Open Source Hardware: Design, Licenses, and Getting Started
What Is Open Source Hardware?
Open source hardware applies the principles of open source software to physical objects. Design files — schematics, PCB layouts, CAD models, bills of materials, and assembly instructions — are released under licenses that permit anyone to study, modify, manufacture, and distribute them. The Open Source Hardware Association, founded in 2012, defines the standards for open source hardware and maintains a certification program that helps users identify genuinely open designs. The OSHWA certification grants a unique UID that allows the community to verify a project’s open source claims. While open source hardware shares the philosophical roots of open source software, the practical differences are profound and shape every aspect of how open hardware projects operate.
Hardware has physical manufacturing costs that software does not. Every revision requires producing physical prototypes at significant expense. Verification requires building and testing physical objects rather than running automated tests. Distribution requires inventory management, shipping logistics, and customer support. These fundamental differences mean that open source hardware projects face challenges that open source software projects never encounter. The barrier to entry is higher, the iteration cycle is slower, and the business models are harder to sustain. Yet despite these challenges, open source hardware has produced transformative platforms that have reshaped industries.
OSHW vs Open Source Software
The differences between open source hardware and open source software are fundamental and affect every aspect of project management. Software is immaterial — distribution costs near zero, and anyone with an internet connection can copy and modify it instantly. Hardware requires materials, manufacturing, shipping, and inventory management. Software can be forked with a single git command, creating an instant new project. Hardware forking requires producing physical prototypes, setting up manufacturing, and managing supply chains. Software verification runs in seconds on CI infrastructure at negligible cost. Hardware verification requires building and testing physical prototypes at significant cost in both time and money. These differences mean that open source hardware projects must be more deliberate about their scope, more strategic about their business models, and more patient about their development timelines.
OSHW Licenses
Several licenses have been developed specifically for open source hardware, each with different copyleft characteristics. The CERN Open Hardware License is the most widely used, developed by the European Organization for Nuclear Research for its hardware designs. It comes in three variants: CERN-OHL-P is permissive with no copyleft requirement, CERN-OHL-W requires that modified versions of the licensed design files be shared under the same license (weak copyleft), and CERN-OHL-S requires that any product incorporating the design share all design files under the same license (strong copyleft). The TAPR Open Hardware License, developed by the Tucson Amateur Packet Radio organization, includes explicit patent clauses that address the intersection of copyright and patent law in hardware designs. The Solderpad License adapts the Apache 2.0 license for hardware designs and is popular in the RISC-V ecosystem.
Choosing the right license depends on your goals for the project. If you want maximum adoption with no restrictions, use CERN-OHL-P or Solderpad. If you want to ensure that improvements to your design are shared back, use CERN-OHL-W or CERN-OHL-S. The Open Source Hardware Association provides guidance on license selection and maintains a list of OSI-approved licenses that also meet OSHW certification requirements.
Popular Open Hardware Platforms
Arduino, launched in 2005, revolutionized hobbyist electronics by making microcontroller development accessible to non-engineers. Its reference design is fully open source, and the platform has spawned countless compatible boards, shields, and software libraries. Arduino’s success demonstrates that open source hardware can achieve massive scale when the design is simple, well-documented, and serves a clear need.
RISC-V is an open instruction set architecture that is transforming the semiconductor industry. Unlike ARM and x86, which are proprietary and require licensing fees, RISC-V is free to implement, modify, and extend. SiFive, Alibaba, and Western Digital are among the companies building commercial processors around RISC-V, and the architecture is gaining adoption in embedded systems, IoT devices, and increasingly in server and AI acceleration contexts. The RISC-V International foundation governs the standard and ensures its continued openness.
KiCad is the leading open source PCB design tool, providing schematic capture, PCB layout, 3D visualization, and manufacturing output in a free, cross-platform package. KiCad has matured significantly in recent years and is now capable of professional-grade designs comparable to proprietary tools like Altium and Eagle. Prusa Research manufactures fully open source 3D printers whose design files are publicly available under open licenses. The Raspberry Pi, while partially open — the firmware and some components are closed — has inspired countless derivative designs.
