ODSP - Open Design Stove Project

[RKBAGUY]

This thread has been posted to solicit interest from those who have the requisite skills to contribute their time, talent, experience and knowledge to designing a better, more efficient, easier to use, pellet stove.

Borrowing ideas from Open Source software (where programmers can collaborate on fixing bugs and adding features) and 'Crowd Sourced' or 'Crowd Funded' projects like Kickstarter where individuals come together as a group to make projects that are otherwise insurmountable in isolation due to cost or other hurdles, the idea here is for a collaboration of persons to design a better product and combine our buying power to have the raw components fabricated for us in quantity enough that it makes a Do-It-Yourself kit in "knockdown" or 'KD' form available.

Since I have no background in engineering but can contribute some IT infrastructure, I would be happy to set up a website that consists of the following for the purpose of getting the project off the ground:

• Bulletin board for engineering discussions
• Project management utility for assigning tasks/milestones
• Document repository for access to electrical and mechanical diagrams (CAD/PDF files)
• Donation component to help us pay for web hosting, and other hard development costs like materials
• Ecommerce to support sales/group purchases

There are some minimum things we'd need to have happen first, though, not the least of which is to identify the various areas of expertise we'd need to successfully pull this off. So I'll open up the floor to those of you to chime in and suggest what skill sets we need, and once we're in agreement that we have all the talent necessary, I'll proceed to build the site.

Let's see where this takes us!

 

[RKBAGUY]

ODSP Skill Sets & Requirements Roll Call

• Legal Support - Determine any regulatory or liability concerns for this project.
• Product Management - Identify features/benefits, from end user perspective with which technical parameters will be set.
  • TonyVideo
• Electrical/Electronics - Determine and design wiring, circuit board, logic processing, sensors and power requirements for unit.
• Mechanical/Fabrication - Design sheet metal and cast parts for outer and inner components

 

[TonyVideo]

I have product management experience that could be useful. I am no engineer but can help identify the product requirements from an end user perspective vs an engineers perspective. My suggestion is to start off with a little fact finding list on any and all ideas from many types of users. This list can be started on the website. Eventually it can be paired down into a viable product. Maybe monthly have a webex video conference to keep things moving with a review of what has been done and a planning stage for the next month.

 

[RKBAGUY]

I have product management experience that could be useful. I am no engineer but can help identify the product requirements from an end user perspective vs an engineers perspective. My suggestion is to start off with a little fact finding list on any and all ideas from many types of users. This list can be started on the website. Eventually it can be paired down into a viable product. Maybe monthly have a webex video conference to keep things moving with a review of what has been done and a planning stage for the next month.

Tony, as you can see I've already updated post #2 with your name and a few areas off the top of my head. It doesn't make sense for me to invest the time and effort to build an IT infrastructure if we don't have commitment from all the areas we're going to need. Once we identify those areas and individuals, we can move forward.

BTW, I'm a 30+ year marketing professional (though with a fair concentration in IT channels) however I can also help you in the areas you rightly mentioned related to Voice Of The Customer with regard to product parameters.

 

[smwilliamson]

I have worked on more than 10,000 stoves. I could steer you in the right direction on product management plus as an advisor in the alliance for green heat I may be able to get some grant funding to kick this off. We are seriously thinking about a pellet decathlon on the mall next year. I'm kinda busy but I would like to contribute.

 

[smwilliamson]

I have a versatility chart I put together which would help you....

 

[smwilliamson]

The end product should be somethjng that leads the way through the new NSPS requirements which in my opinion is going to have to monitor and adjust for emission efficiency. Like a Rika.

 

[TonyVideo]

I will have to read the NSPS requirements.

 

[peirhead]

I like the overall concept of the Wiseway....being independent of power would be a BIG advantage:
https://www.hearth.com/talk/threads/my-wiseway-non-electric-stove-experience.115974/

 

[John Ackerly]

Love the motivation behind this. I went to a international cook stove conference and there was a great atmoshpere of collaboration and many of the ultimate stove designs are not even patented, so anyone can replicate, improve them or just build and market them. I wrote a blog about that community, http://forgreenheat.blogspot.com/2014/02/experts-gather-in-northwest-to-design.html, and we are teaming up with them for the next chapter of the Wood Stove Design Challenge - to be announced soon. One of our goals is to jointly design an ultra-clean wood stove (not pellet) that anyone can build and meet the strictest EPA standards - which may be 1.3 grams an hour.

John

[/quote] Borrowing ideas from Open Source software (where programmers can collaborate on fixing bugs and adding features) and 'Crowd Sourced' or 'Crowd Funded' projects like Kickstarter where individuals come together as a group to make projects that are otherwise insurmountable in isolation due to cost or other hurdles, the idea here is for a collaboration of persons to design a better product and combine our buying power to have the raw components fabricated for us in quantity enough that it makes a Do-It-Yourself kit in "knockdown" or 'KD' form available.

Let's see where this takes us![/quote]

 

[RKBAGUY]

John, unfortunately I think the project is DOA. There have been no replies of the sort requested in the OP save one, thus not enough volunteers to make it go.