per device, we can share its USB over the network with USB/IP.\r\n\r\nThis talk will explain the design of such a board which is built around an MCU that does not require DDR memory. Yet it still boasts USB 3.0 and Gigabit Ethernet, along with a secure element that proves each bridge is genuine before the lab trusts it.\r\n\r\nWe walk through designing that board entirely in KiCad: routing all the USB and Ethernet differential pairs, handling the Ethernet magnetics, placing the secure element, and generating test points for easy QA checking.\r\n\r\nLastly we'll showcase the USB/IP demo of connecting a DUT to the Linux host.", "description": "USB/IP hardware is a good board to design in KiCad because it collides three demanding subsystems\r\non one small board.\r\n\r\nThe selection of the MCU is based on the whole point: to avoid the RAM that made SoCs expensive during the ongoing DRAM shortage. Therefore the board is built around a RISC-V microcontroller that runs entirely from on-chip memory. Almost 1 MB of internal RAM no external DDR and still integrates the two peripherals this job actually needs:\r\n\r\n- a high-speed USB port\r\n- a Gigabit Ethernet MAC\r\n\r\nThat combination in a single, low-cost QFN package is what makes a per-device USB/IP bridge\r\ncheap enough to deploy.\r\n\r\n We'll cover USB and Ethernet from the signal up and look at what the differential pairs actually carry, why they need controlled impedance and length matching, selecting the Ethernet magnetics and more.\r\n\r\nSince the board is designed to be distributed to developers it needs to be optimized for manufacturing and easy bring-up. That means test points laid out so QA can be done efficiently without specialist knowledge.", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "a46d63a2-ddd4-584e-8e29-54248c7ee2b0", "id": 106, "code": "MYLTVM", "public_name": "Petr Hodina", "avatar": null, "biography": "An embedded Linux developer working on hardware enablement and diagnostics for a mobile Linux OS, closing the gap between mobile Linux and Android. The tooling that lets developers and users confirm a device actually works: the USB/IP bridge grew out of needing a cheap, reliable way to wire real devices into a TronCI lab.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/WTJGUF/", "id": 126, "guid": "10b68555-7a7a-50fb-ad3a-be0a933d4584", "date": "2026-09-08T10:00:00+02:00", "start": "10:00", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-126-openorcadparser-a-reverse-engineering-journey", "title": "OpenOrCadParser: A Reverse-Engineering Journey", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "This talk documents the reverse-engineering journey behind the OpenOrCadParser project, which implements a proof-of-concept OrCAD parser. Starting from scratch in 2021, we will walk through a systematic approach of decoding the binary DSN/OLB file formats.\r\n\r\n1. Container Analysis: Discovering that OrCAD files use Microsoft's Compound File Binary Format (CFBF), which unlocks the ability to extract and analyze individual data streams.\r\n2. Getting the Alignment Right: Using hex editors to identify dynamic structures and achieve correct parsing alignment, enabling a robust full-stream parser.\r\n3. Understanding the Content: Decoding the meaning and purpose of bits and bytes to extract meaningful schematic information.\r\n\r\nThe result is a proof-of-concept parser enabling an independently developed OrCAD to KiCad importer.", "description": "", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "fe176083-328f-5732-8607-6f142b693a9f", "id": 115, "code": "U8MTYF", "public_name": "Dominik Wernberger", "avatar": null, "biography": "Dominik Wernberger is an embedded software engineer and freelancer based near Munich, Germany, specializing in embedded systems security and low-level software development. He is the author of OpenOrCadParser, an open-source project that reverse-engineers the proprietary OrCAD file format.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/XYGDDW/", "id": 119, "guid": "c6af59b9-591e-54d6-adfb-d7a74401fe82", "date": "2026-09-08T10:55:00+02:00", "start": "10:55", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-119-product-lifecycle-management-in-kicad", "title": "Product Lifecycle Management in KiCad", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "Standards for quality management systems like ISO 22163 require PLM starting at the component level. Using a custom editor for Database Libraries, we build a workflow to meet these requirements without relaying on external PLM Software and integrate KiCad seamlessly into existing archival and ordering processes.", "description": "", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "8ac6e301-8ce9-5659-9d51-f09f3665d79a", "id": 108, "code": "KTVXFY", "public_name": "Tjark Gaudich", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/ProfilPic_jL1mtaE.JPEG", "biography": "Student at TH K\u00f6ln and Hardware developer at Graw Radiosondes", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/RNACET/", "id": 112, "guid": "1be3706e-c708-522f-866b-2ee2cadad430", "date": "2026-09-08T11:40:00+02:00", "start": "11:40", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-112-scientific-electronic-development-in-germany-transitioning-to-kicad-", "title": "Scientific Electronic Development in Germany - transitioning to KiCad ?", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "German universities and research centers contribute to the development of electronics science and technology and maintain their own electronics teams for scientific instrumentation. This presentation highlights selected aspects and does not claim to provide a comprehensive overview.", "description": "An introduction to SEI, the conference of the scientific instrumentation study group, including some highlights, along with our proposal to SEI members to contribute to KiCad and its libraries, and some spotlights of electronics development at universities and research centers in Germany.