Hacker Con Badges

HOPE XV · United States · 2024

HOPE XV Electronic Badge

ESP32-C3 badge with Badge Clinic and MicroPython workflow

The HOPE XV Electronic Badge was issued to in-person attendees as an ESP32-C3 badge with purple attendee boards, black pro boards, case variants, 16 WS2812-class RGB LEDs, buttons, IR blast behavior, vibration feedback, open hardware files, and MicroPython hacking notes.

HOPE Hackers On Planet Earth United States New York ESP32-C3 MicroPython ESPHome WS2812 IR Badge Clinic SAO North America
HOPE XV Electronic Badge badge image
EventHOPE XV
SeriesHackers On Planet Earth
LocationSt. John's University, Queens, New York City
CountryUnited States

Image Provenance

Asset
optimized WebP from official upstream repository raster render
Status
licensed official upstream raster render
Source
graphics/boardrendfront.png
License
Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International
Attribution
Tido Klaassen / tidklaas/hip-badge repository contributors
Notes
Original 1030x820 PNG front board render downloaded from the HiP Badge open-hardware repository linked by the HOPE XV wiki and preserved in Public/images/source. The repository root delegates licensing to per-component COPYING files; graphics/COPYING is CC BY-SA 4.0. The published WebP delivery asset is an optimized derivative of the official upstream raster render, not a documentary HOPE XV attendee-board photo, event-gallery copy, generated placeholder, or social-media scrape. The published badge.gallery delivery file is an optimized WebP generated from the rights-cleared local derivative/source with metadata stripped, WebP quality 82, and a maximum side cap of 1600 pixels when the source is larger; upstream source URL, license, and attribution remain unchanged.

People

Authors & Credits

HiP Badge open-hardware repository owner and image-source publisher

Tido Klaassen

The HOPE wiki links the tidklaas/hip-badge repository as the open-hardware project behind the badge lineage; the selected front-board raster is from that repository's CC BY-SA 4.0 graphics component.

Source

badge support and repair village

Badge Clinic Team

The HOPE XV schedule identifies the Badge Clinic Team as host for the clinic serving HOPE electronic badges and other hacker-con badge devices.

Source

electronic badge hacking presenter and Badge Clinic lead

Michael Schloh von Bennewitz / MSvB

The HOPE XV schedule lists Michael Schloh von Bennewitz for ongoing Electronic Badge Hacking and names MSvB as chief electronic surgeon at The Badge Clinic.

Source

event, wiki, and badge documentation publisher

HOPE / 2600

Official HOPE pages and the HOPE wiki establish the event context, schedule, venue, and electronic badge documentation.

Source

Why It Mattered

It brings the New York HOPE lineage into the worldwide compendium as a modern North American conference badge where the event itself supported badge repair, assembly, classic-badge discussion, firmware experimentation, and open hardware continuity through The Badge Clinic.

Hardware

The official HOPE wiki documents an ESP32-C3 microcontroller, 16 WS2812 or similar RGB LEDs, an MCP73871 LiPo charge controller, IR LED behavior, vibration motor feedback, multiple attendee/pro board and case variants, unpopulated components in the BOM, and two SAO-style connector positions in the KiCad-derived bill of materials.

Software & Apps

The HOPE wiki links firmware and ESPHome paths, documents MicroPython flashing for ESP32-C3 via esptool.py, serial console access, mpremote file-copy and run workflows, LED NeoPixel snippets, button snippets, and a warning that replacing firmware can erase the HOPE firmware image.

Lore

The HOPE XV schedule records both ongoing Electronic Badge Hacking and The Badge Clinic across the event, with Badge Clinic nurses helping attendees assemble, repair, explore features, hack badges, and discuss HOPE electronic badges plus other hacker-con badge artifacts.

Lifecycle

Add-ons & Upgrades

badge-to-badge interaction source-backed

IR blast and vibration interaction

The wiki says the fourth button sends an IR blast to nearby badges, making their lights flash and motor vibrate.

Compatibility: HOPE XV Electronic Badge

Source
event support historical

Badge Clinic support track

The official schedule and wiki describe a Badge Clinic where attendees could get help with assembly, features, repairs, hacking, and historical badge questions.

Compatibility: HOPE XV Electronic Badge

Source
firmware workflow documented

ESPHome firmware path

The wiki points badge hackers to an ESPHomeBadge path as an alternative way to write firmware for the HOPE XV badge.

Compatibility: HOPE XV Electronic Badge

Source
firmware workflow documented

MicroPython badge workflow

The wiki documents erasing and flashing ESP32-C3 MicroPython firmware, using serial console access, running scripts with mpremote, and copying code to run at boot.

Compatibility: HOPE XV Electronic Badge

Source
hardware architecture source-backed

ESP32-C3 RGB badge core

The HOPE wiki documents an ESP32-C3 badge core with 16 WS2812-class RGB LEDs and attendee-facing light-pattern controls.

