Check Whether Placement Export Filters Remove Mixed-Technology Packages

A placement export filtered to surface-mount work can unexpectedly omit a connector or shield with a mixture of pad types. Determine whether the filter operates on the footprint’s assembly attribute, its individual pads, or an explicit exclusion flag. These are different definitions of which components belong in the file.

Inspect the package that breaks the simple rule

A connector may have surface-mount signal contacts plus plated mechanical stakes. It can still be placed during the SMT operation. A filter that removes every footprint containing a through-hole pad may therefore exclude a legitimate placement, even though the footprint is classified as SMD.

KiCad 9 documents separate placement filters for SMD footprints and footprints containing through-hole pads. This distinction provides a concrete reason to review the effective reference list instead of trusting the export dialog’s general purpose.

Reconcile by operation

Build an expected reference set for the intended operation, then compare it with the generated file. Count alone is insufficient because an unintended inclusion can cancel an omission numerically. The reference-set comparison should identify each mismatch and its approved disposition.

Keep soldering route separate from placement data

For example, a connector may be machine placed but later receive a different soldering operation for selected terminals. Excluding it from all placement data would not communicate that sequence. Its pin-in-paste feasibility review, if applicable, is also separate from whether its coordinates are required by the placement machine.

Review the supplier’s import result, including nozzle and feeder preparation for the mixed package. A coordinate row does not prove that the package can be handled automatically, but its absence should never be an accidental consequence of a broad filter.

Save the chosen filters and expected reference set with the release. After a footprint revision adds a plated stake or changes its classification, repeat the comparison even when its origin and orientation remain identical. Structural footprint changes can affect export membership without moving a component on the board.