Open design
Encyclopedia
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
movement, but are implemented for the development of physical products rather than software.
Sources of the open design movement
The principles of open design are derived from the Free SoftwareFree software
Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
and Open Source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
movements. In 1997 Eric S. Raymond
Eric S. Raymond
Eric Steven Raymond , often referred to as ESR, is an American computer programmer, author and open source software advocate. After the 1997 publication of The Cathedral and the Bazaar, Raymond was for a number of years frequently quoted as an unofficial spokesman for the open source movement...
, Tim O'Reilly
Tim O'Reilly
Tim O'Reilly is the founder of O'Reilly Media and a supporter of the free software and open source movements.-Life and career:...
and Larry Augustin
Larry Augustin
Larry Augustin is CEO of SugarCRM and is a former venture capitalist and the co-founder and former chairman of VA Software, now known as Geeknet. He founded VA Research, the predecessor to that company, in 1993 while a Ph.D...
established "Open Source" as an alternative expression to "Free Software," and in 1997 Bruce Perens
Bruce Perens
Bruce Perens is a computer programmer and advocate in the open source community. He created the Open Source Definition and published the first formal announcement and manifesto of open source. He co-founded the Open Source Initiative with Eric S...
published the Open Source Definition. In late 1998, Dr. Sepehr Kiani (a PhD in mechanical engineering from MIT) realized that designers could benefit from Open Source policies, and in early 1999 he convinced Dr. Ryan Vallance and Dr. Samir Nayfeh of the potential benefits of open design in machine design applications.. Together they established the Open Design Foundation (ODF) as a non-profit corporation, and set out to develop an Open Design Definition..
The idea of open design was taken up, either simultaneously or subsequently, by several other groups and individuals. The principles of open design are closely similar to those of Open source hardware
Open source hardware
Open source hardware consists of physical artifacts of technology designed and offered in the same manner as free and open source software . Open source hardware is part of the open source culture movement and applies a like concept to a variety of components. The term usually means that...
design, which emerged in March 1998 when Reinoud Lamberts of the Delft University of Technology
Delft University of Technology
Delft University of Technology , also known as TU Delft, is the largest and oldest Dutch public technical university, located in Delft, Netherlands...
proposed on his “Open Design Circuits” website the creation of a hardware design community in the spirit of free software.
Current directions of the open design movement
The open design movement currently unites two trends. On the one hand, people apply their skills and time to projects for the common goodCommon good
The common good is a term that can refer to several different concepts. In the popular meaning, the common good describes a specific "good" that is shared and beneficial for all members of a given community...
, perhaps where funding or commercial interest is lacking, for developing countries
Developing country
A developing country, also known as a less-developed country, is a nation with a low level of material well-being. Since no single definition of the term developing country is recognized internationally, the levels of development may vary widely within so-called developing countries...
or to help to spread ecological or cheaper technologies. On the other hand, open design may provide a framework for developing very advanced projects and technologies that might be beyond the resource of any one company or country and involve people who, without the copyleft
Copyleft
Copyleft is a play on the word copyright to describe the practice of using copyright law to offer the right to distribute copies and modified versions of a work and requiring that the same rights be preserved in modified versions of the work...
mechanism, might not otherwise collaborate. There is also now a third trend where these two methods come together to use high-tech local solutions to sustainable development.
Open machine design as compared to open-source software
The "open design" movement is currently fairly nascent but holds great potential for the future. In some respects design and engineering are even more suited to open collaborative development than the increasingly common open-source software projects, because with 3D models and photographs the concept can often be understood visually. It is not even necessary that the project members speak the same languages to usefully collaborate.However there are certain barriers to overcome for open design when compared to software development where there are mature and widely used tools available and the duplication and distribution of code cost next to nothing. Creating, testing and modifying physical designs is not quite so straightforward because of the effort, time and cost required to create the physical artefact; although with access to emerging flexible computer-controlled manufacturing techniques the complexity and effort of construction can be significantly reduced (see tools mentioned in the fab lab
Fab lab
A fab lab is a small-scale workshop offering digital fabrication.A fab lab is generally equipped with an array of flexible computer controlled tools that cover several different length scales and various materials, with the aim to make "almost anything"...
article).
Open design organizations
Open design is currently a fledgling movement consisting of several unrelated or loosely related initiatives. Many of these organizations are single, funded projects, while a few organizations are focusing on an area needing development.- AppropediaAppropediaAppropedia is a website for collaborative solutions in sustainability, poverty reduction and international development, with a particular focus on appropriate technology. Appropedia is a wiki-based website like Wikipedia, a website where a large number of participants are allowed to create and...
- VOICEDVOICEDVirtual Organization for Innovative Conceptual Engineering Design is a virtual organization that promotes innovation in engineering design. This project is the collaborative work of researchers at five universities across the United States, and is funded by the National Science Foundation...
