Maelstrom Fan Controller Update 3

Well, it’s been a few months, but there is some update information finally on the fan controller.

Most of the work is in the firmware realm and certification process (understanding / pricing) and as a result kind of boring to show. However, the big take away is that I’m implementing a “proto-sales” method. What does that mean? Well, besides being a term I just made up, I am going to use “super early adopter techy risk takers” to fund a UL/CSA/CE consult!

So this is yet another market test! Kind of.  What this allows me to do is say “hey, you can have this thing, but it’s not going to be certified, so I’m going to add some pain to the process and you take the risk of operating”. If people still love the idea then they will pay money and jump through a small hoop while assuming some risk and liability then SWEET! Meaning they are using a DIY piece of hardware with all the safety features, but isn’t certified. This is identical to buying a Triac module or a relay for use in a project or, in fact, a lot of the chinese smart switches (fake certification or not actually certified in some cases). In fact it’s almost identical to using a lot of the cheap LED lights from amazon. Many are not certified.

However, for real sales…. It’d be certified or it won’t be made.

So what happens if only like 4 of these things are sold in proto-sales. 4 People get hardware, I open source the firmware and hardware. Insufficient funds to engage the UL/CSA consultant. Project stops. See Github.

Sell enough (say 50 – 100). Engage CSA/UL consultant, get things figured out for cert. Then maybe kickstarter or just pre-orders. It’s the risk. I can’t de-risk everything. So it would go pre-sales where I would have to take money, get the cert and engage a manufacturer.

What happens if there is only 25 or 30? If a few months go buy and insufficient units to pay the first consultant fees then I’ll announce it failed, email everyone, and move on to the next projects (that are already in progress).

What happens if some company with money takes your design and builds it? Well, you guys should go buy their product and I’ll make a video on hacking it and kill the project development. Obviously by kill I mean I stop work and it’s open sourced, not stab with a knife. I mean… Electricity, conductive knife, these are poor ideas.

Anyway, something crazy and controversial is coming soon to my videos so please subscribe to my youtube channel.