This guide gives you some information on how to contribute to the OpenLedModule project.
The OpenLedModule project has many different aspects. The most obvious aspects are LED module technology and design of LED lamps. But this does NOT mean that only electrical engineers or LED lighting experts might contribute to this project.
The OpenLedModule project has also the important goal of providing everyone with LED lighting technology, no matter how deep their knowledge about LED lighting might be.
So there are three main areas where you can contribute to this project:
- Improving OpenLedModule technology and design: improve the existing module/lamp designs and develop new designs
- Using OpenLedModule technology: build OpenLedModule lamps and report design bugs or feature requests
- Spreading the news: talk about OpenLedModule, show it to your friends, help with documentation, or even hold an OpenLedModule workshop
Below you find more details on how you might contribute with respect to your skills.
Electrical engineers might contribute by reviewing and improving the current OpenLedModule designs.
How to contribute: submit bugs if you find issues in the current PCB design or electrical lamp design. Submit new module designs e.g. for different LED footprints or for modules with new characteristics.
LED lighting experts might contribute by reviewing and improving the current OpenLedModule and lamp designs.
How to contribute: submit bugs if you find issues with the current module design. Submit new module designs or lamp designs e.g. for improved light characteristics or better thermal management.
Product designers might contribute by reviewing and improving the current lamp designs.
How to contribute:
- Fork and improve current lamp designs
- Come up with more beautyful/functional lamp designs
- Come up with completely new lamp designs
- Submit requirements for not yet existing LED modules that should be created by the OpenLedModule community
Technical Writers might contribute by reviewing/improving the OpenLedModule documentation.
How to contribute:
- Submit bugs if you find documentation issues
- Write new documentation based on draft documents
Makerspaces might contribute by offering workshops for building LED lamps based on OpenLedModule. Makerspaces might also contribute by being showrooms for OpenLedModule lamps: simply mount one or more OpenLedModule lamps in your workshop and show them to interested people.
How to contribute: Build your own OpenLedModule lamp to get a feeling whether that's possible in your Makerspace. If it's possible: run a test workshop and check whether the participants were happy with the workshop. If you successfully ran the workshop: let us know, then we will add your Makerspace to our list of supporting Makerspaces!
Makers might contribute by building their own OpenLedModule lamp and letting us know about any issues with the design files or documentation.
How to contribute: Submit issues or feature requests.