PowerLab KiCad Assistant

Claude in a KiCad side panel: libraries, placement, routing and design reviews, the METU Power Lab way.

Install · Use · Privacy · Report a problem

🌐 19 languages for the panel and Claude's replies: English · Türkçe · 简体中文 · 繁體中文 · Deutsch · Français · Español · Português (Brasil) · Italiano · Polski · Русский · Українська · العربية · فارسی · हिन्दी · 日本語 · 한국어 · Tiếng Việt · Bahasa Indonesia

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A side panel for KiCad 10 that lets you ask Claude to do things in your design: create symbol and footprint libraries to the METU Power Lab standard, place and route boards by the lab's rules and review them, run ERC/DRC and explain the results, render 3D views, export fabrication files, and edit schematics and boards.

It runs Claude Code on your computer with your own Claude account, and gives it KiCad tools through KiCAD-MCP-Server.

Early version. Windows and KiCad 10 only. Expect rough edges and please report problems.

Example sessions (illustrative). Left: start screen with suggestions and a library update. Middle: Claude routes the board, then renders and checks it. Right: a question about an attached datasheet, with another file ready to send. The board is the lab's open-source Voltage Sensor Card.

What it looks like

1. Placement starts with a block plan. Claude draws the board's functional blocks on its outline and asks before it places anything. You can drag blocks, turn them or move them to the other side; then it places the parts block by block.

2. Routing by hand, by the lab rules. Claude routes in KiCad itself: power and gate drive first, 45° tracks, pads entered at their centres, GND pours kept whole and GND stitching vias last. check_routing and DRC check each step.

3. Then it reviews its own work. DRC, the lab rules and a 233-rule review handbook. Claude fixes what it can, checks again, and writes a review with what's left for you, saved as a PDF in your project.

The animations draw each board's finished parts and tracks in order; they show the result, not the time it took.

The lab's own router follows a routing plan made from the schematic, which Claude shows you first: gate drive, switch nodes, PWM and clocks keep their room; power and sense lines next; test points and LEDs give way. It checks every pin's way out, routes all nets at once and negotiates the overlaps, draws 45° tracks with pads entered at their centres and buses as bundles, and lets DRC have the last word: a join that would add a DRC error is left for Claude to route by hand. It never moves parts.

The numbers come from tools/route_quality.py (signal nets).

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⚠️ Read this first

AI makes mistakes. Claude can get pinouts, footprints, pad sizes, ratings or connections wrong while sounding certain. Treat everything it produces as a draft:

• Check parts against the manufacturer datasheet.
• Run ERC and DRC yourself.
• Review the 3D view and the fabrication outputs before you order a board.

It edits your files. Claude changes schematic, board and library files directly. Keep your projects in git (or keep backups) so you can undo.

Your design data goes to Anthropic. Your messages, and any project files Claude reads, are processed by Anthropic under your Claude account and its terms. Don't use the assistant on designs that your NDA, employer or customer doesn't allow you to share with an AI service.

Privacy: what goes where

Data	Where it goes	When
Your messages and the project files Claude reads	Anthropic, under your Claude account	Every time you send a message
Library parts you choose to share	A pull request to odtu/PowerLabKiCadLibraries, from your GitHub account	Only when you press Share and confirm the file list
Problem reports	A public issue on this repository	Only when you press Submit after reviewing the report
Library updates	Anonymous read from GitHub (git fetch)	When the panel opens, at most every 10 minutes
Plugin update check	Anonymous read from GitHub of the version number on this repository's stable branch; when it's newer, of that release's notes	When the panel opens or is shown, at most every 5 minutes

Nothing else is sent to METU Power Lab. The panel has no analytics, telemetry or tracking.

Problem reports contain versions, the error and the panel's own stack trace. They never contain:

• project, board or sheet names
• part references or values, net names
• file contents or paths (replaced with placeholders)
• your messages or Claude's replies
• your selection or clipboard

Stays on your computer:

• your Claude login and your GitHub login (if you use one)
• the panel's settings (%APPDATA%\PowerLabKiCadAssistant)
• your conversation history (%USERPROFILE%\.claude, and the panel's copy in %APPDATA%\PowerLabKiCadAssistant\chats)
• design reviews and their PDFs (design-review\ in your project; Microsoft Edge prints the PDF on your computer, offline), and other documents you ask Claude for as a PDF (documents\, printed the same way)

The repository contains no API keys or tokens. Each user signs in with their own accounts.

Requirements

• Windows 10 or 11
• KiCad 10
• A Claude account with Claude Code access (a paid Claude plan or an Anthropic API account)
• Git: winget install --id Git.Git -e
• Node.js 18 or newer: winget install --id OpenJS.NodeJS.LTS -e
• Optional: a GitHub account, to share library parts and file reports with one click

Install

1. Close KiCad.

2. Download this repository (green Code button → Download ZIP, then unzip) or git clone https://github.com/odtu/PowerLabKiCadAssistant.

