[p2p-research] Open Hardware Conference

[dan mcquillan]

interesting event in london on friday.

http://openhardware.eventbrite.com/

"This is an event to bring key projects, their participants and
stakeholders together in the emerging field of Open Hardware
development, organized by 40Fires in partnership with Nesta.

The 40Fires Foundation is a forum to develop energy-efficient cars,
and other sustainable products, using an open source approach.

The event aims to inform participants about Open Hardware, to be a
space to discuss and learn and to explore practical solutions and
potential collaborations to help Open Hardware work better, for a
better world.

 Background:

Open Hardware has become the next frontier in innovation, research and
the development of computer and electronics hardware and machinery.

It name is derived from Open Source Software, because it is similar in
many ways: the hardware is free for anyone to modify and build upon by
a virtual community of contributors.

It follows a broader trend to open up innovation, product research and
development. This is called by various names including open
innovation, open design, crowd-sourcing or co-creation. Needless to
say the degree of sharing Intellectual Property varies hugely amongst
these concepts and some might argue is at times far away from Open
Source.

Today decentralized groups of often hundreds of individuals, not tied
into the traditional hierarchy of a corporation, are producing high
quality software. However the development of physical objects is a
very different proposition. The biggest difference is perhaps that
changes, enhancements and modifications cannot be instantly tested.
Ultimately, new designs need to be built into prototypes which
requires investment.

There are now a number of nascent businesses that are exploring these
questions. They are developing new and creative ways to adapt the Open
Source approach to the world of hardware, developing chips, mobile
phones and cars. There various motivations for companies to use this
approach including speeding up innovation, lowering costs and
fostering wide spread adoption of the product.  Even attracting
competition  has its advantages – as the number of products being made
increases, component costs fall.



Aims:

 Questions the event will address are:

    - what are successful strategies to form communities of engineers
and tinkerers to collaboratively develop and design hardware;

  - how can we foster the creation of an Open Source like ecology
where altruistic, pragmatic and economic incentives coalesce in the
production of complex physical objects -

 - in Open Source the GPL (General Pubic License) has played a key
role in binding communities together through ensuring that
enhancements are kept 'open'. How can a GPL equivalent work for
hardware and what are the right legal strategies to ensure
sustainability of collaboration.



Structure:

The structure of the event resembles in part a Bar Camp where
participants self-organize into groups according to their common
interests.  At the same time we have invited a few OS hardware
projects to present what they do and how.

If you want to suggest a topic for one of the open sessions send an
email to info at openbusiness.cc

There will also be a few tinkerers and makers present who will have
chips, sensors, robots and other pieces of electric joinery to build
upon.



Agenda:



9.30 – 10.00 am - Registration

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

10am to 10.15 am - Meet and Greet

Welcome – David Simoes Brown (NESTA), Roland Harwood (NESTA),

Patrick Andrews (40Fires).

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

10.15 – 11.15 am - Open Hardware Intro: Overview of projects,
techniques, business models

Intro and Moderation: Christian Ahlert OpenBusiness/40Fires

Daniel Soltis – The Case of Arduino

Francesco d’Orazio – From Crowd Sourcing, over Co-Creation to Open Hardware

Q & A

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

11.15 – 11.30 am– Coffee Break

11.30 – 12.15am

The case of Open Car Design

Hugo Spowers, Patrick Andrews– Riversimple/40 Fires

C, MM,N  – Jacco Lammers

Q&A

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

12.15 – 1.30 am lunch break

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

1.30 – 3.00 am Open Sessions

Participants can free-form groups according to their interest. For
example participants interested in co-creation techniques can gather
in one room, as can participants interested in OS car development to
discuss topics

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.00 – 3.45 Open Hardware Licensing

Andrew Katz – A framework for open licensing of hardware

Patrick Andrews – 40 Fires

Q & A

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

4.00  - 8.00 pm Networking and Open Hack Space

This is time for the projects and its participants to network, meet
collaborators and also tinker with hardware.

The London Hackspace and others provide room for live hacking of Open Hardware.

TBC - Launch of ‘The Open100’ and re-launch OpenBusiness.cc"



dan

-- 
[www.internetartizans.co.uk | twitter: @danmcquillan]