Open Source Hardware

Open Source Hardwarehttps://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/What is the connection between Open Source Hardware and traditional engineering companies. How can professionals & hobbyists learn from each other. What can hardware developers learn from Open Source Software.en-USTelligent Community 12<link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/simple-dcr-assembling-a-7-mhz-40m-direct-conversion-radio-receiver-part-1?CommentId=b9a71430-6531-4692-bb31-89793cac47a9</link><pubDate>Sat, 25 Jul 2026 12:34:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:b9a71430-6531-4692-bb31-89793cac47a9</guid><dc:creator>rsjawale24</dc:creator><description>As a kid, I always wanted build a receiver myself, but I could never build one as it was difficult to find toroidal cores locally and then wind the inductors. I used to look for circuits that do not use them.</description></item><item><title>Forum Post: RE: Open Source Hardware Camp 2026 — Sat 29/08 & Sun 30/08, Hebden Bridge, Englandhttps://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/f/forum/57080/open-source-hardware-camp-2026-sat-29-08-sun-30-08-hebden-bridge-england/236459Tue, 21 Jul 2026 15:24:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:2550ab3f-ae99-4b51-9be8-20c19c3d19a9cstantonDoes this mean you're going OwainM ? You could even take some community swag to unofficially give out.Forum Post: RE: Open Source Hardware Camp 2026 — Sat 29/08 & Sun 30/08, Hebden Bridge, Englandhttps://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/f/forum/57080/open-source-hardware-camp-2026-sat-29-08-sun-30-08-hebden-bridge-england/236458Tue, 21 Jul 2026 15:19:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:d7ceaee6-a9c0-4b2e-a1f4-86f9a4b71db7OwainMIf you're around Hebden Bridge before or after the camp, the Hebden Bridge Picture House is also in the centre of the town. It's a beautiful 105-year old cinema which has interesting film showings on, I saw some indie films there last year. Their website is here, only a couple of showings seem to be on during the camp: hebdenbridgepicturehouse.co.uk/HebdenBridgePictureHouse.dll/Home<link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---ac-analysis-gain-and-bandwidth?CommentId=4e67ec02-7bed-45f9-8040-52b6171d1c3d</link><pubDate>Tue, 21 Jul 2026 09:30:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:4e67ec02-7bed-45f9-8040-52b6171d1c3d</guid><dc:creator>Jan Cumps</dc:creator><description>In LTSpice, with NPX BC547C model: ... and the zoom:</description></item><item><title /><link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---ac-analysis-gain-and-bandwidth?CommentId=510d4ee5-40cb-4310-aa3f-02d7921952ad</link><pubDate>Mon, 20 Jul 2026 15:37:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:510d4ee5-40cb-4310-aa3f-02d7921952ad</guid><dc:creator>jc2048</dc:creator><description>I'd do it like this with Tina-TI. Here I've asked for a DC Transfer Analysis where it sweeps a generator between two voltages and plots the result. I imagine you'll be able to do something equivalent, because it's almost certain to be fundamental to the spice simulator. The graph then shows the compliance of the source. Not very useful below 2V, but fine above, with a reasonably flat top. Below 0.5V the current goes negative, because there's a path back through the base-collector diode from the potential divider, but you can ignore that. This is with the vertical scale magnified so that you can see the slope better. Keep in mind that that's coming from simplified transistor models in a simulator - so the real slope may be different, and may not even be a precise straight line like that.</description></item><item><title /><link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---ac-analysis-gain-and-bandwidth?CommentId=8258906f-774a-4e70-93c8-e2af2b0abca8</link><pubDate>Mon, 20 Jul 2026 12:51:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:8258906f-774a-4e70-93c8-e2af2b0abca8</guid><dc:creator>Jan Cumps</dc:creator><description>IN1 out Q4 collector conditions: V+: 9V IN1: sinus 1 kHz, 100 mV rms IN2: ground</description></item><item><title>Forum Post: RE: Open Source Hardware Camp 2026 — Sat 29/08 & Sun 30/08, Hebden Bridge, Englandhttps://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/f/forum/57080/open-source-hardware-camp-2026-sat-29-08-sun-30-08-hebden-bridge-england/236422Sun, 19 Jul 2026 