\r\nsee https://www.helmholtz-berlin.de/projects/sei/", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "0dda8f19-0f47-53dc-8701-c17f40626cf6", "id": 101, "code": "VVKK7B", "public_name": "Peter K\u00e4mmerling", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/Portrait-klein_V8tuHBA.png", "biography": "Peter is an industrial skilled electric and electronic worker and studied computer science, economy and business administration. \r\nDuring his traineeship, he developed electronics and firmware in assembler of a highly flexibly configurable quadruple counter for parking garages with a MC 8051 to replace unreliable, unflexible electromechanical counters. \r\nLater he developed software, CPLD- and FPGA-based embedded devices and provided to instrumentation of neutron scattering beamlines and other scientific instruments at Research center J\u00fclich https://www.fz-juelich.de/en.\r\nSince his childhood, Peter has been engaged in the volunteer fire brigade and now in its emergency power brigade. He is board member of http://1wf.de/, http://www.commoning.space/ and member of https://tdrm.fiff.de/index.php/en/ with its ongoing development of a citizen environmental sensor station and network at https://www.fiff.de/", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/3H7FZE/", "id": 111, "guid": "81d1df43-7a60-5e76-a12d-53d046c9581d", "date": "2026-09-08T13:20:00+02:00", "start": "13:20", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-111-teachning-kicad-to-beginners", "title": "Teachning KiCad to Beginners", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "Even though KiCad has a good user interface, it is still confusing to learn for beginners. Teaching it in small classes is easy and fun. I will present my Workshop concept that used successful on plenty of events - I guess somewhere between 500 and 1000 people in total attended one of my workshops.\r\n\r\nAfter attending this talk you will be able to run similar workshops in your community.", "description": "", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "260464fb-bb07-580a-9d19-20a5016f2f31", "id": 18, "code": "R7TSYS", "public_name": "cpresser", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/cpresser-logo_Z81ECZd.jpeg", "biography": "Hardware-Hacker\r\nFriend of Blahaj\r\nKiCad Librarian", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/3BHTZ8/", "id": 116, "guid": "f2577fd2-b23e-5e07-93bf-acfd792b26b2", "date": "2026-09-08T14:05:00+02:00", "start": "14:05", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-116-pcbjam-kicad-on-the-web", "title": "PCBJam: KiCad on the Web", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "PCBJam is a collaborative KiCad port that works on the web, with a lot of added features on top of KiCad.", "description": "We're a team developing PCBJam, a collaborative KiCad port that works on the web. We have a non-collaborative demo at https://demo.pcbjam.com/ but our product that will be out ( fingers crossed ) in the following few weeks with Figma-like collaboration ( see other people's cursors, selection, follow them ), commentings, shareable libraries etc, a better plugin system etc.", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "b7796b97-2d36-5c6c-ba16-0e4e520e7480", "id": 104, "code": "KV7SJB", "public_name": "Viktor Vaczi", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/a231bbf383630673aa4c7a0aa398f5ae_heGB4bV.jpg", "biography": "I'm an ex-electrical engineer who turned to web development, now running PCBJam as a side project from Emergence-Engineering, a dev shop that does rich text editor / collaborative / web app development .", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/MKRHZS/", "id": 118, "guid": "d815ef13-176d-51bc-98d3-d89a265409c4", "date": "2026-09-08T15:00:00+02:00", "start": "15:00", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-118-miniaturise-your-designs-in-kicad", "title": "Miniaturise your designs in KiCad", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "To many electronic engineers, making the smallest possible design that fulfills a given functionality, is a valuable pursuit. From a high-end appearance of a slim design to minimizing cost from saving real estate, there are many reasons to desire a space optimized design. KiCad has several features that assists in making small designs, but other mechanisms must be driven by the designer by non-conventional means. This talk will describe methods for making tiny