Start the board next to your firmware.

Describe a PCB beside your firmware. The $149 Proto Kit includes engineer review and five assembled, tested low-voltage DC, 2-layer boards up to 100 × 100 mm within the kit specifications. Four- and six-layer designs need engineer review and a separate quote. Shipping and import duties are extra, quoted before payment.

What is MCP?

The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard for connecting AI assistants to external tools and data sources. Ohmbo implements MCP, so you can describe a PCB in the same place you write firmware.

Quickstart

Add Ohmbo to your MCP client configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "ohmbo": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://mcp.ohmbo.com/mcp",
      "headers": {
        "Authorization": "Bearer <YOUR_API_KEY>"
      }
    }
  }
}

The hosted endpoint is not deployed yet. Use the endpoint and API key issued by the service operator when access is available. A free website design preview does not grant hosted MCP access.

Available tools

When connected, your assistant can call these tools:

Tool	What it does
create_design	Start a new board design from a plain-language description
get_job_status	Check the status of a design job (queued, running, done, failed, cancelled)
get_design_artifacts	Retrieve design artifacts for an authorized order; downloadable files require payment confirmation and order release
revise_design	Ask for design modifications in plain language

The hosted server also provides cancel_design, list_designs and list_blocks. For prototype orders, each board receives power-on, rail-voltage and functional checks using test firmware against a written test plan, with a test report. Test scope, acceptance criteria and who supplies the test firmware are confirmed before payment. Ships 10–15 working days after engineer approval; courier transit is additional. The $149 kit specifications are 2-layer FR-4, 1.6 mm, green solder mask, single-sided SMT, up to 5 through-hole parts and up to $10 in components per board.

How jobs work

Design jobs run asynchronously. The client receives a job ID and polls until the draft is ready. A done status does not mean engineer approval, physical testing or release of downloadable files.

Call create_design with your description. Returns a job ID.
Poll get_job_status with the job ID. Status changes from queued → running → done (or failed/cancelled).
For a released order, call get_design_artifacts after the design is done and payment is confirmed. Free previews do not include downloadable design or manufacturing files.
Optionally call revise_design to request changes. This creates a new job that reruns the whole design.

Authentication

The hosted MCP server requires a Ohmbo API key issued by the service operator. Keys created in the site's dashboard do not authorize MCP requests.

Example workflow

# In your coding assistant chat:

User: "Design an ESP32-C3 dev board with USB-C"

Assistant calls: create_design(prompt="ESP32-C3 dev board with USB-C")
→ Returns: job_id = "ohmbo-...", status = "queued"

Assistant calls: get_job_status(job_id="ohmbo-...")
→ Returns: status = "running"

(poll every 15–30 seconds)

Assistant calls: get_job_status(job_id="ohmbo-...")
→ Returns: status = "done"

# Download example for an order after payment confirmation and file release.
# A free online preview does not include downloadable design or manufacturing files.
Assistant calls: get_design_artifacts(job_id="ohmbo-...")
→ Returns: authorized design and manufacturing file URLs

CAD render from a completed Codex MCP design run with ESP32-C3, SHT40 and USB-C — Codex MCP run · 2 layers · 0 unrouted · 0 DRC errors · 68 warnings · CAD render; not physically tested

Rate limits and quotas

Each website account gets one free board design preview online. Physical prototypes and downloadable files require an order; files are released after payment confirmation and order release. Hosted MCP access is issued separately by the service operator, who sets each key’s per-minute request limits, hourly design limits and monthly design quotas.

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