Dockframe – modular USB hub compatible with Framework Expansion Cards

The Multimeter and Power Supply Cards use browser apps over USB or Bluetooth LE, with charts, browser-side logging and CSV export. The Power Supply Card also supports browser control over Wi-Fi and measures voltage and current on both input and output. The Supercharger output also carries USB data, so it supports a wired USB connection for instrument control and compatible firmware updates. Bluetooth LE and Power Supply Wi-Fi remain wireless options. No dedicated desktop or mobile app is required. Firmware and browser apps will receive updates.

For automation, the instrument cards expose the same line protocol over USB serial and Bluetooth LE. The Mini Hub needs no app, and the BreadBoard Card uses the XIAO module’s development tools. See our browser-app setup guide.

We strongly believe in the right to repair, which is why DockFrame is modular, fixable, and built to last. It is developed in the open, but the design files are not public yet. Once the campaign ends, we open everything: PCB schematics and layouts, the firmware on each MCU, the browser apps, and the FreeCAD case files with STEP and STL exports, so you can print your own enclosure. The hardware will be licensed under CERN-OHL-S and the firmware under MIT. We also plan to apply for Open Source Hardware Association certification. The full release publishes on our GitHub page when the campaign ends.

The current product specification is a Power Supply Card with adjustable 0.8–20 V output, up to 3 A, input/output voltage and current measurement, and browser control over USB, Bluetooth LE or Wi-Fi. Continuous output is thermally limited. The Multimeter Card supports DC and AC voltage/current, resistance, capacitance and inductance, with DC limits of ±60 V and 2 A; AC limits are 60 V peak and 2 A peak. See the measurement qualifications below. Images show prototypes; final enclosure fit and production validation remain to be completed.

Cards use the Framework Expansion Card interface. Final overall dimensions, including instrument connectors, will be confirmed per card after mechanical validation.