designs both by intrinsic features of KiCad and how to tweak your design by other means.", "description": "This talk will go through various ways of miniaturizing PCBs. The talk will present methods that are ranging from quite common to advanced hacks and some that challenge good design practices when space is constrained. Examples in KiCad will be presented when possible.", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "ace51dfa-5b04-5395-b276-6ded82ca358b", "id": 9, "code": "LWAVD9", "public_name": "Sigurd Henriksen", "avatar": null, "biography": null, "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/GYMTBL/", "id": 109, "guid": "51520f5e-0a04-5113-a7de-6bdd70f75999", "date": "2026-09-08T15:45:00+02:00", "start": "15:45", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-109-five-levels-of-documentation-and-annotation", "title": "Five Levels of Documentation and Annotation", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "With all the fun of creating your circuits, it can be easy to forget to document them as well. This talk covers some general philosophy, and five approaches to documenting your schematics and PCBs directly in KiCad.", "description": "We will start with some general philosophy regarding the how, what and why to document. Then the main topics will be five general approaches, starting with simple text boxes and ending with fancy graphs. For each one we will show some examples and demonstrations from real projects in KiCad, to help illustrate how one can implement these ideas in practice.", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "92ff2466-6014-5608-b5c7-201958437dac", "id": 98, "code": "UKRC9S", "public_name": "Artemis M", "avatar": null, "biography": "I am an engineer with a Master's Degree in Engineering Physics & Complex Adaptive Systems. I started using KiCad over 15 years ago for small hobby projects, and have since continued to use it for increasingly complex home projects, professionally at work, and to create a few official event badges.\r\n\r\nHave worked with a lot of different things, such as programming, math, statistics, medical studies, circuit design, PCB design, RF designs, ultra-low-power designs, injection molding, DFM, frontend, backend, firmware, database, networking, IoT, security, cryptography, FPGAs, testing/certification, and more.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/MQQA3H/", "id": 128, "guid": "f3f859db-bec9-5b5f-b720-539814e59995", "date": "2026-09-08T16:30:00+02:00", "start": "16:30", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-128-pin-to-pad-mapping-in-kicad-11", "title": "Pin-to-Pad Mapping in KiCad 11", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "One part, many packages. Each package numbers its pins its own way. Until now that meant making a copy of the symbol or every pinout. KiCad 11 fixes this, you keep one symbol, and a small table tells each footprint where the pins go. This talk shows the problem, the fix, how to use it in your projects.", "description": "", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "c207b9f2-e12a-54f4-9036-08236e9a96af", "id": 117, "code": "XUZCER", "public_name": "Damjan Prerad", "avatar": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/media/avatars/Damjan_3omo4Bp.jpg", "biography": "I am an embedded software engineer with a master's degree in Electronics and Telecommunications and extensive experience in performance-critical embedded systems. My background includes automotive, radar, and edge-AI applications, with a strong emphasis on hardware-aware optimization and Linux-based development.", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}, {"url": "https://pretalx.kicad.org/kicon-europe-2026/talk/VW9GEN/", "id": 134, "guid": "35672887-6210-5a63-a254-34f00085fcc2", "date": "2026-09-08T17:10:00+02:00", "start": "17:10", "logo": null, "duration": "00:40", "room": "Main Stage", "slug": "kicon-europe-2026-134-wikipedia-for-datasheets-with-datasheets-md", "title": "Wikipedia for Datasheets with Datasheets.md", "subtitle": "", "track": null, "type": "Talk", "language": "en", "abstract": "Manufacturer datasheets are PDFs built for human eyes. We parse them into one clean, structured page per component \u2014 parameters, pin tables, packages, symbols \u2014 that KiCad and your AI tools can read directly.", "description": "A practical walkthrough of turning datasheet PDFs into usable library parts: layout recovery and OCR, schema-driven parameter extraction across manufacturers, pin table to symbol generation, footprint matching against the stock KiCad libraries, and provenance so every number links back to its source page. Ends with a live demo \u2014 PDF in, symbol and footprint out \u2014 and an open API plus MCP server for AI tools.\r\nProject link: https://datasheets.md", "recording_license": "", "do_not_record": false, "persons": [{"guid": "52bee237-3c55-5c68-9ccb-8a1966c116f9", "id": 124, "code": "BVE7BA", "public_name": "Dennis Yaskevich", "avatar": null, "biography": "Worked for 6 years as a circuit design engineer. Made a few YouTube videos. Now trying to make parts library management clean and easy with databsheets.md", "answers": []}], "links": [], "attachments": [], "answers": []}]}}]}}}