Jon- Thanks much for adding all that. I hadn't really tuned in to Ben-WPAN until recently, and now I feel like I understand why it's so exciting (especially knowing how asymmetric Werner's workshop is against conventional commercial R&D environments).
I have one request: Is there a citation we can add to the "dark ages" statement at http://en.qi-hardware.com/wiki/Ben_WPAN#Is_freedom_really_innovation?_As_in_we_have_the_freedom_to_make_our_own_WPAN? This sounds like an essential bit of history to inform our collective enthusiasm for open development, but I know nothing about it. Thanks again. [allin] On Thu, Apr 14, 2011 at 11:51 PM, [email protected] <[email protected]> wrote: > Ok, this is all super cool. I consolidated your guys answers here: > > http://en.qi-hardware.com/wiki/Ben_WPAN > > If you guys have more to add, there are some sections that would be good to > get more notes like progress and outcomes. Even just those links to the > mailing list are useful. I needed somewhere to point people. > > I've been talking to a bunch of people about WPAN and the innovative parts > of copyleft hardware. So, I might have some questions which I hope provide > another dimension to what we are working on, and will do my best to > integrate onto the wiki. > > I'm trying to think more about why someone in the real world (consumers, > investors, technologists, etc) would be interested in our tech. > > My life post-meeting-Wolfgang, I now refrain from noting speculative > conversations I have but just not that my silence is not indicative of > inactivity, but mostly refrain from getting people's hopes up ;) and making > myself sound more vaporous than I am ;) > > On Thu, Apr 14, 2011 at 12:25 PM, Werner Almesberger > <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> I wrote: >> > With my ATBEN/ATUSB prototypes, I've obtained good to acceptable BER >> > for a distance between stations of 4-7 m indoors in a residential >> > area with relatively few interferences. >> >> A clarification on the error rate (BER = Bit Error Rate, PER = Packet >> Error Rate): >> >> IEEE 802.15.4 defines a maximum PER of 1% for a PSDU of 20 bytes. >> This means that all bits of the PSDU, the length (1 byte) and the SFD >> (1 byte) be received without errors, and that enough bits of the >> preamble (4 bytes) must be received for the receiver to synchronize. >> To keep the numbers simple, let's assume that's 200 bytes in total. >> Thus >> >> 1-PER = 1-(1-BER)^200 >> >> With PER = 1%, we get a BER of about 50 ppm. >> >> Since our primary usage scenario, Internet access, would often use >> maximum-sized packets, I used max-sized packets for my measurements as >> well. The maximum PSDU size is 127 bytes. So we get 200+8*(127-20) = >> 1056 bits. >> >> Aiming for a PER of 1% with full-sized packets, the BER has to be >> lower, about 9.5 ppm. >> >> - Werner > > I learn a lot from you guys! So great! I'm excited by this project...super > excited! > > My friends Sean Bonner, Joi Ito and Bunnie Huang are working on this pop-up > project http://rdtn.org to make radiation sensors. I'm actually supposed to > be in Tokyo right now working with them on some other projects, but the > tsunami/earthquake happened, and they got into this website and making > radiation sensors. > > http://blog.seanbonner.com/2011/04/11/what-im-working-on-rdtn/ > > Well, you can imagine that I pitched them hard on copyleft hardware, but I > was too late and now Bunnie and some other tech companies are working on > this *product.* > > However, that is not the point, but rather, I think the sensor networks are > super important for the future of our civilization. > > Part of what makes the Internet successful is that it allows for humans to > stay spread out more, so we don't annihilate each other. And, the success > rate for our species increases with increase of disasters, wars, disease, > etc, as the population increases in size. > > Well, sensors are part of this mix IMO. So, I look forward to seeing how we > can work on both sensors (getting info), sending that info > (internet/network/WPAN), and using that info (people/us!). > > The Internet are the wires, but we need to extend our bodies/information > gathering apparatuses and our senses, hence sensors are important for > survival of our species. And, a great place for us to occupy as copyleft > hardware. > > Bravo Werner! > > A sidenote, where should the Ben WPAN enhanced page go on the wiki? I think > we should have a stack of our core technologies on the main page. > > What else are we doing that is innovative and in that technology stack (and > not talking products!)? > > Jon > > -- > Jon Phillips > http://rejon.org/ | http://fabricatorz.com/ > chat/skype: kidproto | irc: rejon > +1.415.830.3884 (global) | +1-510-499-0894 (sf) > +86-187-1003-9974 (beijing) > > > _______________________________________________ > Qi Hardware Discussion List > Mail to list (members only): [email protected] > Subscribe or Unsubscribe: > http://lists.en.qi-hardware.com/mailman/listinfo/discussion > _______________________________________________ Qi Hardware Discussion List Mail to list (members only): [email protected] Subscribe or Unsubscribe: http://lists.en.qi-hardware.com/mailman/listinfo/discussion
