This document aims to be a tl;dr (too long ; didn't read; that is, a summary in this context) for intellectual property rights (IPR) and licensing with focus on open source hardware. It is essentially a very, very brief summary of legal aspects described in the OSH Guideline for Legal Issues by OSEGeV.
Find the latest stable changes in the main branch, yet-to-develop features and work in progress in the development branch.
However, both branches only contain source files.
If you're looking for PDF exports, check the latest release.
- PDF export of
v1.0→ here
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in short: That's a collaboration between the OPEN!NEXT project (specifically WP3) and Open Source Ecology Germany e.V. (non-profit) (specifically WG legal issues)
…is a collaboration between 19 industry and academic partners across Europe. Funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 programme, this project seeks to enable small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to work with consumers, makers, and other communities in rethinking how products are designed and produced. Open source hardware is a key enabler of this goal where the design of a physical product is released with the freedoms for anyone to study, modify, share, and redistribute copies. These essential freedoms are based on those of open source software, which is itself derived from free software where the word free refers to freedom, not free-of-charge. When put in practice, these freedoms could potentially not only reduce proprietary vendor lock-in, planned obsolescence, or waste but also stimulate novel – even disruptive – business models. The SME partners in OPENNEXT are experimenting with producing open source hardware and even opening up the development process to wider community participation. They produce diverse products ranging from desks, cargo bike modules, to a digital scientific instrument platform (and more).
The work carried out in this repository is subject to WP3 of OPEN!NEXT ("Supporting production engineering with ICT infrastructure") and lead by the department of Information and Process Control at the Fraunhofer Institute for Production Systems and Design Technology.
“Much as Wikipedia has sought to democratize access to knowledge and the open source software movement has attempted to democratize computing, Open Source Ecology seeks to democratize human wellbeing and the industrial tools that help to create it.”
(ref)
Open Source Ecology Germany e.V. is a non-profit association based in Berlin whose goal is the development and dissemination of sustainable open source hardware projects.
The working group "OSH | Legal Issues" developed a guideline in an international collaboration with OSH experts and lawyers, generously contributing without monetary compensation.
This guideline aims to help actors working with OSH to avoid legal pitfalls and quickly get the basics of relevant IP rights.
Find its current version here: https://gitlab.com/OSEGermany/osh-guideline-legal-issues
In a collaboration with the OPEN!NEXT project this tl;dr document was created to further lower the threshold for this essential knowledge.
After the OPEN!NEXT project ends, the working group will continue maintaining this document.