Sindrian Arts

There are two great open source CNC projects on kickstarter right now: The ShapeOko mini CNC machine shown to the left, and the DIYLILCNC redesign shown below.

Both appear to be made out of laser-cut MDF, and both plan to make the final plans freely available so that anyone could have their own set of parts cut out by their own local hackerspace or services like Ponoko.  As you all know I’m a big fan of this open approach to design, so seeing it catch on is very encouraging.

The ShapeOko is a great little machine that appears to be primarily glued together.  While its small size is limiting, it also makes it very portable, which I know is one of the things people appreciate about MakerBot’s 3D printers.  The project also mentions that this is just one of three designs in development, so I’m very curious to see how those machines differ from this one.

The DIYLILCNC is a larger, older design that the project’s creators are looking to update.  They’re also doing an interesting thing with their rewards: they’re letting backers vote for which improvements they’d like to see implemented.  I think this is a great idea, and I’m looking forward to seeing which improvements make the cut.

However, what I’m curious about is what you all think of these designs.  If you’re here reading this, you’re probably interested in CNC technology, open design, or both, and I’d love to know what you like (and don’t like) about these designs.  I ask this because (as I’ve mentioned before) I’m gearing up to launch my own Kickstarter project soon, and I’d love to incorporate your feedback into where I take my own designs.

So: what do you think of these?

First image from shapeoko.com | CC3.0

Second image by Chris Reilly/Taylor Hokanson/DIYLILCNC

This is a continuation of my last post on digital designs and patents.

One thing I’ve put a lot of though into is how I should protect the intellectual property of my product designs.  After much soul-searching, I finally came to a simple decision: I won’t protect them at all.

A while ago I watched this TED talk by Johanna Blakely on the fashion industry and how it copes with the lack of patent or copyright protection.  As it turns out, this lack of IP protection actually stimulates creativity in the industry, spurring designers to either constantly innovate or fall behind.  As a result, there is a constant stream of fresh new design.  What if this paradigm was implemented in the realm of product design?

I’ve had first-hand experience with the headaches caused by patents while working for a local toy inventor, Sean Mullaney.  I was amazed by how restricted we were when it came to new toy ideas: we had to be abandon an idea if it was even vaguely similar to something that already came to market for fear that it could not be patented.  This was very frustrating, not just because of the wasted time, but because our idea was often a dramatic improvement on the existing idea.  And that right there is one of the great advantages of open-source design: incremental improvement.

There are many other advantages, but those will have to wait for another time; today I start on the construction of my CNC machine!

Image by Scott Beale / Laughing Squid | CC 2.0