SilentDemon555:
To clarify,
The ArduWatch is not a watch in the normal sense. The watch from Sparkfun tells time, this is a MCU on your wrist.
In fact the watch from Sparkfun is an Atmega328, and is decidedly hackable. It also has a case. And a circuit design. And a display. I think you are dismissing it too quickly.
The Femtoduino is a bare-bones Arduino system that i want to upgrade for the functionality and form factor I need. The lily-pad is something i'm not familiar with and currently I want to focus on what I have.
Yes I would love to have assistance in designing a PCB for use exclusively with the ArduWatch (that's what I meant by glory rights).
Lilypad mini is a barebones Arduino system too. And it fits right into the case and has shields to do everything you have talked about in this thread.
And the PCB designed for the Arduwatch won't be used exclusively for Arduwatch if you open source it as you have said you would. It's possible you are not communicating your intent clearly, but so far it sounds like you want to own the design. "Exclusive use" and "glory rights" or just "rights" are the antithesis of open source.
SilentDemon555:
If I have a PCB design that is tailored exactly for my needs, it speeds up production time greatly. I plan on mass producing these watches, so buying pre-assembled anything greatly increases the overhead cost.
What are you going to do with a bunch of mass-produced watches? Sell them? For money? Make a profit? But you want someone to design the PCB for free. Hmmm. Interesting.
And why is it important to speed up production? You are going to be second or nth to the market with a hobbyist designed product, competing with multinational companies producing professional grade devices.
I think you're better off relaxing and enjoying the journey. This seems to be your first foray into creating something and you are going to learn a lot. This isn't a get rich quick scheme
SilentDemon555:
For example, a Femtoduino costs about $25 to order and ship, but the parts list only contains about $8 worth of parts (Cheaper if they are purchased in bulk.)
The femtoduino is also put together. How long would it take you to solder a femtoduino together, with all its surface mount pieces? And how much to get the board manufactured, let alone designed?
The lilypad mini is $9.95 but you dismissed it because "it's not mine" and "I am not familiar with it".
When you mass-produce your watch, how much are you going to sell it for? $25? Or are you going to sell it for $60? With the same $8 of parts and $2 of plastic for the watch case.
And when someone looks at that watch and says what you are saying here, ie: "I can't do anything with that, I'm not familiar with it", they're not going to buy it, are they?
To be honest, I am really struggling to see how you sell this idea without a screen. When I asked what you are going to do for the screen, you dodged the question entirely. Why on earth have this on your wrist if you get absolutely no feedback from it?
I want you to succeed. By success I mean survive the process and produce something you can be proud of. Even if it's only one prototype or a couple of them with minor fixes. I understand the excitement of what you're going through. I have 10 folders numbered of ideas of things I would / could use that I could / would make to potentially put on the market. It's intoxicating.
What I am struggling with is the whole "I am so over worked won't someone do it for me" slant in your posts, the (attempt at) emotional manipulation, immediately followed by the attitude you can't hide - that you want to own this. I understand that. It's your idea, and you feel protective of it, but you gotta ease up, let go of it a bit, and consider all possibilities.
And I think you will find the circuit design you want is going to take a bit more than a week full-time.
You're far better off grabbing stuff (eg a Lilypad mini) that already exists and works and putting it in a watch case and seeing how your idea works, or buying something like the Sparkfun watch and messing with it. Learn from other people's designs and mistakes. Far cheaper in terms of time and money.
How are you going to make it water and electrolyte proof?