The term ‘open source’ is commonly applied to some software these days. The term is applied to things that can be engineered without any patent infringement.
Christian Carelberg, a mechanical engineer, designed an open source flashlight called HexBright. The HexBright is a flashlight that is made of solid aircraft grade aluminum and the device features a CREE XM-L LED light.
The flashlight has an 18650 lithium-ion battery that can be charged via its micro-USB port. The flashlight will be shipped with four default modes, including flash, low, medium and high. The flashlight’s light modes can be programmed using a PC.
The HexBright flashlight is now one of Kickstarter’s top 10 most funded projects, having raised $179,688, $148,688 higher than its $31,000 goal. The product has attracted 2,285 backers.
Talking about the product’s success, Carelberg said: “When I told people at the Bay Area Maker Faire I was going to make an open source, programmable flashlight some people called me crazy. Now seven weeks later, my project HexBright FLEX is one of the top ten most funded Kickstarter projects to date, raising over $175,000 and over 2000 backers who think I am not crazy, including MythBuster legend Grant Imahara.”
HexBright is available in two models: the smaller HexBright Prime and the bigger and more powerful HexBright Flex. For additional information about the product, you can check out its Kickstarter page.
One of the ironies of an open source license is that you need IP rights in order to enforce it. For physical objects that means patent rights. Fortunately you can crowdfund the patent application so it's not a strain on initial funding.
Thanks for the tip