The problem

I have a genuinely bad memory. Hand-assembling a board meant a constant loop: look at
the EDA, memorize "R7, 27R, 0402, top right", find the tape, place it, forget
everything, repeat. That loop ran once for every single component. Multiply by a small
production run and it's exhausting, slow, and error-prone.

Warehouses solved this decades ago with pick-to-light. PIKKed shrinks that idea onto a
bench-top device.

This took three years and three complete hardware versions to get right.

How it works

1. Enter the BOM in the free browser configurator (type it, or import the CSV from
   KiCad/Altium/EasyEDA: designator, value, footprint).
2. Auto-place distributes every part onto plates: 3D-printed grids of bays that sit on a
   9×6 matrix of addressable RGB LEDs. Big parts get merged bays. Drag to reorder the
   pick sequence.
3. Download the plate as a print-ready STL and the job as a plain-text file, transferred
   over USB-C.
4. On the bench, the device runs the whole job standalone: the bay with the next part
   glows, the OLED shows designator, value, footprint and piece count. Place, press the
   key, next light. No computer, no cloud, no account.

Hardware (v3)

- RP2040. PIO makes driving the WS2812 matrix trivial and rock-solid.
- 9×6 addressable RGB LED matrix (54 bays, ~1 cm pitch) under translucent 3D-printed plates.
- Monochrome OLED + three keyboard-style keys (the amber one confirms a pick).
- USB-C for job transfer, firmware updates and power.
- 3D-printed body and swappable plates; plate layouts are user-designable with merged
  bays for ICs, connectors and cut tape.
- Expansion support on the **back side** of the board for snap-on modules: RFID plate
  detection, WiFi job upload and grid expansion are in development.

Try the software right now

The configurator is free, runs entirely in your browser, needs no account, and your
projects never leave your machine. You can design plates and simulate a whole assembly
sequence before the device even arrives: https://pikked-app.alienlogic.it/

You can even design your custom layout, download the STL and 3D Print it at Home.

Links

- Website: https://pikked.alienlogic.it/
- Configurator: https://pikked-app.alienlogic.it/