3. In PowerShell, in that folder:

   powershell -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -File install.ps1
   

   The installer asks before every step. It will:

   • Install Claude Code with Anthropic's official installer, if you don't have it yet.
   • Download KiCAD-MCP-Server at a tested version, build it, and install its Python packages into KiCad's own Python. No admin rights are needed.
   • Copy the panel into your KiCad 10 folder.
   • Clone the METU Power Lab library and point KiCad's METUPOWERLAB_* paths at it. Your KiCad settings are backed up first.
   • Turn on KiCad's API server, which the panel needs.
   • Optionally install GitHub CLI and sign you in.

   If you already have a clone of the library, add -LibraryPath D:\path\to\PowerLabKiCadLibraries.

4. Sign in to Claude Code once: run claude in a terminal, follow the login, then type /exit.

5. In the Schematic Editor, go to Preferences → Preferences → Schematic Editor → Toolbars. Add IPC/Scripting plugins to the Top main toolbar. KiCad doesn't show plugin buttons there by default.

To remove it later, run uninstall.ps1.

Updating

Changes are tried on the test branch first. When they're released to main, the stable branch, the panel shows a bar like PowerLab Assistant 0.1.2 is available: … within about 10 minutes, with What's new and Update buttons.

• Update, if you installed from a git clone of this repository: a console window pulls the new version and runs install.ps1 -Update. Restart KiCad when it says done.
  • -Update asks no questions and only replaces the panel's files. It also rebuilds the KiCad tools, but only if their pinned version or the lab's fixes to them (patches/kicad-mcp.patch) changed.
  • Your library, KiCad settings and GitHub setup aren't touched.
• Update, if you installed from a ZIP download: the release page opens in your browser. Download it and run install.ps1 -Update.

To be notified by e-mail as well, use Watch → Custom → Releases on this repository.

Use

Click the PowerLab Assistant button on the toolbar of the PCB Editor or the Schematic Editor. Type a short request and press Enter. For example:

• Create a symbol and footprint library for the LMR38020
• Run DRC and summarize the violations
• What is this part connected to? (select it first)
• Render the top side and show it to me

The panel shows each step Claude takes, plus any images it renders.

• Models: the model picker under the input box switches between Claude models. The default is Opus 5.5 at high effort. To change the effort, set "effort" (low, medium, high, xhigh or max) in %APPDATA%\PowerLabKiCadAssistant\settings.json.
• Languages: the language picker beside it sets the panel's language and the language Claude replies in: English, Türkçe, 简体中文, 繁體中文, Deutsch, Français, Español, Português (Brasil), Italiano, Polski, Русский, Українська, العربية, فارسی, हिन्दी, 日本語, 한국어, Tiếng Việt and Bahasa Indonesia. It starts in Windows' display language (English if that isn't one of them). The translations are machine-made; corrections are welcome as issues or pull requests to plugin/powerlab_assistant/lang/.
• Continuing a chat: the chat is kept per project. When you come back to it later, Claude gets your last three prompts and looks at the project again, instead of reading the whole earlier conversation, which saves a lot of tokens. It reads the earlier chat only if it can't tell how to continue. The same happens once a chat gets very long.
• Attachments: attach screenshots, datasheets (PDF) or other files with the 📎 button, or paste or drop them into the input box. Pasted and dropped files are kept for a week in %TEMP%\PowerLabAssistant\attachments.
• Usage: the corner under the input box shows how much of your Claude plan's limit is used (e.g. 5h 49%) and how full this chat's context is. Hover for the reset time. Start a new chat (+) when the context gets full.
• One panel for both editors: the button in the PCB Editor and the one in the Schematic Editor show or hide the same panel, with one chat per project. Ask about either side from wherever you are: Claude sees the board and the schematic, which editor you're working in, and what is selected in each.
• One panel per KiCad: with two KiCad windows open (two projects), each one's button opens a panel of its own, titled with its project, and Claude works only on that KiCad. KiCad 10 on Windows gives an API connection only to the first KiCad, so the panel leaves an empty %TEMP%\kicad\api.sock file that makes every KiCad started afterwards open its own. If a panel says to restart its KiCad, that KiCad was started before the file existed: save, close it and start it again.
• Chats are kept: closing the panel, the editor or KiCad doesn't lose the chat. Reopen the panel on the same project and it continues where you left off. + starts a new chat.

Board:

• Some board edits (move, rotate, delete and others) apply live through KiCad's API server.
• When Claude changes the board file instead, the panel tells you to use File → Revert.

Schematic:

• Before each message, the panel makes sure the schematic is saved.
• After Claude changes a sheet, the panel reloads it in the Schematic Editor for you.

Skills

Skills teach Claude how the lab does specific jobs. The installer copies them to your Claude skills folder (%USERPROFILE%\.claude\skills\powerlab-*). Claude uses one automatically when your request matches it, both in the panel and in a terminal session started from the panel.