Getting Started with Open Source Hardware
Start by learning KiCad for PCB design. KiCad is free, cross-platform, and has excellent documentation and community support. Begin with simple projects — a breakout board for a sensor, an LED controller, or a power distribution board — before attempting complex multi-layer designs. Share your designs on GitHub under an appropriate open hardware license from the CERN-OHL or TAPR families. Your repository should include the complete set of design files: schematic source files, PCB layout source files, 3D models for enclosure design, a bill of materials with part numbers and suppliers, assembly instructions, and firmware source code if applicable. Apply for OSHWA certification to receive a unique UID that certifies your project meets the open source hardware standard.
Challenges in Open Source Hardware
Manufacturing requires capital that most individual developers do not have readily available. Small PCB runs from manufacturers like JLCPCB cost hundreds of dollars. Component sourcing requires navigating supply chain complexities, minimum order quantities, and counterfeit components. Certification for safety, radio emissions, and other regulatory requirements can cost thousands of dollars per jurisdiction. Hardware iteration cycles are weeks, not minutes — a single PCB revision can take two weeks for fabrication, assembly, and testing. Business models are harder than software because you are selling physical goods with real costs and margins. Successful companies like Arduino, Adafruit, and SparkFun combine open designs with quality control, customer support, and brand trust that generic competitors cannot easily replicate.
Manufacturing and Distribution
For small production batches of 10 to 100 units, JLCPCB’s PCBA service works well — they handle PCB fabrication and component assembly in a single order at competitive prices. For medium batches of 100 to 1,000 units, PCBWay and Seeed Studio offer flexible manufacturing options with component sourcing support. Larger production runs may benefit from crowdfunding through platforms like Kickstarter or Crowd Supply, which validate demand and provide capital for tooling and minimum order quantities. Unit costs drop dramatically with volume — a board that costs $50 to assemble at 10 units may cost $5 at 1,000 units. Plan your pricing and funding strategy around realistic volume projections rather than optimistic ones.
Community and Collaboration in Open Hardware
The open source hardware community provides valuable resources for newcomers. The Open Source Hardware Association maintains a certification directory, organizes annual conferences, and publishes best practices for open hardware development. Hackaday.io hosts thousands of open hardware projects with build logs, component sourcing information, and community feedback. GitHub provides an effective platform for version control and collaboration on hardware design files, though binary file formats like those used by some CAD tools do not diff as cleanly as source code. KiCad’s file format is plain text, making it the most Git-friendly option for PCB design.
Collaboration patterns differ between software and hardware. Hardware projects benefit from build logs that document each revision’s lessons learned, component substitutions, and manufacturing challenges. Sharing test results and performance measurements helps the community validate designs without building each variant. Open source hardware projects that document their development journey attract more contributors and produce better designs because the community can learn from both successes and failures. The most successful open hardware projects treat their documentation as a first-class artifact equal in importance to the design files themselves.
FAQ
Can I make money from open source hardware? Yes. Common approaches include selling manufactured boards directly to customers, offering customization services for enterprise clients, selling premium versions with additional features or better components, and providing consulting and design services based on your expertise.
Is a 3D-printed object automatically open source hardware? No. The printer itself can be open source hardware if its design files are released under an open license. The license applies to design files, not to objects manufactured from those files. A 3D-printed object made from an open source design is not itself open source hardware unless its design files are also released.
Do I need a patent for open source hardware? No. Open source hardware relies on copyright protection for design files and trademark protection for brand identity. Publishing under an open license grants rights through copyright law. Patents are expensive to obtain and enforce and are generally not necessary for open source hardware projects.
What tools do I need to start? KiCad for PCB design, FreeCAD for mechanical design, an oscilloscope for debugging, a multimeter for basic measurements, and soldering equipment for assembly. Most projects can start with under $500 in tools.
How do I protect my open source hardware design from being copied and sold? You cannot prevent copying — that is the point of open source. Compete on quality, customer support, documentation, and brand trust. Companies like Adafruit and SparkFun thrive despite their designs being freely available because customers trust their quality and support.
Related: Open Source Guide | Open Source in Business | Open Source Licenses