Kobee Studio

Modern PCB graphics for KiCad

Design beautiful labels, icons, connector overlays and PCB artwork without leaving KiCad.

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Current status: Kobee Studio 1.4.1 is the current stable release, tested with KiCad 10 on macOS and Windows. It uses KiCad's supported IPC plug-in method. Save your PCB before applying new artwork. Linux uses the same plug-in package, but still needs full UI and artwork validation, so it is not recommended yet for anything critical. If you test on Linux, bug reports, screenshots, and board files are very welcome.

Quick install

Install the stable release through KiCad's Plugin and Content Manager:

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mrcpuddington/mrcpuddington-kicad-repository/main/repository.json

1. Copy the stable repository URL above.
2. In KiCad, open Plugin and Content Manager → Manage repositories, choose Add, paste the URL, and save.
3. Refresh the catalogue, find Kobee Studio 1.4.1, and choose Install.

For troubleshooting, ZIP installation, testing builds and platform details, see the full installation instructions.

If you want the backstory, I wrote a short post about outgrowing KiBuzzard and starting Kobee Studio: I outgrew KiBuzzard, so I built a KiCad PCB graphics plugin.

The repository includes the editable KiCad showcase board used for this render, with labels, symbols, component callouts, component arrays, connector overlays, machine-readable codes and multilayer artwork.

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Why?

The goal of Kobee Studio is to create a complete toolkit for PCB graphics, bringing together text, labels, icons, connector overlays, branding, artwork and reusable design systems into a single, seamless workflow, all while keeping everything fully editable inside KiCad.

Kobee Studio began as a fork of KiBuzzard by Greg Davill, originally created to add features and workflow improvements I wanted for my own PCB design process. Since then, it has evolved far beyond its origins, with significant new functionality, much finer control over generated graphics, and support for KiCad's modern API, positioning it for KiCad 11 and beyond.

The long-term vision is for Kobee Studio to become the go-to graphics toolkit for KiCad, a single plugin that provides everything needed to create beautiful, consistent and professional looking PCBs without leaving the editor.

What’s in 1.4.1

Capability	What it does
Parametric labels	Filled, inverted and outline labels with flexible shapes, padding, borders, mixed ends and underlines.
Icons and quick labels	Searchable PCB-safe symbols and reusable labels, usable standalone, beside text or inside a label.
Custom SVG uploads	Add your own icons and symbol variants, with project-only or personal library scope.
Library visibility	Hide or show bundled symbols and quick labels so the picker stays focused on your workflow.
Saved profiles	Save, recall, delete and set defaults for tool settings across future artwork sessions.
Millimetres and mils	Switch measurement display units while keeping artwork geometry consistent internally.
Header overlays	Pin labels for single-row 2.54 mm headers, with clearances, openings and editable layout.
Component callouts and arrays	Frame packages, switches and LED arrays, or repeat callouts in editable rows and columns.
QR codes and barcodes	Generate fabrication-minded QR and Code 128 artwork with optional readable text.
Layer control	Generate artwork on front/back silkscreen, copper and solder-mask layers.

Everything lands as an ordinary, editable KiCad footprint. Kobee Studio never changes the electrical footprint underneath it.

Need a hand while you work? Use Need help? in the top-right of the editor to open the Kobee Studio docs for installation, tutorials and practical guidance.

Features

Kobee Studio keeps the workflow inside PCB Editor while producing ordinary, editable KiCad footprints.

Output layers

Generate artwork on:

• Front Silkscreen, Bottom Silkscreen, Front Copper, Bottom Copper, Front Solder Mask, Bottom Solder Mask

Header Overlays

Generate configurable connector overlays in seconds.

Current support: 2.54 mm single-row headers

Features: Automatic pin labels, Configurable plug clearance, optional openings

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Parametric Labels

Generate labels with configurable containers. Supported shapes include:

• Rounded rectangles, Pills, Flags, Tabs, Pointers, Chamfers, Hexagons

Every label supports:

• Fill, Outline, Border width, Padding, Corner radius, Independent end styles and an optional underline
• Quick insertion of useful special characters, including forward slash and backslash

Generated artwork remains fully editable inside KiCad.

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Component callouts

Component callouts create a clear label around a real component without changing its electrical footprint. Start with a common passive, LED or tactile-switch envelope, or enter custom dimensions when the package is unusual. Kobee Studio keeps a configurable safe zone around the part, then places the label and optional symbol on the chosen side.

For repeated parts, Component Array extends the same idea into a vertical stack or horizontal row, with editable pitch and one label per component. It is useful for LED banks, status indicators and other repeated board features that need to stay easy to identify.

