Recently there have been some discussion on open source hardware.
Ladyada was referencing an article over at Electronics Weekly:
AT A GLANCE
- Open-source hardware offers an advanced start on your design.
- Open-source software complements open-source hardware.
- Open-source hardware prepares your PCB (printed-circuit-board)-fabrication and -assembly houses for high-volume production.
- You may want to share your improvements by making them open-source additions, as well.
Many designers are familiar with open-source software, such as Linux, in which the source code is available to all. However, fewer are familiar with organizations offering open-source hardware. These organizations release free information, including schematics, BOM (bill-of-materials) information, and PCB (printed-circuit-board)-layout data, covering the overall hardware design.
Designers with this information can build or add to a freely available design. In many cases, open-source software supports the original design, providing additional advantages. Some aspects of open-source hardware go beyond the sharing of the design itself.
These aspects can save time and money for not only hardware developers but also PCB designers and fabricators, contract manufacturers, and even software developers.
You can license open-source projects from organizations such as Creative Commons, which offers the Attribution-ShareAlike licensing program. Creative Commons stipulates that a user must attribute the open-source work in the manner that the original designer specifies but not in a way that indicates that the original designer endorses the user’s work. Likewise, if users provide that work as open-source hardware, releasing it back to the community for access by others, then they must provide that work under the same Attribution-ShareAlike licensing…
And Screaming Circuits had an interesting post too:
I've written a bit about open source hardware before, mostly in reference to the Beagleboard. I'm pretty sold on the concept, myself. But, while open source has become a household concept in the software world, it's still fairly new to hardware. In the case of the Beagleboard, it's really cool because it can give a designer a big head start on using the Ti OMAP processor. Anything from the whole schematic down to just the BGA escape routing can be applied to any design.
Open Source hardware is often done by tinkerers, which are often hobyist. But some professionals like mightyOhm are part of that scene too.
As a software developer I am fairly familiar with Open Sorce Software. But the boundaries between software and hardware start to blur. Even in the work models. In Open Source Software there are a lot of companies actually having a lot of people on their payrole just to contribute to open source hardware. Would there be any benefit for a manufactury or design company to do the same for hardware?
How do professionals think over Open Source Hardware. Is a Creative Commons Deisng something they can or will use? Even though if they have to pay for it?
Why do manufacturers not publish their reference designs and application notes as Open Source Hardware?
Are manufacturers open to Open Source Hardware, Tinkerers an Hobyists. Is there any benefit in it?
I recently got quite a hard time to get some information from a big automotive electronics manufacturer here in Germany. Don't they think it is a benefit if reference desings of their products float free in the internet?
If you find solutions from Tinkerers by googling – woud not real engineers have an head start and by that use their parts more often?
Why are professionals part of that scene? Tinker.it makes money with design and consulting. Screaming Circuit did the Beagleboard. Quantum Cad has an interesting blog about PCB design. And there are probably many other more.
