The Open Source Hardware Association (OSHWA) aims to foster technological knowledge and encourage research that is accessible, collaborative and respects user freedom. OSHWA’s primary activities include hosting the annual Open Hardware Summit and maintaining the Open Source Hardware certification, which allows the community to quickly identify and represent hardware that complies with the community definition of open source hardware.
The purposes and activities this organization aims to do are as follows:
- Organize conferences and community events
- Educate the general public about open source hardware and its socially beneficial uses.
- Organize the open source hardware movement around shared values and principles.
- Collect, compile and publish data on the Open Source Hardware movement.
- Provide a painless way for creators to indicate that their products meet a standard for open-source compliance.
Open Hardware Definition[edit | edit source]
As it currently stands, OSHWA defines open source hardware as follows:
Open source hardware is hardware whose design is made publicly available so that anyone can study, modify, distribute, make, and sell the design or hardware based on that design. The hardware’s source, the design from which it is made, is available in the preferred format for making modifications to it. Ideally, open source hardware uses readily-available components and materials, standard processes, open infrastructure, unrestricted content, and open-source design tools to maximize the ability of individuals to make and use hardware. Open source hardware gives people the freedom to control their technology while sharing knowledge and encouraging commerce through the open exchange of designs.