15:04:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:0034cd00-4d28-472b-a9d8-20c1f0816945dang74Thanks<link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---ac-analysis-gain-and-bandwidth?CommentId=6fe42aca-7ad9-4cf4-8105-e9fb2de76a91</link><pubDate>Sun, 19 Jul 2026 11:51:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:6fe42aca-7ad9-4cf4-8105-e9fb2de76a91</guid><dc:creator>Jan Cumps</dc:creator><description>First attempt to simulate the current source / sink:</description></item><item><title>Forum Post: RE: Open Source Hardware Camp 2026 — Sat 29/08 & Sun 30/08, Hebden Bridge, Englandhttps://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/f/forum/57080/open-source-hardware-camp-2026-sat-29-08-sun-30-08-hebden-bridge-england/236419Sun, 19 Jul 2026 10:17:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:911524a1-cfb9-42e7-bc1e-24415e4d1677michaelkellettThe OSHG weekend is still happening this year. MKForum Post: RE: Open Source Hardware Camp 2026 — Sat 29/08 & Sun 30/08, Hebden Bridge, Englandhttps://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/f/forum/57080/open-source-hardware-camp-2026-sat-29-08-sun-30-08-hebden-bridge-england/236418Sun, 19 Jul 2026 10:16:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:690b6581-9f06-4ddb-a524-48d2480a6de4michaelkellettWuthering Bytes isn't happening this year but it's never all about one subject. You can check out some history here: https://wutheringbytes.com/about MKForum Post: RE: Open Source Hardware Camp 2026 — Sat 29/08 & Sun 30/08, Hebden Bridge, Englandhttps://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/f/forum/57080/open-source-hardware-camp-2026-sat-29-08-sun-30-08-hebden-bridge-england/236417Sun, 19 Jul 2026 10:06:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:832dc1c1-59dc-47b0-9ba2-cf6aa5953cefdang74I just watched a video on Tiny Tape out. Getting your chip fabricated sounds intriguing. Is this what Wuthering Bytes is all about as well?<link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---ac-analysis-gain-and-bandwidth?CommentId=f9a6c97d-ac31-419d-baf9-d10aa41cc573</link><pubDate>Sun, 19 Jul 2026 08:04:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:f9a6c97d-ac31-419d-baf9-d10aa41cc573</guid><dc:creator>jc2048</dc:creator><description>"...since there are two inputs and I'd have to keep changing the signals..." Something that's handy for these kind of situations are the controlled sources in spice. Here I've got a voltage-controlled voltage source on the second input controlled by the generator on the first. If I set the controlled source gain to -1, then the second input is simply the inverse of whatever the generator is set to, and if I set the gain to 1, both inputs are the same and the second tracks the generator.</description></item><item><title>File: BJT Differential Amplifier with Active Load & Cascode Current Source Example 6https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/m/managed-videos/151525Sat, 18 Jul 2026 08:27:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:824c46c9-eeb0-45ae-8680-8acd0b5b5075Jan CumpsIn this video, we will discuss the sixth example of a BJT differential amplifier. In this example, the differential amplifier is biased using a cascode current source, which ensures the tail current source connected to the two emitters of the diff...nodal analysisthevenin nortonwiskundecalculuscircuitscontrol systemsbode plotRegeltechniekComplexe getallenanalog electronicsknooppuntsmethodesteady-state analysislinear algebrpower amplifierssuperpositionmatlabstabilitydifferential equtionsinleiding elektronicaSPICE PID Controllerelectronicselectrical engineeringelectric circuitssimulinkmesh current analysissource transformationelektrische netwerken<link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---dc-analysis?CommentId=0cf445c9-3082-49cb-948e-ee7c975d8113</link><pubDate>Sat, 18 Jul 2026 08:26:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:0cf445c9-3082-49cb-948e-ee7c975d8113</guid><dc:creator>Jan Cumps</dc:creator><description>Explanation from CAN education. There are a few differences in the circuit but the overall explanation holds: - slightly different active load / current mirror (connection of the Q2 and Q3 basis, R13 - different current source topography. Assume 2.2 mA in our circuit www.youtube.com/watch</description></item><item><title /><link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---ac-analysis-gain-and-bandwidth?CommentId=6662c01b-e955-4572-ac7e-9aaac3c0434f</link><pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2026 12:14:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:6662c01b-e955-4572-ac7e-9aaac3c0434f</guid><dc:creator>shabaz</dc:creator><description>From memory I originally didn't have any of that, and used a resistor, but needed beyond a certain value to then be able to have lower gain and low distortion (since this stage wasn't intended to have high gain; I would have been happy with just 6 dB or so) but couldn't find a combination that would also give me a good signal input range (I needed at least several hundred mV to suit the circuitry preceeding it). Eventually I gave up and tried the BJT current sink, there may well be more optimal biasing that could have eliminated the need for the BJT sink at all, I just couldn't find it through trial-and-error (I'm not an analog designer otherwise I may have known a better technique). (By trial-and-error I mean using the KiCad simulator). Once I went down that road although I took some time on it, I believe better results could be achieved. I likely just started with one transistor and then for some reason switched to the darlington pair, but there are better current sink topologies. For the combination of relatively large input (few hundred mV p-p), what seemed like good common signal rejection, low desired gain and low distortion in the speech bandwidth, the tweaks had reached a point where the simulator results suggested there was no need to improve further. I was finding it took ages to find something optimal since there are two inputs and I'd have to keep changing the signals to check it was still working fine across these requirements.</description></item><item><title /><link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---ac-analysis-gain-and-bandwidth?CommentId=ae165b30-dc7f-459d-b099-43041b891ac7</link><pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2026 12:10:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:ae165b30-dc7f-459d-b099-43041b891ac7</guid><dc:creator>Jan Cumps</dc:creator><description>Testing common mode rejection. Same signal to + and - input, then measure if the output is "nothing".</description></item><item><title /><link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---ac-analysis-gain-and-bandwidth?CommentId=8153133c-c959-40d7-b2dc-08e60e35ea4b</link><pubDate>Fri, 17 Jul 2026 09:10:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:8153133c-c959-40d7-b2dc-08e60e35ea4b</guid><dc:creator>Jan Cumps</dc:creator><description>shabaz , the current source in the tail of the differential amp (orange area below): what was your inspiration to design that sub-circuit that way?</description></item><item><title>Forum Post: RE: Open Source Hardware Camp 2026 — Sat 29/08 & Sun 30/08, Hebden Bridge, Englandhttps://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/f/forum/57080/open-source-hardware-camp-2026-sat-29-08-sun-30-08-hebden-bridge-england/236406Thu, 16 Jul 2026 21:35:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:70433eac-fca9-486a-a128-58e89c362d0eWorkshopshedIt does look like a good event and I might do the next one, after this one<link>https://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/b/blog/posts/discrete-difference-amplifier---ac-analysis-gain-and-bandwidth?CommentId=5ddf9bac-7acb-4c98-9b1c-c92708ee7ca6</link><pubDate>Thu, 16 Jul 2026 09:57:00 GMT</pubDate><guid isPermaLink="false">93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:5ddf9bac-7acb-4c98-9b1c-c92708ee7ca6</guid><dc:creator>Jan Cumps</dc:creator><description>For the next blog, I plan to show some internal signals test how the circuit behaves when there is an identical signal on both inputs (desired/theoretical result: no output signal) go into the design, maybe based on Art of Electronics:</description></item><item><title>Forum Post: RE: Open Source Hardware Camp 2026 — Sat 29/08 & Sun 30/08, Hebden Bridge, Englandhttps://community.element14.com/technologies/open-source-hardware/f/forum/57080/open-source-hardware-camp-2026-sat-29-08-sun-30-08-hebden-bridge-england/236386Wed, 15 Jul 2026 12:57:00 GMT93d5dcb4-84c2-446f-b2cb-99731719e767:b2417302-57b7-4f49-9772-d4676006fe24michaelkellettYou would have to check on the link in the original post. Previous events at Hebden Bridge are very much in person and hands on - you wouldn't get much out of them remotely. MK