KiHub

Product Introduction

1. Definition: KiHub is a specialized, browser-based hardware design review and collaboration platform built specifically for KiCad projects. It operates as a SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) layer that integrates with GitHub to provide visual, context-aware review workflows for electronic design changes.
2. Core Value Proposition: KiHub exists to solve the critical gap in hardware development workflows by transforming unreadable Git diffs of KiCad schematic (.kicad_sch) and PCB (.kicad_pcb) files into a visual, collaborative review environment. Its primary value is enabling engineering teams to conduct thorough, design-aware reviews with visual diffs, automated checks, and pinned discussions before a change is merged, thereby preventing costly errors from reaching manufacturing.

Main Features

1. Visual and Semantic Diffs: KiHub generates browser-native visual comparisons of KiCad revisions, moving beyond text-based Git diffs. It renders schematic sheets and PCB layouts side-by-side, highlighting changes to components, nets, footprints, and tracks in their full design context. The system parses the KiCad file formats to understand hardware objects, allowing reviewers to filter changes by file, layer, or object type.
2. Integrated Design Rule and Electrical Rule Checks (DRC/ERC): The platform automatically runs KiCad's DRC and ERC engines on the compared revisions as part of the review process. Results are surfaced directly in the review workspace, distinguishing between errors and warnings. Teams can configure these checks as mandatory "gates" that must pass before a design can be approved, integrating validation into the review decision.
3. Canvas-Pinned Design Discussions: Instead of commenting on lines of source code in a GitHub pull request, reviewers can pin comments, questions, and requested changes directly onto the visual schematic canvas or PCB layout. This ensures feedback is anchored to the precise design element (e.g., a specific component or trace), eliminating ambiguity. Threads track resolution status and participant context.
4. Auditable Review Record and Merge Readiness Dashboard: KiHub maintains a permanent, traceable record for each review, capturing all visual evidence, check results (DRC, ERC, BOM parity), discussion threads, approvals, and the final decision rationale. It consolidates fragmented "readiness signals" into a single dashboard, providing a clear, auditable answer to whether a hardware revision is ready to merge.

Problems Solved

1. Pain Point: Traditional code review tools like GitHub are ill-suited for hardware design. A .kicad_sch diff shows syntax changes but obscures the electrical circuit impact, while a .kicad_pcb diff points to file lines, not board locations. This leads to miscommunication, missed errors, and inefficient review cycles.
2. Target Audience: The primary users are hardware engineering teams using KiCad and Git/GitHub for version control. Key personas include PCB Designers reviewing layout changes, Electrical Engineers validating schematic intent, Engineering Leads managing approval gates, and DevOps engineers seeking to integrate hardware checks into CI/CD pipelines.
3. Use Cases: Essential scenarios include: reviewing a pull request for a new circuit block addition; validating a PCB respin for manufacturability before release; conducting a pre-tag design checkpoint without a formal pull request; and onboarding new team members by walking through historical design changes in a visual context.

Unique Advantages

1. Differentiation: Unlike generic diff tools or manual screenshot comparisons, KiHub is purpose-built for KiCad's data model. It does not replace KiCad (the editor) or GitHub (the source of truth). Instead, it inserts a dedicated review layer between them, whereas competitors either don't exist or offer only generic visual diffing without deep KiCad integration, checks, and structured workflow.
2. Key Innovation: KiHub's core innovation is its semantic parsing of KiCad project files to construct a hardware-object model for comparison and discussion. This allows it to map a textual change in a schematic file to the visual component and net on the sheet, and a PCB file change to the actual footprint and copper layer on the board, enabling truly hardware-aware collaboration.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. How does KiHub handle my private KiCad design files and IP security? KiHub is a GitHub App with explicit, repository-scoped read-only permissions. It processes original files transiently to generate review artifacts and then removes them from active processing storage. It never has write access to your repository, and public sharing links are opt-in and revocable.
2. Can I use KiHub for a KiCad review without creating a GitHub pull request? Yes. While KiHub integrates automatically with pull requests, you can also initiate a manual review by comparing any two Git references—such as branches, tags, or specific commit hashes—directly within KiHub's interface for design checkpoints or internal audits.
3. What versions of KiCad file formats are compatible with the KiHub review platform? KiHub supports modern KiCad 6+ project formats (.kicad_sch, .kicad_pcb). The toolchain is selected during repository connection. Users with legacy or mixed-version projects should contact KiHub support for compatibility evaluation before onboarding.
4. Is KiHub free to use for private hardware design repositories? During its beta period, KiHub is free for both public and private repositories, offering the full core review workflow without a credit card requirement. Post-beta, a pricing model for private repos will be announced, while public repo reviews will remain free.
5. How does KiHub integrate with our existing GitHub CI/CD and merge checks? KiHub posts detailed review statuses back to the connected GitHub pull request using the GitHub Checks API. This allows teams to require a "passing" KiHub review (with all required gates approved) as a mandatory status check before a pull request can be merged, embedding hardware review directly into the engineering workflow.