Sharing reproducible models

<p>One of the challenges of <a class="wikilink" href="/open_hardware/">Open Hardware</a> is ensuring its distribution and ability of others to build the same tools. </p> <p>With software it's easy, since the instructions on how to build a program are encapsulated in a compiler instruction set (or a virtual machine, interpreter, etc.) The code can be easily distributed and adapted. </p> <p>Hardware, however, needs to be built. </p> <p>PCB manufacturing is relatively straightforward and commoditized (albeit in the hands of few specialized companies.) Assembly instructions are unequivocal. But this is only one domain. </p> <p>Today, with the advent of <a class="wikilink" href="/3d_printing/">3D printing</a> it became easier to share 3D models and to replicate them. However, printers have different properties: different resolutions, they work with different filaments. Slicer software needs to be mastered to make the best out of the printer. </p> <p>3D printing only brings you so far. Manufacturing in metal with a CNC machine is very common but requires training. (See: <a class="wikilink" href="/literature/202306121208_difference_open_hardware_and_diy_science/">202306121208 Difference Open Hardware and DIY science</a>). </p> <p>In any case, design files take very different shapes and they possess very different features. </p> <p>Commonly, STL files are shared for 3D printing. They have the minimum amount of information needed to reproduce a model. But they can't be modified. </p> <p><strong>STEP</strong> files possess more information, but they are normally a subset of what CAD programs do. Things like assemblies, joints, material properties are lost. </p> <p>This puts the sharing of 3D models at a crossroads. </p> <p>In the spirit of openness, people started defaulting to programs such as <a class="wikilink" href="/openscad/">OpenScad</a>, but they are far from the type of tool professional industrial designers use. </p> <p>On the other hand, if you design with Solid Works, or Inventor, your files will be available only to those with the same programs (and their insanely expensive licenses.) </p> <p>I have seen a raise in the use of <a class="wikilink" href="/onshape/">OnShape</a>, a web-based service which is equivalent to Solid Works, but with a free tier. The biggest limitation is that you can't have private projects (which is not a limitation for open-hardware.)</p> <p>Relying on online (and centralized) services is far from ideal, but it may be the best chance at incentivizing the standardization of data formats for exchange of 3D models.</p>