libdrone as proof¶
I documented the complete system before the hardware was finished.
That is not a confession. It is the point.
What the documentation stack is¶
libdrone.eu is a complete open hardware documentation system for a 6-inch modular drone platform, built by one person, evenings and weekends:
- Variables file — single source of truth for all geometry
- Master specification — the complete system, in one governed document
- Hardware document — every component, why it was chosen, where to source it
- Shopping list — sourcing guide with alternatives and cost notes
- FreeCAD and Onshape cookbooks — step-by-step CAD workflow
- Payload SDK — developer reference for the GX12-7 payload interface
- PRUSA print guide — settings, materials, quality notes
- CadQuery generator — 1,815 lines of parametric Python producing all printed parts
It is designed so that a stranger — someone who has never met me, never asked me a question — can reproduce the hardware entirely from the published files.
Why I built it this way¶
Documentation written after the hardware is finished is almost always wrong.
When you document as you design, you find the errors. A measurement that can't be expressed clearly is a measurement that hasn't been fully thought through. A process that can't be written down isn't yet understood. The documentation isn't a record of the design — it's part of the design process.
The variables file in particular: when every value lives in one place, you can't contradict yourself. Writing the number down once, correctly, and referencing it everywhere else is the act of making a decision.
What it demonstrates¶
That architecture is the work, not word count. That the single source of truth principle scales from a technology magazine to a hardware platform without changing. And that with the right tools and discipline, one person can carry it end to end.
One open gap¶
The "libdrone Pro" design is fully specified: documentation written, payload interface defined. What's missing is someone who can translate the specification into FreeCAD geometry.
If you work in FreeCAD and building the reference implementation of a fully documented open hardware drone platform interests you — get in touch. The design files, the specification, and the variables file are waiting. The CAD work is the unlock.