Glossary

This glossary explains common electronics, manufacturing, and evidence terms used in KiCad MCP Pro docs and agent workflows.

Term	Meaning
ERC	Electrical Rules Check. A schematic-level check for issues such as unconnected pins, conflicting pin types, or undriven power inputs.
DRC	Design Rules Check. A PCB-level check for clearance, track width, via, zone, and manufacturing rule violations.
DFM	Design for Manufacturing. Review of whether a board can be fabricated and assembled reliably by a manufacturer.
BOM	Bill of Materials. The component list needed for sourcing, assembly, costing, and release review.
Gerber	Standard PCB fabrication output describing copper, solder mask, silkscreen, and related manufacturing layers.
Drill file	Manufacturing output describing plated and non-plated holes. Usually reviewed with Gerbers before fabrication.
Pick-and-place	Assembly file listing component references, package positions, rotations, and board side.
Proof artifact	A durable file that supports a claim made by a tool run, such as a report, manifest, rendered image, exported package, or CI output.
Visual evidence	A render, screenshot, diff image, or preview that lets a human or agent inspect visible design state.
Manifest	A structured JSON file that records what happened during a workflow, including inputs, watched files, generated artifacts, warnings, and safety decisions.
Live preview	A schematic feedback workflow that watches design files and can produce rendered preview evidence after changes settle.
Human sign-off	Final engineering approval by a qualified human. KiCad MCP Pro can assist review but does not replace sign-off.

Agent usage note

Agents should prefer structured tool output and proof artifacts over natural-language summaries when making workflow decisions. A clean ERC/DRC/DFM result is useful evidence, but it is not a guarantee of fabrication readiness or product safety.