Hardware Reference
In-Depth Information
6.
Making a Derivative
Alicia Gibb
“Its province is to assist us in making available what we are already acquainted
with.”
—Ada Lovelace, on the Analytical Engine
This chapter gives an example of the source files and a physical object that you can copy,
modify, make, and sell as a derivative under the Open Source Hardware Definition. This
chapter first discusses derivatives and attribution, and then walks through a simple open
source hardware kit named Blinky Buildings that readers are encouraged to alter or modify.
Appropriate methods for creating a derivative are discussed. (The Blinky Buildings hard-
ware kit can be purchased at
www.bit.ly/blinkybuildings
or at
www.Sparkfun.com
.
) Read-
ers can follow along with the instructions, thereby making their own derivative kit. You
may have also noticed that this kit is referenced in other chapters throughout this topic. The
skills used in creating a derivative board consist of modifying the source files and under-
standing how to appropriately label derivative files and give credit. The Blinky Buildings
kit is labeled with the open source hardware logo, meaning it is okay to copy and create de-
rivatives from it. If you attempt to copy and create derivatives of hardware that is not open
source, you may receive a cease and desist letter from the originating company. To be safe,
look for the open source hardware logo, and stick to creating derivatives from what you
know to be open.
Derivatives and Open Source Hardware
One of the reasons people open source their hardware is to allow derivatives to be built from
that hardware. People create derivative hardware for many different reasons, ranging from
personalized features to economic advantage. The Open Source Hardware Definition makes
the following statement about derived works:
4. Derived Works.
The license shall allow modifications and derived works, and
shall allow them to be distributed under the same terms as the license of the ori-
ginal work. The license shall allow for the manufacture, sale, distribution, and
use of products created from the design files, the design files themselves, and de-
rivatives thereof.
