Open Neuroscience (@open-neuroscience.com)

BeeHive: A flexible open electronics platform for controlling research equipment and teaching electronics principles In this manuscript we present BeeHive, a standardized, open-source hardware electronics ecosystem designed to address challenges faced by researchers when developing custom scientific equipment. Beehive is flexible and interoperable, since it is organised around minimal design rules. It consists of a microcontroller-based mainboard and function-specific Daughter Boards (DBs) for controlling actuators or reading sensors, allowing researchers to rapidly combine and repurpose components to build complex, specialized systems. This modular approach significantly reduces the time and cost associated with instrumentation development, promoting effective collaboration through shared, standardized solutions. The platform's versatility is demonstrated across several neuroscience applications, including a reward delivery system for head-fixed mice, a modular mouse maze, and an odour stimulator, alongside a dedicated Training DB and curriculum designed to teach electronics and MicroPython programming in an integrated, project-based manner. By embracing open-source principles for hardware and software, BeeHive lowers the barrier to entry for researchers in developing their own setups, fostering greater accessibility, reproducibility, and innovation. The system is also discipline agnostic, and could be used to create tools in different fields. https://preprints.scielo.org/index.php/scielo/preprint/view/15694