18. Invention, Intellectual Property and Income¶

Modular Hydroponic System¶

Licensing¶

For licensing the project Creative Commons.

Why this particular license?

Before publishing my work, I explored different types of licenses and realized how important it is to respect the copyrights of others, especially when a project is in part inspired by other people’s ideas or code. I wanted to be honest and transparent about how exactly my project was created.

My project is a modular hydroponic system designed for home use in urban environments. The entire design, including visual, mechanical, and electronic aspects, was fully modeled and developed by me from scratch to meet the specific needs of the project. While I drew inspiration from various open research sources and projects, all modeling and technical implementation were done independently based on my own concept.

As for the software part, a significant portion of the code was generated with the help of AI tools such as ChatGPT and DeepSeek. These tools helped me speed up development, understand complex parts, and select appropriate libraries. However, the final structure, logic, and integration with specific modules and the interface are the result of my own work.

Some code fragments were inspired by examples from open repositories. In cases where I used code licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0, I have kept the same license. This is necessary because the license requires giving credit, documenting changes, and prohibits commercial use or relicensing.

I believe that the open-source hardware and software community is built on respect, honesty, and transparency, and I consider it important to uphold those values in my work.

Dissemination plan¶

I plan to improve and rethink all components of the project, developing it independently, without outside help, from prototype to a finished product ready for production. I will also add this project to my portfolio.

Plan for Further Project Development¶

Add automatic liquid normalization using reservoirs with different liquids for system calibration.
Create new modules for various types of plants and provide support for plants that require special growth conditions.
Develop a frame to provide additional structural stability.
Implement lighting to improve plant growth.
Improve the software code for a more precise and controlled system operation.

Possible Business Plan¶

Identify the end user.
Choose and develop communication channels such as website, social media, and online stores.