Pcb Product Render

PCB Product Render

Use this skill when a user wants a KiCad PCB exported to STEP/GLB and rendered as realistic product imagery. The desired result is a clean product photograph/render, not a flat KiCad preview or vector-like orthographic diagram.

Required workflow

1. Identify the project root and the authoritative .kicad_pcb. If the user says “latest board,” always regenerate the STEP and GLB before rendering; never reuse an older GLB based only on its filename.
2. Run a current DRC report. Stop on violations unless the user has explicitly authorized proceeding (an earlier authorization applies only to that project/task). Record the report path and counts in the handoff.
3. Export with kicad-cli pcb export step and kicad-cli pcb export glb, using --force --no-dnp --subst-models. For the GLB include tracks, pads, zones, silkscreen, soldermask, and --cut-vias-in-body when supported.
4. Inspect the exported scene before rendering. Confirm the rounded outline and every mounting/cutout hole are present. Remove only unnecessary 3D header models; retain their footprints and pads. If a known vendor model is missing, use a deterministic custom Blender fallback and state that it is a fallback.
5. Render at least hero, near-overhead top, sensor/detail, and back views. Use Cycles with denoising and inspect the actual PNGs—not only a successful Blender exit code.
6. Verify dimensions, output timestamps, and any gallery/server endpoints. If an HTML gallery already exists, keep its filenames stable so it refreshes without breaking links.

Material targets

• Blue soldermask: deep royal blue LPI resin, non-metallic, moderately glossy rather than matte or mirror-polished. Use a smooth clear coat with low coat roughness, restrained micro-roughness/bump, and only subtle optical depth. Avoid high-contrast procedural grain.
• Bare FR-4: muted warm tan/amber fiberglass, slightly cloudy and translucent at the routed edges. Use controlled transmission/subsurface/volume absorption and soft underlighting. Keep the clear fraction low enough that stage graphics do not appear as sharp stripes through the laminate; open holes may reveal the stage below.
• ENIG: exposed copper/pads should read as pale metallic gold, not orange paint or raw copper. Adjust roughness and lighting so highlights do not clip to featureless white.
• Solder: if the source model has dry passive blocks, add small silver SAC-style solder fillets at their pad interfaces. Keep them irregular and subdued; do not turn them into bright white dots.
• Connector plastic: matte molded nylon with slight warm-gray variation, microscopic bump, and small physical edge bevels. Avoid opaque white blocks.
• Sensor housing: matte charcoal molded plastic with restrained pebbled texture; emitter/receiver materials should follow the user’s reference images.

Camera and stage

The top view should be a near-overhead perspective product shot, not an orthographic CAD view: retain a small tilt so board thickness, component height, and contact shadows are visible, with enough background margin for the stage. A dark brutalist/Marathon-style stage is acceptable, but colored accents must support the object rather than dominate it. Hide under-board tracers and backlights when they make the top view look diagrammatic; preserve them only when they produce soft, plausible FR-4 transmission.

Current project reference

The workflow was developed against:

/home/h/Documents/AmericanEmbedded/AmericanEmbedded/VL53L9CX_Pi_Cam

Important project artifacts:

• Board: VL53L9CX_Pi_Cam.kicad_pcb (31 mm × 25 mm in the current scene).
• Export helper: build/product-renders/export_board_3d.sh.
• Blender scene builder: build/product-renders/build_product_scene.py.
• Blender source: build/product-renders/VL53L9CX_STEMMA_QT.glb.
• Final scene: build/product-renders/VL53L9CX_STEMMA_QT-product-renders.blend.
• PNGs: VL53L9CX-STEMMA-QT-hero.png, VL53L9CX-STEMMA-QT-top.png, VL53L9CX-STEMMA-QT-sensor-detail.png, and VL53L9CX-STEMMA-QT-back.png.
• Gallery: VL53L9CX-render-gallery.html, served in the current setup at http://100.64.84.41:8765/.
• Latest DRC report: build/render-review/drc-latest-render.rpt. The current project was rendered under the user’s prior override despite 12 violations, 53 unconnected items, and one schematic-parity issue.

The current project intentionally has no rendered through-hole pin-header model. Its footprint/pads remain in KiCad. Y1’s missing vendor STEP is handled by the custom oscillator fallback in the Blender script.

Handoff requirements

Report the output directory, the gallery URL if available, the DRC status, and any missing-model fallback. Link local files with absolute paths. Do not describe a render as photorealistic without inspecting the resulting images; call out remaining source-model limitations when the KiCad footprint geometry is simplified.