Building Open Source Hardware: DIY Manufacturing for Hackers and Makers

About

Features

• Provides information, insights, and context from licensing to remixing, and beyond
• Includes detailed coverage of designing for manufacture and troubleshooting manufacturing problems
• Contains a complete open source hardware kit designed to encourage experimentation
• By Alicia Gibb, founder of the Open Source Hardware Association and organizer of the Open Hardware Summit; includes contributions from many open hardware community pioneers

Description

This is the first hands-on guide to the entire process of designing and manufacturing open source hardware. Drawing on extensive personal experience with DIY, maker, and hardware hacking projects, industry-leading contributors share proven approaches to design, remixing, fabrication, manufacturing, troubleshooting, licensing, documentation, and running an open source hardware business.

Part I covers the emergence and evolution of open source hardware, what open source hardware licenses mean, and the growing role of standards in making hardware more open. Part II offers contributors’ expert advice on key tasks, ranging from creating derivatives to using source files. Part III turns to production, showing how to manufacture at multiple scales–from personal to commercial.

Appendixes provide valuable checklists for design, manufacture, security, and documentation. And to foster even more hands-on learning and experimentation, the low-cost Blinky Buildings open source hardware kit is used as an example throughout.

Learn how to

• Get involved in the open source hardware community–its history and values
• Develop designs you can successfully prototype and manufacture
• Walk step by step through making derivatives from existing projects
• Build open source 3D printers, and remix 3D printable objects
• Create open source wearables
• Work with diverse source files, from electronics to other physical materials
• Fabricate your own designs
• Move from prototype to commercial manufacturing, and troubleshoot problems
• Choose a business model and build a profitable open source hardware company
• Avoid pitfalls associated with trademarks, copyrights, patents, and licensing
• Write documentation other hardware hackers can use
• Use open source hardware in education, helping students learn without boundaries

Extras

Author's Site

Please visit the author's site here

Companion Site

Please visit the website associated with Building Open Source Hardware at bit.ly/buildingoshw.

Sample Content

Sample Pages

Download the sample pages (includes Chapters 6 and 11 and Index)

Table of Contents

Introduction         xiii

The First Programs, Organizations, and Definitions  4

TAPR OHL  6

OHANDA 6

OSHW Definition, Summit, and Logo  7

CERN OHL  8

Forking of Open Hardware and Open Source Hardware  9

Creation of OSHWA  9

References  11

Chapter 2: OSHW Definition and Best Practices         13

Open Source Hardware Definition  13

Best Practices  16

Summary  30

Chapter 3: Licensing Open Source Hardware         31

Licensing  31

Open Licenses in the Context of OSHW  32

Copyright, Patent, and Trademark: Rights That You Might Be Able to License  33

Actually Licensing a Copyright, Patent, or Trademark  36

What to Do Now  39

Summary  40

Resources  41

Chapter 4: Standardization of Open Source Hardware         43

Firming up the Soft Parts: Making Software Firmer  44

Softening up the Hard Parts: Making Hardware More Flexible  47

Other Standardization and Regulation  49

Summary  51

The Phase of Projects  56

Iterative Design and Concept Refinement  58

Setting up Your Workflow  60

Managing Constant Iteration  61

Every Master Plan Has an Exit Strategy  61

Preparing for Manufacturing  62

Summary  63

Resources  63

Chapter 6: Making a Derivative         65

Derivatives and Open Source Hardware  65

Blinky Buildings Project  69

Summary  81

Chapter 7: Modifying the Shape of an Arduino         83

Shapes of an Arduino Deriv

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