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Plan b

kaievns·plan-b

Plan b PCB layout, top view — open source Nordic nRF board by kaievns

About the Plan b PCB

Plan b is an open source Nordic nRF PCB design by kaievns, published on GitHub. It is a 4-layer board measuring 16 × 42 mm, with 61 components from 38 distinct parts.

Its main chip is the nRF52840-QIAA, from the Nordic nRF family. Other key parts include the TPS22919DCKR. By type, the board carries 23 capacitors, 9 resistors, 7 connectors, 6 inductors, 4 ICs and 2 crystals.

It belongs with the keyboards and iot & wireless designs in this gallery.

From the project

Baking the ultimate split BLE keyboard PCB

This is a tiny opinionated PCB that has everything packed in one place for creating split bluetooth keyboards on top of nrf52840 chip and ZMK firmware

- an improved nice!nano clone in a smaller package - has baked nice!view inside with a slot for LCD - has baked in RGB controller - has baked in 6-pin SPI interface for external sensor - has baked in wiring for 6x6 keyboard matrix via JST connectors - has baked in power/reset switches for both sides - high efficiency DC/DC buck converters for all power lines - heavily fabrication optimised BOM and PCB (est $130 per 5 units at JLCPCB)

Plan b, from the project README
From the project README

Main components on the Plan b

nRF52840-QIAATPS22919DCKR

Plan b bill of materials (BOM)

61 components, 38 distinct parts.

QtyPartRefs
1
nRF52840-QIAA
U1
1
nRF52840-QIAA
nPM1100-QDAx
U2
2
TPS22919DCKR
U3, U4
1
XTAL_SMD2016_32MHz_8pF_General
32MHz
X1
1
XTAL_SMD3215_32.768kHz_9pF_General
32.768kHz
X2
1
HRO_TYPE-C-31-M-12
J1
1
Battery
J2
1
rgb
J3
1
columns
J4
1
Conn_01x10
J5
1
rows
J6
1
sensor
J7
1
ANT2012LL13R2400A
AE1
4
100k
R_BLE1, R_BLE2, R_DIV1, R_DIV2
1
5k1
R_ICHG1
1
Power
SW1
1
Reset
SW2
1
L0603G (Amber)
LD2
1
L0603 (Blue)
LD3
2
600R
FB1, FB2
Show 18 more
QtyPartRefs
1
L0402-4n7
4.7 nH
L1
2
L0603-10µ
10µH
L2, L4
1
L0402-15n
15nH
L3
4
C0402-12p
12pF
C1, C2, C17, C18
1
C0402-0.8p
0.8 pF
C3
1
C0402-0.8p
0.5 pF
C4
4
C0402-100n
100nF
C5, C7, C8, C12
2
C0603-4µ7-6.3V-X7R
4.7µF
C6, C20
1
C0402-100n
820pF
C9
1
C0402-100p
100pF
C11
2
C0603-1µ0
1.0µF
C14, C15
1
C0402-47n
47nF
C16
1
C0603-4µ7-10V-X7S
10µF
C19
1
C0603-4µ7-10V-X7S
4.7µF
C21
3
1.0µF
C22, C30, C38
1
560pF
C37
4
5k1
R3, R21, R22, R33
5
100R
R8, R11, R14, R15, R16

Plan b design files

The KiCad project lives in the kaievns/plan-b repository on GitHub; these links point at the commit this page was built from.

Plan b: common questions

What microcontroller does the Plan b use?

The Plan b is built around the nRF52840-QIAA, from the Nordic nRF family.

How big is the Plan b PCB?

The Plan b measures 16 × 42 mm, has 4 copper layers and is 1.1412 mm thick.

How many components are on the Plan b?

61 components, from 38 distinct parts. The full bill of materials is listed on this page.

Where can I download the Plan b design files?

From the kaievns/plan-b repository on GitHub, which has the KiCad layout and the schematic; the links under Design files point to each one.

Can I use the Plan b design in my own project?

The repository has no license, so all rights stay with kaievns. Use it as a reference, and ask the author before reusing the design.

Can I test firmware for the Plan b without the hardware?

Yes. HardLabs builds a simulation of the board from its netlist and BOM, so you can run and debug Nordic nRF firmware against it before you order a PCB.

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