Compatibility: HOPE XV Electronic Badge

Source

Operational history

Issues & Camp Impact

firmware-artifact caveat note

The wiki references firmware, ESPHome, user manuals, and MicroPython workflows, but this pass does not mirror or audit every firmware image, manual PDF, pro-model component variant, or Badge Clinic artifact.

The catalogue records verified hardware and hacking surfaces while leaving complete firmware and variant preservation for a later artifact-level pass.

Confidence
source-backed but incomplete
Status
needs deeper artifact inventory
Timeframe
current HOPE XV pass
Source note
HOPE XV Electronic Badge wiki, HOPE schedule, and linked open-hardware repository.
image provenance note

The HOPE XV visual uses the `graphics/boardrendfront.png` upstream front-board raster from the HiP Badge open-hardware repository linked by the HOPE wiki.

The record now has a rights-cleared official upstream raster render with source URL, CC BY-SA 4.0 component license, attribution, local source preservation, and optimized WebP delivery while keeping the wiki's unlicensed front/back photos unpublished.

Confidence
repository component license and exact raster source
Status
licensed official upstream render applied
Timeframe
current catalogue build
Source note
HOPE XV Electronic Badge wiki, tidklaas/hip-badge `graphics/boardrendfront.png`, `graphics/COPYING`, and badge.gallery image policy.
open-hardware lineage caveat note

The HOPE wiki links the HiP Badge repository as open hardware and notes repository uncertainty in the page text, so this pass treats it as linked lineage rather than a fully audited HOPE-specific release mirror.

The catalogue records the public open-hardware path while avoiding stronger claims about every production file until a deeper repository audit is done.

Confidence
source-backed but incomplete
Status
documented with caution
Timeframe
current HOPE XV pass
Source note
HOPE XV Electronic Badge wiki and tidklaas/hip-badge GitLab project.

Resources

HOPE XV Electronic Badge permalink versioned wiki page · Versioned HOPE wiki page used to lock the current badge facts and page timestamp for this catalogue pass. HOPE XV Electronic Badge wiki official wiki · HOPE wiki source for attendee and pro badge variants, ESP32-C3 hardware, 16 RGB LEDs, IR and vibration behavior, open hardware, firmware, MicroPython, BOM, and user-manual links. HOPE XV about page event page · Official event source for the 15th Hackers On Planet Earth conference, July 12-14, 2024 dates, in-person St. John's University campus context, and HOPE lineage. HOPE XV schedule schedule · Official schedule source for ongoing Electronic Badge Hacking and The Badge Clinic entries, presenters, village context, and badge-support framing. HOPE XV venue page venue page · Official venue source for St. John's University in Queens, New York City. HiP Badge front board render image source · Exact `graphics/boardrendfront.png` upstream repository raster used as the local source image for the HOPE XV record because the HOPE wiki links this project as the badge open-hardware source. HiP Badge graphics license license · Component license source for the selected upstream front-board raster; the repository root delegates licensing to per-component COPYING files and `graphics/COPYING` is CC BY-SA 4.0. HiP Badge open hardware project hardware source · Open-hardware repository linked by the HOPE wiki for the badge hardware lineage and KiCad-derived source material.

Sources

GitLab: tidklaas/hip-badge Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Open hardware project linked by the HOPE wiki for the badge's hardware source lineage. GitLab / tidklaas: graphics/boardrendfront.png Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Image-provenance source for the CC BY-SA 4.0 upstream front-board raster used as the optimized HOPE XV visual; the HOPE wiki links this repository as the badge's open-hardware source while separately documenting purple attendee boards and black pro boards. GitLab / tidklaas: graphics/COPYING Retrieved 2026-05-15 · License source for the selected `graphics/boardrendfront.png` upstream raster; the root project license file says component licenses live in their own COPYING files, and the graphics component COPYING file is CC BY-SA 4.0. HOPE: HOPE XV About Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Official source for HOPE XV dates, 15th-event status, Hackers On Planet Earth expansion, St. John's campus context, and in-person/online event framing. HOPE: HOPE XV Venue Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Official source for St. John's University in Queens, New York City as the HOPE XV venue. HOPE / pretalx: HOPE XV Schedule Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Official schedule source for ongoing Electronic Badge Hacking, The Badge Clinic, Michael Schloh von Bennewitz, Badge Clinic Team, and the clinic's badge repair, assembly, museum, and advisory scope. HOPE Wiki: HOPE XV Electronic Badge Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Primary badge source for attendee/pro variants, ESP32-C3, 16 WS2812-class LEDs, LiPo charge controller, IR blast behavior, vibration feedback, open hardware, BOM, user manuals, firmware, and MicroPython workflow. HOPE Wiki: HOPE XV Electronic Badge oldid 10460 Retrieved 2026-05-15 · Versioned wiki source preserving the page state used for the current catalogue facts and page edit date.