Welcome to designer's dilema. That is taking decisions without being sure they are good. And never receiving confirmations that they were right ones, even later on. Doesnt feel so nice to be inside of that. It starts with you must ask yourself why u want this. Thats a key thing in how you choose to do it and how it will look like. You really need to figure this out before doing the board, very much depends on it. Including how happy you will be with the result.
RAMPS was made like that by a company which sold printers, and it was easier both for them and for users to have it like that. That was their motivation. If you plan on effectively doing a commercial product like that its probably similar. If you want it just for yourself or for a fairly small number of ppls, thats totally different, can go with diy and routing and wiring, and ofc is going to be hugely different.
Scrap anything from your mind and try choice like this. On one hand you have 5 stepper drivers, and on the other you have the required pinout. What do you choose: a) squeeze the stepper drivers on top of the pins, or B) use wires to connect. Now if you really start to think, does it really make sense to have the drivers sit on top of pins, or they are better of aside with some wires going to them? This kinda depends on what you want it for. Thats your answer to give to yourself.
If you ask me, i think stepper drivers have no business being there in the first place, they depend on the machine parameters, e.g. uC is capable to control 5kg mendel or 500kg milling machine, so the motor driver depend on physics and not uC, hence shouldnt sit on the shield. But again, thats just me and thats my answer i gave to myself, you need yours.
Imho, shields are highly overrated. And firmware developers have too many shields pinouts to sort out, and too messy.
RAMPS was made like that by a company which sold printers, and it was easier both for them and for users to have it like that. That was their motivation. If you plan on effectively doing a commercial product like that its probably similar. If you want it just for yourself or for a fairly small number of ppls, thats totally different, can go with diy and routing and wiring, and ofc is going to be hugely different.
Scrap anything from your mind and try choice like this. On one hand you have 5 stepper drivers, and on the other you have the required pinout. What do you choose: a) squeeze the stepper drivers on top of the pins, or B) use wires to connect. Now if you really start to think, does it really make sense to have the drivers sit on top of pins, or they are better of aside with some wires going to them? This kinda depends on what you want it for. Thats your answer to give to yourself.
If you ask me, i think stepper drivers have no business being there in the first place, they depend on the machine parameters, e.g. uC is capable to control 5kg mendel or 500kg milling machine, so the motor driver depend on physics and not uC, hence shouldnt sit on the shield. But again, thats just me and thats my answer i gave to myself, you need yours.
Imho, shields are highly overrated. And firmware developers have too many shields pinouts to sort out, and too messy.