Skill	What it does	Try
powerlab-board-requirements	Before a new board is started, Claude asks for its requirements in a few short rounds of answer buttons (every question also has Other…, a box for your own answer): what it does, size, layers and layout, working temperature, cost and quantity, mounting and mechanics, and, if you need them, special conditions like altitude, EMI/EMC targets, humidity, vibration or a safety standard. You can attach a hand sketch, an enclosure drawing or a block diagram, add notes in your own words, or answer "use the lab defaults". The answers go into design-requirements.md in your project, with what they mean for the design (clearances, layers, part ratings, outline), and Claude keeps to them in later steps.	Start a new board from scratch
powerlab-pcb-design-rules	The lab's PCB design rules (without the lab's drawing sheet, logo and QR code: boards get a small "Designed with PowerLab KiCad Assistant and Claude" silkscreen text instead). It covers the PCBWay standard-price spec, DRC constraints, net classes, schematic rules, and placement, routing, via and pour rules. It also carries a review handbook of 233 layout rules, collected from manufacturer application notes, fab capability pages and expert reviews of real boards, each with a severity, what it looks like on a board, the fix and its sources. Claude follows it for any schematic or PCB design work.	Set up the design rules for this board
powerlab-placement	Before placing any part, Claude shows a block plan in the panel: the board, in its real shape from Edge.Cuts (round, rectangular or any other), with each functional block where it would go, top side solid and bottom side hatched, and how long the important connections will be. Board texts (board info, company text) and logos are on the plan too, so you can place them the same way. Hover a block to light it up; click it and KiCad selects its parts in the PCB editor and the schematic. Drag blocks to where you want them (the important connections, like the gate lines, follow and show the gap as you drag), turn a block (90° and 45° buttons, or type any angle), or move one to the other side with Move to bottom side / Move to top side, then press Send moves to Claude: Claude checks your plan and updates it. Gate drive and hot loops get the shortest distances: the gate driver sits in the middle of the MOSFETs it drives, and the MCU moves to the free space near it. It shows you the plan and asks whether to move anything; only then does it place the parts, block by block, and run the design review.

Routed power-electronics boards always need a human review: loop areas, return paths, and track widths on high-current nets.

The METU Power Lab library

The panel keeps your library clone up to date. When new parts are merged on GitHub, a bar offers Update.

Claude creates library parts in your clone, following HowToCreateNewDesign/DesignRules.md. When you have new or changed parts, the bar offers Share. Share:

1. Runs the lab's standards check on your changes.
2. Shows exactly which library files will be sent.
3. Opens a pull request from your GitHub account.

The same checks run on the pull request. For lab members (write access), it merges automatically once they pass, and everyone gets the parts with the next Update. Pull requests from others wait for a maintainer.

The checks can't confirm that pinouts or pad sizes match the datasheet, so verify that before you share. On GitHub, the hold label keeps a pull request open for review. Only files under symbols/, footprints/ and 3dmodels/ are ever shared.

Reporting problems

Use the bug button in the panel header, or Report on an error message. You'll see the full report before anything is sent:

• GitHub connected (recommended): Submit files the issue with your account, and you get notified about the fix. The panel can set up the connection for you (Connect GitHub).
• Not connected: Open in browser opens a pre-filled form here. Check it and press Submit new issue.

Reports are public, so don't add confidential details to the description.

Known limitations

• KiCad 10's schematic API is limited. It can't report the selection, save or reload. The panel works around this by using the editor's own Edit → Copy, File → Save and File → Revert. Your clipboard is restored afterwards. This needs KiCad's menus in English.
• Claude's permissions are limited. Inside the panel, Claude can only use the KiCad tools, read and write files, search the web, run kicad-cli, and zip outputs with tar -a -cf. Other shell commands are blocked, because the panel can't ask you for permission mid-run. Use the terminal button to continue a conversation in a full Claude Code session.
• The KiCad tools get small fixes from this repository. patches/kicad-mcp.patch keeps 3D models when parts are rotated (kipy 0.8 drops them), and adds the PowerLab router. The installer applies it on top of the pinned KiCad MCP server.
• Windows only, KiCad 10 only.

Contributing

Bug reports and pull requests are welcome. Open pull requests against the test branch: main only changes when a tested version is released. The panel's code is in plugin/powerlab_assistant (Python + an HTML/JS UI in panel.html). The schematic toolbar button is in plugin/powerlab-assistant-button.

License

CERN Open Hardware Licence Version 2 - Strongly Reciprocal, like the METU Power Lab libraries.

Claude and Claude Code are products of Anthropic. This project is not affiliated with or endorsed by Anthropic.

It builds on other open-source projects, which keep their own licenses:

• KiCad tools: KiCAD-MCP-Server (MIT), with a small MIT-licensed patch from this repository.
• Board views: PyMuPDF (AGPL-3.0).
• KiCad itself (GPL-3.0).

The installer downloads these from their official sources; this repository doesn't redistribute them. The full list, with links and licenses, is in THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md.