OHMC2020
The Open Hardware MiniConf (OHMC) is a 1-day event that runs as a specialist stream within the linux.conf.au conference.
Move over Cybertruck, we're building self-driving DingoCars!
Participants learn hardware skills by assembling their own electronic project which includes soldering and understanding how circuits work, as well as hearing interesting talks about various projects and techniques related to the morning project and to open hardware in general. It provides an intro to the emerging "Maker" culture.
OHMC is mostly run by Andy Gelme and Jon Oxer, with able assistance by their team of robots. 2020 also has the following human assistants: John Spencer, Andrew Nielson, Bob Powers and Nicola Nye.
Contents
Before the day
Registration and cost
To attend you must register for the main conference, which provides the venue. The Open Hardware Miniconf is part of LCA as a specialist stream for conference attendees: it's not a stand-alone event. See linux.conf.au for more information.
LCA 2020 will be held at Broadbeach, Queensland, Australia.
We typically also charge an additional amount for participants undertaking the assembly project to cover the cost of the materials. This is usually around $100-$150. There is an extra registration form that needs to be completed to enrol for the hardware build. Space is limited so get in fast!
If you just want to come along and watch or attend the talks, you don't need to do anything beyond registering for LCA.
Where is it?
Tuesday January 14, Room 8.
What to bring?
A laptop that is ssh-capable.
Want to present?
Call for Papers! We have some 30 minute slots available. Submit your talk idea on the LCA site for the OHMC to our papers committee by December 8 and we'll get back to you as soon as we can!
Lightning talks! Got something to share in 5 minutes or less about your experiences with Open Hardware? Great! We also have some lightning talk slots on the day and we'd love to hear from people who want to share their Maker knowledge. New to open hardware and want to tell us your achievements? An old hand and want to tell us your gritty warfront stories of failures? Please Andy and Jon with your lightning talk proposal.
On the day
The miniconf is split into morning and afternoon sessions.
Morning: build your own DingoCar friend
In the morning, the hands-on assembly session lets participants assemble a special hardware project developed for the miniconf. For 2020, the project will be a DingoCar! Building it lets you the assemble the hardware and then experiment with the software.
One of the drivers of the popularity of the Open Hardware community is easy access to cheap devices such as Raspberry Pi, which is a microcontroller development board originally intended for classroom use but now a popular building block in all sorts of weird and wonderful hobbyist and professional projects.
Interest in Open Hardware is high among FOSS enthusiasts but there is also a barrier to entry with the perceived difficulty and dangers of dealing with hot soldering irons, unknown components and unfamiliar naming schemes. We use the assembly project as a stepping stone to help ease software developers into dealing with Open Hardware. Plenty of instructors will be on hand to assist with soldering and demystifying any questions around hardware assembly.
NO PRIOR HARDWARE EXPERIENCE REQUIRED! That is, after all, what this session is all about! To get the most out of this, some basic knowledge of Linux commands will be helpful. (ssh, running commands, navigating the filesystem)
Afternoon: talks and further discussions
The second part of the day will be presentations about Open Hardware topics, including information on software to run on the hardware project built earlier in the day.
Interested in giving a lightning talk on the day? Please email Andy and Jon if you'd like to present!
Schedule for the day
| 10:40 - 12:20 | Assembly Workshop (registration required to participate, spectators also welcome) |
| 12:20 - 1:30 | Lunch |
| 1:30 - 1:55 | topic: presenter |
| 1:55 - 2:20 | topic: presenter |
| 2:20 - 2:45 | topic: presenter |
| 2:45 - 3:10 | topic: presenter |
| 3:10 - 3:50 | Afternoon Tea |
| 3:50 - 4:15 | topic: presenter |
| 4:15 - 4:40 | topic: presenter |
| 4:40 - 5:30 | Lighting Talks (5 minute blocks) |
Assembly Project
Each year we help attendees build a project specially developed for the Open Hardware Miniconf.
The project for 2020 is the delightful DingoCar, a machine-learning self-driving car controlled by a Raspberry Pi.
Some things are pre-built (a custom board to hook up to the Raspberry Pi that has connections for the camera, the servo motor for the engine and the steering) and we'll be attaching these other bits (a, b, c) using soldering, wiring, magic and luck.
The hardware kit includes:
- RC car chassis
- Raspberry Pi model 3+
- Raspberry Pi Camera
- Custom chassis parts for mounting
- Voltage regulator, PWM output controller, and other required parts
We'll then connect wirelessly to program train the car by driving it around a track, then once the computer has processed this model data, we will unleash our DingoCars to drive themselves!
Yes, you will need your own laptop to participate in the assembly project to handle the training and control of your DingoCar. Setting some items up in advance will give you more time in the session for the hardware, and provide some relief to the conference wifi.
