TAPR Open Hardware License

<h2 id="conditions">Conditions</h2>
<p>Although the TAPR OHL aims to maintain the philosophy of <a href="/facts/Open-source_software/HzTaB8E9">open-source software</a>, there are obvious differences in physical reality which require some differences in licenses. As a result, the license defines two conditions: Documentation, as in design information; and Products, the physical products created from them.
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<h2 id="adoption">Adoption</h2>
<p>The TAPR OHL is the license for the materials from the <a href="/facts/Open_Graphics_Project/bQ3qXozt">Open Graphics Project</a> as of April 7, 2009.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> The TAPR OHL is the license for the materials from Lotus Green Data Centers as of July 28, 2008.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a>
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<h2 id="criticism">Criticism</h2>
<p>Former <a href="/facts/Open_Source_Initiative/sJtjc2EF">OSI</a> president <a href="/facts/Eric_S._Raymond/9jLGSUtk">Eric S. Raymond</a> expressed some concerns about certain aspects of the OHL. He claimed that the license has "lots of problems" and that it "strips the word 'distribution' of its normal meaning, assuring lots of contention over edge cases".<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a> There were also concerns that the Open Hardware License may place the design and/or idea into the <a href="/facts/Public_domain/YWKMDKw4">public domain</a> by publishing it before securing the benefits of patent protection.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a> The OSI did not choose to review the TAPR license.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a>
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<h2 id="see-also">See also</h2>
<ul><li><a href="/facts/Open_Hardware_License_(disambiguation)/K8DfK8JA">Open Hardware License</a></li>
<li><a href="/facts/Open-source_hardware/UgCHeVsm">Open-source hardware</a></li></ul>

<h2 id="external-links">External links</h2>
<ul><li><a href="http://jolt.law.harvard.edu/articles/pdf/v25/25HarvJLTech131.pdf">Open Source Semiconductor Core Licensing, 25 Harvard Journal of Law & Technology 131 (2011)</a>  Article analyzing the law, technology and business of open source semiconductor cores</li></ul>

<h2 id="references">References</h2>

<ol>
<li id="fn:1"><p>"The TAPR Open Hardware License – TAPR". tapr.org. Retrieved 2021-07-30. <a href="https://tapr.org/the-tapr-open-hardware-license/" target="_blank">https://tapr.org/the-tapr-open-hardware-license/</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:2"><p>Ackermann_Open_Source_Hardware_Article_2009 on tapr.org <a href="http://web.tapr.org/Ackermann_Open_Source_Hardware_Article_2009.pdf" target="_blank">http://web.tapr.org/Ackermann_Open_Source_Hardware_Article_2009.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:3"><p>The Open Graphics Project is making the OGD1 schematics and artwork available under the TAPR Open Hardware License Archived 2009-03-12 at the Wayback Machine <a href="http://wiki.opengraphics.org/tiki-index.php" target="_blank">http://wiki.opengraphics.org/tiki-index.php</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:4"><p>Lotus Green Data Centers forgoes economic protections of patenting <a href="http://lotusgreendatacenters.com/xowiki/announce_foregoing_econ_prot_of_patents" target="_blank">http://lotusgreendatacenters.com/xowiki/announce_foregoing_econ_prot_of_patents</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:5"><p>TAPR Open Hardware License published at LotusGreenDataCenters.com <a href="http://lotusgreendatacenters.com/forge/xowiki/tapr-open-hardware-license" target="_blank">http://lotusgreendatacenters.com/forge/xowiki/tapr-open-hardware-license</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:6"><p>Ars Technica: TAPR introduces open-source hardware license, OSI skeptical. <a href="https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070223-8911.html" target="_blank">https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070223-8911.html</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:7"><p>Novelty And Non-Obviousness, Conditions For Obtaining A Patent: US Patent and Trademark Office. <a href="http://www.uspto.gov/patents/resources/general_info_concerning_patents.jsp#heading-5" target="_blank">http://www.uspto.gov/patents/resources/general_info_concerning_patents.jsp#heading-5</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
<li id="fn:8"><p>Ars Technica: TAPR introduces open-source hardware license, OSI skeptical. <a href="https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070223-8911.html" target="_blank">https://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20070223-8911.html</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li>
</ol>

TAPR Open Hardware License open-in-new

TAPR Open Hardware License