- InstructablesInstructablesInstructables is a website specializing in user-created and uploaded do-it-yourself projects, which other users can comment on and rate for quality. It was created by Eric Wilhelm, a mechanical engineer, and launched in August 2005. Instructables is dedicated to step-by-step collaboration among...
- ThingiverseThingiverseThingiverse is a website dedicated to the sharing of user-created digital design files. Providing primarily open source hardware designs licensed under the GNU General Public License or Creative Commons licenses, users choose the type of user license they wish to attach to the designs they share...
- Cornell University; the organisation behind Factory@Home
- VIA OpenBookVIA OpenBookVIA OpenBook is an open-source hardware laptop reference design from VIA Technologies. It was announced in 2008.-Specifications:-Processor, memory:*Processor: 1.0 GHz VIA Nano ULV*Chipset: VIA VX800 unified*Memory: DDR2 SO-DIMM up to 2 GB...
netbook has CAD files for the design licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution Share Alike 3.0 Unported LicenseCreative Commons licensesCreative Commons licenses are several copyright licenses that allow the distribution of copyrighted works. The licenses differ by several combinations that condition the terms of distribution. They were initially released on December 16, 2002 by Creative Commons, a U.S... - One Laptop Per Child, a project to give every child in developing territories a laptop computer with open hardware and software
- AguaClaraAguaClaraAguaClara is a project in Civil and Environmental Engineering at Cornell University that designs water treatment plants using the open source model...
, an open-source engineering group at Cornell University publishing a design tool and CAD designs for water treatment plants
See also
- Commons-based peer productionCommons-based peer productionCommons-based peer production is a term coined by Harvard Law School professor Yochai Benkler to describe a new model of socio-economic production in which the creative energy of large numbers of people is coordinated into large, meaningful projects mostly without traditional hierarchical...
- Machine designMachine DesignMachine Design is an American trade magazine and Web site serving the OEM engineering market. Its print issues reach qualified design engineers and engineering managers twice a month....
- Open sourceOpen sourceThe term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
- Knowledge commonsKnowledge commonsThe knowledge commons encompass immaterial and collectively owned goods in the information age. Normatively loaded, it promotes free share of knowledge...
- Open Source Appropriate TechnologyOpen Source Appropriate TechnologyOpen-source appropriate technology refers to technologies that are designed in the same fashion as free and open-source software. These technologies must be "appropriate technology" – meaning technology that is designed with special consideration to the environmental, ethical, cultural, social,...
- Open source software
- Open-source hardware - open-source computer and electronic hardware
- Open Standards
- OpenBTSOpenBTSOpenBTS is a software-based GSM access point, allowing standard GSM-compatible mobile phones to make telephone calls without using existing telecommunication providers' networks...
- Open Source ArchitectureOpen Source ArchitectureOpen-source architecture is an emerging paradigm describing new procedures for the design, construction and operation of buildings, infrastructure and spaces...
- Service DesignService designService design is the activity of planning and organizing people, infrastructure, communication and material components of a service in order to improve its quality and the interaction between service provider and customers....
External links
- Episodes of Collective Invention (Peter B. Meyer, August 2003) An article on several historical examples of what could be called "open design."
- The Political Economy of Open Source Software (Steven Weber, June 2000) An article outlining the development of Linux Operating System from a political-science perspective. The conclusion suggests that the open-source development model is suited to disciplines besides software development.
- worldchanging archives (Alex SteffenAlex SteffenAlex Steffen is an American writer, editor, public speaker and futurist most noted for his bright green ideas.Steffen co-founded and ran the online magazine Worldchanging from its start in 2003 until its closure in 2010...
, November 2006) An interview with Lawrence LessigLawrence LessigLawrence "Larry" Lessig is an American academic and political activist. He is best known as a proponent of reduced legal restrictions on copyright, trademark, and radio frequency spectrum, particularly in technology applications, and he has called for state-based activism to promote substantive...
on the use of the Developing Nations License by Architecture for HumanityArchitecture for HumanityArchitecture for Humanity is a charitable organization that seeks architectural solutions to humanitarian crises and brings professional design services to communities in need...
to create a global open design network. - Open Design Team Communication @ ICED '09
- The Emergence of Open Design and Open Manufacturing Michel Bauwens, We Magazine Volume 2
- designbreak - open science, engineering and design non-profit, with a focus on interdisciplinary collaboration to address issues of health and poverty.
- In the Next Industrial Revolution, Atoms Are the New Bits Chris Anderson, Wired February 2010
- Open Design Now (June 2011)
- CIS.doc # 04. Open Design (February 2011)
- Open Design is going mainstream now (first part, second part, third part)