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PCB Icons

Kobee Studio includes a growing collection of PCB-safe icons, plus a custom SVG library for icons and symbol variants that are specific to your own boards.

Current icons include:

• Ground, Power, LED, Battery, Warning, Input, Output, Test Point, Polarity

• Many More

Icons can be used standalone, beside text or inside labels. Use Settings → Uploads to add custom SVG assets, and Settings → Bundled visibility to hide or restore shipped symbols and quick labels.

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QR Codes and Barcodes

Generate machine-readable PCB artwork directly from a payload.

• QR Codes use automatic error-correction sizing and a protected four-module quiet zone.
• QR presentation can be plain, placed in a rounded frame, or use a rounded frame with an optional negative footer such as SCAN ME. Extra frame spacing is adjustable down to zero without reducing the protected quiet zone.
• Code 128 uses compact 0.25 mm modules and 4.0 mm bars by default, with guarded minimums of 0.20 mm and 3.0 mm.
• QR codes and barcodes can show a separate editable line of human-readable text below the generated code. The printed text does not change the encoded payload.

Small codes should always be checked against the chosen PCB finish, fabricator capabilities and the scanner that will be used.

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Roadmap

Kobee Studio is growing beyond labels into a complete PCB graphics toolkit.

I've started to create a more robust Roadmap, which will be updated as the project evolves.

Install Kobee Studio — KiCad 10

Kobee Studio is a KiCad plugin, not a footprint library.

Preferred: install through KiCad PCM

The preferred installation method is KiCad's Plugin and Content Manager. It keeps the package metadata, updates and version history connected to the Kobee Studio catalogue.

1. Open KiCad's Plugin and Content Manager.

2. Open Manage repositories, choose Add, and add the stable catalogue:

   https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mrcpuddington/mrcpuddington-kicad-repository/main/repository.json
   

3. Save the repository list and refresh the package catalogue.

4. Find Kobee Studio, select version 1.4.1, and choose Install.

If you previously added an older Kobee Studio repository URL, remove it before adding the stable URL above. Keep the testing repository separate so stable users do not accidentally install development builds.

To try current beta builds, add the testing catalogue using the same instructions:

https://raw.githubusercontent.com/mrcpuddington/mrcpuddington-kicad-repository/testing/repository.json

The testing catalogue is intentionally a rolling channel and may contain pre-release builds that have not had the same validation as stable releases.

Other option: install the ZIP manually

Use this route when KiCad cannot reach a repository, or when you need to test a specific release asset. Download Kobee-Studio-1.4.1-pcm.zip from the Kobee Studio 1.4.1 release. Do not unzip it.

1. Open KiCad's Plugin and Content Manager and choose Install from File….
2. Select the downloaded ZIP and approve the install.
3. Open a board in PCB Editor, then choose Tools → External Plugins → Kobee Studio: Create PCB Artwork. The Kobee Studio toolbar button can also be enabled from PCB Editor's Preferences/Settings → Action Plugins page.

If the toolbar button does not appear:

1. Fully quit PCB Editor and open it again.
2. Open PCB Editor's Preferences/Settings → Action Plugins page and make sure Show Button is enabled for Create PCB Artwork.
3. Use Refresh Plugins, then restart PCB Editor.

More installation help is available in the Kobee Studio docs.

Testing releases

Kobee Studio testing releases are built and published by the release workflow. Install them from the testing PCM repository or the attached release asset; there is no local package-build step for testers.

Platform support

Platform	KiCad version	Status
macOS	KiCad 10	1.4.1 tested working stable release
Windows	KiCad 10	1.4.1 tested working stable release
Linux	KiCad 10	Install path documented; full validation planned

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Help and contributing

For installation help, tutorials and practical Kobee Studio guides, visit the Kobee Studio docs.

Bug reports, ideas and pull requests are always welcome through GitHub. If you build something cool with Kobee Studio, I'd genuinely love to see it.

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Acknowledgements

Kobee Studio builds upon the work of some fantastic open-source projects.

Special thanks to:

• Greg Davill for creating KiBuzzard.
• SparkFun for the original Buzzard project.
• The Interactive HTML BOM contributors.
• The FontTools contributors.
• The svg2mod contributors.

Without their work, Kobee Studio wouldn't exist.

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License

Kobee Studio is distributed under GPL-2.0-only (GNU GPL version 2 only), a GPL-compatible open-source licence suitable for KiCad Python-plugin distribution. It incorporates MIT-licensed KiBuzzard material and retains Greg Davill’s original copyright and MIT permission notice alongside all other third-party notices.

See LICENCE and THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md for the complete notices.