University of Washington (University of Washington, The Information School)

In this Early Career Research Development project, Dr. Nicholas Weber of the University of Washington will investigate the role of documentation in assembling, repairing, and sustaining open-source hardware projects. This applied research will include a set of empirical studies—including surveying practitioners and auditing the documentation created by both successful and failed open-source hardware projects—to ultimately support the best practices necessary for open-source hardware projects to succeed. The project team will assemble open-source hardware devices and create structured case studies that report on the role documentation plays in the success or failure of device assembly. The research results will improve the ability for low-cost and environmentally responsible hardware devices to be used by public institutions. By focusing on hardware, this applied research will increase the success of open-source technologies and improve the status-quo for accessible computing in a variety of public settings.