I Built an Open-Source Insulin Pump with a Raspberry Pi Pico W 🩺💡
Hi DEV community!
I'm Rune a maker, student, and type 1 diabetic. Over the past year, I’ve been working on something I care deeply about: an open-source insulin pump. The goal? To explore how we can better understand and democratize medical technology through engineering, transparency, and community collaboration.
💡 The Idea
I wanted to understand how insulin pumps work under the hood and what better way than to build one myself? With a Raspberry Pi Pico W, some 3D-printed components, and a whole lot of reverse engineering, I’ve built multiple working prototypes of a programmable insulin pump.
🔧 What I’ve Done So Far
- Developed multiple working versions of the pump
- Implemented and tested basic insulin dosing logic
- Designed a simple UI + wireless communication via the Pico W
- Shared all code, hardware designs, and logs on GitHub
- Got incredible feedback from people with diabetes, engineers & makers
- Featured in Raspberry Pi Magazine
- Won Most Advanced Project at Coolest Projects
- Building toward a community-driven, safer, and smarter future
🤝 Want to Get Involved?
I'm now thinking about organizing an online hackathon around medical devices to encourage more makers to explore open hardware in healthcare. If that’s something you’d be interested in helping with or joining, please reach out!
💬 I’m also always open to collaborators, especially those with experience in:
- Embedded systems
- Safety-critical software
- Medical hardware
- Or… living with diabetes!
🔗 GitHub Repo
🧵 Let’s Connect
Got feedback, ideas, or questions? Drop them in the comments or message me I'd love to hear your thoughts.
#raspberrypi #opensource #hardware #medicaldevices #diabetes #iot #3dprinting #hackathon #embedded #makers #reverseengineering