A simple electronic stethoscope
Vik Olliver har simple instructions on how to hack an "iSpy spy ear" to make an electronic stethoscope which not only has the added advantage of letting you turn up the volume and eliminating tube rub that it also allows you to look at the waveform of the sounds through your computer.
The openECGproject
"The openECGproject is an online community conceived around a simple, but challenging and worthy goal - to develop an open source hardware and software solution for electrocardiography .
This is essentially a playground designed for people of different backgrounds to put their minds together and create something that could make a difference in this world. It started as an itch that needed scratching, so Dr. Ivor Kovic initiated this community with high hopes that people who can make this vision come true will join and contribute to the project. Read more about the people behind the openECGproject."
Image from Gray's Anatomy
Arduino Experimentation Kit:. (ARDX)
Oomlout's supercool arduino tutorial on Make, complete with breadboard overlays!
A business model for open source hardware
"The price of a typical gadget reflects two factors: the cost of making it and the price its inventor is charging for the intellectual property in it. Often the second can be many times the first (as in the case of an Intel processor chip, for example, which costs just a few dollars to make but can sell for hundreds of dollars)."
Chris Anderson, author of Free: The Future of a Radical Price which you can download free from Itunes or read on Google books.
OpenEEG hardware
The OpenEEG project has seen contributions from many talented hardware people over the years, resulting in several different designs which have been tested and tried by various people.
Project HH1 – Low Blood Sugar Alert Device
Peter Semmelhack is building an open source low blood sugar alert device. It is built on the premise that low blood glucose levels will increase heart rate which can be picked up and transmittet to a pulse meter with an alarm.
http://www.gadgetocracy.com/?p=49
Image courtesy of Jakob Suckale and Michele Solimena.
Open Spirometry
The objective of this project, started by David Van Sickle in January 2009, is to develop an open source, low cost, and clinically functional spirometer that measures lung flows and volumes. We envision a first generation device that connects to a computer via a USB port and guides and coaches patients through the testing using digital audiovisual clips.
http://openspirometry.org/
