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Open Hardware (OH) is a part of the GNU project in which hardware designers share their work by disclosing the schematics and software (GNU drivers) used in their designs. The GNU logo, drawn by Etienne Suvasa GNU is a recursive acronym for GNUs Not Unix. The GNU project was launched in 1983 by Richard Stallman with the goal of creating a complete operating system -- called the GNU system or simply GNU -- that is free software, meaning that users...
Hardware is equipment such as fasteners, keys, locks, hinges, wire, chains, plumbing supplies, tools, utensils, cutlery and machine parts, especially when they are made of metal. ...
Design as a process can take many forms depending on the object being designed and the individual or individuals participating. ...
A schematic of the Washington Metro. ...
Computer software (or simply software) refers to one or more computer programs and data held in the storage of a computer for some purpose. ...
A device driver, often called a driver for short, is a computer program that enables another program (typically, an operating system) to interact with a hardware device. ...
Open Hardware designers meet, discuss what they are doing and ask each other for assistance in finding parts, or seek ideas to solve design problems. OH is also an opportunity to exhibit designs, so some may learn from what others have done.
With the rise of reconfigurable logic devices, the sharing of logic designs is also a form of Open Hardware. Instead of sharing the schematics, HDL code is shared. This is different from Open Software. HDL descriptions are commonly used to set up SoC systems either in FPGAs or directly in ASIC designs. HDL modules, when distributed, are called "cores" or "IP" (intellectual property). In electronics, a hardware description language or HDL is any language from a class of computer languages for formal description of electronic circuits. ...
System-on-a-chip (SoC or SOC) is an idea of integrating all components of a computer system into a single chip. ...
A field-programmable gate array or FPGA is a semiconductor device used to process digital information, similar to a microprocessor. ...
Overview An ASIC (application-specific integrated circuit) is an integrated circuit (IC) customised for a particular use, rather than intended for general-purpose use. ...
See also OpenCores is a loose collection of people who are interested in developing digital hardware through electronic design automation, with a similar ethos to the free software movement. ...
OpenRISC is an open source RISC CPU design by OpenCores released under the GNU Lesser General Public License. ...
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